Bible in Romans, Paul Explains

Bible

In Romans, Paul explains the nature of eternal life as being reborn in Christ. Eternal life is a "gift" given by God as an act of grace (Copeland). Eternal life is the only alternative to death. "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord," (Romans 6:23). Eternal life is part of the process of spiritual renewal, because we shall be judged at the end of this life. Only by dying to sin may we be received by the Lord.

Being reborn in Christ is the first and only step towards eternal life. Paul describes being reborn in Christ as a process of death and rebirth. First we die to sin, and then become bonded anew to the Lord. We become "slaves of righteousness for holiness," (Romans 6:19). This means that we can no longer live according to the old ways and old habits. The new life consists only of the way of Christ. False faith in an outmoded law leads to perpetuation of sin and bondage, and even hell ("How does a person get to heaven?"). The reason why eternal life is necessary is that without it we are doomed to repeating the same sins over and over. We cannot escape from sin on our own, by our own will. Only God's grace can remove sin from our lives. Good works cannot alone fulfill our obligation to God. "Despite our obedience, we have not earned or merited this gift of eternal life," (Copeland).

Jesus represented the fulfillment of God's promise of salvation, outlined in the Old Testament. When Jesus absorbed all the sins of humanity, he created a new obligation for humanity. We became obliged to embrace and follow Christ, for to deny Christ is to deny God. To deny Christ is to embrace sin and Satan, because remaining enslaved to sin equals death.

Any person who wants eternal life must place faith in Christ and thereby become open to God's grace. The method of transmission is one-way, as God is pure whereas human beings are not. Paul makes it clear that all human beings are born to sin. "Our sin separates us from God who is perfect holiness (righteousness and justice) and God must therefore judge sinful man," (Keathley n.d.). It is absolutely impossible for a human being to work his or her way to God. All human acts are born of sin, whereas all acts of grace are born of righteousness.

The sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross was the ultimate sign of grace, as God sent his only Son to die so that we may also die to our sin. The process by which a person becomes reborn in Christ is expressed as follows. First we come to God "as a sinner who recognizes his sinfulness," (Keathley n.d.). We become willing to leave beside our old life and die to it. Following that we rely "totally on Christ alone by faith alone for our salvation," (Keathley n.d.). Once we receive Christ, we receive the Grace of God.