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The Book of Romans, Part 12 – From Sin to Righteousness Through Grace

[Study Aired September 12, 2023]

Rom 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: 
Rom 5:13 (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law.
Rom 5:14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come. 
Rom 5:15 But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many. 
Rom 5:16 And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification. 
Rom 5:17 For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)
Rom 5:18 Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.
Rom 5:19 For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. 
Rom 5:20 Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: 
Rom 5:21 That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.

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Rom 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

What is sin?

Sin is rebellion, witchcraft and stubbornness.

1 Samuel 15:23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, he hath also rejected thee from being king.

Sin is looking down on others, pride, engaging in activities or actions that prepare the way for sinful behavior.

Proverbs 21:4 An high look, and a proud heart, and the plowing of the wicked, is sin.

Sin is knowing how to do good and doing the opposite.

Rom 14:23 And he that doubteth is damned if he eat, because he eateth not of faith: for whatsoever is not of faith is sin.

Whatsoever is not of faith is sin.

James 4:17 Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.

Sin is transgressing the law, especially the law of Christ and all unrighteousness.

1 John 3:4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.

1 John 5:17 All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death.

These verses emphasize the importance of both action and inaction in the context of sin. They emphasize that sin is not limited to actions but also includes attitudes and motivations, such as pride and wicked intentions. They highlight that sin includes failing to do what is right when one knows it is right.

Let’s look at 1 John 5:17 again.

1 John 5:17 All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death.

What does “there is a sin not unto death” mean? If all have sinned and come short of the glory of God and death reigns, how is “there a sin not unto death?”

Eze 18:26 When a righteous man turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and dieth in them; for his iniquity that he hath done shall he die.
Eze 18:27 Again, when the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness that he hath committed, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he shall save his soul alive.
Eze 18:28 Because he considereth, and turneth away from all his transgressions that he hath committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die.

Eze 33:12 Therefore, thou son of man, say unto the children of thy people, The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression: as for the wickedness of the wicked, he shall not fall thereby in the day that he turneth from his wickedness; neither shall the righteous be able to live for his righteousness in the day that he sinneth. 
Eze 33:13 When I shall say to the righteous, that he shall surely live; if he trust to his own righteousness, and commit iniquity, all his righteousnesses shall not be remembered; but for his iniquity that he hath committed, he shall die for it.
Eze 33:14 Again, when I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; if he turn from his sin, and do that which is lawful and right; 
Eze 33:15 If the wicked restore the pledge, give again that he had robbed, walk in the statutes of life, without committing iniquity; he shall surely live, he shall not die.
Eze 33:16 None of his sins that he hath committed shall be mentioned unto him: he hath done that which is lawful and right; he shall surely live.

The “sin not unto death” is sin with repentance. 

Rom 5:13 (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law.

“Sin is not imputed when there is no law?” What law? The law of Moses. Paul is using the law of Moses and the story of Abraham as a type and shadow of the “law of God”, the “law of spirit of life” and the “law of Christ”.

Rom 7:22 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:

Rom 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

Gal 6:2 Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.

Paul’s message is the same as Christ’s. There is by “necessity a change also of the law.”

Heb 7:11 If therefore perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, (for under it the people received the law,) what further need was there that another priest should rise after the order of Melchisedec, and not be called after the order of Aaron? 
Heb 7:12 For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law.

The law is now a spiritual law written in our minds and hearts.

Heb 8:1 Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens; 
Heb 8:2 A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man. 
Heb 8:3 For every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices: wherefore it is of necessity that this man have somewhat also to offer. 
Heb 8:4 For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the law: 
Heb 8:5 Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount.
Heb 8:6 But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises. 
Heb 8:7 For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second. 
Heb 8:8 For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah: 
Heb 8:9 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord. 
Heb 8:10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:
Heb 8:11 And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.
Heb 8:12 For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.
Heb 8:13 In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away.

Sin is imputed if you know to do good and you do it not.

James 4:17 Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.

Going back to verse 12, “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:”

When does sin enter the “world”? As you all know, we are the “world”. 

Psa 51:5  Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.

When do we know to do good?

Rom 5:14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come. 
Rom 5:15 But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.

We know to do good when we receive the “gift by grace”.

Tit 2:11 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, 
Tit 2:12 Teaching us (Chastening us) that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world (age); 
Tit 2:13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; 
Tit 2:14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.

Just as Christ suffered for our transgression and was caused to sacrifice his life for all, we also are now to do the same for the rest of mankind and especially for the body of Christ. 

Joh 10:14 I am the good shepherd myself. I know my sheep and my sheep know me, 
Joh 10:15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father, and I am giving my own life for my sheep. 
Joh 10:16 I have other sheep too that do not belong to this fold. I must lead them too, and they will listen to my voice, and all my sheep will become one flock with one shepherd. 
Joh 10:17 This is why the Father loves me, because I am giving my own life to take it back again. 

Joh 15:12 This is my command to you, to keep on loving one another as I have loved you. 
Joh 15:13 No one can show greater love than this, the giving of his life for his friends.
Joh 15:14 You are my friends, if you keep on doing what I command you to do. 

1Jn 3:16 We know what love is from the fact that He laid down His life for us; and so we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.

Continuing with the verses, Paul emphasizes the transformative process of judgment leading to righteousness.

Rom 5:16 And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification. 
Rom 5:17 For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)

Paul underscores the contrast between Adam’s sin and the gift of grace through Jesus Christ. Adam’s one transgression brought condemnation to all mankind. This condemnation was the result of a single offense, but the free gift of righteousness through Christ justifies us despite the many offenses committed. It’s a process of judgment that leads to our ultimate justification and the privilege of reigning in life through Jesus Christ.

Gen 3:16 Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.
Gen 3:17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; 
Gen 3:18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; 
Gen 3:19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

These verses depict the consequences of Adam’s and Eve’s sin, including pain in childbirth and the toil required for sustenance. The effects of their disobedience extended to all of mankind, highlighting the universal impact of sin.

Adam broke the first commandment given by God. This commandment from God instructs Adam not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. It serves as a clear directive and a test of obedience. Adam and Eve later disobeyed this command, leading to the events described in Genesis 3, where they ate the forbidden fruit and experienced the consequences of their disobedience.

Gen 2:16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 
Gen 2:17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

Paul sums up the cost of the sin of Adam and explains that through this one offense everyone must live out the process of judgment. He goes on to explain that Christ will make us all righteous through grace.

Rom 5:18 Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.
Rom 5:19 For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. 
Rom 5:20 Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: 
Rom 5:21 That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 5:12-21 highlight the introduction of sin into the world through Adam’s disobedience, resulting in death for all. However, they also emphasize the transformative process of judgment leading to righteousness through Jesus Christ. Through Adam’s one offense, condemnation came upon all mankind. Through Christ’s righteousness and the grace (judgment) of God, the free gift of justification came upon all, even though many offenses are being committed. This transformation is compared to the reign of sin leading to death, with grace now reigning through righteousness, offering eternal life through Jesus Christ.

In summary, these passages collectively portray the idea of sin entering the world through Adam’s disobedience and how the law has changed from a physical law to a spiritual law through the redemptive work of Jesus Christ. The focus is on the process of judgment leading to righteousness, the transformative power of grace, and the promise of eternal life through faith in Christ.

Heb 7:12 For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law. 

Rom 7:12 Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good. 
Rom 7:13 Was then that which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful. 
Rom 7:14 For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.