March 01, 2024 | Letters from the Lead Pastor by Brandon Lenhart
“The sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:17 (NLT)
We live in a world with such amazing technological advances that we all too often take for granted what we have right at our fingertips. For instance, GPS (The Global Positioning System) has given us the ability to type in an address or location into our mobile phones and guide us directly to where we want to go. It wasn’t all that long ago, I can remember having to use an atlas, or physical map, and plan a trip in advance in order to know what roads I needed to take to get to my destination. I would have to “chart my course” and make sure that I knew where I was going and the best route to get there. However, if I encountered heavy traffic, an accident, or road construction, and had to take a detour, I was lost. I would have to pull off the road at a safe place, consult my map, and make a course correction in order to get back on track. The GPS that we use does the same thing today. It’s just a lot quicker and more convenient. If I take a wrong turn, the voice on my phone gently tells me to “make a ‘U’ turn,” or it says, “recalculating route.”
Have you ever set out to do something or go somewhere, but have gotten off track? Have you ever found yourself lost and forgetting what you were doing or where you were going in the first place?
The first man (Adam) and the first woman (Eve) started a journey with GOD that was to last an eternity. However, their disobedience to GOD not only derailed their relationship with GOD and each other but left them lost and in desperate need of a course correction. Because of Adam and Eve, humanity for thousands of years continued their desperate search for an onramp back to that intimate relationship with GOD only to continually fail by taking the wrong detours which ultimately led to perpetual lostness. However, at just the right time in human history, GOD intervened by sending Jesus into the world to lead the way back home. Jesus lived a life of holiness to show us how to become holy as He is holy. He died for the sin of humanity (from the first humans on) providing an onramp for those who were willing to follow Him. Jesus rose from the grave as a sign that He conquered the curse of death from the forbidden fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil that Adam and Eve ate that started this whole mess in the first place. Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection were the course correction that all of us sinners needed in order to reach the right destination.
In his letter to the Roman Church, Paul reflects on this idea. He explains that one man’s (Adam) sin caused all to become sinners. As sad as this is, it would be even sadder to think that all people would be condemned to live lost and hopeless forever as a result of this. But Paul goes on to explain that through another man (Jesus) many would be made right and would “live in triumph over sin and death” (Romans 5:17). This is the course correction humanity needed and it would take no other than GOD to accomplish it.
Paul concludes by saying, “Yes, Adam’s one sin brings condemnation for everyone, but Christ’s one act of righteousness brings a right relationship with God and new life for everyone. Because one person disobeyed God, many became sinners. But because one other person obeyed God, many will be made righteous” (Romans 5:18-19, NLT). What course are you on?
