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13 To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law. 14 Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come." ~ Romans 5:13-14
Today, we return to Romans 5 where the Apostle Paul is ratcheting down the idea that we are justified before God only through His grace and our trust in His goodness. In context, Paul explains that the reason death reigns over all people is because the sin of Adam was passed down to all people. In other words, the consequence of rebelling against God brought about death in every way, spiritually, psychologically and physically.
In v.13 of today's passage we read, "To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law."
The presence of death is the evidence of sin. Since death reigned from Adam to Moses, then death is not a result of sins, it's not a result of breaking a direct command of God, it's not a result of violating a direct statement from God because prior to Moses the law was not there. Sin can't be charged to one's account when there is no law. How could we be guilty for breaking a rule if there is no rule? Since from the time from Adam to Moses there was no law and death reigned and people did not die because they broke a law, then it was their sin nature that was the culprit. When Adam denied God's definition of life, he broke God’s command to not eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. As a result sin entered this world and infected everyone in it.
Adam broke the specific command of God to not eat off the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. In essence that tree represented Adam's choice to define life for himself apart from God. Even though 2500 years elapsed between Adam and Moses, after God gave His Law to Moses on Mount Sinai, every single person on earth realized we are unable to define ourselves properly and to live our lives properly for ourselves. And, when we denied God's definitions in Adam, sin and death began its reign.
During the time that passed between Adam and Moses, God had not given the Law to the people. There was no written or spoken Law of God for them to break. Therefore, they couldn’t have broken any of God’s Laws because for them, there was no law. And yet they still died. You see, although the people from Adam to Moses did not sin by breaking a command of God, they still suffered the consequences of sin which is death. Through Adam's very first sin, death passed down from him to all people. We call this "Original Sin."
In v.14 of today's passage we read, "Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come."
In this verse the Apostle compares Adam with the Lord Jesus Christ. The word "one" appears 11 times in the greater context of this passage. Just as it was through one man, one sin, that death was born in this world, it is through one man, one sacrifice, one right choice that eternal life was made a possibility for fallen man. So, both Adam and Christ performed a one-man show. They did something that affected the whole crowd.
Those who say that it isn't fair that God punishes us for Adam's sin lacks the perspective of God. God does not punish anyone for Adam's sin. He punishes us for our sin. We are sinfully corrupt because sinfulness has been passed on to us through Adam. Those who say that it isn't fair both deny reality and are quite arrogant thinking they have escaped the infection of sin. Whether we understand it or not, this passage reveals the fact that when Adam sinned, he plunged the whole human race into the destructiveness of the rebellion against God. We have been all born with sin at work in us, and, as a result, death is taking its toll in and through us.
The word, "reigned" appears five times in the greater context of this passage. Through Adam death reigned over mankind. That means we are separated from God, the very Author of life. Eternal life comes to those who bow their will to the Lord Jesus Christ. The reign of Christ is realized by the believer in Christ once he places his faith in His finished work on the cross. This reign of Christ is eternal life. Destruction flows from the stream of Adam, whereas, the life that has the touch of eternity on it flows from the stream of Christ.
Today's scripture ends with, "Adam is a pattern of the one to come." The One to come is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ. Adam was a pattern or a type of Christ not because they are similar to each other, but because they are dissimilar to each other. Adam is the type of the Lord Jesus in the opposite sense.
The good news of the gospel of Christ is that the grace of God gives us the freedom and space to be honest about our fallen condition even though we have been totally forgiven of our sin. God is a realist, He knows that we have yet to be delivered from the power and presence of sin. We must bask in the glow of the fact that the penalty of sin has been removed from us through Christ. This enables us to know eternal life or to have a personal relationship with God. And, in our attempt to bask in His acceptance of us through Christ, we learn to be defined by the One who came to deliver to us this new life with Him at the helm of our lives that will never end.
