Grace Upon Grace

I.  Six Pillars of Our Security in Grace - Romans 5:1-11

Our Peace with God
Romans 5:1
Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us.

Colossians 1:21-22
21 This includes you who were once far away from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions. 22 Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault.

Our Position in Grace
Romans 5:2a
2 Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand,

Our Hope of Glory
Romans 5:2b- 5a
and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.
3 We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. 4 And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. 5 And this hope will not lead to disappointment.

Philippians 3:20-21
20 But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. 21 He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control.

Our Possession of Divine Love
Romans 5:5b-8
For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love. 6 When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. 7 Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. 8 But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.

Our Certainty of Deliverance from Divine Wrath
Romans 5:9-10
9 And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. 10 For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son.

Our Joy in the Lord
Romans 5:11
11 So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.

Psalm 43:4
4 There I will go to the altar of God, to God—the source of all my joy.
I will praise you with my harp, O God, my God!

II. Adam’s Sin Reigns over all Mankind - Romans 5:12-14

1 Corinthians 15:22
22 Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life.

Sin Entered the World through Adam
Romans 5:12a
When Adam sinned, sin entered the world.

Death Entered the World through Sin
Romans 5:12b
Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone,

Death Spread to all Mankind
Romans 5:12c-14
for everyone sinned. 13 Yes, people sinned even before the law was given. But it was not counted as sin because there was not yet any law to break. 14 Still, everyone died—from the time of Adam to the time of Moses—even those who did not disobey an explicit commandment of God, as Adam did. Now Adam is a symbol, a representation of Christ, who was yet to come.

III. Christ’s Grace Reigns over all Redeemed Mankind – Romans 5:15-21

Christ’s Grace was Effective
Romans 5:15
15 But there is a great difference between Adam’s sin and God’s gracious gift. For the sin of this one man, Adam, brought death to many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of forgiveness to many through this other man, Jesus Christ.

2 Timothy 1:10
10 And now he has made all of this plain to us by the appearing of Christ Jesus, our Savior. He broke the power of death and illuminated the way to life and immortality through the Good News. (Gospel)

Christ’s Grace was Extensive
Romans 5:16
16 And the result of God’s gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man’s sin. For Adam’s sin led to condemnation, but God’s free gift leads to our being made right with God, even though we are guilty of many sins.

2 Corinthians 5:21
21 For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.

Christ’s Grace was Essential
Romans 5:17-21
17 For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ.
18 Yes, Adam’s one sin brings condemnation for everyone, but Christ’s one act of righteousness brings a right relationship with God and new life for everyone. 19 Because one person disobeyed God, many became sinners. But because one other person obeyed God, many will be made righteous. 20 God’s law was given so that all people could see how sinful they were. But as people sinned more and more, God’s wonderful grace became more abundant. 21 So just as sin ruled over all people and brought them to death, now God’s wonderful grace rules instead, giving us right standing with God and resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.