Romans 5:12, Death Passed Upon All Men
Romans 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
Death passed upon all men as a result of one man’s sin. A grim reminder of the consequence of yielding to temptation. Adam, the first man, yielded to the lie of Satan, defying God’s warning, ate of the forbidden fruit, sinned against God! God said, “But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest therefore thou shalt surely die.” (Gen. 2:17). Satan contradicted God’s Word, “Ye shall not surely die.” (Gen. 3:4).
The first biblical record of death was that of Adam attesting to the veracity of God’s Word – Genesis 5:4-5 And the days of Adam after he had begotten Seth were eight hundred years: and he begat sons and daughters: 5 And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died. God’s warning and admonition must be taken seriously for our well-being. Adam in that moment of folly spurned God’s warning plunging himself and his posterity into the grievous reality of physical and spiritual death. After Adam sinned, death passed upon all men. And this judgement of death is not an over punishment that God meted out to all men but a just punishment for all have sinned. Every man born into this world possessed that sin nature after the likeness of Adam after the fall.
Whenever we attend a funeral, we are confronted with the reality of death. The Bible teaches us in Ecclesiastes 7:2 It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting: for that is the end of all men; and the living will lay it to his heart. 4a The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning…
How do we respond to the sad reality of the sting of death? It is by coming to repent of our sins and coming to faith in Jesus Christ as the Apostle Paul declared in Romans 5:21 That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 10:9-10 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
If you are not a child of God, come to trust in Jesus today. If you are a child of God, may God grant you the strength to obey His Word and yield not to temptation this day! Amen.