Adam v. Jesus - 'The Tale of the Tape' (Rom. 5:12-21)

Tracing genetics and ancestry can be fascinating.  I remember for the longest time thinking that my family, especially on my dad’s side, was from Germany.  Turns out, we’re actually from England and the Netherlands – and I think even some Scottish was thrown in there.

Through our genetics, we get both physical and mental traits from our parents.  I have my dad’s face, eyes, and voice but the rest of me is like my mom’s side of the family.  But what we can’t figure out is how I became 6’5” when my dad is 5’11” and my mom is 5’4”.   Personality-wise, I’m more laid back and introverted like my dad while my mom is very outgoing and extroverted.

We get things passed down to us from our ancestors – there’s no avoiding it.  Sometimes they’re things we like and other times we may not like them at all. 

Romans 5:12-21 demonstrates two family trees – the original human father of all mankind, Adam, and Jesus, the eternal Son of God who makes possible the adoption into the family of God through repentance and faith in Him.  Each tree has a set of results in being a part of them.

When we talk about being ‘in Adam,’ we talk about everything we inherit from him being our biological, original, first father.  All humans originate in Adam.  The bad news is, Adam passes a lot of bad things down to us.  In Adam, think of it as all of us having a terrible medical record passed down to us from our ancestors.  Like, your great-grandparents, grandparents, and parents all had some disease and so chances are really good that you’re going to get that same disease some day.  In Adam, we get all that he had passed down to us, guaranteed.

In Jewish culture, “corporate sin” and “corporate representation” were understood to be realities of everyday life.   If kings and priests fell into sin, the entire nation seemed to pay for it.  So, choosing leaders was highly important because as the leader goes, so goes the nation.

For us today, it would be like our government and our president.  We have freedom, but generally speaking, how our leaders go is how our nation goes.  If our leaders choose sinful and evil policies and actions, our nation as a whole will be affected, even if we had nothing to do with the decisions OR if we didn’t vote for those evil decisions.

From Romans 5:12-21, here are a couple of things we learn when considering the comparison of Adam vs. Jesus and how each pass on certain things to ‘offspring.’

In Adam                                                          In Jesus

“many died”  (v.15a)                                       “grace abounded to many”  (v.15b)

“judgment…condemnation”  (v.16a)              “justification”  (v.16b)

“death”  (v.17a)                                              “grace…righteousness…reign…life”  (v.17b)

“judgment to all”  (v.18a)                               “free gift to all…justification”  (v.18b)

“many made sinners”  (v.19a)                        “many made righteous”  (v.19b)

“sin abounded”  (v.20a)                                  “grace abounded much more”  (v.20b)

“sin reigned in death”  (v.21a)                        “grace reigns in eternal life”  (v.21b)

In simpler terms, this is what we find:

1)      Because of Adam, we all receive a sin nature and physical death.  (v.12)

2)      Because of Adam, ignorance doesn’t equal forgiveness.  (v.13-14)

3)      In the eternal ‘Tale of the Tape,’ Jesus is our victorious Champion.  (v.15-21)

Where Adam fails, Christ prevails!

The options are laid out before all of us – which side will you choose?

Guilt or Grace?

            If we choose to side with Adam, we will remain guilty sinners, we will die, we will be judged, and we will go to Hell.

            If we choose to side with Jesus, we will be forgiven, we will die, we will be judged, and we will walk free into Heaven.