>>>

Romans 6:23 - The Greatest Gift Ever.

Romans 6:23 (REB) For sin pays a wage, and the wage is death, but God gives freely, and his gift is eternal life in union with Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 6:23 (AMP) For the wages which sin pays is death, but the [bountiful] free gift of God is eternal life through (in union with) Jesus Christ our Lord.

INTRODUCTION

   You are free to choose between two masters, but you are not free to adjust the consequences of your choice. Each of the two masters pays with their own kind of currency. The currency of sin is eternal death. That is all you can expect or hope for in life without God. Christ's currency is eternal life - new life with God that begins on earth and continues forever with God. What choice have you made?
   Eternal life is a gift from God. Because it is a gift, it is not something that we earn or something that must be paid back. Consider the foolishness of someone who receives a gift given out of love and then offers to pay for it. A gift cannot be purchased by the recipient. A more appropriate response to a loved one who offers a gift is graceful acceptance with gratitude. Our salvation is a gift of God, not something of our own doing (Ephesians 2:8-9). He saved us because of his mercy, not because of any good things that we have done (Titus 3:5). How much more should we accept with thanksgiving the gift that God has freely given to us! [Life Application SB 2019]

COMMENTARY PEARLS

In the parable the pearl is not represented as a gift. The merchantman bought it at the price of all that he had. Many question the meaning of this, since Christ is represented in the Scriptures as a gift. He is a gift, but only to those who give themselves, soul, body, and spirit, to Him without reserve. We are to give ourselves to Christ, to live a life of willing obedience to all His requirements. All that we are, all the talents and capabilities we possess, are the Lord's, to be consecrated to His service. When we thus give ourselves wholly to Him, Christ, with all the treasures of heaven, gives Himself to us. We obtain the pearl of great price.  COL116

   "The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 6:23. While life is the inheritance of the righteous, death is the portion of the wicked. Moses declared to Israel: "I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil." Deuteronomy 30:15. The death referred to in these scriptures is not that pronounced upon Adam, for all mankind suffer the penalty of his transgression. It is "the second death" that is placed in contrast with everlasting life.
   In consequence of Adam's sin, death passed upon the whole human race. All alike go down into the grave. And through the provisions of the plan of salvation, all are to be brought forth from their graves. "There shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust;" "for as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." Acts 24:15; I Corinthians 15:22. But a distinction is made between the two classes that are brought forth. "All that are in the graves shall hear His voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation." John 5:28, 29. They who have been "accounted worthy" of the resurrection of life are "blessed and holy." "On such the second death hath no power." Revelation 20:6. But those who have not, through repentance and faith, secured pardon, must receive the penalty of transgression--"the wages of sin." They suffer punishment varying in duration and intensity, "according to their works," but finally ending in the second death. Since it is impossible for God, consistently with His justice and mercy, to save the sinner in his sins, He deprives him of the existence which his transgressions have forfeited and of which he has proved himself unworthy. Says an inspired writer: "Yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be." And another declares: "They shall be as though they had not been." Psalm 37:10; Obadiah 16. Covered with infamy, they sink into hopeless, eternal oblivion.  GC544,5

COMMENTARY

   We love it when we get good news. The right news at the right time can make our whole day, or in some cases, even our whole year, How amazing is it, then, to stop and consider that we've already been given the best news we could ever hope for - the gospel of Jesus!
   The gospel says that sin doesn't make you a bad person. It makes you a spiritually dead person. And being dead is a major problem because dead people can't do a thing to help themselves.
   That's why what God has done for us is called good news! Jesus didn't leave heaven and die on a cross to make bad people better people. He gave His life as a sacrifice for our sin and rose again so He could bring us from death to life.
   God's love set a rescue plan in place for you not because you deserved or earned it but because of His great love for you. Rejoice in that good news! Shout with joy. Dance with celebration. You were dead, but now you are alive in Jesus.
   God, Your gospel is miraculous and magnificent. I am so thankful today for the eternal life You have set within my soul. [Grace and Glory by Louie Giglio]

QUESTION

When Does Eternal Life Begin?

   In Romans 6:23, eternal life begins the moment a person is set free from sin and becomes a slave to God, initiating a new life of holiness through faith in Jesus Christ. It is a present reality and gift that starts on earth, rather than solely a future reward.
      o Beginning Moment: It starts immediately when one trusts in Jesus Christ and accepts God's free gift, transforming their spiritual state from "dead in sin" to "alive in God".
      o The Transition: This shift involves leaving behind the "wages of sin" (death) to receive the "gift of God" (eternal life), which is a new life of fellowship, purpose, and holiness.
      o Present & Future: While it culminates in eternal existence with God after death, the "new life" is experienced in the present, enabling believers to live for Christ now.
      o Context: Romans 6:22 clarifies that this gift is the fruit of being freed from sin and becoming servants of God, resulting in sanctification.
   Therefore, eternal life in Romans 6:23 is both a current, transformational experience and a future promise, beginning upon the acceptance of Jesus Christ as Savior. AI

LINKS FOR FURTHER STUDY

Romans 6:23 - Jesus; The Greatest Gift Ever.
https://www.abible.com/devotions/2023/20230819-0939.html

John 1:17 - Jesus Grace and Truth.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2023/20230218-0907.html

Ephesians 2:8 - Saved by GRACE through FAITH.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2016/20160702-2136.html

For more: http://www.abible.com/devotions