A TALE OF TWO MEN
Romans 5: 12-21
* “It was the best of times, It was the worst of times,” and with those two phrases, Charles Dickens begins his classic book entitled, “A Tale of Two Cities.” London and Paris are those two cities. Conflict is always required for drama & both of these cities possessed the potential for conflict. The American Revolution was looming large over London, while the nasty French Revolution was taking its toll on Paris. This long, classic work has become “required reading” for many students. This is a story which includes love, hate, sacrifice, and death and serves as a reminder that what happened in the French Revolution could also happen in England.
* When one follows the trail of 2 different groups, people, cities, countries, or clans, there is always much to learn. Such is the case in God’s word.
* Turn with me to Romans 5:12-21 and let’s take a look at the TWO most important men to ever walk on Planet Earth. Be reminded that our look at these two men is guided by Paul’s letter to the Roman church. Romans as we have named it, is the most complete treatise that we have on the good news of Jesus. It tells us about sin, death, depravity, God’s wrath, God’s grace, God’s gift, and eternal life. All of these subjects are connected to these two men. Let’s Read.
* Many people believe that ONE PERSON cannot truly make a different. Yet, history teaches us better. The story is told that in days past the state of Rhode Island was electing a state legislature. There was a thrifty Federalist farmer who started for the polls late in the afternoon and on the way, heard the squealing of a pig. He looked around to see the pig with its head caught in the mesh of an old wire fence. The farmer knew that Hogs would often kill and eat a trapped pig. So the farmer stopped, rescued the pig, and was too late to cast his vote. Now the story gets interesting. The Federalist farmer was too late to vote and the election was decided by one vote in favor of the democrats. “IF” the farmer had voted, the Democrat would not have been elected. But the irony does not stop here. In those days, the legislature selected the person who would be the US Senator for the state. By a one vote margin, a democrat was sent to the Senate from Rhoda Island. When arriving at the US Senate, the motion was placed forth about going to war with England which passed by one democratic vote. You still with me?
* Following this train of thought, the Revolutionary war was fought because in Rhode Island a pig got caught in a fence. Whether all of this story is true or not is certainly debatable but parts of it are entirely accurate. In American history, more than that you care to count, ONE VOTE-one person made a tremendous difference.
* Today we have read in God’s word about 2 men who teach us that one man CAN INDEED and DOES INDEED make a huge difference in life. These two men exert a great influence on you and me today. They both are Symbols, Patriarchs, and even Fathers. Scripture calls them the “First Adam” (Adam of the Garden) and the “Last Adam” (Jesus of Gethsemane); we know them as the Man of Sin and the Man of Salvation.
1) THE IMPACT OF THE FIRST ADAM – If there ever was an individual with a silver spoon, it had to be Adam in the Garden of Eden. Created by God’s own hand, given life by mouth to mouth from God himself, given a cushy job to tend the garden, and then married to a woman designed exactly to meet his needs. Perfect world, perfect man, perfect woman, & perfect situation, what could go wrong? He had no family baggage or in laws to contend with. For all that He enjoyed, God gave Adam only ONE RULE, “Don’t eat from the tree.” Adam possessed the ability to be the real patriarch of all creation and give to us many good and great things. But what did he give us? He gave us – SIN. Follow with me;
a) Sin’s Invasion– Verse 12 says, “Sin entered the world through one man.” Adam was sitting on the wall of innocence, perfection, bliss, and supposedly happiness and what legacy did he leave? He left sin which made every one of us sinner. When Adam fell off of that wall of innocence, it was like that old nursery rhyme, “humpty-dumpty”. All the king’s horses, all the kings’ men could not make right what Adam began. Sin invaded. Satan was an uninvited guest in paradise, disguised as a resident, deceived the woman, and began the rampage of sin. Make no mistake; sin came into this world because the first Adam, the man, became a passive, irresponsible, uncourageous, submissive individual as opposed to the keeper, the watchman, and the guardian. The results of His actions are “disobedience” called sin. Sin has been on the offensive ever since and has no intent of letting up. Everything good and godly has a target on it.
* In WW2, when the Allies invaded Normandy, the object was to remove the enemy. Much blood was shed and many lives were lost, but the objective was completed. Why? Those men NEVER GAVE UP! And no one was strong enough to stop them.
* Sin invaded mankind through the one man Adam and the invasion continues today. No one on his own can stop this invasion, in fact;
b) Sin’s Importance – When sin entered the garden, it brought a very unwanted friend. This unwanted friend is death. The scripture tells us that death came through sin. Had Adam never sinned, he would have never died. At the moment he was disobedience and sinned, the immediate result was death, spiritual death. From walking with God in the cool of the day to a completely severed relationship came in an instant and spiritually Adam died. He died spiritually as His soul was tainted with the ideas of Satan. He died socially as God no longer found Adam suitable company for afternoon walks. And he would die physically only after suffering much hurt and pain found in the life filled which the disobedience of sin.
* Today we have a tendency to downplay the importance of sin in our lives. Adam simply ate a piece of fruit which he was told not to eat and it changed all of mankind. Sin does that and more;
c) Sin’s Infection – The impact of one man is marked right here. The first Adam allowed sin into his life, thus the invasion began. Sin was and is a big deal to God because our Lord knows that once sin is allowed into a life, it is like a cancer which devours everything in its path. Our text reminds us that sin spread to all men bringing death to all men. It is infectious. Without a treatment plan it is unstoppable, like an epidemic. The old song said, “Sin will take you farther that you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and make you pay more than you want to pay.” James tells us that Lust and Sin equal death. What I will offer you is this; every sin causes death of some kind. Sin is never free. It offers much, delivers little, & touches us all.
* What is YOUR sin? What is that “thing” which you cannot defeat? Yes, you keep it hidden from your church friends (or at least you think you do), but you know it there and God knows it’s there. This is the Impact of the first Adam in your life.
2) THE IMPACT OF THE LAST ADAM – The importance the last Adam should go without saying because the first Adam left us hopeless, helpless, and even heartless. In the wake of the first Adam, mankind was left ruthless, immoral, and depraved. Mankind has become so evil, so quickly, that by Genesis 6 God regretted that he had created mankind. Something had to be done. So God sent the Last Adam, His only Son, Jesus to make right in us the wrong which had developed and remained. Watch some of the things which God sent us in the person of the last Adam, Jesus.
a) The Gift – Most people LOVE gifts. We get gifts for Christmas, birthdays, anniversaries, and if you are a wife – maybe even days you don’t expect. One morning at breakfast she looked across the table at her husband of 11 years and with a wry smile said, “Do you know what today is?” The color drained from his face as he searched his recall. “Of course I do baby,” he lied. Then kissed her goodbye and left for work. She was shocked when the dozen red roses arrived at 9am with a card that said, “On this special day.” At 11am the doorbell rang and standing at the door was a delivery man with a new dress. (It was the one she had wanted to buy for month). The note on this dress was, “Wear this tonight.” At 2pm she received a call confirming reservations for 2 at her favorite upscale restaurant. At 4:30 another knock on the door came and found herself face to face with a large stuffed rabbit. This would fit perfectly in her collection of stuffed rabbits. That evening after returning home from a perfect dinner, they sat on the couch to catch up on the day. The husband, with a glimpse of pride, asked, “How was your special day?” She quickly responded, “It was the best Ground hog’s day that I’ve ever had.” We like gifts.
* The best gifts we receive are those which meet a need. For instance, if you have no transportation and someone gives you a bike, a motor-cycle or a car, you are deeply appreciative. If you have a financial need and a family member meets that need, you are very thankful.
* “Gift” is mentioned 5 times in verse 15-17 in at least 2 Greek words. Watch how clear this becomes. In verse 15 we find the word “charisma” which means a “free gift.” This free gift is one which is suited exactly to our needs and comes at the time we need it most. This gift results in justification & comes through the last Adam, Jesus.
* Consider our text; the gift is not like the trespass because the trespass infected all of mankind while the gift is available to all of mankind, the trespass results in condemnation while the gift results in justification, and the trespass brought about the need for the gift. It is only through this gift that the righteousness of God can be revealed, restored, and reign in a human life and that, through the last Adam, Jesus Christ. Jesus is the gift.
* Did you know that just as assuredly as Jesus Christ is God’s gift to you, (that is, Jesus is exactly what you need) that you can be God’s gift to this church and this community? How? Fulfill your ministry. Through the gift of your service people can see their need for a relationship with God through Christ Jesus. It is Jesus who offers the grace.
b) The Grace – Hopefully, most of us who have been here any length of time can define mercy and grace. Mercy is “not getting what I deserve” while Grace is “getting what I don’t deserve.” This text also mentions “grace” 5 times. We find the grace “of God” and “of Jesus”. We see the overflow of grace which grows into the multiplication of grace and ultimately we discover the “reign” of grace. Because of the first Adam, sin reigns in our lives and on our own we can do nothing about it. However, through this Last Adam, Jesus we are justified before God, given what we don’t deserve, and changed from following the man of sin (the first Adam) to following the man of salvation (the last Adam). Sin leads us down the road to death while Grace leads us up the road to life. Don’t miss this; no matter how much sin you have in your life, grace is greater than your sin.
c) The Glory – Verse 21 ends by saying, “Grace will reign through righteousness, resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Think about that; the importance of the last Adam is that we can gain eternal life. This means we will know, see, and experience God’s glory. Next week, our message will be taken from verses 18 to 21 of Chapter 5 as we’ll get acquainted with this GLORY OF GOD.
* Apart from the Gift, apart from the Grace, we will never know the “glory” of God. Glory in this context means approved, accepted, or pleasing to God. In the first Adam exists no nope, while in the last Adam there is nothing but hope. What man will you follow?
