Tracing The Ancestors Series

ROMANS 5:12-20. TRACING OUR ANCESTORS.

INTRODUCTION: TRAVELLING THROUGH ROMANS WE HAVE SEEN TWO EXTREMES. 1. NEGATIVE EXTREME AS PAUL HAS TAKEN US INTO THE DARK VALLEYS OF HUMAN DEPRAVITY INTO THE GUTTER OF THE FALLEN WORLD AND HE HAS EXPLAINED NO MATTER WHO WE ARE WHETHER JEW OR GENTILE, MORAL OR RELIGIOUS, WE ALL HAVE SINNED 3:9, 3:23 AND HAVE FALLEN SHORT OF GODS GLORY.

2. PAUL HAS ALSO SHOWN US ANOTHER EXTREME THIS TIME POSITIVE BY TAKING US TO THE MOUNTAINTOPS OF GOD’S GRACE AND LOVE TOWARDS US IN CHRIST 3:24, 5:8 POINTING TO GODS ATONING WORK UPON THE CROSS AND AS A RESULT OF THAT WORK MANY ARE ABLE TO BE RECONCILED AND ENTER INTO THE MARVELLOUS BENEFITS OF GOD.

CHRISTIANS ARE BENEFICIARIES OF CHRIST’S WORK, ONCE ALIENATED, NOW RECONCILED TO GOD. PAUL WRITES AS A BENEFICIARY AS HE INCLUDES HIMSELF AS ONE WHO HAS BEEN ADOPTED INTO A NEW FAMILY AS HE WRITES IN THE FIRST PERSON PLURAL 5:1 - 5, 8,9,10, 11. PAUL WANTS US NOW TO UNDERSTAND THAT OUR SALVATION IS NOT ONLY ONE OF FORGIVENESS BUT ONE WHICH GIVES US A RADICAL NEW POSITION AND A NEW STANDING BEFORE GOD IN AND THEOUGH CHRIST.

• IT WAS WINSTON CHURCHILL WHO ONCE SAID, “SO MANY OWE SO MUCH TOO SO FEW.” BUT IN THE CASE OF THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST, BUT IN THE CASE OF THE SCRIPTURS TEACHING "SO MANY OWE SO MUCH TO JUST ONE PERSON JESUS CHRIST.”

NO DOUBT PEOPLE ARE ASKING HOW CAN THE DEATH OF ONE MAN ATONE FOR SO MANY? SO PAUL USES THE FOLLOWING VERSES V12- 21 IN GIVING AN ANALOGY BETWEEN ADAM AND CHRIST BY CONTRASTING THEM HE DEMONSTRATES THE PRINCIPAL THAT, MANY CAN BE AFFECTED FOR GOOD OR BAD BY THE ONE PERSONS ACTION. AND AT THE SAME TIME HE POINTS TO THE SUPERIORITY OF THE WORK OF CHRIST OVER THE WORK OF ADAM HOW MUCH MORE V15,17,

PASSAGE BEAKDOWN: V12 -14 ADAM- JESUS INTRODUCED V15 -17 ADAM – JESUS CONTRASTED V18 -21 ADAM – JESUS COMPARED.

WE HAVE BASICALLY SEEN TWO FAMILIES AT WORK IN OUR WORLD, ONE IS CHARACTERISED BY SIN AND GUILT AND DEATH THE LATTER IS CHARACTERISED BY GRACE, FAITH AND ETERNAL LIFE. THIS IS HOW THIS SECTION IS TIED IN TO THE OTHER HE WANTS TO SHOW WHERE WE HAVE COME FROM OUR ROOTS AS IT WERE, HOW THE ONE EFFECTS THE MANY. HOW IT’S ALL POSSIBLE. SO PAUL V12- 21 BEGINS TO TRACE OUR ANCESTRY.

THIS WEEK I HAVE BEEN WRITING AN ARTICLE FOR THE HERALD CELEBRATING THE CHURCHES ANNIVERSARY ON JUNE 22ND WE WILL BE CELEBRATING 145 YEARS OF THIS PART OF THE CHAPEL BEING OPEN BUT IN FACT ITS HISTORY AND FOUNDING FATHERS/DAUGHTERS GO BACK EVEN FURTHER ABOUT 300 YEARS TO THE 17TH CENTURY. TRACING ONES ANCESTORS IS HUGELY POPULAR THERE ARE WEBSITES DEDICATED TO THE WORK, BUT WHY IS THERE SUCH A PASSION TO TRACE OUR ANCESTRY? ITS GIVES US ROOTS - A SENSE OF IDENTITY, BELONGING TO SOMETHING GREATER THAN OURSELVES.

WHAT IS THE LARGEST ANCESTRY IN THE WORLD? HOW FAR CAN WE GO BACK? WELL WIKIPEDIA THE ONLINE ENCYCLOPEDIA STATES: THE LONGEST FAMILY TREE IN THE WORLD IS THAT OF THE CHINESE PHILOSOPHER AND EDUCATOR CONFUCIUS (551-479 BC). THE TREE SPANS MORE THAN 80 GENERATIONS, AND INCLUDES MORE THAN 2 MILLION MEMBERS. AN INTERNATIONAL EFFORT INVOLVING MORE THAN 450 BRANCHES AROUND THE WORLD WAS STARTED IN 1998 TO RETRACE AND REVISE THIS FAMILY TREE. THE LATEST FINDINGS WILL BE PUBLISHED NEXT YEAR (2009) BY THE CONFUCIUS GENEALOGY COMPILATION COMMITTEE TO COINCIDE WITH THE 2560TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE BIRTH OF THE CHINESE THINKER. THIS LATEST EDITION IS EXPECTED TO INCLUDE SOME 1.3 MILLION LIVING MEMBERS WHO ARE SCATTERED AROUND THE WORLD TODAY.[1]

BUT THERE IS A LONGER AND OLDER FAMILY TREE THAN CONFUCIUS? IT’S A FAMILY TREE WHICH SPANS EVERY HUMAN GENERATION SINCE THE BEGINNING OF CREATION IT CAN BE TRACED BACK CHRONOLOGICALLY THROUGH THE BIBLE TO AROUND 6000 YEARS AGO AND EVERY HUMAN BEING THAT HAS EVER BEEN BORN ON THIS PLANET INCLUDING YOU AND ME BELONG TO THIS ANCESTRY. WHO AM I TALKING ABOUT? ADAM THE FIRST FATHER OF ALL HUMANITY

1. OUR ANCESTRY IS CONNECTED TO A HISTORICAL ADAM V12 – 14

V12 . ONE MAN ADAM

ALTHOUGH HIS NAME IS NOT MENTIONED HERE IT IS IMPLIED THAT PAUL IS TALKING ABOUT ADAM WHO IS THE FEDERAL HEAD OF THE HUMAN RACE, ALL OF US WITHOUT EXCEPTION IN OUR HUMANITY ARE CONNECTED TO HIM. HE WAS THE FIRST HUMAN BEING CREATED AND ALL HUMANS HAVE COME FROM HIS LINE EVER SINCE.

1. PAUL IDENTIFIES ADAM AS A HISTORICAL PERSON NOT A MYTH IF HE IS NOT HISTORICAL HIS WHOLE ARGUMENT COLLAPSES AS HE DRAWS CONTRASTS BETWEEN ADAM AND JESUS AS OUR REPRESENTATIVES IF ADAM IS NOT THE FATHER OF ALL HUMANITY (OUR REPRESENTATIVE) THEN OUR REASONING FAILS. IF THE DISOBEDIENCE OF ONE MAN DID NOT BRING THE WHOLE DOWN THEN IT IS POINTLESS TO ARGUE THAT THE OBEDIENCE OF ONE MAN (CHRIST AS OUR REPRESENTATIVE) CAN SAVE THE MANY. TO REJECT A HISTORICAL ADAM IS TO REJECT CHRISTIANITY AS A WHOLE.