The gospel is the good news of God for sinners. But to understand the good news, we must hear about the bad news. Unless we see our need for forgiveness and grace, we will never seek them out. In Romans 5:12-21, the Apostle Paul discusses perhaps the foundational truth about the gospel. It has been said, “if you want to know how good a theologian someone is, look at the pages of Romans 5 in his Greek Bible and see how worn they are!” In this passage, Paul reminds us of the teaching of Genesis 3, how Adam’s sin cast all humanity into the depths of sin and misery. Adam was much more than a bad example for us – he was our covenant head, and because of that when he sinned, we sinned in him. That sounds unfair at first, and we want to reject that; but the problem is that our only hope is for Jesus Christ also to be our covenant head so that when He obeyed and was righteous, we are counted as having obeyed and are righteous. The story of the gospel is “By One, Death, by One, Life” (Romans 5:12-21).

I. Our Union with Adam
A. We Sin Because We Are Sinners
B. Sin Brings Condemnation
C. Sin Brings Death

II. Our Union with Christ
A. Grace is Greater Than Sin
B. Grace Brings Righteousness
C. Grace Brings Life

III. There Can Be Only One
A. The Reign of Sin
B. The Reign of Grace

Questions for consideration: (1) Why is it important for you to know you sin because you are a sinner? (2) The free gift is compared to the trespass but is also “not like the trespass.” In what ways is it not like it? (3) What does it mean for your life that grace abounds even more than sin?