Romans chapter 5. I'm going to use for a title, Death in Adam, Life in Christ. When we look at Romans chapter 5 verse 12 down to verse 21, we see those two things clearly set forth. Death in Adam. Life in the Lord Jesus Christ. These verses are vital and essential to a proper and good understanding of the gospel of Christ. The Lord be pleased to take his word and teach us this morning. We will be rooted and grounded in the gospel of God. We see how we're made to be lost, dead, guilty sinners. And it's important to understand that. It's important to understand what happened when Adam sinned. It's important to understand what happened when Adam fell, because it plunged all of us into total ruin. So we see how we're made to be lost, guilty sinners. And then we learn the glorious lesson of how sinners are made righteous in Christ. By one man's disobedience, many were made sinners. Verse 19, By the obedience of another shall many be made righteous. That is our Lord Jesus Christ. We know in Adam we've all sinned and come short of the glory of God. We study that in chapter 3. We see the reign of death in Adam, and Adam all died. We see the reign of life in Christ. Grace does reign through righteousness because of the Lord Jesus Christ. The reign of salvation is sovereign in Christ. We are made righteous in the Lord Jesus Christ. In Adam, we lost everything, didn't we? We're sin abounded. Thank God, grace does much more abound. In Adam, we lost the way. In Adam, we lost the truth. In Adam, we lost life. In Christ, what do we have? He said, I'm the way, I'm the truth, I'm the life. In Christ, a way of grace is established. Freely by his grace, we're justified. In Christ, the truth is magnified. You shall know the truth, and the truth will set you free. In Christ, the life of salvation is freely given. God, who spared not his own son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely, freely, freely give us all things. We're justified freely by His grace. I like that concept, don't you? Salvation by the free and sovereign grace of God. He that hath the Son hath life. We learn what happened in the garden when Adam sinned, and we learn and we see what happened when the Lord Jesus Christ put away our sin by the sacrifice of Himself. And that's what happened. Look at Romans 5 verse 6, For when we were yet without strength and due time, Christ died for the ungodly. Who died? It's real important, who died? Because that gives value to what He did, power to what He did. The Christ of God died. Romans 5 verse 8, But God committed His love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more than being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. So we learn what the Lord Jesus Christ did for us at Calvary. 2 Corinthians 5.21, 2 Corinthians 5.21, God made him to be sin for us who knew no sin that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. We also learn this vital and important lesson that God deals with all men in these two representative men. The old timers used the phrase federal headship. The federal headship of Adam, the federal headship of Christ. These two representative men. In Adam, death. In Christ, life. In these two men. And Adam all died, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. 1 Corinthians 15, 21, and verse 22. Now, let's start with verse 12, and we'll try to work our way down to verse 21. Romans 5, verse 12. Wherefore as by one man, one man, Adam, sin, entered into the world, and death by sin. When sin is finished with this body, it brings death. This body is going back to the dust. It's marching steadily that way, back to the dust. Death by sin, so death passed upon All men for that all have sinned. All in whom all sinned. Here we have this vital, important lesson. We learn how we became totally depraved sinners. This is known as the doctrine of original sin. The doctrine of original sin. It's sad, but true in our day. That's not taught in most churches. Rather, it's denied. They say, well, children are born in innocence, and then they grow up, and then they become at an age of accountability, and then they become sinners if they sin. That's not what this book teaches. This book teaches in Adam all died. In Adam all sinned. Someone coined this phrase a preacher of years ago, and I've never forgotten it. I've written it down. I'd give credit to if I knew who said it, but I don't know. But one old preacher of the past said this, wrong on the fall, wrong on it all. If you're wrong, if you start out wrong, you're going to wind up wrong. Wrong on the fall, wrong on all things concerning salvation. If you have no understanding what happened in the garden, you'll have no understanding what happened at the cross of Calvary, what really took place. And Adam, all have sinned. He stood as a representative man. We stood in him. We were in him. When Adam rebelled and sinned against God, So did I, so did you, so did every man that came from Adam and Eve. And Adam all sinned, and Adam all died. Now I can give you a homely illustration of that. What he did, I did. And I've used this before, but it helps me understand, and maybe it will help you. My mother immigrated to this country in 1948. She immigrated from Holland. She was a Dutchman. She immigrated in 1948. When she came to the States, I was in her. What she did, I did. Where she went, I went. I wasn't born until four years later. I was born in a little place called Gooding, Idaho. 1952. That's when my mother settled. But when she left her home in Europe and came here, you know what? I came here too. You see the point? What happened in Adam was passed upon all men everywhere. When he stood, we stood. When he fell, we fell. When he sinned, we sinned. And that's been charged to us. That's been reckoned to our account. Guilty. And Adam all died, death by sin. And Adam all have sinned. You say, and somebody might say, well, I don't like that. I don't like being counter to sinner upon the actions of someone else. Let me ask you this. Well, how have you done on your own? You've sinned and come short of the glory of God. Because it says that over here in Romans chapter 3. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God. The wages of sin is death. What you've earned? Death, judgment, condemnation. If God put me in hell, He'd be right. If God sent me to eternal condemnation, He'd be doing right. But that's what I deserve. It's only by His grace. that He saves sinners. God committed His love toward us, and that's why we were yet sinners. The results of original sin of Adam was death. Not only physical death, but also, most importantly, spiritual death. Separation from God. The guilt of sin which charged all of us. You remember in Genesis 2, the Lord said this, In the day that you eat thereof, you'll die. Notice the Lord didn't say, Adam, if you eat, No, he said, when you do, this is all ordained of God. All ordained of God. And the Lord commanded the man, saying of the tree of the garden, thou mayest freely eat. But of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it. For in the day that you eat thereof, thou shalt surely, surely, surely die. Genesis 2, 16, 17. The day you eat, you'll die. What happened to Adam? Spiritual death. He died. He didn't die physically when he ate and disobeyed God, whatever that tree of knowledge that he took of. It's often pictured that Adam took an apple off the tree. I don't think that's a good representation. Someone said it wasn't the apple on the tree, it was the pear on the ground that brought in sin. Judgment, judgment. When Adam all sinned and Adam all died. Now sin's been charged to our count and the judgment of sin is reckoned to us. The guilt of sin is imputed to us. Not only is that so, but we're born with a fallen, evil nature. Sin has been imputed to us, and that evil, rotten nature that we're born with is imparted to us. It's a wicked nature of rebellion that can do nothing but sin, that produces nothing but sin before God's eyes. Man in his best state is altogether vanity. Now, I'm all in on morality. People ought to live as moral and right as they can, but my soul, let's never mistake morality for righteousness. The best morality we have, filthy rags in God's sight. The best you can do, God said, away with this filthy rags, I won't have it. You have to have a perfect righteousness before God. How can this sinner have a perfect righteousness? Abraham believed God and was imputed unto him for righteousness. Paul is describing in Romans chapter 3 what we are, that there's none righteous, no not one. Now from verse 13 down to verse 17 is a statement explaining verse 12. Look at verse 13. Well, until the law, sin was in the world. Sin was in the world when Adam sinned. Before the law of God, the written law of God that was given to Moses, recorded in Exodus chapter 20, Thou shalt not, Thou shalt not, Thou shalt, Thou shalt, Thou shalt, the Ten Commandments and all other of those 690 commandments of God. For until the law was in the world, For until the law of sin was in the world, but sin was not imputed when there is no law. But where there is God, there is law. What did God command Adam to do? Don't eat that tree. That was a law, wasn't it? And when he broke that law, what happened? Sin, sin, sin entered in. Sin indeed was in the world before the written law was given. We know that because Death by sin. Death by sin. Long before the holy law was given, men continued to die as a result of sin. Read sometime Genesis chapter 5. I call that the obituary chapter. And he died. And he died. And Adam lived 930 years and he died. And he died. And he died. Why did they all die? God had not given the written law. But sin was imputed because in Adam all died, in Adam all sinned. For through the law of Moses was given, men continued to sin in the light that they had. The light of creation tells us God is, and then the light of conscience is written on our heart. And yet, all have sinned. The law was given to further show us and to expose us to seething sinfulness of sin and to magnify the law of God that charges us as being guilty sinners. If you turn one page, Romans 7, the law of God was never given to remove sin. The law of God was given to reveal sin. Romans 7. Look at verse 12. Wherefore the law is holy and the commandment holy, just and good. 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. We know that the law is spiritual, but I'm carnal. and sold under sin. So the law of God was given to further expose our sinfulness against God. Verse 14 in our text, nevertheless, death reigned, death reigned from Adam to Moses. from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the likeness or the similitude of Adam's transgression, who was the figure or type to come. Death reigned as king from Adam to Moses. Before the law was given, death reigned, even over those whose sins were not like the transgression of Adam, who was the type of the one who was to come. Even over those that had not sinned after the rebellious manner or likeness of Adam, even death reigned over them. Most of the commentators that I read after says that is a reference to babies. Those who have not outwardly, overtly sinned against God, yet why do they die? Why do infants get sick and die? Because they're sinners. Because they're born in sin, shaped in iniquity. In verse 15, 16, and 17, there's a comparison made between the first Adam and the second Adam. Adam was a type and figure of the Lord Jesus Christ who was to come. The first man is of the earth earthly, the second man is the Lord from heaven. What we lost in Adam, we gain much more in the Lord Jesus Christ. Look at verse 15. But not as the offense, so also is the free gift. Now here's the contrast. For through the offense of one, Many died, all and that have died, many be dead, much more the grace of God and by the gift of grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ hath abounded unto thee many. The free gift of grace is not like or can cannot be compared The free gift of His grace is not like and cannot be compared the effect of one man's sin, one sin condemned all. But the free gift of grace and a pardon in Christ is total, complete forgiveness of all sin unto righteousness and justification of life. The free gift is not like that Offense of sin unto death. Where sin abounded, grace does much more abound. The law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by the Lord Jesus Christ. Of His fullness have we all received grace for grace. Verse 17. By one man and one sin, death reigned, judgment fell, guilt was imputed. Verse 17. Not as it was by one that sinned, verse 16, so the gift, so is the gift. For the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offenses unto justification of life, verse 17. For if by one man's offense death reigned, much more, they which received the abundance of grace, and the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one Jesus Christ. Now that's the end of that parentheses there. By one man, one sin, death reign, judgment, guilt was imputed, much more by one man, the God man, our blessed mediator, we shall receive the abundance of grace. I am what I am by the grace of God, and the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one Jesus Christ. He said, I'm come that they might have life and have it more abundantly. Verse 17 again. For by one man's offense, death reigned by one, much more. They which receive abundance of grace, that's saving grace, and the gift of righteousness, Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth, shall reign, grace, righteousness reigns in life by one Jesus Christ. Now you got the idea, I'm being repetitive on purpose. Because the scripture's repetitive on purpose. We need to hear it over and over and over again. The gift of righteousness shall reign in life by the Lord Jesus Christ. Verse 18, therefore, as by the offense 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. So we see, we see judgment and condemnation by one act, one sin, one act, one sin, by one offense. Judgment, condemnation. Even so, much more, by the righteousness of one, that is Jesus Christ, His obedience unto death, the free gift came upon all men, that is all in Him, unto justification of life, being justified freely, freely, freely by His grace. The Lord Jesus Christ in His life, His obedience, was perfect according to the law of God. The scripture says of him, he had no sin. He was manifested to take away our sin, and in him is no sin. Even so, by the righteous obedience of Christ, the God-man mediator, the free gift of his grace, the free gift of his justifying righteousness is passed upon the many for whom he represents. He had no sin of his own. He did no sin. He had no sin, yet he knew no sin. He was made sin for us, to put away our sin. His obedience was an obedience unto death, even the death of the cross. The Lord Jesus Christ worked out a perfect righteousness for us. He said, I didn't come to destroy the Law and the Prophets. I came to honor the Law and the Prophets. And the Lord Jesus Christ perfectly honored the Law of God in every word, deed, thought, motive. And His obedience, whereby He worked out an everlasting righteousness for us, has been imputed unto us. Now, this is a no-brainer. In Christ, the believer enjoys a perfect, justifying righteousness. That's why Paul said, we count all things dung, rot, lost, and ruined, that we may win Christ and be found in Him. Not having our own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faithfulness of the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed is that man to whom the Lord imputes righteousness without works. We've been over that, haven't we? Romans 4, verse 6. So, the Lord Jesus Christ honored every precept in his life, and the penalty, he satisfied the penalty in his death. The penalty of that law says the guilty must die. He redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us. Verse 19, Romans 5 verse 19. For by one man's disobedience, the many, we can read it that way, The many were made, made, and that word, if you look that word up, made, legally constituted sin. Made sin. So by the obedience of one shall many be made, legally constituted righteous in the Lord Jesus Christ. Now that's the good news of the gospel. I have nothing to do with my salvation. Those sinners who are justified have nothing to do. They have no part to play. He does the calling. He does the choosing. He does the saving. He's the one that justifies us by His grace through His redeeming blood. Now, you take a look at verse 19. And commit it to memory. Just write it down. You ladies, write it down and stick it on your refrigerator. You men, write it down and put it on your desk, or stick it on your toolbox. Put it where you can see it all the time. Adam's disobedience, we're made sinners. Christ's obedience, we're made righteous. Turn a couple pages over here to Romans 10. Turn to Romans 10. Romans 10 verse 1. Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel, talking about that national people, Paul was a Jew by nature, that they might be saved. They need salvation. Oh, they're religious. They just celebrated last week Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. They're still looking back to the law for an atonement for their sin. They're still celebrating Yom Kippur. For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, his holy character, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. Now, who would that be? For Christ is the end of the law, for righteousness to everyone that believeth. Believers are not going about to establish a righteousness. We're resting in Christ who is the Lord, our righteousness. Look at verse 20. Because of our vital union with Him, Because of a oneness with him as our federal head, what he did, we did. When he lived, we lived. When he died, we died. When he arose from the dead, we arose with him. You see, we're one with him. When he ascended to the throne and is seated, we ascended in him. And believers right now are seated in the heavenlies in the Lord Jesus Christ. There was that vital union Adam had with all of his race. There is that vital union that Christ had with all of His race. What He did, we did. Where He is, we are. As I've said to you so many times over the years, what's true of the head? Christ is our head. It's true of the body. Where He is, we are. Paul writes about it in Ephesians chapter 2. He said that we're already seated together in the heavenlies in the Lord Jesus Christ. It's already done. In the decree and purpose of God, it's already done. This book definitely teaches salvation by representation and imputation. We call that the free and sovereign grace of God. He has arranged all things to be so. Verse 20, Moreover the law entered, give me a couple more minutes here while I wind this up. Moreover the law entered, Why did God give the law? To expose our sin. To expose the exceeding sinfulness of our sin. Moreover, the law entered that the offense might abound. But thank God, where sin abounded, grace does much more abound. There's that word again. Much more. We have much more. So much more in the blessed Savior. Paul again returns to the reason of giving the law to clearly expose the problem, sin, Sin is the transgression of the law, but where sin abounded, grace is much more abound, super abound, exceedingly abound, sovereignly abound toward his people. God is able to make all grace toward you abound. Now listen to this scripture, jot it down if you want to, 2 Corinthians 3.9. For if the ministration of condemnation be glory, talking about the giving of law, much more that the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory. Paul's talking about the ministration and the giving of law. It was glorious, but how much more in the giving of righteousness in Christ, how much more does it abound toward us? Were sin abounded? Oh, grace is much more abound. Grace is much more. Now, in closing, verse 21, that as sin hath reigned unto death, okay, we've got that down, right? Sin reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness, Christ our righteousness, unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord. It is true, sin hath reigned unto death, even so, grace does much more abound through the redeeming blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Through the righteousness that He established for us when He died, He brought in everlasting righteousness for us that's freely, freely given unto us. Now, have you got it? What happened in Adam? I'm giving you a test. What happened in Adam? Death, judgment, guilt, condemnation. Oh, what happened in Christ? We have much more. Righteousness, justification, salvation, eternal life in the Lord Jesus Christ. Completely out of our hands. Completely out of our hands. We've been justified in the Lord Jesus Christ. How long have we been justified in Christ? When He chose us in Him and that eternal covenant of grace. That's a long time, isn't it?