Condemnation

Cross Series

“Condemnation”

Romans 8:1-3

Question: When you hear the word “condemn”, what do you picture in your imagination?

Condemnation:

The dictionary will use words like “judgment”, “punishment”, “disapproval” and “guilty” to qualify the word “condemn.” These are adequate words. However, other terms seem to bring our imagination to its brink when describing our condemnation as sinful men. Words like, “ruin”, “disrepair” and “to tear down” help us to see our standing as sinners before a holy and just God. This condemned state of existence is what the death of Christ on the cross worked to remove from our portfolio. We who are believers are no longer among the condemned (verse 1).

“Aint it precious?”

No loving mother holds her new born child and pronounces a judgment of condemnation upon him. Instead, she declares him perfect and blameless, and unable to do wrong. This is because she has yet to see his heart. In time, however, the child’s heart will reveal its “desperately wicked” nature.  No judge will have to pronounce a guilty verdict upon us. John 3:18 says that we were “condemned already.”  In fact, we declare ourselves condemned by our own unbelief.  Without the death of Christ on the cross, faith would be impossible. Christ’s obedience to sin’s demand gave sinners an adequate focus of belief.  Without the cross, we would have nothing to believe in and our condemned state would exist to this day.

He took our condemnation

All that was ours Christ took upon Himself on the cross. Conversely, all that was His was made ours by His death on the cross. In other words, when Jesus died, His death became our life, His wrath became our joy and His guilt became our pardon… He literally took our condemnation. He was condemned for us… so that we would stand before God perfectly.

We need to see that condemnation is no longer ours, not because condemnation doesn’t exist, but rather because it has already taken place. First, condemnation took place in the garden- and then passed down to every man. Secondly, condemnation took place on Calvary- and all who are in Christ accept Christ’s death as the taking of their personal condemnation. This is why Jesus is referred to as “the second Adam.”  1Cor. 15:45 says, “And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam [was made] a quickening spirit.”

Judgement

To condemn someone is to cast a judgment upon them. We do this daily when we judge someone for any particular reason. Of course, Christians are judged daily by this world. We are cast down “all the day long.” (Ps. 44:22)  So, how then is there no condemnation if we are judged by the world continually?  The answer is this: there is no condemnation that is greater than the condemnation that was cast upon Christ on the cross. Why? The condemnation of Christ on the cross was not a condemnation of man… but of God.  God was the one who condemned Christ on the cross… not man. Therefore, “If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31-39)