Reign in Life

For if, because of one man's trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ. Romans 5:17

Beloved,

From the time of Adam to the time of Christ, death reigned in our world.  The dominating power or influence in the world was sin and its consequences.  When Christ came, He brought the resurrected power to bear on the earth.  Although death reigned through Adam, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through Jesus Christ.

The promise of salvation is only given to those who receive the free gift of righteousness. Only those who receive the grace of Christ by faith are saved from death. Although salvation is in Christ alone, the benefits of the resurrected life will affect all of life.  Christians are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. Through the Spirit of life, Christians now preserve and flavor the world with grace and righteousness, bringing the resurrection power to influence this fallen world. 

Our society may like to malign Christians, but they cannot escape the historical record of how their lives have been impacted by Christ and His kingdom.  Christianity was the catalyst behind education, modern medicine, and improved human rights to women, children and minorities. Political Commentator Dinesh D’Souza states,

"This Christian idea was the propelling force behind the campaign to end slavery, the movement for democracy and popular self-government, and also the successful attempt to articulate an international doctrine of human rights. My celebration of Christianity's role in shaping these great social changes comes with a sober corollary: if the West gives up Christianity, it will also endanger the egalitarian values that Christianity brought into the world. The end of Christianity also means the systematic erosion of values like equal dignity and equal rights that both religious and secular people cherish." 

God has dramatically changed the West through Christians reigning in the power of the resurrection bringing salt and light to the world.  If we lose Christianity, we will lose what came with it.

Only those who have faith in Jesus Christ are saved from judgment, but the entire world has received the corollary benefits of the life brought forth by Jesus Christ’s victory from the grave. The life of the New Adam, Christ Jesus will continue to reign much more than the death that reigned through the first Adam. Christ came to destroy the works of the devil; so as His people, let us follow suit in working to destroy the works of the evil one as we reign in life through resurrection power, bringing salt and light to bear on our world.