Much More!

Where sin abouned, grace abounded much more. - Romans 5:20


A statement I heard at an Easter service stays with me: "More has been gained in the resurrection of Jesus than was lost in the fail." More gained than lost? Can it be true?

Each day we experience the damage caused by sin entering our world. Greed, injustice, and cruelty all trace their origins back to Adam and Eve's decision to follow their own path rather than God's. The legacy of their disobedience is passed down to every generation. Without God's intervention, we would be in a hopeless situation. But Jesus overpowered sin through His cross and conquered death through His resurrection.

The victory of Christ is celebrated in Romans 5, often called the "much more" chapter of the New Testament, where Paul contrasts the devastation caused by sin with the restoring power of God's grace. In every case, grace overpowers he consequences of sin. In a grand conclusion, Paul says: "Where sin abounded, grace abounded much more, so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord".

No matter how much we have personally lost because of sin, we have gained far more through the reserrection victory of Christ. - David C. McCasland


Sin and despair, like the sea-waves cold,
Threaten the soul with infinite loss;
Grace that is greater - yes, grace untold -
Points to the refuge, the mighty cross. - Johnston

Our sin is great - God's grace is greater.

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Romans 5:12-21

Therefore, as sin entered into the world through one man, and death through sin; and so death passed to all men, because all sinned. For until the law, sin was in the world; but sin is not charged when there is no law.

Neverteless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those whose sins weren't like Adam's disobedience, who is a foreshadowing of him who was to come. But the free gift isn't like the trespass.

For if by the trespass of the many died, much more did the grace of God, and the gift by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many. The gift is not as through one who sinned: for the judgement came by one to condemnation, but the free gift came of many trespasses to justification.

For if by the trespass of the one, death reigned through the one; so much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one, Jesus Christ. So then as through one trespass, all men were condemned; even so through one act of righteousness, all men were justified to life.

For as through the one man's disobedience many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the one will many be made rigteous. The law came in besides, that the trespass might abound; but where sin abounded, grace did abound more exceedingly; That as sin reigned in death, even so might grace reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

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