Transcript
Romans chapter 5 verses 12 through 14, Wherefore, or more literally, On account of this, just as through one man sin – and as I pointed out to you that is a definite article: the sin, that is, the sin principle entered into the world, and death through sin; and so death passed through all men, for all sinned: (verse 13) for until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed to them because there is no law. (verse 14) Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude (or likeness) of Adam’s transgression, who is the figure or type of Him that was to come.
Paul has spent chapters 3 and 4 and 5 showing us the doctrine of condemnation, the doctrine of justification in the book of Romans. How we have a need to be made right with God and through Jesus Christ He made us right with God. But here at the end of chapter 5, before moving into Romans chapter 6 and on to sanctification, he wants to summarize the history of sin, at least in verses 12 to 14. And then a comparison, a contrast between Christ and Adam that we will get into and complete next week. This is called the principle of sin verses 12 to 21 that he focuses on.
In verses 12 to 14 there are three phases of the history of sin that he mentions for us. Therefore, or, on account of this – that is, all that he has mentioned about the doctrine of condemnation and the doctrine of justification – that through one man. Verse 14 tells us it is Adam. Verse 15 says the other one man is Christ. The word one is found twelve times in verses 12 to 21. The focus is now on two individual people and what entered the world through each of these individual people.
Through one man the sin entered. And as we showed you Thursday night the importance of understanding from I John chapter 3 verse 8 that Satan is the sinner. He is the sin principle. And when a person has been saved by Christ and delivered from the sinner and the sin principle himself, then Christ comes to live within. But the sin principle did not originate with Adam, but rather entered the world, the human world, our world, through Adam.
And death through sin. So not only did sin enter the world but also death. The wages of sin is death, Romans chapter 6 verse 23. And so death passed through unto all men, because all sinned. That last word sinned is an aorist tense which means it is directed back to Adam’s sin and emphasizes to us that all inherit a sin nature. I do not become a sinner when I sin. According to David, I become a sinner at conception, Psalm 51 verse 5, In sin did my mother conceive me. But I inherited the sin nature as soon as I was conceived and brought into this world.
I am considered a sinner not because I sin but I sin because I am a sinner. I have the sin nature. Adam’s inner nature changed. It is not that he did a bad thing, and got his hand slapped, and got punishment. His spirit, his nature was changed by the sin principle that entered into the world, which is why we need to be transformed. Salvation is not a mental agreement, it is receiving Christ and being born of His Spirit. II Corinthians chapter 5 verse 17, a person who has received Christ has become a new creature, a new creation, the old things have passed away (the things of the flesh) and all things have become new (that is the spiritual things of Christ). But death passed upon all men.
Now, something very interesting. So we saw the cause of sin, which is the sin principle. The coverage of sin, it has been passed along to the entire human race. You and I, even without choice, we were born with a sin nature. And as I emphasized last week that our problem is not the problem. That is is a good counseling philosophy. If somebody comes with their problem, the problem is not the problem. The problem is what you do about the problem. If someone is born with a sin nature and they want to blame God for all of their problems, that is not the problem. The problem is what you do about the problem. We gain much more in Christ than we lose in Adam. So why do not you come to Christ? You just do not like the only one answer for your problem. Our problem is what we do about our problems. And a lot of times we do not want to do what the Lord wants us to do, and that is our problem.
So I was born with a sin nature, which I did not have anything to do with. “Thank you, Adam,” right? And I told you, lots of people over the years have come up to me and said, “When I see him – if he is in heaven,” some people do not even know if he is there. But, “If I see him in heaven I am going to ask him, what were you thinking because you passed this down to the human race?” And as I told you before, you cannot do that because you will not know him from Adam.
But Jesus Christ, when He died on the cross and salvation was provided through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ – I did not ask for that either. I did not cause this and I did not cause this. So I am the recipient through Adam of the sin nature. And I am the recipient of the answer to my sin problem through Jesus Christ. It is just given. We are recipients. Do not even have to work for it.
But we have the third, verses 13 and 14, the condition of sin. This is an important note. It proves that sin has passed through the whole human race. For until the law sin was in the world. Now, you remember when Adam sinned there was no law. But, Until the law, up until, sin was in the world and sin was not imputed there not being any law. Remember, we saw from Romans chapter 3 verse 20 that through the law is the knowledge of sin. How are these people, how is anybody going to know before the law was given what sin is? So God says, “It will not be imputed to your account even though you are a sinner.” But verse 14 says, But death reigned (ruled) from Adam until Moses. Now how do you know that sins in the world, if God did not present the law to show them what their sin is? It is because people died.
Death reigned from Adam until Moses even upon on the ones who had not sinned upon the basis of the likeness of the transgression of Adam. Nobody ever commits the transgression and sin of Adam. He did not do a bad thing. We all disobey, like he disobeyed. But like I say his disobedience was a major issue. It is not that he did something wrong, it is just that the sin principle, Satan himself was introduced to the world, himself and the world. His (Adam’s) nature changed and we are born with a sin nature. So death even came upon those who had not sinned like Adam sinned. And he says, Adam who is a type or figure of the One who is to come. By type he means that all of mankind is influenced by this one person. Jesus Christ is the same as Adam. They are opposites as far as the effect of life, but all of mankind receives and is affected by what each of these one men did.
When Adam disobeyed God, it was not just that he disobeyed. As I said earlier, when he sinned and disobeyed his entire nature changed. Every person needs a change of nature, needs to be transformed. Sin is a spiritual disease.
In John chapter 3 Jesus talked about in the book of Numbers, how Moses set a brass snake up on a pole so that all those who were bitten by snakes and dying of poison, they can look upon that pole and by faith they could be healed. He sent the snakes because they rebelled. They repented and looked to that pole that they would be healed. And Jesus said, “So must the Son of Man be lifted up.”
We have to understand that sin is a spiritual problem, not a religious problem, not a human problem. We mention the various people that are suffering from some very serious health problems. I do not think anyone of us would ever come up to these people who are suffering like this and tell them that you know if you went out on the street and start doing good for people your health problems would clear up. They know that is not going to work. We have a sin problem. Becoming religious is not going to help the sin problem. There has to be a spiritual answer for the sin problem. If I am to be delivered and changed and transformed and healed from the sin principle and my sin nature, it has to be a spiritual answer by a spiritual being. So that when Jesus Christ died for me on the cross, He made it available that I can literally be saved. Literally be delivered. Not religiously but spiritually. And not just saved, but have the indwelling of His Spirit in me forever. Not only here but throughout eternity. I belong to Christ because He has His ownership trademarked right on me.
Paul said in Ephesians chapter 1 the guarantee of His Spirit. It is not because of me as a person, it is because of His presence in my life that is the proof that I belong to Christ. And it is an encouragement to me that He is going to be in me and I in Him throughout eternity. From now on. It is never going to change. Talk about encouragement. Talk about the world going crazy.
But death passed on all people, even at a period of time when God was not imputing their sin. So you say, “Did they judged?” Yes, they did. They were judged for the sin nature and because people were dying around them it was a testimony to them that sin is in the world, whatever that is to them. What is sin? And God held them responsible.
So Paul is mentioning in these three verses, and sharing with us the history of sin and its three phases. The cause. The coverage. And the condition. That even if you think you are a good person, and you do not believe in the Bible, and you do not believe there is sin, you are still going to die. It is because you are a sinner. It is the effect of sin in this life. And so he is telling all people that here is the history of sin through Adam.
And then next, in verses 15 to 21, he is going to take us on a series of contrasts and comparisons between what we inherited from Adam and what we inherited from Christ. To show us that all of God’s focus is on two people. A person is either in Adam or they are in Christ. Everybody is born in Adam but when you receive Christ – born of His Spirit, changed, transformed, you are now in Christ. Two people represent two conditions, spiritual conditions. And a person identifies with either one camp or the other. A person is either in Adam’s camp or they are in the Lord’s camp. So next week we will continue on and study these contrasts and comparisons and then we will be ready to take an in-depth study of what we are studying in the survey on Thursday night in Romans chapter 6.
Let’s close with prayer.
