Old Testament: Deuteronomy 19 & 20
Poetry: Job 37
New Testament: Romans 5
I remember it like it was yesterday – okay maybe more like a couple days ago. While attending the Atlanta Bible College, I had the privilege of studying God’s word and living with “the guys”. We got along great, and to this day they are some of my closest friends. While we got along great, we would often be confronted with our strong, opposing opinions on various topics – most of which would have little to no bearing on our quality of life. One such topic was what we would do if we were in a situation where our child and wife’s lives were in danger and we could only save one of them. Mind you, this was coming from a handful of guys who at the time had no wife or any children. Regardless, we had pretty strong thoughts and feelings on what we would do in such a situation. We spoke as men with a lot of conviction in what we were saying.
I’m guessing you have had similar discussions or thoughts. What would you do if a loved one of yours was on the cusp of death? Would you give up your own life for the life of someone else? Maybe you too speak on similar topics with such conviction. We may talk a big game, but when it comes down to it, it would be so hard to pinpoint how exactly we would respond in a life-or-death scenario.
Not many people would die for a good person. On top of that, fewer people would die for their enemies – that is almost unheard of. I can only think of one example of someone willingly dying for their enemies. Paul sheds light on this one example in Romans 5:6-11. That one example is Christ dying for the ungodly, the sinners, and the enemies of God. Paul is talking about you and I! Christ died for us while we were enemies. In addition to Christ dying for the ungodly, the sinners, and the enemies of God, contemplate the fact that God sent his son to die for the ungodly, the sinners, and his enemies.
If it came down to it, I’m not sure the number of people I would be willing to die for. That’s a hard scenario to consider. What I can guarantee you is the number of people I would send my child to die for is incredibly smaller. We could go on and on about the love that God has for us by sending his own son to die for the ungodly, the sinners, and the enemies of God – you and I!
Now, we have to be careful pointing out that while Paul is essentially talking about you and I when discussing who Christ died for, Paul identifies us by our former identities. We WERE ungodly. We WERE sinners. We WERE enemies of God. Paul seems to imply that all of this changes through Christ Jesus. No longer are we identified as ungodly sinners who are enemies of God. Instead, we are identified by our right standing with God through the works of Christ Jesus. We WERE sinners, but Paul states, “we HAVE BEEN justified,” (Romans 5:1).
Paul continues along these same lines near the end of chapter five, as he compares and contrasts the likes of Adam and Jesus. When talking about these two, Paul states, “For as by the one man’s (Adam) disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s (Jesus) obedience the many will be made righteous,” (Romans 5:19). You and I are now justified and redeemed all because there is a God who sent his son to die for us while we were ungodly, sinners, and his enemies. Through this one act of love, everything changed for us.
-Kyle McClain
Reflection Questions
- What does Paul teach us about God and Jesus and the relationship between these two?
- How have you been an enemy of God? Are you still an enemy of God? Have you accepted the gift of God’s salvation that was made possible by the death of His son?
- How would you try to describe God’s love to someone who has never read Romans 5? Who does God want you to tell about His love?
Seek Grow Love 