Justificacion Sermon

5:12. Paul had now finished his description of how God has revealed and applied to humans His provided righteousness on the basis of the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ received by faith. One thing remains to be done—to present the contrastive parallelism between the work of Jesus Christ (and its results in justification and reconciliation) and the work of another man, Adam (and its results in sin and death). Paul began by saying, Therefore (lit., “because of this”; cf. 4:16), and started his comparison, just as; but he became concerned by other matters and did not return to the comparison until 5:15. Paul explained that sin (in Gr., “the sin”) entered (eisēlthen, “entered into”) the world through one man; and, in accord with God’s warning (cf. Gen. 2:16–17), death (in Gr., “the death”) through sin. God’s penalty for sin was both spiritual and physical death (cf. Rom. 6:23; 7:13), and Adam and Eve and their descendants experienced both. But physical death, being an outward, visible experience, is in view in 5:12–21. Paul concluded, And in this way death (“the death”) came to all men. “Came” is diēlthen, literally “passed or went through” or “spread through.” Eisēlthen, “entered into” (the first clause in the verse) means that sin went in the world’s front door (by means of Adam’s sin); and diēlthen, “went through,” means that death penetrated the entire human race, like a vapor permeating all of a house’s rooms. The reason death spread to all, Paul explained, is that all sinned.

Romanos 5. 15Pero el don no fue como la transgresión; porque si por la transgresión de aquel uno murieron los muchos, abundaron mucho más para los muchos la gracia y el don de Dios por la gracia de un hombre, Jesucristo. 16Y con el don no sucede como en el caso de aquel uno que pecó; porque ciertamente el juicio vino a causa de un solo pecado para condenación, pero el don vino a causa de muchas transgresiones para justificación. 17Pues si por la transgresión de uno solo reinó la muerte, mucho más reinarán en vida por uno solo, Jesucristo, los que reciben la abundancia de la gracia y del don de la justicia.

5:18–19. In these verses Paul concludes his basic parallelism between Adam and Jesus Christ begun in verse 12 and the contrasts between them in verses 15–17. Paul reduced the contrast to the briefest possible statement. Consequently (lit., “so then”), just as the result of one trespass (paraptōmatos, “false step”; cf. vv. 15–17, 20) was condemnation (katakrima, “punishment”; cf. v. 16) for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men. The “one righteous act” (lit. Gr.) was Christ’s death on the cross. One trespass (Adam’s sin) is contrasted with one righteous act (Christ’s sacrifice). The result of Adam’s sin (everyone under God’s condemnation) is contrasted with the result of Christ’s work (justification offered to all). One brought death; the other brings life. Once again the “all men” in the first half of the sentence includes the entire human race (cf. “all men” in v. 12, and “the many” in the first half of v. 15). This implies the same dimensions for the “all men” in the second half of the verse (cf. “many” in the second halves of vv. 16, 19). The provision in the one righteous act, therefore, is potential and it comes to the entire human race as the offer and opportunity which are applied only to “those who receive”

The same conclusion is stated in different words in verse 19, where Adam’s act is called disobedience and the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ is called obedience. As a result the many (cf. first halves of vv. 15, 18) were made (lit., “stand constituted as”) sinners (cf. 11:32). In the second half of 5:19 the many means “those who receive” (v. 17; cf. “many” in the second half of v. 16). They are not simply declared righteous (the verb dikaioō is not used here), but they will be made righteous in the process of sanctification, culminating in glorification in God’s presence. The word “made” (from kathistēmi) means “stand constituted as,” the same verb used in the first half of verse 19 in the words “were made sinners.”

Contrasts between Adam and Christ in Romans 5:15–21

One Man (Adam)

One Man (Christ)

v. 15

One man’s trespass → many=died

One man’s grace → gift of grace-(righteousness to many

v. 16

One (Adam) → judgement and condemnation

Many trespasses → gift →justification

v. 17

Through one-man’s trespass → death reigned

Through one Man-Jesus Christ → believers reign in life

v. 18

One trespass → condemnation for-all men

One act of righteousness →justification offered to all men

v. 19

Disobedience-of one → many constituted

constituted sinners

Obedience of One → many-constituted-righteousness

v. 21

Sin reigned in death

Grace reigns to bring eternal life

📷