Life Dominion
Therefore, just as sin entered the world
through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all
people, because all sinned.
In summary, this verse can be broken down
into four sentences. Sin (ἁμαρτία) entered the world through one man. Death (θάνατος) came as a result
of sin. All people have sinned. All people have been subject to the destiny of
death. The "one man" mentioned here is Adam, who disobeyed God's
command in the Garden of Eden and ate from the tree of the knowledge of good
and evil. He fell for the temptation of wanting to be like God, refusing to
acknowledge that he was a creature. As a result, he gained knowledge but moved
farther away from God. This story is the origin of sin as depicted in the Old
Testament.
The Fate of Adam
Paul says that the fate of Adam has become
the fate of 'all' people. This refers to the universality of sin and death. It
means that no one in this world is free from sin and death. People in this
world would find it uncomfortable to see death, a biological phenomenon, as a
result of sin according to the teachings of the Bible. Sin in the Bible does
not only deal with human ethics and morality. It refers to the deeper
corruption of the human soul. Sin is self-centeredness, self-pity, and
self-love. Collectively, it can be called pride (hubris). Pride refers to the
attitude of placing oneself at the center of life and trying to exalt oneself.
It is a strong desire and ambition to complete one's own life. Since it is a
desire for what is impossible, life is destroyed through it. What would happen
if a frog kept jumping off a rock hill, thinking it should fly like a bird? For
example, the reason why we risk our lives to earn money in a capitalist system
is because we are convinced that having a lot of money guarantees a happy life.
In reality, no one lives a happy life with wealth alone. Life is destroyed when
we go 'all-in' on what cannot be done. The soul becomes sick and dies. This is
the universal death of humanity that Paul speaks of in today's passage.
At the time when Paul wrote Romans, people
living in the Roman Empire probably did not pay much attention to what Paul
said. They might have refused or looked down on it. They would have said that
Adam's sin was Adam's sin, they were themselves, and not to talk nonsense. Paul
also knew their arguments, but he did not back down. He gave them very strong
words. It is verse 14.
However, even those who did not commit sins
like Adam, up until Moses, also experienced death, for Adam was a model of the
one to come.
The phrase "up until Moses" is
mentioned. After Moses, the Jews distinguished themselves as righteous or
unrighteous according to the law. If they did not live according to the law,
that is, as it is in today's situation law, they were sinners, and if they
lived properly, they were righteous. However, Paul says something completely
different. He says that there was sin even before the law. This means that the
problem of human sin cannot be solved by laws, rules, and norms. We can confirm
this in our daily lives as well. List the things that are recognized and respected
in the world. They also help people in need, teach students diligently, treat
patients, and strive to change the world. There are also respected pastors. The
world becomes a little better with such people and such things. We must strive
to live in that way as well. However, we cannot escape the power of sin through
this way of life. Our inner selves are still hypocritical, self-centered, and
proud. We cannot solve this problem through our efforts. Paul referred to this,
saying that even those who did not commit sins like Adam also experience the
dominion of sin and death.
Royal authority.
I am not trying to talk about the tragic
fate of human existence, which is bound by sin and death, but rather the
opposite. Look at Paul's expression, referring to Adam as the "type of him
who was to come." In our Korean Bible, the word "example" is
accompanied by a footnote, "typology" (τύπος), which means "type" or
"figure" in English. Luther's Bible translates it as Bild (picture,
symbol). Adam is not a historical figure, but a model that symbolizes Jesus
Christ, the one who was to come. In Jesus Christ, who is the one who was to
come, the opposite of what happened to Adam occurs. It is not sin and death,
but righteousness and life. In verse 17, Paul says this. This verse explains
what the gospel of Christianity is, connected to the fate of all humanity.
Therefore, just as one trespass led to
condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification
and life for all men.
The phrase "leads to justification and
life" is used twice. It already appeared in verse 14, and is repeated
twice in verse 21. In Greek, it is distinguished by past and present tense
verbs, and the root is "basileia." When we refer to the kingdom of
God (basileia tou theou), that kingdom is the royal authority. It is rule and
governance. After Adam, it was a time when death ruled like a king, but now,
through Jesus Christ, the time has come when life rules like a king. To
summarize this expression, it becomes "the royal authority of life." I
will read only that part from the new translation from the Bible.
It is even more certain that those who
receive overflowing grace and the gift of righteousness will reign in life
through the one man, Jesus Christ.
Note that "reigning in life"
happens to those who have received the "gifts of grace and
righteousness" through Jesus Christ. Paul already mentioned this in verse
15. There are two types of grace mentioned: one is from God, and the other is
from Jesus Christ. Through these graces, people have received blessed gifts,
and they have become "righteous" (verse 16) by obeying God's will
through Jesus Christ. This means that, through God's grace given through Jesus
Christ, we have obtained righteousness that leads to life (eternal life), not
to death.
Thus, those who are deemed
"righteous" will naturally have the power to reign in life. They will
experience joy and hope in life instead of fear and despair of death.
Therefore, Paul could say in verse 18 that "many people have received
justification and thus reign in life." Is this possible? Can it be true
that through Jesus Christ, all people are universally recognized as righteous
and are freed from Adam's sin and attain righteousness? What is the basis for
this claim, given who Jesus Christ is and what he has done?
Eon
It is important to understand that in
Pauline theology, the world is divided into before and after the arrival of
Jesus Christ. The perspective of dividing the world in this way comes from
Gnostic philosophy. The world that Gnostic philosophy refers to is not the
cosmos that Greek philosophy talks about, but rather the "eon"
(world). There are old eons and new eons. The old eon is a world of sin, very
violent and ruled by the wealthy and empires. When a new eon begins, the old
eon comes to an end. The one who brings about this change is the Son of Man
(Huios tou Anthropou), that is, the son of man. In today's passage, he is
referred to as the "coming one." In the new world that Jesus Christ
brings, sin and death no longer hold authority, and righteousness and life hold
authority instead. The world is completely different. It is like a paradigm
shift from two dimensions to three or four dimensions, from a plane to space,
from Newtonian mechanics to Heisenberg's quantum mechanics, and from geocentric
to heliocentric theories.
Some time ago, I read a book called The
Hated Plants by John Cardiner. The subtitle of the book is "About flowers
and grasses that have not yet found their use". The book talks about
plants that are usually considered weeds. Weeds have always been around, but
they were named by people as grasses that hinder crop growth. Weeds don't harm
humans much, but they can be very harmful to crops, and humans try to remove
them using tillage or herbicides. However, according to Cardiner, humans cannot
completely get rid of weeds because they are constantly evolving in response to
human behavior. This is similar to the current Corona 19 pandemic, which is a
result of human actions.
The book's epilogue concludes that humans
cannot defeat weeds, and it's time to let go of our arrogance about controlling
nature. We should appreciate nature more and respect the adaptability of these
extraordinary green creatures that continue to evolve in ways we may not fully
understand. Reading this book has changed my thoughts about weeds, and I now
see them from a new perspective. This is similar to falling in love and
changing one's perspective on life. Only through this new perspective can we
understand the "kingship of life" that Paul speaks of.
Paul was originally a Jewish legal expert
who saw the world through the lens of Jewish law. However, everything changed
after he encountered the resurrected Jesus. This event opened up a new world
for him, much like the overwhelming feeling of relief one experiences upon
discovering that someone who was thought to be terminally ill was actually
misdiagnosed. Paul exclaimed that anyone who is in Christ becomes a new
creation, with old things passing away and all things becoming new. Despite
this, Jewish experts at the time ignored his experience. What's even stranger
is that those who have not experienced these new changes cannot fully
comprehend them. It's like hearing about the taste of an apple without ever
having tried one.
On Monday, the 20th of last month, a member
of the Daegu Seongseo Academy living in Seoul emailed me after hearing my
sermon "Jesus is the Light" on Transfiguration Sunday. He had been
searching for answers for 23 years, but had not found any until now. He wrote
that he had finally understood the meaning of the Bible and the religious
metaphor of the "light" mentioned in John 1:14. This experience has
made the Bible appear new to him, and he has now had a completely different
understanding of things before and after this experience.
Feeling hopeless
While some people may experience the
kingship of life through Jesus Christ, others may feel like they haven't had
such an experience. I have had a similar faith journey, so why do some people
reach such experiences while others do not? Looking at the stars in the same
winter night sky and feeling the same late-winter sunlight, some people feel
the infinite mystery and joy of being alive, while others feel nothing. Even
while worshiping together, one person may feel the peace of their soul, while
another may remain as a mere spectator. That's why Paul states in today's text
that "those who receive the overflowing grace and the gift of
righteousness" enjoy the kingship of life, which is a gift from God.
Now, here's the final question: Why do we
sometimes not receive the gift and grace to enjoy the kingship of life? Let me
give you an example from one of Jesus' parables to help you find the answer.
The younger son received his inheritance from his father and went to a faraway
land, squandering it all before returning home as a beggar. The father threw a
banquet for his son, but the older son couldn't understand his father's
actions. He was trapped in his own world, unable to comprehend his father's
unconditional love and acceptance without judgment. That is the core reason why
some people don't receive grace. Instead of asking why grace doesn't come to
them, they should ask whether they are ready to receive it. They lack the
earnestness of the psalmist who cried out, "How long, O Lord, will you
forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?" (Psalm 13:1).
If one doesn't have earnestness towards God, it means they don't want grace,
and therefore, the responsibility for not receiving grace ultimately rests with
them.
I am currently writing a meditation article
called "Rereading the Book of Revelation at the Age of 70" on the
website of the Daegu Bible Academy. In Revelation 3:14, there is a letter
addressed to the church in Laodicea. The reason for their rebuke, "You are
neither cold nor hot," is that the believers in that church were bound by
the notion that they lacked nothing because they were rich. They were satisfied
with their decent living and did not long for God's grace. Just as a person who
is not thirsty cannot drink sweet water, they cannot enjoy the kingship of life
because they do not long for grace.
Dear fellow believers, I want you to
experience the kingship of life in Jesus Christ that Paul proclaims today in a
very practical and abundant way, even if you are lacking in other areas of
life. When you do, you will experience a level of spiritual freedom, peace, and
fullness that you have never experienced before.
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