Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

1 Corinthians 15

Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain. 1 Corinthians 15:58

I resume my study of 1 Corinthians, moving on to an unassisted review of 1 Corinthians 15:35-58. Today's text builds on Paul's focus on the resurrection providing further details on this important subject:

• vv38-41: God gives all life a body and sustains all in the universe
• vv42-43: All life is perishable but those in God are raised for eternity and made imperishable
• vv44-48: All life is born with a natural body but those in God have a spiritual body and it is Jesus - the last Adam - who gives those in Him this spiritual body
• vv49-53: those in Him have both the natural and spiritual body and upon death or the second coming of Jesus, we "shall be be changed" and "raised imperishable."
• vv54-57: Upon this glorification, believers will experience final victory over sin and death through Jesus who "gives us the victory"
• v58: In light of this victory we can look forward to, believers should press on and be encouraged!

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My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who is full of grace and compassion for me - giving me the certain promise of victory over sin and death.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of such blessings.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him. But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.

Hebrews 2

Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him. But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone. Hebrews 2:8-9

I continue my study of Hebrews, assisted by the commentary Christ Centered Exposition: Exalting Jesus in Hebrews. My focus this morning is Hebrews 2:5-9, the third of three divisions in Hebrews 2:1-9, and the commentary shares how these verses connect Genesis and the first Adam to Christ, and see "see Christ as the fulfillment and climax of [the creation story line], as the commentary refers to this final division as "honoring the coronation of the Last Adam."  The first Adam, made in God's image (Genesis 1:26), was given dominion over the earth and all of its inhabitants, and also commanded in Genesis 2:17 not to (see also Psalm 8 where David refers to the Creation story and Genesis 1-2) eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.  However, the commentary emphasizes that while "the first Adam failed to carry out the duties of image-bearing, the last Adam has succeeded." We are referred to 1 Corinthians 15:45-47 for Paul's writing on Christ as the "last Adam."  The commentary then moves to how Hebrews 2:5-9 highlights the tension in the "already-not yet aspect of the kingdom of God" where "[t]he kingdom of God and the reign of Christ are in some senses already inaugurated, yet we are still waiting for the kingdom’s consummation...We may not see all things subjected to him, but “we do see Jesus” who has fulfilled every aspect of the Old Testament and secured his regal throne in glory."  The commentary, then, comes back to the contrast between the first and Last Adam: "[Jesus] has been crowned with glory and honor because he has fulfilled his messianic task of suffering and death. The result of his suffering is redemptive. Christ has “[tasted] death for everyone.” The first Adam plunged humanity into sin and death; the last Adam was plunged into death for the sake of humanity. The work of the last Adam undoes the work of the first Adam.  As the One who fulfills the task originally given to Adam, Jesus represents the ideal man who bears God’s image rightly and exercises dominion over the cosmos. He has inherited the place of dominion spoken of in Psalm 8. He is superior to all things, including the angels."

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My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are so good and You have done what no other can do - You redeemed my life and sin and gave me salvation - thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of such a gift.  My sin is great and it continues.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come.

Romans 5:12-21

Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come. Romans 5:12-14

This morning, I continued my study of Romans.  Using my commentary - Exalting Jesus in Romans (eBook) - I moved on to chapter seven Christ's Triumph Over Sin and Death, which covers Romans 5:12-21.  My focus today is Romans 5:12-14 which my commentary refers to as The Conflict. Paul contrasts the life of Adam and that of Christ and the implications for all of both of their lives (and Christ's death). Paul refers to Adam as "a type of the one who was to come" - clearly referencing Jesus.  Like no others, these two lives led to consequences for all that followed, with Adam giving us sin and death and Jesus giving us forgiveness and justification, and of course life to the full now (John 10:10) and eternity in Heaven. 

My commentary describes this v12-21 as a contrast in the "grand story of redemption." It quotes Schreiner who states: "Adam and Christ are two of the most influential individuals in human history, and believers can take confidence because they belong to one who has overturned all that Adam introduced into the world."  It goes on to describe how the word "one" is used twelve times in v12-21, implying that there is either an "identification with Adam and/or with Christ....The major emphasis [of v12-21] is not on Adam's failure but on Christs triumph over sin and death."

Specifically in v12-14, my commentary examines the "great conflict" between sin and death as "Adam's fall introduced sin and death into the world." We are to notice the sequence in v12 (1) "sin entered the world through Adam, (2) death entered the world through sin, and (3) death spread to all humans because all sinned....[t]he effects of Adam's sin are universal."  Paul points to Jesus and I will explore more of this tomorrow starting in v15. 

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My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who died for me - giving me freedom from the sting of sin and death - thank You Jesus!  The greatest gift of all time - I am not deserving of such a gift...or of any of the blessings that You pour out for me.  My sin continues...worry, anger, etc. Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.