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Welcome to our look at Romans chapter 5 together, our daily drive-time
devotions. Today we're in our fourth day of looking at this great chapter,
Romans 5 verses 12-14. These verses talk about how to clear up spiritual
confusion, how to defeat doubt, how to transform your heart so that it has a
greater trust in the things of God in your life.

How do we rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ? We've been talking about
rejoicing in God this week. How do we do that?

How do we recognize in our hearts where it really counts? How do we sense
spiritually what it really means to be reconciled to God, to have peace with
God? Romans 5 beginning in verse 12 and going all the way through verse 21 have
been compared to a statement of mathematical precision.

They've been likened to a well-chiseled sculpture or a well-constructed musical
composition. As we walk through these verses, we're going to be talking about
some of the deeper truths of our salvation. One reason that many Christians live
with a sense of doubt and insecurity about their own salvation as well as the
salvation of the people around them is that they've never taken the time to
really consider these truths.

In just a few verses that we're going to look at today, you have the entire
history and philosophy and anthropology of man covered, and they're deep truths.
They are truths, honestly, that most of us would never take the time to even
consider if it weren't for a study of God's Word. These are life-changing
truths, and one of the values of studying the Bible is that it forces me.

It forces you to think about things that wouldn't naturally come across my mind,
but when God's truths come into my heart and mind, it gives new trust. It gives
new security. Let me read for you Romans chapter 5 beginning in verse 12,
"Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man and death through sin,
and in this way death came to all men because all sinned.

" I'm going to stop right there. That's the end of verse 12. I'm going to stop
with those three words.

It's talking about Adam, and it says, "In Adam, because all sinned. " You could
easily read that verse and move on to the next, but if you did, it would be
spiritually like walking by the Grand Canyon and not looking down. It would be
like standing beneath the Empire State Building and not looking up.

These verses remind us that all sinned, past tense, in Adam. Not all would sin,
all sinned in Adam. In a spiritual sense, we were all there, and they go to the
important question of where sin really comes from.

Sin entered the world through one man, Adam, and the result of that sin was
death. The Bible says that in a spiritual sense, we all sinned in Adam. How did
that happen?

What does that mean? Did all of us sin in Adam? Did all of us sin apart from
Adam?

Did all of us sin because of Adam, or somehow did we all sin with Adam? Well,
the Bible says that we were there, that spiritually, we all sinned in Adam. We
don't just imitate Adam's sin.

In a spiritual sense, we all participated in Adam's sin. Why death as a result
of sin? Why do all die?

Because all sinned. The question of whether we copy Adam's sin or are a part of
Adam's sin, you might be thinking right now, "Personally, it makes no difference
to me at all because I've sinned and I'm accountable to that before God. " But
theologically, the implications of this are huge, and so Paul takes the time to
prove what he's talking about here.

Romans chapter 5 verse 12, "Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one
man and death through sin, and in this way, death came to all men because all
sinned. " And then verse 13, "For before the law was given, sin was in the
world. But sin is not taken into account when there is no law.

Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even
over those who did not sin by breaking your command, as did Adam, who was the
pattern of the one to come. " Paul's answering some very important spiritual
questions here. You may have never thought of them, but they're important.

He notes that before the law, there was sin in the world. But he also says,
"Now, wait a minute. Without the law, sin isn't taken into account because
there's no command that you broke.

So how in the world did death reign from Adam to Moses? How were people blamed
for their sin? How did God hold people accountable for their sin?

Because all participated in Adam's sin. " See what that means? It means that we
are lost the moment we're born.

We're a lost race. We're all headed in the wrong direction. Now, was it fair to
condemn us all for one man's disobedience?

Well, the truth of the matter is, and I think you probably know this about
yourself, but if we were tested individually, the result would be the same. The
truth is, if I'd been there, if you'd been there, we would have made the same
choices Adam, because it's human nature to choose to sin. By condemning through
the one, Adam, we're going to see in just a minute that God is able to save
through one, Jesus.

This is a different way of thinking. I know some of you are thinking, "I'm going
to go to tomorrow's. I don't understand this.

" But stick with me. This is worth maybe listening to a couple of times and
thinking through. We who grew up in Western culture don't feel naturally
comfortable with this truth.

The truth is, in the Bible, we are dealt with much more as a people as a whole
than we feel comfortable with. For instance, in the Old Testament, when Achan
sinned in the camp, the whole of the people of Israel suffered a defeat. Not
just one man, but the whole of the people of Israel suffered a defeat as they
entered into the promised land.

Because of one man, everybody suffered. Well, that's even more true in Adam. All
sinned in Adam.

There's a name behind this doctrine that we're talking about. This is called the
doctrine of original sin. The idea that we're born as sinners.

Now, theologians and philosophers argue a lot about this, but anyone with a
two-year-old can have no problem understanding this one. We're all born with a
selfish nature. Psalm 51 verse 5 says, "Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful
from the time that my mother conceived me.

" And Psalm 58 verse 3 says, "Even from birth the wicked go astray. From the
womb they are wayward and speak lies. " Here's the important spiritual point
behind this.

Here's what we've been building to. Don't miss this. The spiritual point behind
this is it is not our actions that need to change in order for us to be saved.

It is our very nature that needs to be changed. Sometimes I hear people ask,
"How could a loving God send people to hell? " God doesn't send anybody to hell.

We made the choice to sin. We all sin in Adam and then all sin individually. The
truth of the matter is we're all headed towards hell.

We're all headed in the wrong direction. The question of our fate was answered
thousands of years ago. A loving God doesn't send people to hell.

We do that. A loving God sent his Son to rescue us from hell. We sin because
we're sinners.

We're not sinners because we sin. We sin because we're sinners. It's our nature.

So when we talk about salvation, we have to have a different way of thinking.
It's the difference between trying to take bad men and make them better and
taking a dead man and making him alive. God looks at us and we are spiritually
dead and he needs to bring us to life again.

How does he do that? The only way to bring somebody to life is through a
resurrection. Through the resurrection of his Son Jesus Christ, you and I not
only participate and are a part of what happened in Adam, but we also are there
at the cross.

We were there in the Garden of Eden and we're there at the cross. We
participated when God did for us through our Lord Jesus Christ. He gave his life
for us and then he was resurrected for us.

He makes us alive. If you and I are to really understand salvation, we have to
understand it's not a matter of me just getting a little better. It's not a
matter of me doing things a little better, having a little bit better works.

Salvation means my very nature needs to be changed and Jesus Christ offers us
that gift. Let's talk to him right now. And if you've never asked God to change
your very nature, ask him now.

Trying to be good might make you better than others, but it doesn't take care of
the problem of our separation from God. Just say Jesus Christ changed me from
within. Give me the gift that enables me to become a new person in you with new
hope and a new life.

Give me the gift of salvation. I realize I can't buy that gift by anything I can
do, but I can receive that gift because of what you've done. Now if you've
already asked him to change your nature, ask him for the power today to live out
the new nature that he's given you.

You're saved by grace. Don't wear yourself out trying to live by works. Say to
him right now, "Jesus, help me to live by grace today.

Help me to live out the new nature that you've given to me. In your name I pray,
amen. " Tomorrow, we're going to finish our look at Romans chapter 5, Romans
chapter 5 verses 15 to 21.