Escape the Reign of Sin

Romans 5 paints two distinct, contrasting pictures: one of gloom, doom, and utter despondency; the other of hope, liberation, and restoration. These pictures are of two men, both of which had the power to affect the destiny of all mankind. One man purchased with his actions, weight and destruction for all mankind. The other man purchased with His actions rescue for many. But make no mistake, either type of existence and destiny demands surrender and service, either one has the power and the will to rule over mankind. There is no middle ground. Humanity finds itself under the bondage of one or the other. The choice mankind now faces is not between bondage and human freedom, it is rather a choice between which master one would prefer to serve, which life of servitude can enable one to live as they were meant to instead of as they were forced to.

It is true that the Apostle Paul paints a dark picture of humanity in the first 3 chapters of Romans, although one only needs the first chapter to see the despondency of the human sinful condition in its full dark destiny. Rom. 1:18-32 paints such a dark picture that you can’t help but wonder why God would even create mankind with such capacity in the first place. In fact, chapter 1 ends by relating humanity’s conscious state of sinfulness as that which they actually approve of for both themselves and others.

But in contrast to such a dark picture, Paul began to describe the way of escape, the way of rescue. Paul used chapter 5 to help the Roman church and all readers of this book to see that the source of the escape is not found in the first man, but in the second…Jesus Christ. And in fact, Matthew describes what the “burden” under the second man looks like in contrast to the slavery of the first.

Matt. 11:28-30 ““Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.“Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you shall find rest for your souls.“For My yoke is easy, and My load is light.””

The rescue of the second man, Jesus Christ, is then offered to all people. No matter one’s ancestry, pedigree, skills, abilities, or even intelligence. All can receive God’s rescue that He offers through this one Man, even though, according to chapters 1-3, they are all unworthy of it. The action by which one receives that offer from God comes in the form of Faith, not performance (according to Ch. 4). So then, in chapter 5, Paul described what it took for both destinies to be secured, to be purchased through actions of these two contrasting men.

As we pause our look at the 8 spiritual disciplines that are necessary in our QUEST for Spiritual Transformation we have been studying this year, we rightfully return to the first spiritual discipline we looked at when our QUEST all began, the spiritual discipline of grace. We talked about our need to continually “preach” the gospel to ourselves so that we might keep in perspective, a clear view of who we are in the wake of God’s holiness and who God is in offering us entrance into that holiness through the blood of His dear Son, Jesus Christ. Remember, we are as dependent upon that Grace to live for Christ as we were dependent upon that grace to believe in Christ in the first place.

Leading up to Easter, we hope to explore the work that was required of Christ to do in order that God could offer such grace to humanity and how Christ willingly fulfilled that requirement to rescue us from the ravages of the reign of sin in our lives and pave a path for us toward a liberated destiny, so that we might “Escape the Reign of Sin.”

On Palm Sunday, Pastor Eddie will share with us how that “Grace [to escape] Came with a Price,” out of 1 Pet. 2:21-25, and that Christ paid what you couldn’t, short of eternal payment.

Easter Morning we will see Christ “Up From the Grave” and His irreversible Triumph for both himself and all humanity in Luke 24:1-35, before concluding April 24th by asking the question, “What Are You Devoted to?” out of Act 1:1-14, now that He has died, risen, and ascended. Escape from the reign of sin and life now in Christ demands a Necessary Change that will lead us back into our study of God’s QUEST for us.

So, let’s come to our text from the Apostle Paul and see the two pictures that He painted, a contrast as stark and opposite as the two controversial wall colors behind me. These two pictures, the first of Adam and the second of Christ, were painted with words by Paul to teach us that:

Big Idea: No matter the magnitude of Sin and death, Grace always wins.

Paul started his painting by looking at the bondage that came from the first man, Adam, and the realization that all Humanity is under the bondage of Sin and Death. Let’s look at the text...

All Humanity is under the Bondage of Sin and Death through Adam (Rom. 5:12-14)

++Adam’s Sin and death are inseparable and inescapable (v. 12)

++Sin reigns in the world (v. 13)

++Death reigns over all through sin (v. 14)

119 Brunner writes: “The stream of death has its origin in the fall of the first man. His fall is the fall of all, his death the death of all. Mankind is a unity, and over humanity rules the inexorable law of God that death is part of sin” (Romans, 44).

That is the dark painting Paul painted in the first 3 chapters of his letter to the Romans. It is one of gloom, doom, and utter despondency, but...

God offers the Liberation of Justification and life through Christ (Rom. 5:15-17)

++God’s grace through Christ abounds over transgressions (v. 15)

++God’s grace overcomes the demand for continual perfection (v. 16)

++God’s grace offers you life (v. 17)

That is the contrasted painting of Paul for the Romans, one of hope, liberation, and restoration…one of life. That life comes only through God’s grace and the work of Jesus Christ, His death, burial, and resurrection in victory over death and sin.

God’s offer is the Gift of Grace through Christ’s Righteousness (Rom. 5:18-21)

++God’s gift is sufficient for and offered to all (v. 18)

++God’s gift gives righteousness instead of expecting it (v. 19)

++God’s gift abounds over all sin (vv. 20-21)

“Adam typifies the sinful condition of all humans (1:18–3:20). Jesus stands for the justification received by faith (3:21–5:11). Redemption is the story of two men. The first man disobeyed God and led the entire human race in the wrong direction.119 The second man obeyed God and provides justification for all who will turn to him in faith. No matter how devastating the sin of the first, the redemptive work of the second reverses the consequences of that sin and restores people to the favor of God. Only by grasping the seriousness of the first is one able to appreciate the remarkable magnanimity of the second.[1]”

[1]Robert H. Mounce, Romans, vol. 27, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1995), 140.

All Humanity is under the Bondage of Sin and Death through Adam (Rom. 5:12-14)

God offers the Liberation of Justification and life through Christ (Rom. 5:15-17)

God’s offer is the Gift of Grace through Christ’s Righteousness (Rom. 5:18-21)

Have you accepted God’s gracious gift of righteousness through Jesus Christ that has the power and will abound over any and all your sin?

Do you continue to life by God’s gracious gift of righteousness through Jesus Christ that has the power and will abound over any and all your sin?

Rom. 6:20-23 “For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. Therefore what benefit were you then deriving from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the outcome of those things is death.But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Big Idea: No matter the magnitude of Sin and death, Grace always wins.

You can count on it…just trust it with your whole heart and see grace abound

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