Three times in Romans 5 we read that Christ died for us. Romans 5:6 tells us that He died for us in our weakness, Romans 5:8 that He died for us in our sin, and Romans 5:10 that He died for us in our rebellion.
Men sometimes try to make themselves acceptable to God by human effort, but they never succeed. We canβt walk or run to heaven, we canβt even fly there, and we certainly canβt climb there β not even by doing good works, for good works is what we ought to do, and we should not expect them to counter-balance our sinful thoughts and deeds. Anyway, heaven is Godβs and He says we cannot gain it by works:
βFor by grace are ye saved, through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God; not of works, lest any man should boastβ (Eph. 2:8,9).
Many people feel shut out of heaven, not merely because of a sense of helplessness, but because of a sense of sinfulness and condemnation. To such God proclaims the glad news that βChrist died for sinnersβ, and βcame into the world to save sinnersβ (I Tim. 1:15). At Calvary He paid the just penalty for sin β for the sins of all mankind β so that we, by faith, might be βjustified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesusβ (Rom. 3:24).
But Romans 5:10 goes even further, offering hope and grace to those who have resisted Godβs grace and rejected His Son, for here the greatest Christ-rejecter of all time, now gloriously saved and changed, declares:
βWhen we were ENEMIES, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Sonβ (Rom. 5:10).
And so the helpless, the sinful, yes, and the rebellious, can find acceptance with God if only they will turn to Him from their sin and failure. βBELIEVE ON THE LORD JESUS CHRIST AND THOU SHALT BE SAVEDβ¦β (Acts 16:31). source
