The Reign of Death

12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned— 13 (For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. 14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come. 15 But the free gift is not like the offense. For if by the one man’s offense many died, much more the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounded to many. 16 And the gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned. For the judgment which came from one offense resulted in condemnation, but the free gift which came from many offenses resulted in justification. 17 For if by the one man’s offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.) 18 Therefore, as through one man’s offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man’s righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. 19 For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous. 20 Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more, 21 so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

We can never fully understand the grace of God until we understand our human condition. We have such a distorted, twisted view of our condition by nature. Our western world view and 1st world comforts only further work against us to give us a sense of indifference to our situation.

If only we would see the truth of our condition, if only we could have our eyes opened to the spiritual realities, then we would see people running to Jesus, we would see Christians living their faith, striving for godliness with gratitude toward their saviour Jesus Christ. This is why we really need to pay attention to Paul’s words here in Romans. We need to ponder them and meditate on them.

I was reviewing Rom chapter 5 this week just looking at the words used to describe our condition. let me read them out to you.

Without Strength

Ungodly

Sinners

Enemies of God

Under the Reign of Death

This list should cause us to break out in a cold sweat. It should terrify us.

But the gospel we find interwoven in these verses is over and above.

The term “much more” is used 5 times in this chapter.

Christmas dinner illustration

Super abundance

As we begin looking at these verses from 5:12-5:21 we find a comparison is made between Adam and the supper abundance of Christ in order to teach us some very deep and powerful truths about justification by faith. I think it will take us some time to get through these 10 verses. I don’t know how long but I know that we won’t be getting through them today.

My first point this morning is....

Just as Adam So Christ

A comparison is made here in these verses between Adam and Christ.

in vs 12 it says...

Romans 5:12 NKJV

12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned—

The sentence is unfinished at this point and in some bibles there is a parentheses from vs. 13-17 and in verse 18 Paul continues this thought.

Romans 5:18 NKJV

So we can see a comparison is made between these two men. The one who sinned and brought judgement to all men and the one who’s righteous act brought the free gift of justification. the first being Adam the second being Christ.

With any comparison you have similarities and differences and both are important to help us to understand the point.

Why compare Christ to Adam?

In verse 14 it says that...

Romans 5:14 NKJV

14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come.

A type is a foreshadowing.

First and Last Adam

1 Corinthians 15:45–49 NKJV

45 And so it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. 46 However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterward the spiritual. 47 The first man was of the earth, made of dust; the second Man is the Lord from heaven. 48 As was the man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly. 49 And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man.

So we have 2 humanities. One is natural all coming from our father the first Adam. The other is spiritual and comes from the Last Adam, Christ. Or as Jesus put it “that which is born of flesh is flesh and that which is born of spirit is spirit.

This comparison made in Rom 5 is given specifically to help our understanding of how Jesus dying one death on the cross is able to save all those who believe on Him. In order to understand how we all can be made righteous we must first understand how all are made sinners. Which brings us to my next point.

All Sinned

in verse 12 it says...

Romans 5:12 NKJV

12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned—

and then his sentence just drops off.

I believe that the reason that Paul cuts off his sentence right here is because it is extremely important for us to know what he means by all sinned.

Now we could read this … …because all commit individual sins. Paul did say before in Rom 3:23 that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. And he does say in Rom 6:23 that the wages of sin is death. So isn’t that what he’s just reiterating here that death spread to all men because all have sinned? That’s true but I don’t believe that that is what Paul is saying here. Let’s look at the context. Paul stops abruptly mid sentence to clarify and he uses two arguments here.

1st. argument is based on the law. he says in vs 13

Romans 5:13 NKJV

13 (For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law.

So then sins, that is individual acts of sin were in the world before God gave the law to Moses But sin is not imputed when there is no Law.

Imputed = means to reckon, or to put to one’s account or lay to one’s charge.

So, even though people committed sinful acts this was not put to their charge because there was no law...

Romans 5:14 NKJV

14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come.

The condemnation of death still reigned over those to whom their sins were not imputed.

2nd argument “death reigned from Adam to Moses even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam.

He could be talking about those who did not sin as Adam did by breaking a direct command of God but I believe, as do many other commentators, That Paul has something else in mind here, namely infants. The Jewish Rabbis believed that a child under the age of one year was not capable of sinning, and that their deaths were a result of the parents sin. That is why the disciples when they saw the man that was blind from birth asked Jesus “which man sinned this man, or his parents?” But what Paul tells us here is that the reason that death takes even those who have not sinned is because of Adam’s sin.

So I believe that what is meant in vs 12 by “all sinned” is that we all were in Adam when he sinned and therefore we all receive the condemnation. The whole human race was in Adam our father when he sinned and so the condemnation of death passed upon all humanity.

This is a hard thing for us to take as postmodern westeners with our sharp sense of fairness. And yet it is key to our understanding of how we can be justified through one man’s righteous act.

Romans 5:18–19 NKJV

18 Therefore, as through one man’s offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man’s righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. 19 For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous.

In verse 16 is says plainly For the Judgement which came from one offence resulted in condemnation. One man, one sin, condemnation for all. And what is that condemnation?...

Death Reigns

Romans 5:14 NKJV

14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come.

The proof of this passage is all around us. Most of us have been already touched by it in some way. If death is just part of the natural process of life then why do we feel such loss? We were not created to die. Death is the condemnation of the sin of Adam.

Genesis 5:1–8 NKJV

1 This is the book of the genealogy of Adam. In the day that God created man, He made him in the likeness of God. 2 He created them male and female, and blessed them and called them Mankind in the day they were created. 3 And Adam lived one hundred and thirty years, and begot a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth. 4 After he begot Seth, the days of Adam were eight hundred years; and he had sons and daughters. 5 So all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years; and he died. 6 Seth lived one hundred and five years, and begot Enosh. 7 After he begot Enosh, Seth lived eight hundred and seven years, and had sons and daughters. 8 So all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years; and he died.

But I don’t want to finish on such a negative point. Paul certianty doesn’t finish on a negative point but since we don’t have time to finish this passage today I’ll finish with this well know verse.

John 3:16 NKJV

16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.