LIVING WATERS
For the proclamation of the Gospel and the edification of the Body of Christ
Receiving in Order to Reign
"For if by the transgression of one man death reigned through the one, much more they that receive the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness shall reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:17).
This is a word that awakens the spiritual appetite of the believer who seeks to please the Lord, and a word of encouragement for those who have faced difficulties in their christian life, either because of their own failures or because they have been let down by others. Paul, inspired by the grace of the Lord, challenges us in a wonderful way. We can reign in this life, if only we will receive the abundant grace that is offered to us!
We know that Adam's transgression and fall left us with all the consequences that we see on a daily basis in ourselves and in the evils that plague humanity. The expression, ‘...I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want, I do’ (Rom. 7:19), sums up the drama of the human race. There is no area of human endeavour that does not bear this mark. For example, we know the damage we cause to the environment every day, yet we continue to pollute it; we know that certain foods are harmful to our health, yet we continue to consume them. And so, we could list many examples.
Man remains a slave to the principle of good and evil: he knows what’s good without being able to do it, and recognises evil without being able to avoid it. It is the Adam syndrome, he whose transgression brought us into death: – pain, impotence and failure in all its forms.
In contrast, the expression “much more” has the power to give us hope, for, as witnesses to the fatal effectiveness of the “Adamic” principle – we see death everywhere – what is now offered to us must be much more effective, for Christ is unquestionably much greater than the transgressor, Adam.
Our Lord Jesus Christ provided us with a new beginning; His precious blood washed away all our sins (the memory of which no longer causes us distress, another form of death); His death on the cross has become our death, for “we are crucified with Christ” (Gal. 2:20), and even more, we were “raised up with him” (Eph. 2:6). What is this if not ‘the abundance of his grace’?
The forgiveness of sins is a wonderful experience for the believer; however, if he does not receive all of God's provision in Christ, if he has not appropriated the death and resurrection of the Lord, he is still struggling in his own strength. This explains the failure of many Christians: those who are content with only the initial experience of receiving forgiveness are easy prey to discouragement; death reigns over them.
The abundance of grace, which the apostle invites us to receive, includes the fullness of the work and person of our Lord Jesus Christ. Let us therefore appropriate all that has been given to us in Christ. Receiving the abundance of His grace, we will reign in life, for having been buried with Him (Rom. 6:4), we were also raised with Him. The powerful life of resurrection—which we who belong to Christ have received—cannot be touched by death in any of its forms. Through it, standing firmly on this ground, in Christ, raised with him, we begin to reign in life.