Romans 5 part 2 (Carlell and Rich)

by ctarter · Published October 16, 2013 · Updated March 17, 2016

Identity Connection

ROMANS 5:12 to 5:21

This teaching is all about identity connection: What it means to be justified in Christ and also, once we do that, our connection to Christ and what our new identity is. The teaching here was led by Carlell and Rich.

People often have misconceptions of salvation: Carlell explains how he grew up in a pentecostal church where there was dancing, singing and speaking in tongues (gibberish, basically). He said his old church had a twisted view of salvation, trying to make people believe that you can accept Christ, but that once you do, you can lose your salvation. That is NOT what the Bible says.

BEFORE ACCEPTING CHRIST

Salvation is a very deep topic, but before talking about what the Bible says here, we need to learn about what we are like BEFORE we accept Christ.

Colossians 1:21 — Although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds…

We were enemies of God before we accept Christ for salvation! Just because you do “good deeds,” it doesn’t mean you’re “OK” with God.

Romans 1:29-32 — …being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful; and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of DEATH, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.

We all fit at least ONE item on this list or can relate to it. So you can never say you’ve not been a little untrustworthy or unloving. We all fit that description. Re-read Romans 1:32.

Romans 1:32 — … and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death …

We are worthy of death. So if you are still convinced you just have to be a good person to be OK with God and go to heaven, re-read Romans 1:21 to the end. Our hearts are foolish and futile, and can be darkened.

It’s clear what is wrong in the above passage: Being a fool, worshiping other gods, avoiding God, living for yourself. People can avoid God by putting God in a box (ie: When people only acknowledge God on Easter or Christmas, thinking, “Oh, man, it’s that time of year again. I guess I can pray and acknowledge God today…”). You can’t avoid God, though. If you still think being a good person is all it takes to be OK with God, then ask yourself: Is your life submissive to God? Are you letting God have the authority in your life?

We all have that attitude described in the end of Romans 1 before we accept Christ’s grace. It’s painful, but we have to know that’s how it is before we can even accept his grace.

THREE POINTS OF SALVATION

1- Forgiveness: He will still forgive us, knowing we don’t really care. But God still initiates with us. Crazy. We’ve done some gross things and have serious sins, but God will take it on. He knows we’re messed up and he still cares to initiate with us.

Romans 5:8 — But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

We are God’s enemies, yet he died for us and wanted to associate with us. God is all about forgiving, as Jesus took on full wrath for us: For our individual sins in the past, present, future. It’s a one time deal, and not something you have to do every time you sin. You just do it one time. It’s open and available to everyone in the world.

2- Justification:

Romans 5:9 — Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him.

Justification goes beyond forgiveness. Justification means to acquit someone and find them NOT guilty. God is waiving all the charges of our sins and taking them on himself. It’s a great feeling to be justified in Christ. It means we are no longer God’s enemy! We are in Him and he in us.

3- Reconciliation:

Romans 5:10 — For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.

What does that mean? It means God made peace with us. Peace can be made with one another, but a change MUST occur for there to be peace. We have a peace after accepting salvation!

What change do we need to do once we accept Christ? What does that mean for us?

An attitude of graditude change!

Having graditude, you can’t just sit with it. You have to go out and share what you’re grateful for. If you have this clean slate, share with others and tell people about how awesome this is now, once you have salvation. Share how others can get forgiven, justified and reconciled.

If you don’t have salvation, urge you to ask questions and investigate more. It’s not hard, it’s easy to do!

Romans 10:9 — that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved

You would think God would make it harder, but it’s not. Just confess to God Jesus is your savior and that you believe and you are saved. THAT EASY!

Romans 10:11 — For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in Him will not be [h]disappointed.”

God will fill a void, a sense of emptiness you have. He teaches you how to love and to make life work. God doesn’t make it hard: He fulfills us and you won’t be disappointed.

Our Human Identity

Did anyone have to teach us to be liars or selfish? No! Even if we have good intentions, our good intentions are often selfish and don’t work out. We’re going to start talking about identity. In college, we look to see what our purpose is in life and how we find it and how we should then live. That’s the purpose here: Finding who you are. And God lays it all out in Romans 5: Identity Connection.

Romans 5:12 — Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned—

Who is this one man? Adam from Genesis…the first man created. Our identity comes from Adam. If you don’t know this story, Genesis 3: Adam and Eve were in the garden of Eden. God told them they could eat any food do anything BUT God commanded them not to eat from the Tree of Good and Evil. God gave Adam a choice to obey him. And Adam said, “Nope.” I don’t want to obey you or let you be an authority in my life…I’m going to eat from the tree! And that act meant he rejected God. So what happened? Death and alienation from God!

And death was passed on to all humans.

Sure, we didn’t sin like Adam. But we were affected by Adam’s sin, choosing to say no to God.

Romans 5:14 — Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam, who is a [i]type of Him who was to come.

We are the way we are because Adam.

Romans 5:19 — For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous.

It’s all because of ONE sin that we ALL suffer and have a sinful nature. Ever wonder about our rebellion? We’re not sinners because of what we do, but because of who we are. It’s our identity connection with Adam. What we do arises out of our being, NOT what we do.

Many Christians believe their identity is based on what they “do.” But this is not the case if you read the Bible! It’s a big issue and being like the Pharisees. Jesus says this is wrong.

Matthew 23:25 — “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full [w]of robbery and self-indulgence.

Pharisees were about looking good on the outside, and Jesus says this is wrong. No matter how clean you “look,” you are still sinful in your heart. Jesus Christ SAW through the Pharisees “moral makeup.” The Pharisees looked like good guys, but in their hearts, they had huge issues and sin…a rebellion toward God.

Our identity is based in Adam.

So is this fair? We weren’t in the garden, nor did we choose to rebel against God. Shouldn’t we get to decide whether we want to rebel against God? Is it fair we’re connected to Adam? No. It’s not fair. But the truth is, we all have free will. Our free will decisions have outcomes and consequences.

Well, think in America. A LOT of countries hate Americans: Korea, Russia, etc. Say they decided one day to send a bomb our way. That’s not fair! But we can’t just call Russia and be like, “Hey! That’s not fair!” because we’re about to die. Their free will affects us. And it’s the SAME way with Adam.

We can’t blame God for this because humans threw off God’s leadership and we inherited Adam’s sin nature.

So how do we get rid of sin nature? It’s possible and it’s through death.

Romans 5:12 — Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned—

Romans 6:23 — For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 3:23 — All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

So death spread to humanity. But God made a way for us to have freedom from this identity with Adam.

Romans 5:17 — For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.

Romans 5:18 — So then as through one transgression [m]there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness [n]there resulted justification of life to all men.

Romans 5:19 — For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous.

These verses are similar, saying one man led us all to death. But ONE MAN saved us: Jesus Christ. And God offers us a connection to Jesus Christ, freeing us from our slavery to death and sin.

Romans 6:3-4 — Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.

Baptize! What does it mean? To be put into or to immerse. That’s what it means. So many of us think “baptize” is some religious word where there’s a baby who’s thrown into a pool. No! This word got tangled into religion. “To put into” or “to immerse.”

Baptize = put into Christ’s death AND Christ’s resurrection to new life. God wants to connect us to Jesus Christ. Give us this identity connection to NEW life.

And this ties to the deep issues in our hearts we struggle with all the time. God will see us like this–like his son, Jesus Christ, if we come to him for forgiveness. Adam sinned, so did we and we are alienated from God. BUT if we come to Christ, our “Adam” dies and we rise just like Jesus, spiritually. And God will see us just like he sees Christ. He doesn’t see someone who’s sinful anymore, but he sees Christ–someone who is perfect who loves him. We are dead to our old identity, raised up like Christ.

We can walk around this world, afraid of death OR we can be set free from past mistakes, failures and all the terrible embarrassments in our lives.

1 Corinthians 2:9 — but just as it is written, “Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him.”

God has awesome plans and promises for us: A whole new set of rules and horizon. Tonight can be your first night for all of eternity if you make that decision. Carlell talked about forgiveness, and Jesus Christ is more than just a moral guru. He is the son of God who is here to forgive you for your sins. If you ask God for forgiveness, it means a relationship with Christ and you will be saved forever. All we’ve done is forgiven. And you will be justified with God, slate wiped clean and you can come to God with boldness. You will be reconciled.

What’s holding you up on this? What’s stopping you?

If you’re a believer, Ephesians 2:12,13, 19 — remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, [i]excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off [j]have been brought near [k]by the blood of Christ…. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the [p]saints, and are of God’s household,

We are saints, no longer strangers to God. Saints mean we are whole in Jesus Christ. That guilt and the sorrows you have and the bad self image of yourself (feeling worthless), you can flush that down the toilet (those ideas are from Satan). Because we have everything in Christ! And we can change our hearts: Serve him, tell people about him and have gratitude.