Sin/Death on Adam VS Righteous/Life in Christ (Rom 5:12-16), Part 1/4

One sentence from Romans 5 can unravel a lot of confusion and it can also rebuild your confidence in the gospel. We slow down in Romans 5:12–14 and follow Paul’s logic from the inside: sin enters through one man, death follows as the unavoidable consequence, and that death spreads because humanity is bound up with Adam as our representative head. That is not a side detail. It is the backdrop that makes the gift of grace, justification by faith, and reconciliation through Christ land with full weight.

We talk plainly about what “death” includes in Paul’s argument: physical death, spiritual death, and the shadow of eternal death apart from divine grace. Then we draw the comparison Paul is setting up between Adam and Christ. If Adam’s single trespass carries real consequences for those in him, Christ’s saving work carries real and lasting consequences for those in him. That is why assurance is not wishful thinking. It is tied to how representation works, and it challenges the idea that someone can be truly in Christ and still end up finally lost.

We also address a frequently misused line: “sin is not imputed where there is no law.” Paul is not teaching that people were innocent before Moses. Death reigned from Adam to Moses, which shows sin was present even without the Mosaic law. The law exposes what is already true, and that clarity is one reason we preach rather than treat ignorance like safety.

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Transcript

Setting Romans 5 Context

SPEAKER_00 0:00

We're in Romans chapter 5, beginning at verse 12, and we picked, we left off on prior to this, these verses, dealing with the reconciliation and the justification that comes to us by the gift of faith that comes by way of grace. And so Paul in verse 10 of this chapter he says, For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his son, much more being reconciled shall we be saved by his life. And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received atonement. Wherefore? As by one man sin entered into the world and death by sin, and so death passed upon all men, for all have sinned. And that last verse begins the next sectionary we're in right now. Wherefore, as by one man sin entered the world, and death by sin, and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned. Now I'm gonna ask all of you to, as we go through this thing, to ask the Lord to help me make this make sense. Because this section of scripture is a very, very profound and important part of scripture, necessary to be understood, especially as it pertains to many other peripheral issues that we're going to be dealing with, such as the election of God and the relationship between Israel and the church and all these different things. But ultimately, salvation in general. And so Paul is now about to break into sin and death as it is passed on to us, to all of mankind, through Adam, descending the sin and death that came to us by way of Adam. And so

Adam As Humanity’s Representative Head

SPEAKER_00 2:18

he begins here by saying, Wherefore, as by one man, Adam, sin entered the world. And then death entered as a result of that sin. And as a result of that, death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned. Now, Paul here begins with Adam, not Christ. He begins with Adam, but he begins with Adam, I believe, because the greatness of redemption can only truly be understood against the backdrop of humanity's great and tremendous fall, the fall of humanity. And so Adam is presented not merely as the first individual sinner, but as the representative head of the human race. And see, this is important to understand that Adam, his first sin, even though it was the first sin to ever take place on earth and in humanity, that he was not just put on display as the person who brought in his first sin or brought in the first sin, even though he did that. But what is important for us to understand is that he was also the federal representative head of the whole entire human race. And that means that his original sin, his first sin, became the sin of all mankind. This is what we need to understand. And this is going to be important when we look at the salvation that comes to us by way of Christ. And Paul is making a case about Adam because he's going to compare Christ to Adam and show us that the salvation that we get through Christ is based on the structure of the condemnation that we received as a way of Adam. And so this is why this is a very complex section of Scripture, and God willing, if He shows me mercy and shows me grace, I hope to make this make sense to all of you. So it's important for us to know. So through Adam, we are told here, it was by him and through him that sin entered the world. He was the doorway into sin. Just as Christ is a doorway for us into life. So through Adam, sin entered the world. Sin did not originate in the original material creation itself. It wasn't here. It wasn't here. Nor did it arise independently in every single individual who was affected by it. But sin entered the world through one man. Adam. How many men did righteousness enter the world through? One. The second Adam, Christ. Keep these things in your mind as we go. So sin entered human history through Adam's deliberate transgression. This one man's deliberate transaction. And he stood as the covenant or federal representative of all of his descendants, which all of us are. We're all sinners. And so this act introduced not only sin, but also death. Sin entered the world through Adam, and then sin resulted as a consequence into death, which is its inseparable consequence.

What Death Means In Romans

SPEAKER_00 6:45

Death. Inseparable from sin. They go together. It includes physical death. And it includes spiritual death. And it also ultimately includes eternal death apart from divine grace. And so Adam, even though when he sinned, he did not die physically on the spot. It was immediately. Just like with Christ, when we come to faith in him, we are given life immediately. But the ultimate glorification that comes to us as a result of having this life is not yet realized. Just as Adam's physical death was not yet realized immediately, but his spiritual death was. So then he goes on to say that death passed upon all men. As a result of Adam's sin, death passed upon all men. And it shows that this death that passed upon all men was universal in its reach. And the reason given is for that is for that all have sinned, as Paul says. And this points to a solidarity between one and the many. And so this has passed upon all flesh. And so the other verses repeatedly emphasize the effect of this one man's offense. Adam committed one offense, one act of disobedience, one trespass, and in doing so, confirming that the focus is not primarily on individual acts, but on the corporate relationship of humanity to Adam. The first head. It may sound complex to the untrained ear or the unlearned ear or somebody who hasn't spent much time in this. But we need to understand that Adam acted in a role that made him responsible for all people. And we're going to see that Christ was responsible for all those people who are also in him. And notice this as we're going to go, as we get through later, that all who are in Adam are not all who are in Christ. And this is a hard, bitter pill for so many people to swallow. Everyone who is in Adam are not equally the same as all of those who are in Christ. What Christ established was a new creation consisting of a new people that he came to die for in order that they might be saved. And so it becomes a very humbling thing to deal with here.

Two Humanity Groups In Adam Or Christ

SPEAKER_00 10:40

And this truth here humbles human pride by showing that our ruin as a people, as a humanity, as a race of people, our ruin lies deeper than our simple personal behavior. This goes far deeper. Our sin and death goes far deeper than human, independent, individual behaviors. We were born sinners because of Adam, his sin having been passed on to the entirety of the human posterity, all those who were born having his nature. And so humanity is not seen as this as this collection of individuals, but it is seen as a body that is united in its original transgression. So that the consequences extend to all. However, the difference is the first Adam brought sin and depravity. And that depravity was total. Christ brought righteousness, and that righteousness was total. When Adam sinned, all of us were dead. Without recovery, no way out of this. Total depravity came by way of Adam. Total absolute righteousness came by Christ. Just like the sin of Adam that we inherited could never get good, speaking bad English there, could never get good, the same, the righteousness that we have in the second Adam could never go bad. Keep drawing these comparisons. When I talk about what Adam has produced for all of humanity, think about what Christ has produced on the other side having the same effect, but a different quality toward his people. Keep this in mind. At the same time, this doctrine here that we're talking about, it lays the indispensable foundation for the gospel. Paul is showing you by talking about the negative impact of Adam and showing that the same process is going to be followed for price, except for the opposite ends. For the opposite ends. What sin did to us by way of Adam, righteousness will do to us to the same degree quantitatively in Christ. Adam's sin produced death in us, death that was total and complete. When Christ gives life to his people, it is total and complete. This is what we need to understand. If the condemnation of many can come through the act of one representative, Adam, then we need to understand that the justification of many can likewise come through the act of another representative, the man Christ Jesus.

Why Salvation Cannot Be Lost

SPEAKER_00 14:37

So, for example, we are always talking about, or I'm always bugging you and blasting your ears with the fact that the true Christian can never lose salvation. And if we compare what Paul is teaching here, if the Christian can never lose salvation, not losing without salvation is modeled after the wicked man who can never stop sinning. We can believe that Adam's sin was total and complete, that we inherited it. But we have a hard time, some of us in the Christian community, believing that Christ's righteousness for his people has the same effect, which is total and complete. I hope this is starting to make sense if it does if it hadn't already. Adam's death was pervasive and permanent. His sin that brought death was pervasive and permanent. Christ, his death brought righteousness that was perverse, pervasive and permanent. Those who have it can't lose it, just like those who have the sin of Adam couldn't lose that. They stayed dead in sin and trespasses. And the only way that that can be rectified is if Christ is that those people are found to be members. Looking at what Adam did should show us, and the effects of it should show us to a greater degree what Christ has done. What Christ has done. It magnifies the greatness of God's redemption and the universality of death points to beyond or points beyond itself to the necessity and the sufficiency of Christ's saving works. So this is really an important thing for us to understand.

Congregation Reflections On Adam And Christ

SPEAKER_00 17:41

Let me get a remark from you, Brother Jeff, man of God. What's your opening thoughts and remarks?

SPEAKER_02 17:47

Well, I mean, you're right on. I mean, you know, what I put in the chat is I mean, it's funny. Adam is the T and Christ is the P. Total depravity comes from Adam. Perseverance of the saints, which is total, you know, once saved, always saved, comes through our Lord Jesus Christ.

SPEAKER_01 18:07

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_02 18:08

And you know, that pretty much takes the book hands of tulip again. Whether you believe it or not, it's still true. Right. You know, and when you look at it, you know, I mean, it's it's very clear, and it's important to understand that. People think, oh yeah, I'm a good person. No, you know, you're a descendant, so therefore, automatically you are a bad person. I was an evil person too, and I'm still I still sinned, but I wouldn't consider myself evil. I consider myself saved. But the thing is, everybody in the whole world and all the descendants were afflicted by it. It was like a disease.

SPEAKER_01 18:46

Right.

SPEAKER_02 18:47

And Christ is the great physician. He healed it.

SPEAKER_01 18:50

Yep, he did.

SPEAKER_02 18:52

That's what I gotta say, brother.

SPEAKER_00 18:54

All right, brother. Good good word. Good word, dear. Let me ask somebody else here. Brother Jeffrey, encourage the servant. Your thoughts.

SPEAKER_03 19:02

Well, good evening, everyone. Yeah. Paul makes it very clear here, Jonathan, to the church at Rome, exactly what the human condition is with Christ and apart from Christ. There are two places to be, with him or without him. There is no third option. So the question then becomes: what do we believe? We believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and have life, or are we going to stick with what Adam did, believe on what he did, and end up in death, both physical and eternal? So it's a pretty clear choice here what Paul is laying out here in this fifth chapter of Romans.

SPEAKER_01 19:47

Amen. Sister Mariah, your thoughts.

SPEAKER_04 19:53

Yeah, I would say that we would have to then say that Christ produces death in himself. And death can come from Christ because once you're in him, you can then be lost again. And I think that this comes from people having a misconception of that we're not new creation in Christ Jesus, but we're we're new creations in Adam. And so they would liken us to still in a fallen state where Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, can never fall.

SPEAKER_01 20:28

Amen. Amen, sister. Good one. I'm going to take one more before the next verse. Lisa.

SPEAKER_05 20:35

Oh, I just think it's beautiful. Through one man, death came into the world, and through another man, the man, Jesus Christ, our Lord, he brings life. And there's just nothing, nothing else that I can say other than I'm so grateful. Thank you, Lord Jesus.

unknown 20:54

Amen.

SPEAKER_00 20:54

All right, let me do the next verse.

Sin Before Moses And Imputation

SPEAKER_00 20:56

I think I'm not going to forget anybody, so I'm going to get around. So verse 13. Paul says, for and this is this is important. And this is really interesting because I saw a verse today, or I saw a post today that somebody made about how can we sin if if there was no, if how could we be said to sin if there when there was no law? And I'll you'll get you'll see what I mean when I say the verse here. So in verse 13, Paul says, For until the law was in the world, I mean, for until the law, sin was in the world. But sin is not imputed where there is no law. Now let me read verse 14 along with this as before I start explaining verse 13. 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. One thing that throughout this message, Have to understand is this. He says that Adam is the figure of him, meaning Christ, that was to come. So let me go back to verse 13 and start dealing with this verse. Until the law, sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Many people take this to mean that before the law came, there was no sin. And that people who, apart from the law, had no guilt, had no sin. And this is what was conveyed in this message that this guy posted, and it's just nonsense. And he quoted Romans 7, and he was completely wrong on there as well. Because had he read Romans 5, he would understand this. Because Paul is now introducing and making a clarification to address a potential misunderstanding. The same understanding that was in this post that I saw today. The assumption that until the law came, there was no sin. That is not true. There was no knowledge that the sinner was violating a law. There was no knowledge. This is what Paul is saying. Because look what he says. He says, the law, I mean, until the law, I mean, until the law, sin was in the world. In other words, that even before Moses, even before Moses, sin was in the world. He never says that sin was not in the world. He told you the exact opposite. It was. But sin existed in the world before the giving of the law, and it demonstrated that the presence of sin is not dependent upon a mosaic code or mosaic law. In other words, just because the law comes doesn't invalidate the sin that preceded it. And it also assumes the giving of the law assumes the present residence of sin in the world. If there was no sin, there would have been no need for a law. Not for salvation, anyway. But Paul is already, he's already dealing with this idea that I need to make sure people understand this because they're going to think that before the law there was no sin. But he's clearing it up right away by saying, For until the law, sin actually was in the world. But the sin that was in the world is not imputed where there is no law. But once the law has been made manifest, the imputation of sin now becomes apparent. Now you know. Now you know what it is and why it is you do what you do. The second statement he makes, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. And we need to get a real careful understanding here. The coming of the law of Moses, it didn't make anyone a sinner. When the law came, it didn't turn you into what you were not. It didn't turn you into a sinner because the law came. It didn't turn us into sinners, it didn't make us into sinners, it showed us that we were and are sinners. That's what the law did, and that was its purpose. So Paul cannot possibly mean that God ignored sin before Sinai. He can't possibly mean that men were innocent before the law came. And the very next verse, verse 14, is going to show that. The one I just read is going to show that. Otherwise, by pointing to the universal reign of death, he's going to show that death was universally prevalent. It was everywhere across and affecting all mankind. Let me look at verse 14

Death Reigns And Why We Preach

SPEAKER_00 26:38

again. He says, nevertheless, death, listen, nevertheless, death reigned. It governed from Adam unto Moses. But the law did not come until Moses. It didn't come until Moses. Brother Aaron says, he told Cain that sin crouched at the door. This was before Moses. The absolute truth. Nevertheless, death reigned until Moses. So if you say that there is no sin where there is no law, you would be wrong. Sin is still sin, whether you've heard the law or not. And if not hearing or having an acknowledgement or being ignorant to the law was the grounds for justification, then not witnessing, not preaching, not sharing the gospel would be the best thing that we can do to our loved ones. Preach to no one. We send evangelists out. Why? To reach the places where the gospel and where the truth and where the law of God has not been known. If it is better to be ignorant, if ignorance resulted in salvation, there would be no need to preach. But we know that all people are sinned.