The Trespass and the Gift
Romans 5:15-19
July 7, 2002
Introduction
If you’re like me, you read the paper, listen to the news, or go to your favorite news web-site and you just wonder how our world survives the chaos we find ourselves in.
Not a day goes by that people aren’t senselessly murdered, kidnapped, blackmailed, or whatever.
And it would be easy to just wallow around in despair, if we would just allow ourselves to do it.
Why bother with trying to have a positive attitude when it won’t affect what goes on in Jerusalem, or Pierre, or Washington?
I’ll just be like the guy in Ecclesiastes who seems resigned to the hassles of life, and just let life take its course.
Well, I agree that it would be easy to just do that, and unfortunately, that’s the attitude of many Christians.
But I want us to walk out of here today encouraged about the fact that we don’t have to live in despair. We can live in hope and faith, even if is not always easy in our time.
Our passage is found in Romans 5:15-19. If you are using the Bibles in the seats, you can find this on page 798.
Let me give you some background here.
In this passage, the apostle Paul contrasts two things: the trespass and the gift.
The trespass is the sin of Adam and Eve, and the gift is the redemption we have through Christ.
And Paul tells us that the trespass brings some things, and the gift brings other things. Paul’s purpose here is to tell us that we don’t have to live in the trespass – we can live as those who possess the gift. And that’s what I intend to do as well. Let’s get started, shall we?
I. A Study in Contrasts…
I need a little audience participation during this first section okay?
It’s real simple: when I point to you like this, you say, real loud, “BUT…”
Okay, let’s practice (point) “BUT…”
I think you’ve got it. Let’s get going.
The first contrast is that…
A. The trespass brought death.
The gift brought grace.
Listen and follow along as I read verse 15:
15 But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many!
We’ve all learned that Adam and Eve blew it in the Garden, right? But sometimes we forget just how much of an impact that act of sin had.
You see, their disobedience, their trespass, did more than just get them kicked out of the garden.
Their disobedience introduced sin into God’s creation. And you and I, by virtue of the fact that we are direct descendants of Adam, inherited a sinful nature.
In other words, we are inherently bent toward sinning in our own lives.
Unlike what society would have us believe, people are not inherently good. Just yesterday, Ann Landers, in her column stated that she believed all people are basically good.
But can you look at just the last 100 years of our country’s history and say that? We have just finished what many consider to be the bloodiest century in human history.
But there’s more, and here’s the worst part. Not only did the sin of Adam and Eve bring sin into our lives, it brought about the penalty for that sin – death.
You and I face the very real prospect of eternity in hell, because the sin of Adam and Eve brought sin, which brought death.
Are we being punished for their sin? No. While it’s true we inherited their sinful nature, we choose on our own, just as they did, to turn from God to sin.
The trespass of Adam brought death. And if that’s all we had to look forward to, then life would just be a matter of living only for yourself, because we die and suffer for eternity.
BUT…
That’s not the end! While the trespass brought death, the gift brought grace.
The act of the one man Adam brought death. The act of the one man Jesus brought the possibility of life in heaven, by bringing grace, that unmerited favor from God, which in this case leads to eternal life in heaven.
The blood that Jesus shed for you and me covers all the sin in our lives, and makes it possible for us to live not under the threat of eternity in hell, but rather in the promise of eternity in heaven, in the presence of God Himself.
When Adam and Eve sinned, they tried to hide from God because they were ashamed of their sin. But when we are in heaven, we will not be ashamed – we will be declared clean and pure, with no need to hide. Rather, we will be constantly in His pure presence.
One last thing before we move on here: the trespass brought death to many, the gift causes God’s grace to overflow to the many. In other words, if you choose to partake of God’s grace, then expect it to overflow in your life!
God doesn’t just say, “Okay, you’ve had enough grace – time to turn off the spigot.” No! He continues to let His grace overflow in our lives, if we will just let it happen!
The trespass brought death, BUT the gift brought grace.
Next,…
B. The trespass brought judgement.
The gift brought justification.
Look down at verse 16:
16 Again, the gift of God is not like the result of the one man’s sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification.
Now skip down to verse 18:
18 Consequently, just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men. 19 For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.
Folks, sin brings judgement. It’s just that simple. God, holy and pure, cannot look upon sin, and cannot allow it into His presence.
He simply must punish it. And he punishes it in one of two ways:
First, he can punish you for your sin. This means an eternity in hell, as I’ve already mentioned.
Or he can punish someone else for your sin. And that’s just what He did.
You see, God looked at you and me and He said, “Hey, I’ve got an idea. Instead of you dying for your sin, how ‘bout Me dying for your sin, okay?”
The Bible says that God doesn’t want anyone to go to hell. Hell was created for the devil and his angels, not for you and me. But the Bible is also clear that all who choose to reject Christ will follow the devil into his punishment.
Choose to live in the trespass, and you will find the judgement the trespass brings.
BUT…
The gift offers you justification – in other words, God is willing to offer you a full pardon.
But this does not come because you decide to mend your ways, it comes because of the shed blood of Christ applied to your heart, so that you and your sins are covered by the forgiveness that Christ purchased for you on the cross.
So the question for you is: will you accept the justification God offers you by the gift of Christ, or will you choose to remain in the condemnation automatically applied to those who reject the gift?
At the end of the message, I will be telling you how to accept that gift, so stayed tuned.
The trespass brought judgment, BUT the gift brought justification.
Let’s look at our last contrast:
C. The trespass allows death to reign.
The gift allows us to reign in life.
Back up to verse 17 and read along:
17 For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ.
This won’t be a real surprise to most of you, but death reigns on earth. Plants and animals die, our buildings and possessions decay, and the death rate for humans is incredible: one out of every one persons will die, unless Jesus comes to take them away.
And it is not just physical death – spiritual death is at an all-time high. People reject the notion of absolute truth, and without absolute truth you cannot trust in the Word of God to bring you to Christ for salvation.
The church of Jesus Christ is taking a lot of hits from within and outside the church.
There is not a lot of optimism regarding the human race right now.
Death reigns.
BUT…
God allows us to come out of the mire of death. The gift He gave us through Christ allows us to not only survive, but to thrive!
I tend to have a rather positive attitude in life. That’s due to a number of things, like the people I hang out with, the books I read, and the fact that I am continually reminded of the blessings God has given me, especially my family.
But the major factor is the fact that because I have Christ as my Savior, I gain the blessings of heaven instead of the curses of earth.
I have salvation through Christ, and inheritance from the heavenly Father, and the filling of the Holy Spirit to guide and protect me.
And why shouldn’t I reign in life? Why should I live as though the devil has won and there’s no hope for me, my family, or the world I live in?
I refuse to live like that! We’re on the winning side, for crying out loud!
We don’t have to live in defeat – you can live and reign in life by the grace offered you by the gift.
The trespass allows death to reign, BUT the gift allows us to reign in life.
Well, there you have the main differences between the trespass and the gift:
The trespass brought death BUT the gift brought grace.
The trespass brought judgement, BUT the gift brought justification.
The trespass allows death to reign, BUT the gift allows us to reign in life.
And I hope it’s been made clear that I think you ought to live as though you possess the gift, rather than remaining in the trespass.
But just how do we do that? How do we live as people who possess the gift? I’m so glad you asked! Let’s turn the corner to…
II. Living like you possess the gift.
Call me naïve, call me a Pollyanna-type, but there’s no denying the fact that I think that even in these times when death reigns, and people care less for the things of God than ever before, we can live as people who have more to live for than today.
We can live lives that reflect hope and faith in the God who will one day bring about His perfect will on this ol’ earth of His.
And I want to give us four hints to help us live that way. These aren’t in any particular order, but I think you’ll find them handy.
Ready? Here’s the first one:
A. Recognize the fact of the matter.
What do I mean? Simply that we have to understand that we can reign in life not because of something that will happen, but because of something that has happened.
Jesus has already secured the gift for us! It’s a done deal.
We have to get that through our heads! The gift is there for us to possess and use! So recognize the fact of the matter. And live like it’s a fact of history.
Next, to live like you possess the gift,…
B. Forgive other’s trespasses.
This one can be a toughie, but it needs to be done.
In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus tells us that our prayer needs to acknowledge our forgiveness of others’ trespasses against us. He also says that withholding forgiveness from others is a barrier to receiving forgiveness ourselves.
So forgive others. The next hint for living like you possess the gift is to…
C. Throw off the things that keep you from reigning in life!
Listen to Hebrews 12:1 –
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.
The verse mentions a couple things here: hindrances and sins.
We all know what sins are, but let me focus for a moment on those hindrances.
Hindrances are those things that may not be sins, but still keep you from living a life totally surrendered to God.
Imagine you are at a track meet, and they’re lining up for the 100 meter dash. Everything’s fine except for one contestant. Instead of the regular shorts and track shoes, he’s wearing a snowmobile suit and galoshes.
Now that’s probably not against the rules, but he’s not going to win, if he even survives the race.
The clothes are a hindrance to his success.
Take an inventory of your life to see if there are any hindrances to your walk with God.
Some examples to look at are your music – do the lyrics of the artists in your collection glorify things that God disapproves?
Are the books on your shelf something you would not be embarrassed for God or your children to find?
What about the movies you rent? I am getting convicted about that one – I’m just glad John Wayne did his movies before all the gore and flesh became popular.
Am I hitting a nerve yet? Don’t worry, I will.
How about your spending habits?
One way to open the floodgates of blessing is to tithe – are you doing that?
Does your clothing reflect modesty and honor of the body God wants you to protect for your mate?
Here’s one I am working on right now: eating habits. I’ve given up on hoping that caffeine will be recognized as a health food, so I’ve begun cutting back, and eventually will eliminate it altogether.
I would greatly appreciate your prayers here! I’m still holding out hope for pizza, however.
Identify and get rid of the hindrances in your life. Getting rid of the sin in goes without saying.
The last hint for living as though you possess the gift is to…
D. Strengthen your grip on the gift.
We already possess the gift, but from time to time we need to strengthen our grip.
One of my favorite scenes from the movie, The Quiet Man with John Wayne is when he bumps into the brother of Kate, the girl he falls in love with.
The brother is mad at John Wayne’s character because he bought a piece of property the brother had wanted.
At the pub, they’re about to duke it out, when the village priest comes in and demands they shake hands. John Wayne holds out his hand, and after further prompting by the priest, the brother takes hold.
The two begin a contest of who has the strongest grip, neither giving the other the satisfaction of winning.
They finally release each other, and go their ways, shaking out the pain.
My point here is that we need to have a grip like that when it comes to the gift of God in Christ.
Hold onto it like there’s no tomorrow – because there just might be!
We strengthen our grip by using the first three hints: recognizing the fact of the matter, forgiving others, and throwing off the hindrances and sin, but also with, now get this: time in the Word and in prayer. Time with others who love God and His Word. Time in worship and Christian Education.
Time with God and His people is the best way to strengthen your grip on the gift.
Conclusion
Folks, there is a major difference between the trespass and the gift. In fact, the difference is immeasurable.
And you have a choice to live in the trespass or to live as someone who possesses the gift of grace in Christ.
But I want to make sure that I am not assuming that everyone here possesses the gift in the first place.
You only possess the gift if you have Christ as your Savior.
The Bible says that the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
You can possess the gift if you want to. The gift is available to all who want it. But you have to take it before it truly belongs to you.
In just a moment, I am going to pray for all who would like to take the gift of eternal life by asking Christ to come into your life to forgive your sins, cleanse you, and live in you so you can live a life that pleases Him.
But let me remind the rest of us that we can walk out of here today determined to live lives that reflect the victory already won for us by Christ on the cross and the empty grave.
We need His strength to do it, but I’m convinced that we not only can do it, we need to do it, so the rest of the world can see the possibilities of getting out of the life of the trespass.
Shall we pray.
