Romans 5:16 says “And the gift is not like that which comes through the one who sinned; for on 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 righteousness.”
This whole section of Scripture is a wonderful section that has some pretty heavy stuff in it, but there’s also many gloriously simple things concerning the grace of God in this entire section of the book of Romans. The above verse is from the new American Standard version of the Bible and I love the way it’s written because it uses the word “arose” to describe the effects of Adam’s sin, and the environment from which grace comes alive. The gift, or as it is often referred to in this section of Scripture, “the free gift,” is the free gift of righteousness. The free gift of righteousness is not just the grace of right standing before the Lord, but it is also the grace of right walking in the Lord, in the person of Jesus. Righteousness is not just a stagnant thing that is imputed to us so that we are accepted before the Lord, but it is something living, actually someone living, imparted to us so that we can live lives pleasing to the Lord. Look at what verse 17 says in that same chapter of Romans 5, “for if by the transgressions of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who are receiving the abundance of grace, and are receiving the gift of righteousness, shall reign in life through the one Christ Jesus.” Righteousness, that is imputed is because we are in Christ, and therefore when the Father sees us he sees us through the lens of the righteousness of Jesus and accepts us on that basis. Righteousness that is imparted is because Christ Jesus is in us, and therefore we are able to reign even in this life on this fallen earth, because of his righteous life being manifested through us in holiness, as a free gift, step-by-step.
Now look back at verse 16 and celebrate this wonderful truth. Even though condemnation came to all as a result of one man’s one sin, grace arose from the landscape of many sins and conquers the power of sin through the free gift of righteousness. In other words, Adams one sin resulted in everyone coming under condemnation and everyone coming under the power and the enslavement of sin. The result was the many sins of the entire fallen human race that resulted from Adam’s sin; but when things looked to be the most hopeless, grace arose. This is a wonderful truth that we can all celebrate even in our own personal lives, for just when it seems that we have failed so much that things have become hopeless, it is usually at that point of brokenness and despair, that desperation gives birth to childlike faith that is able to simply receive what self effort could never accomplish, righteousness. The Lord has to often lead us to the place where we give up on our own ability to live a righteous and holy life, even though we may have tried so hard to make it work. At the heart of the law, is man’s best effort to be pleasing to God, but the power of sin is the law, and the harder you try, even though full of sincerity, the deeper and harder you will fall. It is that that place that we discover that grace arises and offers us the free gift of of holiness, lived out in us and through us, by the person of Jesus himself, who is righteousness. If you’re at the bottom, and ready to give up on yourself, then that is good news, because it is at that place, at the bottom, where grace arises, for where sin abounds grace abounds all the more.