Romans 5:20-21

The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

V20 – The law was added so that sin might increase; and grace increased more. Paul, at this point, introduces the law again. He’s anticipating the objection that his audience will bring up. They’ll say, “All you’ve done, Paul, is explain about Adam and Christ. Where does the law fit in?” And Paul gives a brief answer here in part A of v20. Then he elaborates in chapters 6-7. For the moment, Paul suggests again that one, not the only, purpose of the law was to convince and convict us of sin. He says it in harsh and offensive language. He wants to be argumentative here. Was the law given to make the Jews special among the nations, as they thought? No. Paul says it was so that sin would increase. Nothing more offensive could have been said to Jews. Paul deliberately says this to shock them, and he succeeds.

Again, the law is given to teach us what sin is. It serves to expose sin in us and our need for grace. It is not our Savior; but if properly understood, it leads us to our Savior. Finally, Paul is saying that the law provokes sin. You know how this works. The minute boundaries are set, people want to cross them. In a fallen world, once the righteous boundaries of God are laid down, there is an inclination in the wicked, human heart to find those boundaries and transgress them.

In part B of v20, Paul means that God actually takes advantage of the negative functions of the law in order to exalt Himself and His grace, which serve to foster His saving purposes. The more sin is multiplied, the more it is shown to us, the more aware we become of it, the greater the grace that conquers it is to us. We know and appreciate more the grace that conquers sin, when we see how great our sin is. The reign of sin is trumped by the triumph of grace. Grace meets sin head on, and it defeats it. And that’s what we see in v21.

V21 – Sin reigned in death; grace reigns in righteousness to bring eternal life through Christ. The function of Paul’s words in this little verse is to tell us the purpose of super-abounding grace. Why did grace increase all the more in comparison to sin? Grace increased so that grace might reign over sin’s reign of death through the righteousness of Christ in order to bring eternal life through the mediation of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Notice that sin reigns in death. Evidence of the power of sin is the fact the human/death ratio is 1:1. But grace has conquered sin and its effect, death, to provide eternal life, which is the effect of grace. All of this is through Christ. Our slavery to sin is ended by grace through the work of Christ. God doesn’t forgive us and then leave us in bondage to our sin. He breaks the power of reigning sin. If grace reigns through righteousness to eternal life, does that not in and of itself speak of the assurance, security, and perseverance of the believer? If the purpose of grace for reigning is to overcome sin and give eternal life, does that not comfort you that God will bring to completion that which He has begun in you?