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WHEN WE WERE ENEMIES
"For if, when we
were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more,
being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life" (Romans 5:10, KJV).
This is a great
truth that most religious people fail to consider. They usually think that
they were reconciled when they believed or did enough good works to cancel
out their sins, or did this or did that. Our verse plainly tells us that the
Christians that Paul was writing to at Rome, and he himself, were reconciled
while they were yet the enemies of God. And may I ask, what was the ground
of that reconciliation? Well it was the death of God’s Son and nothing else.
And certainly this applies to all who will ever be saved.
Let’s now
examine what our scripture text did not say. It did not say "when we
believed we were reconciled to God by the death of his son."
Our faith had nothing to do with the reconciliation that was God-ward
and besides we are told that when we were yet enemies of God that we were
reconciled to God by the death of His Son. Dear reader, the Bible does say
we are saved by faith but nowhere will you find that we are reconciled to
God by faith. Saved speaks of our deliverance from sin and takes in a lot
under that umbrella. We are saved in a practical sense as well. Our lives
are changed and we do things differently after we are saved and all of that
through faith. For example the Bible says that Noah prepared the ark by
faith. That was a lot of work involved in that, was it not? But why did he
do such a thing when it had never rained before? Well the Book of Hebrews
tells us plainly. "By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as
yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the
which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is
by faith" (Hebrews 11:7). Now, if you really believed what God says and He
told you that He was about to bring a flood on the world to destroy it and
that you were to build an ark to save yourself and your family, what would
you do if you really believed Him? Sit there? Why you would move with fear
just as Noah did. So you see dear reader Noah built that ark because of
faith. He believed God.
Now back to that
word reconciliation that we read of in our opening verse. The word
reconciliation there is from the Greek word "katallasso" which has to do
with exchanging coins or things of equal value. Strong’s says, "to compound
a difference." It means to exchange one thing for another. One lexicon had
"exchange, as coins for others of equivalent value." It also means "to
reconcile those who are at variance." Have you ever heard of reconciling
your bank statement? That involves balancing it. So when we were yet enemies
of God the Lord balanced the difference totally. This has to do with the
legal aspect of our salvation. We had "ordinances" of God that were "against
us" that could not just be overlooked. We owed a debt to the law and it had
to be settled. And Jesus Christ settled it all; every last bit of it for His
people. Listen to Paul’s words concerning this very thing. "Blotting out
the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary
to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross"
(Colossians 2:14). Dear reader Jesus blotted out the entire debt of all who
will ever be saved. And he nailed that debt to his cross and took it ALL out
of the way while they were yet in unbelief. And the sobering fact is that He
did this before we ever knew anything about it or had any concern for it.
Let me give you
an earthly analogy. Let’s say that you owed a banker one million dollars and
you had no means to pay the debt. Unknown to you someone who you did not
even like went and paid the entire debt for you. Now, is the debt paid or is
it not? Will the banker come to you and require anything of you concerning
this debt? Not if he is a just man. That may not be the best analogy that
could be used but it illustrates the point. Isaiah said, "He shall see of
the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my
righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities" (Isaiah
53:11). The Father and the Son both are completely satisfied with what Jesus
did and all for whom he did that will be justified in time, for he bore
their iniquities. Paul tells us that
Jesus hath "made peace through the blood of his cross."
Now with
reconciliation there is that part that is God-ward but there is a part that
is man-ward as well. The American Heritage Dictionary definition says "To
settle or resolve, as a dispute; To establish friendship between."
John Gill says, "Reconciliation implies a former state of friendship, a
breach of the friendship, and a making it up again." Of course this former
state of friendship was in Adam before the fall because we were born spiritually dead in
trespasses in sin. So, Jesus Christ has reconciled the elect of God when they
were enemies by his sacrifice on the cross. God had made him who knew no sin
to be sin for us that we might be made the righteousness of God in him (see
2 Corinthians 5:21). But He did not leave us in that state of unbelief and
being His enemies. As Paul said in our opening verse "much more." We are told that since we were
reconciled to God by the death of His Son, while we were yet enemies, we
shall receive that reconciliation and be saved by His life. It is a sure thing. Those that He reconciled
will be saved and not one will be lost. The Lord will find all of His lost
sheep and will not lose one of them. Now because we were still at enmity
with God and that because we were dead in our sins, God was pleased to
quicken us to life from that dead state, yea, and will quicken all His elect
in time. You see, the carnal mind, which we all have being lost, is at
enmity with God. There is a need of reconciliation on our end. Paul said, "Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject
to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh
cannot please God" (Romans 8:7-8). Oh saved Christian, this is the way we
were "but God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved
us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ,
(by grace ye are saved)" (Ephesians 2:4-5).
At the moment of faith we who were at enmity with God became friends
with God. Repentance and faith came by grace in regeneration and we were
reconciled unto God in our minds and were now His friend and now we had and
do have the
"peace of God which passeth all understanding". "And the scripture
was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him
for righteousness: and he was called the "Friend of God" (James 2:23).
But dear reader all of this has its foundation in the reconciliation that
took place at the cross. Back in Romans we are told by Paul in the next
verse, "And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus
Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement." The word atonement is
from the Greek word "katallage" which comes from the same Greek word
translated "reconciled" in the previous verse. So Christ reconciled His
sheep at the cross and then in time they are quickened and receive the
reconciling by what He has done in their stead and that new nature that they
are given in regeneration joys in God.
Let me ask a
question at this point. Can a dead tree produce fruit?
You say of course not. So what is
faith? Well, Paul tells us in Galatians 5:22 that faith is the fruit of the
Spirit. Philippians 1:29 tells us that it is a gift of God. So how can a
sinner who is spiritually dead according to Ephesians 2:1 & 5 have faith if
it is the fruit of the Spirit? Dear reader all of this (repentance and
faith) is the result of the reconciliation that Christ would do for the Old
Testament saints and has done for the New Testament saints. It is all
because of Him and not of us. All we can do is praise him for saving our old
wretched souls. "But as many as received him, to them gave he power to
become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were
born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man,
but of God" (John 1:12-13).
Jesus said, "Ye must BE born again."
"And she shall
bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he
shall save his people from their
sins" (Matthew 1:21).
To the lost the
question becomes this. Are you in need of reconciliation? Have your sins
separated you from a thrice holy God? Do you know that "It is a fearful
thing to fall into the hands of the living God" (Hebrews 10:31)? Are your
sins so heavy upon your soul that you cannot bear the load any longer? Well,
Jesus says this, "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and
I will give you rest" (Matthew 11;28). Paul said, "This is a faithful
saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world
to save sinners; of whom I am chief" (1 Timothy 1:15). Do you see
yourself as the "chief of sinners"? If so then come to Christ. If you say, "No, I am not such a bad person." Then the invitation is not for you. As one
preacher said, "I am looking for sinners!"
May God have
mercy on lost sinners!
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