Apr 21 - 36 - Romans 5:12,18

… sin came into the world through

one man, and death came through sin,

and so death spread to all

because all have sinned …

Therefore just as one man’s trespass

led to condemnation for all,

so one man’s act of righteousness

leads to justification and life for all.

Romans 5:12,18

Bible Rank: 36

 

The mess and the solution. That’s how I’d describe today’s verse(s).

 

Wait … Let’s describe it like this: Because the world’s a mess, aren’t you ready for a solution?!

 

Now, for weeks I’ve had the one TopVerse of the day. But to today’s verse, I added a second verse. Why? Because Romans 5:18 clarifies and completes 5:12. Let’s look at this phrase by phrase because we absolutely cannot understand the mess of the world until we understand both parts of this story – the mess and the solution.

 

First: The Mess

 

… sin came into the world through one man. Who? Adam. God created good. Wonderful. Indeed! But the first human(s) rebelled against God. They severed the simple, holy intimacy that God intended. Seeking their own glory and their own priorities, they destroyed the life-giving relationship with the Father.

 

… and death came through sin. God told them about the consequence of sin beforehand. He said, “for in the day that you eat of [the fruit] you shall die.” Was this cruel? Judgmental? No! It’s important to understand that this is not punishment! God does not desire death. Rather, it is a natural consequence to our rebellion against the author of life.

 

Think about this: Why do we live? It’s because of God! Our Master Creator took dust, breathed the breath of life, and weaved inert atoms into something majestic and living. Wow!

 

Now, how long do we live? As long as the Author of Life animates us. We are totally dependent on God for life. Without him, we inevitably return to dust. And that’s what he was saying. He said, depend on me, and you’ll live. He said, sever this relationship and you’ll cut your own life-line.

 

And Adam did. He sinned. He rebelled. He cut his own life line. And death came through sin.

 

… and … death spread to all because all have sinned. I sin. You sin. We all sin. All. ALL. We all rebel. We all cut our own life line. And by severing ourselves from the Author of Life, our inevitable trajectory is death. It’s natural. It’s our own inevitable consequence.

 

NOW: THE SOLUTION

 

Yet … just as one man’s trespass led to condemnation for all, so [another] man’s act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all. The first man – the one who trespassed – was Adam. The other man – the one who generously performed an act of righteousness – was Jesus. Jesus was (and is) the New Adam. The Old Adam led us all into death. The New Adam – Jesus – invites us all do discover life. He declares us sinners just. (Justification is indeed a legal term.) But our justness comes not from our sinful selves; rather, Jesus applies his righteousness to our lives, and the Savior’s “act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all.”

 

In Christ’s Love,

a dust ball

 

… that gets to live

because of Jesus