Paul’s Much Mores Introduction Text Romans 5: 9,10,15,17,
I began to study today what I will entitle Paul’s much mores. Paul uses the term much more 18 times in his writing. Our text will be the basis of our next study, you can turn there and see the examples of Paul’s much mores.
The use of the phrase 18 times is a very interesting number in Bible numerology. It is a number connected with the subject of bondage. In Genesis 12 the 18th time Abraham’s name is mentioned Sarah has been taken into bondage by Pharaoh. In Exodus we find the children of Israel in bondage to the Moabites, Amorites, and the Philistines for 18 years. In Luke 15 the 18th time Jesus’s name is mentioned a man is let down from the roof in bondage to a paralyzed body. In Luke 13 a woman had suffered great affliction and infirmities for 18 years.
The number 18 is made up of two numbers. The number ten which is connected with fulliness, completeness, or wholeness. The number eight is connected with the subject of the new birth. There were eight people on the ark saved from the flood of God’s judgment. In John three the new birth chapter, birth is used eight times. If one is to be freed from the bondage of sin and depravity, they must be made whole by the new birth. It is a spiritual birth that originates and is only orchestrated by God alone.
The phrase much more means abundant, plenteous, biggest, greatest, longest, and highest. It means better than all the rest. The new birth not only frees from bondage but gives to us so much more. Join us as we look in the coming weeks at Paul’s much more’s.
Lesson One Text Romans 5:7-9
We began in our last lesson some introductory remarks on the 18 times Paul uses the phrase Much More. The number 18 we learned is connected to bondage.
In our lesson this time we will begin to deal with the Power Of The Much Mores Over Bondage. In Romans 5:7-9 we find The Powerful Basis of Much More. The love of Jesus is the door into the much mores of Paul. In Romans 5:8a Paul said, but God commended His love towards us and in verse 9a much more then. This great love that lets us into Paul’s much mores has a progressive truth taught through out the Scriptures. In John 3:16 we are told God so loved the world. I find in the Bible His love for the creation and His redemptive love or very different. In Ephesians 5:25 the progression of His love becomes more pointed when Paul said, Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for it. The most precise progression of His love is found in Galatians 2:20 when Paul said, I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me. His love is personal,He died for me. I cannot comprehend His life for mine.
This love Paul tells us God commendeth towards us. The ETH gives us the indication this is an unending dam break of love toward all, no, it is to the redeemed people alone. This Much More Love Is Unconditional. Oh love that we will not let me go I rest my weary soul in Thee. The redeemed find this love was extended to them while they were ungodly sinners. Our Lord did not just say in word I love you but in action He died for me. This much more love Paul said is Unlimited Jeremiah said, yea I love thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee. There has never been a time sinner or saint when He has loved me more or less.
The powerful bases of Paul’s much more love is Unexplainable. Frederick Lehman wrote the song The Love of God. Songs of his day always had three versus and a chorus. He could only come up with two versus. The third verse was found scribble on the back wall of the patient in an insane asylum after he died the words fit perfect with Fredericks song. The verse said, could we with ink the ocean fill and were the sky of parchment made; where every stalk on earth a quil and every man a scribe by trade, to write the love of God above would drain the ocean dry; nor could the scroll contain the whole though stretch from sky to sky. O love of God how rich and pure how measureless and strong, it shall for evermore endure the saints and angels song
His love is so much more and delivers sin sick souls from bondage. This patient was locked up in the bondage of an insane asylum but the words seemed to tell us he had entered into the much more of God’s freedom.
Lesson Two Romans 5:9-10
In this lesson today we are told of the first of Paul’s eighteen mentions of the much more’s. Let us look at the powerful bestowement of the much more’s. In Romans 5:9 we are confronted with the much more of justification. The word justified is in the past tense which indicates a past action being done that guarantees a future result. Paul tells us when the past action was done in the phrase by His blood. When Christ died on the cross, His work there didn’t make possible my justification but guarantee it. This for me gives a whole new meaning to an old preacher who was asked when he got saved, he said, I got saved on Friday afternoon about 3 o’clock 2000 years ago, when Christ said from the cross it is finished I was as much justified then as I am now. Our God leaves nothing to luck and chance or man’s foolish ups and downd but He guarantees all that He does.
The word justified means to render or declare innocent of all charges, to absolute or placed in a position where all sins past, present, and future were never done. The word means to declare holy, righteous, and to be put in a place where God sees us as His Son. The word justified also has the idea to place a value upon the object bought equal to the price that has been paid, with a pledge to keep what has been clearly bought at such an unbelievable expense. The biggest thought here was “by His blood”,there is no blood like this. This is not the blood of bulls or goats but the blood of the Lamb of God. This is the Lamb who was God and God who was the Lamb. His precious blood guarantees my justification.
I love what the songwriter said, what can wash away my sins? Nothing but the blood of Jesus; what can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. Nothing can for sin atone, nothing but the blood of Jesus; naught of good that I have done, nothing but the blood of Jesus. This is all my hope and peace nothing but the blood of Jesus; this is all my righteousness nothing but the blood of Jesus. Oh! Precious is the flow that makes me white as snow no other fount I know, nothing but the blood of Jesus.
Lesson Three Text Romans 5:10
In this lesson we will continue to study the 18 times Paul mentions in his writings the phrase much more.The number 18 is a number that is often connected with bondage in the Bible. In our last lesson we began to look at the powerfull bestonement of the much more of justification.
In our lesson today we find the much more of reconciliation in Romans 5:10. My state prior to reconciliation was that I was an enemy of God. The word enemy means to be a hateful,hostile, and at odds with God. We are told in our text that by the death of God’s Son we are reconciled to God. The word reconcile means a radical change whereby one who was once an enemy is now made a friend yes even a best friend. I can only say to this truth, WOW! Paul tells us of the much more of this reconciliation in Romans 5:10 that by it we are saved. The word saved means to be protected by a hedge completely around the object to be saved. This saving Paul tells us in verse 10 was orchestrated by His life. The word life means His breath or Spirit which is the endless life of God placed in us by the new birth.
Oh the much more of reconciliation, not only made me best friends with our Lord, it placed a continual hedge of protection around me, and set me free from the bondage of all my sins. Just think for a moment even with all Paul has told us about reconciliation there is even more that heaven will reveal to us about the subect yea even much more.
Lesson Four Text Romans 5: 15 And 17
Let us in this study continue looking at the 18 times Paul mentioned the phrase much more. The number 18 is connected with bondage in the Bible. In these much more phrases Paul tells us of the liberty Christ has provided from the bondage of sin.
We have been studying the power of the much mores over bondage. In our study thus far we have looked at the Powerful basis, Powerful bestoment, and in this study the Powerful beauty of the much mores. Our text of Romans 5:15 and 17 tells us before we can see the powerful beauty we must see the bitter grave. The first Adam of the garden of Eden by his offenses gave us death both spiritual and physical. The first Adam only provide for us the world, flesh, and the devil plus death and much more death. His offense made the choice for us all to reject God and plunged the whole human race into the bondage of sin with no way out. I recently heard a preacher telling his young people in a message that sin was just human, normal, and a natural occurrence. I thought to myself the first Adam didn’t plunge us into the normal world but plunged us into a depraved, dead, dark, damed, and with no way out world unless God in His grace comes and brings us out.
In verse 17 of Romans 5 I see the Beautiful grace of much more. The first Adam made us slaves to sin but the second Adam gives grace to those that believe. It is much more abundant grace. The word abundant means supersized, excessive, more than is needed, and exceedingly much more. The first Adam ceated a problem no man could solve the second Adam Jesus created a solution no man could enter into on his on. He must be birthed into the solution from above called the new birth. Man can believe in the tooth fairy, Easter bunny, and Santa Claus but cannot believe in Jesus unless God gives him the gift of faith. Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us faith is a gift of God not of man. He is not born with the believing gene.
Paul tells us in verse 17 this much more gift of grace will cause us to reign in the riches of Christ righteousness. In second Corinthians 8:9 Paul defined grace when he said, for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that ye thru His poverty might be made rich. How rich was Christ? They pave the streets with gold in His hometown. He sits on a throne on a glasses sea encompass about with a 360° rainbow. The walls are made of priceless jewels. The gates or 18 foot tall pearls, would love to see the shell they came out of.
How poor did He become? He had to borrow a stable and feeding trough to be born in. He had no where to lay His head. He had no money to pay taxes, had to get it out of the fish’s mouth. Had to borrow donkey to ride into town to die for me. When He died He had to borrow a tomb to be buried in. He did all that for me to be rich and reign in righteousness in this life as well as the one to come. All of this accomplished on an old rugged cross stained with blood so divine in which a real beauty I see.
Lesson Five Romans 5:20
Let us continue in our study these days of the 18 times Paul uses the phrase much more. The number 18 is connected with bondage to sin in the Bible. Paul shares the much more phrases to show us the route to freedom from the bondage of sin. We have been looking at the power of the much mores. So far we have looked at the powerful basis, bestowement, and beauty. This study we will look in Romans 5:20 at the powerful bounty of the much mores over sin.
In our text we find when the law is the centerpiece and all the preaching is upon the law sin abounds. When sin is recognized as a missing of God’s mark so as not to share in the prize of Christ Himself Grace does much more abound. Let us mention some examples of this bounty. In Luke 7 we’re told of a woman with the alabaster box who anointed our Lords head and feet. Our Lord said that her sins which were many or all forgiven because of that she loved much. Oh to the one who has experience the much mores of grace being free from the bondage of sin cannot help but love our Lord much.
Let us look at another example of the bounty of grace in man by the name of John Newton who was a vulgra slave trader and became a slave on his own ship. He was gloriously saved by the grace of God and wrote the words of a great hymn. Amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me I once was lost but now I am found I was blind but now I see. Oh how this abounding grace reaches the lowest of hell bound sinners.
Another example would be John Bunyan who was a Tinker by trade. He spent most of his life in prison for preaching the gospel of grace. While in prison he wrote the great classic Pilgrims progress and also the story of his life entiled Abounding Grace. Thank God for the much mores of abounding grace that reached down to old sinners like myself and set my feet upon the solid rock of Christ.
Let us close with the extent of this bounty. A dear man by the name of Sam Duncan like to collect pictures, paste poems or statements below the pictures and mail them to friends for encouragement. He once sent a poem to a friend which said, have you in the Lord believe, still there’s more to follow, of His grace have you received? Stilll there’s more to follow. Oh, the grace the Father shows, still there’s more to follow; freely He His grace bestowes. Still there’s more to follow. More and more and more and more and always more to follow. Oh His matchless boundless love and grace, still there’s more to follow. Attached to the poem was a picture of Niagara Falls with a caption under the picture which read,still more to follow. His grace for redeemed sinners is surely endless in freeing us from the bondage of sin.