036 Does Imputation Work?
Romans 5:12-21
March 11, 2018
As you know, we’ve been discussing the doctrine of SOLUS CHRISTUS,
Namely that salvation is in Christ Alone.
And namely that has been a study of what Christ did FOR us.
• We say that He Lived FOR us. (active obedience)
• We say that He died FOR us. (passive obedience)
And we have even said that He is the only One to ever do that.
But there is a deeper issue at stake.
Our doctrine of SOLUS CHRISTUS
Stands or falls on the doctrine of imputation.
We have no doubts that Christ lived an obedient life.
We have no doubts that Christ died a submissive death.
The question is:
DO WE REALLY BELIEVE THAT WHAT HE DID CAN BE IMPUTED “transferred” TO US?
• Can the actions of 1 man 2,000 years ago really affect each of us in such a
significant fashion?
• Can it be that my sin really can be imputed to Christ?
• Can it be that His righteousness really can be imputed to me?
It sounds good, frankly, it almost sounds too good to be true.
Even Solomon wrote:
Ecclesiastes 8:14 “There is futility which is done on the earth, that is, there are righteous men to whom it happens according to the deeds of the wicked. On the other hand, there are evil men to whom it happens according to the deeds of the righteous. I say that this too is futility.”
DOES IMPUTATION WORK?
To answer that question, we turn to a very important passage of Scripture
We’ve already looked at part of it back in our study of SOLA GRATIA.
But I think it is one of the most important passages
(and sadly most neglected) in the whole Bible.
It is the passage in which Paul reveals the doctrine of imputation.
3 main points
#1 UNVEILING ADAM’S SIN
Romans 5:12-14
FIRST OF ALL – this section is difficult because it contains a parenthetical statement that is a little hard to notice unless you’re reading the KJV.
In verse 12 Paul says, “Therefore just as through one man sin entered…”
When someone says to you, “just as” or “in the same way”,
You naturally expect them to list both items they are comparing.
If I say, “Just as this pulpit is brown”
You automatically expect me to say, “so is the Lord’s supper table”
BUT PAUL SEEMS TO LEAVE US HANGING
He gives us the “just as” in verse 12 but doesn’t finish the statement.
He does finish it, but not until verse 18.
Romans 5:18 “So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men.”
So to help you understand the flow of his writing,
Circle the “just as” in verse 12, and draw a line to the “so then” in verse 18.
The reason they are so far apart
Is because Paul inserts this PARENTHETICAL STATEMENT.
Verses 13-17 make up this statement.
THEY ARE A COMMENTARY OF VERSE 12.
THIS PARENTHETICAL SECTION IS THERE TO ANSWER THE QUESTION:
Is it is really possible for a deed which occurred 2,000 years ago to affect us today?
Paul answers “yes” and he bases it upon the sin of Adam.
Paul will prove that one act of Jesus can affect us all,
By revealing that the death of Jesus isn’t the first time
That all men were affected by one act.
Before the Second Adam (Jesus) died on a tree,
The first Adam was eating from one, and it powerfully affected us.
LET’S LOOK AT ADAM’S WORK
“Therefore just as through one man sin entered into the world”
SIN WAS NOT ALWAYS IN THE WORLD.
When God created this world, He did not put sin in it.
Genesis 1:31 “God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.”
Sin was not in the world.
UNTIL
Genesis 3:1-7 “Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.'” The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die! “For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings.”
And sin entered into the world
And thanks to him, sin entered God’s creation.
AND SIN BROUGHT DEATH
“through one man sin entered into this world, and death through sin”
Sin has a very intimate friend, and he never travels without him.
THE SIDEKICK OF SIN IS DEATH.
James 1:15 “Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death.”
And certainly Adam learned this.
Not only was the serpent doomed to lick the dust…
Not only was the woman doomed to pain in childbearing…
Not only was creation doomed to futility…
BUT DEATH WAS NOW UPON US.
Genesis 3:17-19 “Then to Adam He said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat from it’; Cursed is the ground because of you; In toil you will eat of it All the days of your life. “Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you; And you will eat the plants of the field; By the sweat of your face You will eat bread, Till you return to the ground, Because from it you were taken; For you are dust, And to dust you shall return.”
And this much we all probably understand.
But it’s the next point that Paul wanted to make sure we get.
ADAM’S SIN AFFECTED US ALL
“and so death spread to all men, because all sinned”
Now it is very easy to read that text as though when men were born,
We just made the same mistake of Adam, and that is why we die too.
While we do all sin, THAT IS NOT WHAT PAUL IS SAYING HERE.
We covered this already, but it doesn’t hurt to do it again.
Romans 5:1 “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ”
The word “justified” there
Was in the AORIST, or the POINT tense.
That meant Paul was NOT speaking of an ongoing event,
But rather one event that took place at one instance in the past
At one point, we were instantly and permanently made right with God.
I remind you of that, because
That is the exact same tense that Paul uses here.
When he says that “all sinned”,
HE IS NOT referring to the weakness of mankind to give in to sin.
HE IS explaining something that happened at one point in the past.
There was an exact point in the timeline of history,
That “all sinned”.
That point was that when Adam sinned
It totally infected everyone who would come after him with sin.
ADAM’S SIN & CONDMENTATION WAS IMPUTED TO US
Paul will say it a little clearer later in the chapter.
Romans 5:18a “So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men…”
Romans 5:19a “For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners…”
What Adam did affected the entire human race,
Because the entire human race came from him; WE WERE IN ADAM.
John MacArthur wrote
“[Adam’s] sin became mankind’s sin, because all mankind were in his loins.”
(MacArthur, John; The MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Romans 1-8 [Moody Press, Chicago, Ill; 1991] pg. 296)
This is why David said
Psalms 51:5 “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me.”
Psalms 58:3 “The wicked are estranged from the womb; These who speak lies go astray from birth.”
This is why when Jesus showed up He said:
John 3:3 “Jesus answered and said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
He’s already condemned, born in Adam.
He needs to be born again of the Spirit.
BUT WE WERE ALL CONDEMNED IN ADAM.
And to prove it Paul gives evidence.
(13)“for until the Law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law.”
Paul says that ever since Adam sin was present.
YOU MAY OR MAY NOT AGREE.
You may choose to say, sin didn’t show up until I sinned.
“BUT sin is not imputed when there is no law”
WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
It means, if there is no law against an action,
You cannot be held under punishment for violating it.
Now, after the law is clear and posted, you are accountable.
Therefore, after the time of Moses,
We understand why people are in such trouble.
BUT BEFORE MOSES THERE WERE NO COMMANDS.
(Adam had the only one)
HERE IS THE POINT
In between Adam and Moses there was no Law,
And therefore there is no way that man could have been punished for breaking it. God had no way of condemning mankind.
verse 14, “Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come.”
IF ADAM’S CONDEMNATION DIDN’T SPREAD, THEN WHY DID PEOPLE BETWEEN ADAM AND MOSES DIE?
BECAUSE ALL MEN HAD BEEN DECLARED SINNERS IN ADAM
AND ALL MEN HAD BEEN CONDEMNED WITH ADAM.
While Paul’s point is hard to swallow,
It has no small amount of evidence to enforce it.
What Adam did brought death to us everyone.
Adam’s one act of disobedience
Was powerful enough to condemn the world.
But that reality is actually GOOD THING FOR US because:
Adam was a picture:
“who is a type of Him who was to come.”
#2 UNDERSTANDING ADAM’S SYMBOLISM
Romans 5:15-17
We all know what a “type” is.
It is a foreshadowing. It is a picture.
The Old Testament is full of them.
The Passover Lamb is a type or picture of Jesus the Sacrifice.
Melchizedek is a type or a picture of Jesus the High Priest.
Manna is a type or a picture of Jesus as The Bread that comes from heaven.
Here Paul says that Adam was “type of Him who was to come.”
Adam is a type of Jesus, in that the way Adam affected all men
Is a picture of the way Jesus would affect all men.
Just as Adam’s one deed spread to all men,
So also Jesus’ one deed spread to all men.
In that sense, Adam is a “type” of Christ.
However, we don’t need another Adam like the first Adam.
And so while Adam is a “type”,
Paul now wants to show you that Adam is the “Anti-Type”.
They are similar in that their deed affects all men,
They are different as to how their deed affects all men.
So now that you understand that one man’s act can affect all men,
Paul will show you how they affect all differently.
You need to know that Adam is a type, but you also need to know that he is an anti-type.
• For on one hand you need to know that in one sense they did the same thing.
• On the other hand you need to know that what Christ did is more powerful than what Adam did.
There are 3 major differences
Between the work of Adam and the work of Jesus.
1) DIFFERENT IN PERSONALITY (15)
“But the free gift is not like the transgression”
We know what “the transgression” is.
ADAM’S SIN
BUT WHAT WAS “THE FREE GIFT”?
It is Christ’s atoning work.
Romans 3:23-24 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus;”
Paul echoed this sentiment to the Ephesian church.
Ephesians 2:8 “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God”
So while the transgression is the willful sin of Adam,
A deed which spread to all men,
The gift is the redemptive work of Jesus,
A deed which also spread to all men.
BUT THAT IS WHERE THE SIMILARITIES STOP.
For Paul unequivocally says, “The free gift is not like the transgression.”
Paul wants you to know that when he used Adam as an example to illustrate what Jesus did, IT DOES NOT MEAN THEY ARE THE SAME.
And so here Paul gives the first way
In which the work of Adam and the work of Jesus are different.
“For if by the transgression of the one 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.”
Paul’s point is that they are different at their very core.
Their PERSONALITY is different.
Their nature is different.
LOOK AT ADAM
“by the transgression of the one the many died”
Adam committed an evil deed that NEGATIVELY affected us all.
LOOK AT JESUS
“much more did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many”
Jesus committed a righteous deed that POSITIVELY affected us all.
ADAM BROUGHT SIN; JESUS BROUGHT SALVATION
ADAM BROUGHT THE CURSE; JESUS BROUGHT THE BLESSING
ADAM BROUGHT DEATH; JESUS BROUGHT LIFE
ADAM BROUGHT CONDEMNATION; JESUS BROUGHT JUSTIFICATION
So while Adam is an illustration of Jesus, he is an opposite illustration.
They are different in personality.
2) DIFFERENT IN POWER (16)
Here Paul says it again. (He really wants to drive this point home to you)
“The gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned”
And so here he gives the SECOND WAY in which they are different.
“for one the one hand the judgment arose from one transgression resulting in condemnation, but on the other hand the free gift arose from many transgressions resulting in justification.”
Obviously there, Paul reiterates the point made in verse 15.
He again reminds that they are different at their very core.
You STILL SEE the negative from Adam and the positive from Christ.
From Adam “judgment arose resulting in condemnation”
From Jesus “free gift arose resulting in justification”
But there is another major difference that Paul introduces here,
AND THAT IS BY WAY OF POWER.
The KEY IS FOUND by noticing the numerical value Paul speaks of.
Circle the word “one” – And circle the word “many”
“judgment arose from ONE transgression”
“the free gift arose from MANY transgressions”
WHAT DOES THAT PROVE?
Well, LET’S ASSUME that Adam and Jesus were exactly equal in power.
LET’S ASSUME that neither was stronger than the other.
Then for one act of righteousness would nullify how many sins? – ONE
Then two acts of righteousness would nullify how many sins? – TWO
BUT
Jesus offered one act to cover all sin.
JESUS’ ONE ACT IS MORE POWERFUL THAN ADAM’S ONE ACT.
So Paul wants you to know that Jesus is more powerful than Adam.
This is also clearly seen in all the miracles of Jesus.
Matthew specifically lines them out.
• Power over sickness
• Power over fallen creation
• Power over demons
• Power over sin
• Power over death
• Power over Satan
So they are different in PERSONALITY They are different in POWER
3) DIFFERENT IN PERMANENCE (17)
Here Paul lists the third way in which the work of Adam
And the work of Jesus are different.
Since Jesus has more power…
Then we make a theological application.
“For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one,”
And that is exactly what it did.
But if death reigned through Adam,
And Jesus is more powerful than Adam…
“MUCH MORE those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.”
Key word here is “will reign”
As in Christ’s gift will reign over Adam’s blunder
HERE IS THE POINT
Death reigned over us, because it was more powerful than us.
Everyone died.
And for all general purposes Adam’s sin seemed permanent.
It appeared to be something we were going to live with forever.
Death reigned over us because it was more powerful than us,
BUT Jesus is more powerful than Adam and death.
SO FOLLOW THE POINT.
Paul said Christ died for us all and reconciled us to God.
IS THAT POSSIBLE?
1) Well, Adam sinned for us all and Adam is a type of Christ (even if he is an anti-type)
2) So if Adam can sin for us all, then surely Christ can be righteous for us all.
3) If Adam can bring condemnation to us all, then surely Christ can bring eternal life to us all.
So now, after the parenthetical statement, let’s see Paul get back to the point.
#3 UNDOING ADAM’S SENTENCE
Romans 5:18-21
As we mentioned earlier,
This is the completion of the statement Paul began in verse 12.
TAKE OUT THE PARENTHESIS
“12Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned…18beven so through one act of righteousness their resulted justification of life to all men.”
You can see how (after the parenthetical statement is removed)
This passage makes sense.
We realize that Paul is comparing the work of Jesus to the work of Adam.
(18) “So then as through one transgression their resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men.”
Now first, don’t let the “all men” throw a kink in your theology.
This is not promoting universalism.
Paul already made it clear in verse 17 who we are referring to.
“THOSE WHO RECEIVE the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness”
This verse doesn’t mean that it is automatically applied to all men,
But rather that it is available to all men.
There is unlimited sufficiency in this offer.
THE POINT IS:
HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS IS YOURS, just as Adam’s sin was yours.
Because we were born in the flesh,
We inherited the condemnation of the flesh.
But when man is born again,
He receives the justification of the new spirit.
1 Peter 1:23 “for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God.”
John 1:12-13 “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.”
When a person dies to self, and trusts in Christ,
The Bible says they are “born again”
2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”
We are born again, and now we are no longer in Adam.
The person who was in Adam died. His condemnation is over.
Now, we are in Christ.
We are “in Him”.
And because we are “in Him”
All the blessings that are His, are ours.
2 Corinthians 1:19-22 “For the Son of God, Christ Jesus, who was preached among you by us — by me and Silvanus and Timothy — was not yes and no, but is yes in Him. For as many as are the promises of God, in Him they are yes; therefore also through Him is our Amen to the glory of God through us. Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and anointed us is God, who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge.”
Just as we inherited sin, death, and judgment “in Adam”
Now, having died to ourselves and having been born again
In Christ, we inherit life, blessing, and justification.
Just as being a child of Adam caused the curse of Adam to spread,
So being a child of God causes the blessing of God to spread.
It comes to us in the exact same way.
Now, we know it spreads to us, the same way, but HOW?
IMPUTATION
(19) “For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners even so though the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous”
Just as Adam transgressed and spread it to us all.
“even so” (in the exact same way)
Through Christ’s obedience, both active and passive,
The many are made righteous.
It worked in Adam, it works in Jesus
And because Jesus is more powerful it works regardless of all the sin that has transpired since the days of Adam.
Which is Paul’s next point:
“The Law came in so that the transgression would increase; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more.”
Even when the Law finally did come and exponentially increased the amount of sin, even that could not stop the work of Christ.
JESUS UNDID IT ALL
“so that as sin reigned in death even so grace would reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
THE POINT: Adam ruined us but Jesus rescued us
His righteousness and His life spread to us,
Just as Adam’s sin and death spread to us.
So the answer is “Yes”
IMPUTATION DOES WORK
• Christ can die FOR us.
• His righteousness can be imputed to us.
• Our sin can be imputed to Him.
And He does this for all who are “in Christ Jesus”
Another great truth we’ll examine next time.
