GOD'S GRACE IS SUFFICIENT
Romans 5:18-21 Therefore as by the offence 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. For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: that as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.
Rereading the verses preceding the lesson text, we know that the offence of one (Adam) brought upon all men ...condemnation (death because of sin). We also know that by the righteousness of one (Jesus Christ), the free gift (the hope of eternal salvation) came upon all men,that have been reconciled, or justified, by the forgiveness of their sins through a believing faith that resulted in baptism into the body of Christ. By one man's disobedience (the sin of Adam) many (yea, all mankind) were made sinners (were separated from God by sin). This we also know that by the obedience of one (Jesus Christ) shall many be made righteous (reconciled to God) through the sacrificial blood of the Son of God, our Savior.
Sin cannot occur where there is no law. Sin is a violation of law. However, from the inception of time, God's law has existed, one of which Adam and Eve violated by eating the fruit of the tree in the Garden of Eden, which was specifically forbidden by God. The offering Cain made to God was rejected because it violated God's law of sacrifice (Gen. 4:2-7). Sin, the violation of God's will, was universally rampant in the days of Noah, as it was in the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah during the life of Abraham and Lot. During this period, the Patriarchal Age, God had laws of conduct under which mankind was required to obey. With the coming of the Mosaic Dispensation, God set new laws of conduct for the children of Israel - the Jewish nation.
Many bible commentators seem to think the law (that) entered, referred to in the lesson text, was God's law specifically for the Jewish nation, given on Mount Sinai through His servant, Moses. The patriarchal law of God remained in existence until the Christian Dispensation began on the Day of Pentecost when Christ's church was established. However, God's covenant with the Jewish nation included additional laws under which they were to live. God added many laws to the children of Israel that non-Jewish people were not required to obey. God gave the Jews many laws that restricted what they could touch and eat. Sabbath laws restricted the Jews from any work, and how far they could walk on this day. New feast days and extended periods of religious remembrances were introduced that required Jewish celebration. The Jewish nation had their own specific sacrificial laws not required of Gentile nations.
God issued hundreds of new, additional laws to the Jewish nation. Before entering the Promised Land, while still encamped in the Plains of Moab, Moses rehearsed all laws that the Israelites were to follow - God's law that was given approximately forty years earlier on Mount Sinai. These laws are recorded in the Book of Deuteronomy, which, itself, means "the second law." God's laws of righteousness and unrighteousness have never changed. However, with the coming of "the second law," more ritualistic restrictions were placed on the Jewish people, in order for them to be set apart from all other people inhabiting the earth. With new laws of God given to the Jewish nation, the propensity to sin increased and more violations of God's law occurred.
In the twentieth verse of the lesson text we find this sentence:Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. Some read this as if God enacted additional laws in order to cause sin to abound. However, the word translated "that" does not mean God intended to cause sin to abound, rather it means that sin increased as the direct result of the additional laws God required for His people - the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that were specifically chosen for the heritage through which His Son, Jesus Christ would be born as a mortal being. The entire seventh chapter of Romans is given to the explanation of the direct relationship that exists between God's law and the sinfulness of mankind that results from disobedience to that law. It is summed up in this thought: For without the law sin was dead (did not exist) (Rom. 7:8b).
Inherent in every law given, either by God or by man, is the disposition to violate it. Paul confesses that he had not known lust, except the law had said; Thou shalt not covet (Rom. 7.7). God's law does not cause sin, rather, mankind yielding to its prohibition, or disregarding its directive, is the root of sin. Sin is avoided in obedience to God's law - when we yield to His will rather than our own. This Paul affirmed when he wrote this passage to the Roman Christians. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. What then? Shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness (Rom. 6:12-16)?
Verse 20, of the lesson text gives us the answer all are searching for. It really doesn't matter how many laws there are for us to abide by, during our life here on earth. Even if there are more laws to violate, and even if offence might abound, God's Grace is Sufficient! God's grace is broad enough to cover all sins of mankind. God's grace is more bountiful that the propensity of mankind to sin by breaking His laws. Even though death has reigned from the time of Adam's transgression (Rom. 5:14), God's grace has reigned since the beginning of time. God's grace is sufficient to cover all of our sins and give us the hope of eternal life.
And how do we know we have this hope of salvation? By (through) Jesus Christ our Lord. God sent His Son to earth to deliver His message - His laws of eternal life. Once delivered, sin was exposed to the Jewish nation, as well as to all living thereafter. Jesus, Himself, said that the cloke that once covered sin has been taken away (John 15:22). John, the baptizer, preached this lesson regarding our Savior, For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ (John 1:17). Likewise, this was Paul's message to the church at Rome. He wrote, For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord (Rom. 6:23). Yes, God gave laws to the world by which they were to live. And, yes, people of all ages, both past and present, have sinned against God's will when His laws are violated. But by God's grace, we can be made righteous, but only through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Sin is the disease that results in eternal death. God's grace is the remedy that cures the disease of sin and gives eternal life. This grace is extended through His Son, Jesus Christ. It takes faith strong enough to motivate us to obey God's will - to accept Jesus as the Savior, be baptized into His body, and, thus, reconciling sinful mankind to our righteous Heavenly Father, through the remission of our sins. To have this hope of salvation, we must become, and remain a faithful follower of Jesus Christ - we must become a Christian. We close this lesson with this quotation from the apostle John, which assures this to be the will of God. And this is the record that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God (1 John 5:11-13).