Romans 5 (Pt 2)

Romans 5:17 (ESV)

[17] For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.

Death and sin reigned, but in Christ we will reign and righteousness does reign. That word “reign” runs through the last two paragraphs of Romans 5. Death reigned (verses 14, 17). Those who receive grace and the free gift of righteousness reign (verse 17). “As sin reigned in death grace also might reign through righteousness” (verse 21). Death reigned. Believers will reign. Grace reigns. Sin results in the reign of death. The free gift of righteousness results in the reign of grace and the future reign of believers.

 To be honest, we don’t talk about reigning much anymore. The United States of America was founded on the idea that a king was a bad idea. In our culture there is a repulsiveness to the idea of ruling or reigning. Reigning feels controlling, manipulative, and constricting in a culture that values freedom. What we fail to recognize is that either sin reigns or grace reigns. The so called freedom of our day is truly a bondage to King Sin. It manipulates. It controls. It destroys. Sin offers all that we desire, but delivers only ashes and death. Either we are ruled by sin, or we are ruled by grace.

 The rule of grace is a rule of righteousness. Thayer’s Greek Lexicon says that the word “righteousness” means “in the broad sense, the state of him who is such as he ought to be . . . the condition acceptable to God.” People were designed in the image of God to reign over creation. We were not designed to abuse creation, worship creation, nor even submit to creation. Creation was designed to function best under our oversight. Grace reigns by restoring people to their created state of holiness in the image of a holy God. Grace reigns by reconciling us to the God we sought to replace through self-absorption. Grace reigns by setting the order of creation upright.

It is a now and not yet reign. When people move from the reign of sin to the reign of grace by faith, they are reconciled to God and restored, yet the fullness of their reign is yet to be seen. There is a day coming when all things will be set right. There is coming a day when ours will be a reign in which creation again cooperates. There is coming a day when because of the reign of grace in righteousness we too will reign as we were designed to do. Sin reigned. Grace reigns. Believers will reign. Celebrate that truth!