22  Christ and the Reign of Life (5:15-21)

But the free gift is not like the transgression. For if by the transgression of the one the many died, much more did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many. And the gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned; for on the one hand the judgment arose from one transgression resulting in condemnation, but on the other hand the free gift arose from many transgressions resulting in justification. For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ. So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men. For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous. And the Law came in that the transgression might increase; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, that, as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (5:15–21)

Paul continues his analogy of Adam and Christ, showing how the life that was made possible for all men by Christ’s atoning sacrifice is illustrated antithetically by the death that was made inevitable for all men by Adam’s sin. It is the truth the apostle summarizes in his first letter to Corinth: “For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all shall be made alive” (l Cor. 15:22).

As noted in the previous chapter, the only truly analogous factor between Adam and Christ is that of one man/one act. That is, just as the one man Adam’s sin brought sin to all mankind, so the one man Jesus Christ’s one sacrifice made salvation available to all mankind.

In the present passage, as if to examine every facet of this marvelous analogy, Paul explores five essential areas of contrast between the condemning act of Adam and the redemptive act of Christ. Those acts were different in their effectiveness (v. 15), in their extent (v. 16), in their efficacy (v. 17), in their essence (vv. 18–19), and in their energy (vv. 20–21).

THE CONTRAST IN EFFECTIVENESS

But the free gift is not like the transgression. For if by the transgression of the one the many died, much more did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many. (5:15)

The first contrast is clearly stated as being between the free gift of Christ and the transgression of Adam, acts that were totally opposite.

By definition, all gifts are free, but charisma (free gift) refers to something given with special graciousness and favor, and therefore could also be appropriately rendered “grace gift.” When used of what is given to God, the term refers to that which is right and acceptable in His sight; when used of that which is given by God, as here, it refers to that which is given completely apart from human merit. In regard to Jesus’ atoning sacrifice, both meanings are involved. Going to the cross was Jesus’ supreme act of obedience to His Father and therefore was wholly acceptable to the Father. His going to the cross was also the supreme act of divine grace, His free gift offered to sinful mankind.

Transgression is from paraptōma, which has the basic meaning of deviating from a path, or departing from the norm. By extension, it carries the idea of going where one should not go, and therefore is sometimes translated “trespass.” The one sin of Adam that was bequeathed to all his posterity and that brought the reign of death on the world was a transgression from the one command, from the single norm for obedience, that God had given.

The impact of the free gift and of the transgression are distinct to themselves. By the transgression of the one, that is, Adam, the many died. Perhaps for the sake of parallelism, Paul uses many in two different senses in this verse. As will be seen below, he uses the term all with similarly distinct meanings in verse 18. In regard to Adam’s act, many is universal and inclusive, corresponding to the “all” in verse 12. Because all men, without exception, bear in themselves the nature and mark of sin, they are all, without exception, under the sentence of death (as he has made clear in earlier chapters).

By eating of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, Adam departed from God’s standard and entered a divinely-forbidden realm. And instead of becoming more like God, as Satan had promised, man became more unlike His Creator and separated from Him. Instead of bringing man into the province of God, Adam’s transgression delivered him and all his posterity to the province of Satan.

The heart of Paul’s comparison, however, is that Christ’s one act of salvation had immeasurably greater impact than Adam’s one act of damnation. Much more, he says, did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many. The divine provision of redemption not only is an expression of the grace of God the Father but of the grace of God the Son, the one Man, Jesus Christ.

The sin of Adam brought death. But the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, did more than simply provide the way for fallen mankind to be restored to the state of Adam’s original innocence. Jesus Christ not only reversed the curse of death by forgiving and cleansing from sin but provided the way for redeemed men to share in the full righteousness and glory of God.

John Calvin wrote, “Since the fall of Adam had such an effect as to produce ruin of many, much more efficacious is the grace of God to the benefit of many; inasmuch as it is admitted, that Christ is much more powerful to save, than Adam was to destroy” (Commentaries on the Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Romans [Grand Rapids: Baker, 1979], p. 206). God’s grace is greater than man’s sin. Not only is it greater than the one original sin of Adam that brought death to all men but it is greater than all the accumulated sins that men have ever or will ever commit.

It might be said that Adam’s sinful act, devastating as it was, had but a one-dimensional effect—it brought death to everyone. But the effect of Christ’s redemptive act has facets beyond measure, because He not only restores man to spiritual life but gives him the very life of God. Death by nature is static and empty, whereas life by nature is active and full. Only life can abound.

Contrary to its use in the beginning of this verse regarding Adam, the term many now carries its normal meaning, applying only to those for whom Christ’s gracious gift of salvation is made effective through their faith in Him. Although Paul does not mention that qualifying truth at this point, He has just declared that believers are “justified by faith” and are introduced “by faith into this grace in which we stand” (5:1–2). That, of course, is the cardinal truth of the gospel as far as man’s part is concerned; it is the focus of Paul’s teaching in this epistle from 3:21–5:2.

Many of the Puritans and Reformers ended their sermons or commentary chapters with a statement about the passage’s “practical use.” The practical truth of Romans 5:15 is that the power of sin, which is death, can be broken, but the power of Christ, which is salvation, cannot be broken. “Our Savior Christ Jesus,” Paul declared to Timothy, “abolished death, and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel” (2 Tim. 1:10).

Jesus Christ broke the power of sin and death, but the converse is not true. Sin and death cannot break the power of Jesus Christ. The condemnation of Adam’s sin is reversible, the redemption of Jesus Christ is not. The effect of Adam’s act is permanent only if not nullified by Christ. The effect of Christ’s act, however, is permanent for believing individuals and not subject to reversal or nullification. We have the great assurance that once we are in Jesus Christ, we are in Him forever.

THE CONTRAST IN EXTENT

And the gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned; for on the one hand the judgment arose from one transgression resulting in condemnation, but on the other hand the free gift arose from many transgressions resulting in justification. (5:16)

The second contrast between the one act of Adam and the one act of Christ is in regard to extent. In that regard, just as in effectiveness, Christ’s justification is far greater than Adam’s condemnation.

In verse 15 Paul speaks of “the transgression of the one,” whereas in verse 16 he speaks of the one who sinned, that is, the one who transgressed. In the first case the emphasis is on the sin, in the second it is on the sinner. But the basic truth is the same. It was the one sin by the one man at the one time that brought God’s judgment and its resulting … condemnation.

But the gift of God’s grace through Jesus Christ is not like that. God’s judgment on Adam and his posterity arose from but one transgression. On the other hand, however, the free gift arose not simply because of that single transgression but from many transgressions, and its result is not simply restoration but justification.

John Murray offers a helpful observation: “The one trespass demanded nothing less than the condemnation of all. But the free gift unto justification is of such a character that it must take the many trespasses into its reckoning; it could not be the free gift of justification unless it blotted out the many trespasses. Consequently, the free gift is conditioned as to its nature and effect by the many trespasses just as the judgment was conditioned as to its nature and effect by the one trespass alone” (The Epistle to the Romans [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1965], p. 196).

This verse contains two very practical truths that are closely related. The first is that God hates sin so much that it took only one sin to condemn the entire human race and separate them from Him. It was not that Adam’s first sin was worse than others he committed or worse than men have committed since. It was simply that his first sin was sin. At the time, eating the forbidden fruit was the only sin that Adam and Eve could have committed, because God had placed but one restriction on them. But had it been possible, any other sin would have had the same effect. In the same way, any sin that any man has ever committed would be sufficient to damn the whole human race, just as Adam’s one sin did. A sobering thought, indeed.

The other truth in verse 16 is still more amazing and incomprehensible, and is as heartening as the first is sobering. Greater even than God’s hatred of sin is His love for the sinner. Despite the fact that God hates sin so much that any one sin could damn the human race, His loving grace toward man is so great that He provides not only for the redemption of one man from one sin but for the redemption of all men from all sins. Jesus Christ took upon Himself the sins of the whole world. “God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them” (2 Cor. 5:19).

THE CONTRAST IN EFFICACY

For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ. (5:17)

The third contrast between the one act of Adam and the one act of Christ is in regard to efficacy, the capacity to produce a desired result.

As Paul has already pointed out, the one sin of the one man Adam brought the reign of death (vv. 12–14). It is to that truth that the if—which here carries the idea of “because“—refers. It has been established that Adam’s one act of sin brought the reign of death. But that was hardly the intent of the first sin. Neither Adam nor Eve sinned because they wanted to die; they sinned because they expected to become like God. Their sin produced the very opposite result from that which they desired and emphasized the deception of the tempter. As noted above, instead of becoming more like God, they became more unlike Him.

The one act of the one Man, Jesus Christ, however, produced precisely the desired result. The divine intent of Jesus’ sacrifice of Himself on the cross was that those who receive the abundance of that unmatched act of grace and of the gift of righteousness would reign in life through the One who died for them, namely, Jesus Christ.

The one-dimensional result of Adam’s one act was death, whereas the result of Christ’s one act is life, which is multidimensional. Christ not only offers life but abundant life, life that abounds (v. 15; cf. John 10:10). The redeemed in Christ not only receive abundant life but are given righteousness as a gift (cf. 2 Cor. 5:21). They reign in that righteous lite with their Lord and Savior. They possess the very righteous, glorious, and eternal life of God Himself.

The “practical use” of this great truth is that the One who has granted us spiritual life will fulfill that life in us. “For I am confident of this very thing,” Paul assured the Philippian believers, “that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus” (Phil. 1:6). God is the great transformer and fulfiller of life. “Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come” (2 Cor. 5:17).

To reign in life through Christ is also to have power over sin. Later in this letter Paul says, “Thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness” (6:17–18). As believers, we know from experience as well as from Scripture that we are still plagued with sin, still clothed in the sinful rags of the old self (see Eph. 4:22). But sin is no longer the nature or the master of the believer. In Christ we are no longer victims of sin but victors over sin (1 Cor. 15:57).

THE CONTRAST IN ESSENCE

So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men. For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous. (5:18–19)

The fourth contrast between the one act of Adam and the one act of Christ is in regard to essence. These two verses summarize the analogy of Adam and Christ.

As with the many in verse 15, Paul apparently uses all in verse 18 for the sake of parallelism, although the two occurrences of the term carry different meanings. Just as “the many died” in verse 15 refers inclusively to all men, so life to all men here refers exclusively to those who trust in Christ. This verse does not teach universalism, as some have contended through the centuries. It is abundantly clear from other parts of this epistle, including the first two verses of this chapter, that salvation comes only to those who have faith in Jesus Christ (see also 1:16–17; 3:22, 28; 4:5, 13).

Paul’s primary teaching in these two verses is that the essence of Adam’s one transgression (v. 18a) was disobedience (v. 19a), whereas the essence of Christ’s one act of righteousness (v. 18b) was obedience (v. 19b). When God commanded Adam not to eat of the forbidden fruit, Adam disobeyed and brought death. When God sent His only begotten Son into the world to suffer and die, the Son obeyed and brought life.

Made translates kathislēmi and here carries the idea of constituting, or establishing. The guilt of Adam’s disobedience was imputed to all his descendants. They were thus made sinners—in the sense that they became legally guilty in God’s sight. In the same way, but with the exact opposite effect, Christ’s obedience causes those who believe in Him to be made righteous in God’s sight. The consequence of His perfect obedience—an unblemished, impeccable righteousness—is imputed to their account, making them legally righteous.

From beginning to end, Jesus’ earthly life was characterized by perfect obedience to His heavenly Father. Even at the age of twelve, He reminded His parents that He had to be about His Father’s business (Luke 2:49). Jesus’ sole purpose on earth was to do His Father’s will (John 4:34; 5:30; 6:38; cf. Matt. 26:39,42). In His incarnation, “He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on across” (Phil. 2:8).

Christ’s obedience to the divine commandments is often called “active obedience,” and His death on the Cross is called “passive obedience.” Though He obeyed the law perfectly in His life, He also submitted to the penalty of the law in all its horrible fulness. Both active and passive obedience are included in the perfect righteousness of Christ that is imputed to believers. It is therefore a righteousness that satisfies all the demands of the law, including the law’s penal requirements. The obedience of the One thus secured redemption for the many who will be made righteous in God’s sight. God—“who justifies the ungodly” (Rom. 4:5)—can therefore declare still-sinful believers fully righteous without any taint on His righteousness. he is both “just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus” (Rom. 3:26).

The “practical use” of this truth is that genuine believers can truly sing with H. G. Spafford in his great hymn:

THE CONTRAST IN ENERGY

And the Law came in that the transgression might increase; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, that, as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (5:20–21)

The fifth and last contrast between the one act of Adam and the one act of Christ is in regard to energy.

As Paul explains more fully in chapter 7, the energizing force behind man’s sin is the Law, which came in that the transgression might increase. Knowing that he would be charged with being antinomian and with speaking evil of something God Himself had divinely revealed through Moses, Paul states unequivocally that “the Law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good” (Rom. 7:12). Nevertheless, God’s own Law had the effect of causing man’s transgression to increase.

It should be noted here that God’s law—ceremonial, moral, or spiritual—has never been a means of salvation during any age or dispensation. The divinely-ordained place it had in God’s plan was temporary. As the biblical scholar F. F. Bruce has stated, “The Law has no permanent significance in the history of redemption” (The Letter of Paul to the Romans [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1985], p. 121). Paul has already declared that Abraham was justified by God solely on the basis of his faith—completely apart from any good works he accomplished and several years before he was circumcised and many centuries before the law was given (4:1–13).

The Law was a corollary element in God’s plan of redemption, serving a temporary purpose that was never in itself redemptive. Disobedience to the law has never damned a soul to hell, and obedience to the law has never brought a soul to God. Sin and its condemnation were in the world long before the law, and so was the way of escape from sin and condemnation.

God gave the Law through Moses as a pattern for righteousness but not as a means of righteousness. The law has no power to produce righteousness, but for the person who belongs to God and sincerely desires to do His will, it is a guide to righteous living.

The law identifies particular transgressions, so that those acts can more easily be seen as sinful and thereby cause men to see themselves more easily as sinners. For that reason the Law also has power to incite men to unrighteousness, not because the Law is evil but because men are evil.

The person who reads a sign in the park that forbids the picking of flowers and then proceeds to pick one demonstrates his natural, reflexive rebellion against authority. There is nothing wrong with the sign; its message is perfectly legitimate and good. But because it places a restriction on people’s freedom to do as they please, it causes resentment and has the effect of leading some people to do what they otherwise might not even think of doing.

The Law is therefore a corollary both to righteousness and to unrighteousness. For the lawless person it stimulates him to the disobedience and unrighteousness he already is inclined to do. For the person who trusts in God, the law stimulates obedience and righteousness.

Again focusing on the truth that Christ’s one act of redemption is far greater than Adam’s one act of condemnation, Paul exults, But where sin increased, grace abounded all the more. God’s grace not only surpasses Adam’s one sin but all the sins of mankind.

Like a master weaver, Paul pulls all the threads together in his tapestry of redemptive truth, declaring: As sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.