Adam Clarke's Commentary, Abingdon Publishing, Nashville, TN.
"All have sinned. Consequently all are equally helpless & guilty. God is no respecter of persons. All humans are equal. No one preferred over another. Therefore, God's endless mercy has embraced all."
Death in this world is not the end. There is an "after this".
Judgement = There will be a judgment day. All sins will be confronted and judged by Jesus. But, through Jesus Christ we believers will be forgiven.
Clarke
"Every man must have two births. One from heaven, one from earth. One for his soul, the other for his body. Just like when you are born into the world you see the light of this world, you need to be born again to see the light of heaven, or right and wrong. Without being born again, you can never see heaven. Heaven is a place of holiness, and nothing but what is like itself can ever enter into it."
Clarke
"There are no just men on the earth. So we should all continually watch and pray, and depend upon the Lord for his guidance, leadership and grace."
We, mortal men and women, can not know God's mind or plan. We, can not save ourselves. If we do not have the atoning blood of Jesus Christ in our blood, we will die.
Clarke
"Not by works of righteousness = Jesus died for us as sinners, not people doing righteous acts. Murderers, disobedience, foolishness, deceivers. They have no righteousness to deserve his saving grace, but through Jesus, God allows us to enter his kingdom. They are saved by mercy."
Clark
"The original greek text also stated that ... faith.... is the gift of God. God by his mercy, gives you the power to believe. When man chooses to accept God, man glorifies God. God never believes for any man, no more than he repents for him. That is something he gives us power to do, but we must do it ourselves."
Clarke
"The truth is, any sin against God is punishable by death. For if God should be obeyed in any one instance, he should be obeyed in all. His authority and reason for obedience are the same in every case:
- World is and was in a ruinous, condemned state. Man has no power to save himself.
- Through God's love, he provided the ultimate sacrifice.
- Jesus was the only answer.
- Sin must be an indescribable evil when God himself died to make atonement for our sins.
- No man is saved by this act unless you choose to believe and thus give God the glory and credit for your salvation. When you do, you are exempted from eternal perdition and you may have everlasting life in glory."
Comments: The book of Romans is an outstanding testament on the path to salvation. The `Roman Road' has been used for generations by all denominations as a pathway to Jesus, our Savior.
- Romans 3:10 "As it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one."
- Romans 3:23-24 "For all have sinned, and come short of the Glory of God; being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ."
- Romans 5:12 "Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and; so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned."
- Romans 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."
- Romans 8:13 "For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die, but if ye through the spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live."
- Romans 5:8 "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."
- Romans 10:9,10 "That if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved; for with the heart man believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation."
- Romans 10:11-13 For the scriptures says, "Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed. For there is no distinction between Jew or Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call upon him. For whosoever will call upon the name of the Lord will be saved."