Where Sin Increased

Observe what Paul says the law was for. In Romans 5:20, the law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. That is a startling sentence. Most people assume the law was given to reduce sin. Paul says it made sin visible, countable, undeniable. A speed limit does not create speeding, but it does turn a habit into a violation.

Interpret this alongside verse 13. Sin was in the world before the law, but sin is not charged against anyone's account where there is no law. The law did not introduce the disease; it produced the diagnosis. And a diagnosis is a mercy, because you cannot seek a cure for a condition you do not know you have.

Then comes the hinge of the section: where sin increased, grace increased all the more. The law made the problem bigger and clearer, and grace rose higher still. Sin reigned in death. Grace now reigns through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Two reigns, and the second has overthrown the first.

Apply it by being honest about diagnosis. Where have you resented God's commands for showing you something you did not want to see? Can you receive that exposure as the first step toward healing rather than as an accusation? And where sin has increased in your own story, have you actually believed that grace increased more, or are you still keeping a private ledger?