23-24 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.

25 God presented Him as an atoning sacrifice in His blood through faith, in order to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance He had passed over the sins committed beforehand.

— Romans 3:23-25

12 Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, so also death was passed on to all men, because all sinned.

13 For until the Law, sin was in the world; but sin is not imputed, there being no law.

14 Nevertheless, death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who did not sin in the way that Adam transgressed….

— Romans 5:12-14a

20 The law came in so that the trespass would increase; but where sin increased, grace increased all the more,

21 so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

— Romans 5:20-21

Thoughts on Today’s Reading

Grace, mercy and love from Christ to you.

The reality of sin might be one of the hardest teachings in Romans yet it’s one of the most necessary. In our modern world where people often place emphasis on self-help improvement and self acceptance, the concept of sin can seem out of place. Paul’s teaching on scene confronts us with an uncomfortable truth. There’s a part of us that can’t be fixed by effort alone. There’s a part of our nature that only God‘s grace can heal. In a culture that teaches us to be our own saviors, Paul reminds us that we need a Savior who is far greater than ourselves.

It is more than just an individual problem. It’s a force that affects families, societies, and even entire nations. We see the effects of sin every day in our world, the conflicts, the injustice, the selfishness, and the indifference towards others. Paul’s description of sin might seem ancient, but it’s incredibly relevant. The same brokenness Paul observed in the Roman empire is still evident today proving that humanity hasn’t grown or improved.