Pastor Barry's  "Chapter & Verse"  2024  Day 67

March 7;        Romans 5:10;          122/260;          ‘Reconciled and Saved’

Romans 5:10 For if when 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.

In this verse, the meaning of the word ‘enemies’ is unsaved, estranged from God. Enemies in the sense that we were not born again, not children of the Living God. We had no hope and were without God in this world (Ephesians 2:12). God the Father would not allow us to remain in this condition. He made reconciliation available to us through the redemptive work of the Lord Jesus Christ on our behalf. ‘Reconciled’ means to change from enmity to friendship. Reconciliation is what God the Father accomplishes, exercising His grace toward sinful man of the grounds of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice for us. The Father did not and still does not want anyone to perish. They do not have to, since Jesus’ sacrifice on our behalf is a reality and documented in great detail in the Word of God for all to see. This verse goes on to say that not only did the Lord Jesus reconcile us back to the Father, but we also shall be saved by His life. I believe this has two meanings. First, ‘saved’ means, among other things healed, made whole, rescued, doing well. All of these things are legally ours when we become a Christian. They were also demonstrated by the Lord Jesus, whose life is our Example as well as His being our Savior. Second, ‘saved’ means that we can live our lives exactly as Jesus did, healed, whole, rescued and doing well. Our reconciliation back to the Father through Jesus Christ blesses us with eternal life in heaven with Jesus. Being reconciled also allows us to live an abundant, saved life, now. How blessed we are.