The enemy continuously tries to tell us that sin still holds authority over us. Many preachers even preach the same godless message, holding believers in a state of defeatism. But this is not the message Yahweh's Scriptures speak to us time and time again. Paul reveals two keys clarifying the foundation message of atonement for believers:
"For I am not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God for liberation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "BUT THE RIGHTEOUS man SHALL LIVE BY FAITH."" Romans 1:16-17
Verse 16 reveals that the Gospel of the King "is the power of God" to liberate people. The Gospel is not the message of Yahweh's power. The Gospel is Yahweh's power. Yahweh uses the proclamation of His Kingdom to liberate humans from "the kingdom of this world." We are not door-to-door salesmen. We do not need to sell people on their need for liberation. We need only preach the Gospel of the King, and when they believe Jesus is King, that message empowers them with their liberation from the domain of darkness, sin, and death. Paul expounds on the power for liberation from Romans 5:12 through 8:39.
Verse 17 reveals that the Gospel of the King has unveiled a justification of Yahweh. This justification of Yahweh is repeated in Romans 3:21. Notice that Paul did not state in 3:21 what people needed to believe about King Jesus in order to be justified. Believing in the Kingship of Jesus (the Gospel) unveils a justification of Yahweh from belief into believe just as it is written: "the justified will live by faith." The foundation of justification is the atonement of our King as granted to His citizens. The foundation of atonement is in action. The foundation of atonement is taught in the simple verb logizomai, meaning "consider" or "reckon." Paul expounded on our justification in King Jesus through the atonement from Romans 1:18 through 5:11.
King Jesus' apostles demanded Kingdom citizens to respond to the atonement with two (2) actions: reckoning and presenting. The first command to action is to reckon ourselves. The second command to action is to present ourselves. After describing the atonement of our King, Paul wants Kingdom citizens to take action: we reckon! Our action (reckoning) is a response to the atonement. Citizens of the King respond to their King's atonement. We reckon ourselves as being justified or made righteous. King Jesus has always reckoned righteousness through belief (see Abraham, who believed Yahweh to give him descendants; he did not believe in an atoning sacrifice). Kingdom citizens are not literally sinless, but we are reckoned sinless through belief. The message we are to believe in order to be reckoned righteous is that Yahweh has placed one Man, the Anointed King Jesus, in authority over all the Earth, having proven it by raising Him from the dead. Hence Romans 10:9.
Our modern Evangelical "Gospel" requires belief in substitutionary atonement in order to receive the benefit thereof. But this is not the message Yahweh's Scriptures present us with! Scripture requires belief in the Kingship of Jesus!
Here are a few things Kingdom citizens should reckon to themselves through King Jesus:
- We died to the world (Col. 2:20).
- We died to sin (Rom. 6:11).
- We rose from death (Rom. 6:5).
- We walk in newness of life (Rom. 6:4).
- We are free from Sin's chains (Rom. 6:6).
- We are free from Sin's authority (Rom. 6:7).
- We are alive with the King (Rom. 6:8).
- We are free from Death's authority (Rom. 6:9).
- We are alive to Yahweh! (Rom. 6:10).
How few believers live like this? We need to be daily "transformed by the renewing of [our] minds." We need to reckon the atonement so that we can live out the will of God and prove with our lives that His will is "good and acceptable and perfect."
Ryan Reynold's character from Spirited had one thing right: "Maybe you gotta put in the work. Wake up each day, get out of bed and decide, How about today I don't wish anyone a Good Afternoon." In Romans, in response to Paul's explanation of the atonement, Kingdom citizens are commanded to do two things. The first command given in Romans is to "Reckon yourselves dead to sin and alive to King Jesus!" Take God as His word and agree that it is true. The second command given in Romans is to "Present yourselves to God as alive from the dead and your body parts as instruments of righteousness." Some people employ a "Fake it until you make it" mentality. Just wake up each day, get out of bed and decide, "How about today I walk in the strength of the Holy Spirit and make no provision for the flesh, especially my pet sins." Yahweh is able to keep you from stumbling. If you practice the things mentioned by Peter, you will never stumble. If you walk in the Spirit you will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh. These are promises made in Scripture concerning the King's citizens. Reckon them as true because King Jesus has defeated, and liberated you from, the domain of darkness, sin, and death, making you a new creation and transferring you to the Kingdom of Light.