Journey to Jerusalem Day 10

Friday, March 6 Romans 5:18-21
18 Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. 19 For as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous. 20 Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, 21 so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

My earliest memory of my family visiting my grandparents, who lived 700 miles away, was when I was four years old. My parents packed five kids plus themselves into the family sedan and we drove, mostly through the night, to their house. No one wore their seat belt, which consisted of only a lap belt at that time. My next oldest sister and I alternated between sitting in the front seat between our parents, on one of our older siblings’ lap, and lying in the shelf behind the backseat against the rear window.
Sounds outrageous now, doesn’t it? Why? Because now it is most definitely against the law! At the time we thought nothing of it, but now we can see how dangerous that was.
Paul tells us that the law came in to increase the trespass. This doesn’t mean that people started sinning more but that they became more aware of their sin. Thus, one of the purposes of God’s law was to make our sin more obvious and therefore make more evident to us our need for redemption.
As you gaze upon the cross this Lenten season, ask God to reveal to you any hidden or unknown sin, remembering all the while that there is no sin too small nor sinner too great that God’s grace cannot redeem. As far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us (Psalm 103:2).
Open your heart to God, confess your sin that His grace may abound to you. It’s a beautiful place to be – at the foot of the cross, abounding in His grace and covered in His love.

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.May Your grace reign through righteousness leading to eternal life. Amen.