Romans 5:12: Therefore, Just As Sin Came Into The World Through One Man, And Death Through Sin

Romans 5:12
[12] Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned— (ESV)

When the average person considers the idea of sin they tend to think of particular sins that they have committed. The next thing they tend to do is compare the quantity or quality of their sinning to others who have also sinned. We love to compare. If we find someone who we think is a bigger sinner than us we feel that we are not that bad. Is that how God views sin?

Paul tells us that sin came into the world through one man. That man is Adam, the very first man. How tragic that man could not last one generation without sinning. This sin did not just affect Adam and his wife Eve. This sin is now passed down to all mankind. Those who come from Adam are stained with the same nature that sins against God.

I am not very good at science, but I like to use a simple illustration from science. Imagine that you had a glass of water that was 100 percent pure. If you put one drop of any other substance in that glass of water would anything that comes out of that glass be pure? No. Because Adam's nature was stained with sin, nothing that comes from him can be pure. We have all come from Adam.

What is worse is that the sin that came to all mankind comes with a particular consequence. The consequence is death. Sin brings death. Adam was told by God in the Garden of Eden that if he were to disobey the Lord's instruction and eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil he would surely die. Sin brings death. Death to all mankind.

This is such an important reminder for us today. There are no good people. We are all sinners and sin brings death. Thank God that he sent his Son, Jesus Christ to die in our place. Look to him and live.