Romans, Part 5

Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness (Romans 4:1-25), continued

Romans 4:18-25 – Abraham believed God would bring life to a dead womb (Sarah and Issac). We believe God brought life to a dead tomb (Jesus). We share the type of faith Abraham had. Compare Hebrews 11:8-19.

Romans 5:1 – Paul now begins to focus on people under the New Covenant. We are “justified by faith” when we have the same kind of faith that Abraham had.
Romans 5:2 – Jesus has given us access to the grace of God. We rejoice in that grace because we now have hope.
Romans 5:3-5 – Even tribulations don’t get us down, because we recognize them as opportunities for growth and maturation.
Romans 5:6-8 – A righteous person is one who will abide by the law exactly. A good person goes beyond and shows mercy and compassion. Christ died for us while we were enemies with God.
Romans 5:9-11 – We have no power to reconcile ourselves to God. God made it possible through Christ. See II Corinthians 5:18-21, 15.

Romans 5:12 – Adam ate the forbidden fruit and sin entered the world. This section draws a parallel between Adam and Jesus. This spiritual death spread to all because all sinned.
Romans 5:15-16 – What Adam did led to condemnation. What Jesus did led to justification. Note that if all died because of Adam’s sin, then all were saved by Jesus, but clearly the Bible does not teach this.