But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! Nor can the gift of God be compared with the result of one man’s sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ! Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people.

The concept of a death spiral is used in movies and books alike. We can see things spiral out of control here on earth. Take an airplane, for example, that gets caught in a jet stream of another aircraft. While it was flying under control, it now suddenly free falls and twists around in the air, in a downward spiral. What is the end result of this downward spiral, if control of the aircraft is not recovered? It is death and destruction. We see this in both the movie, Top Gun and also the recent sequel, Top Gun Maverick. And just like the above example of a downward spiral of an airplane; sin, once introduced into society by Adam, was a downward death spiral for all mankind. Mankind was doomed to life on this earth without a direct relationship with God, and to life in eternity 100% separated from God, in the darkness of hell and its fiery pits.

But God, in his great mercy, intervened and graciously saved us. God started a new spiral of events, but it was fundamentally different. By sending Jesus Christ as a gift into the world, and by Jesus living a perfect life and then sacrificing himself for our sins, God started an UPWARD GRACE SPIRAL. Once grace was given, it MULTIPLIED and EXPANDED in the hearts of those who followed Jesus. This expansion of grace was attractive to those caught in the death spiral of sin. And as more people reached out for grace and accepted God’s gift of new life, the airplanes of their lives corrected, stabilized, and began to ascend again. Their power and might now grew/grows exponentially, with Jesus piloting the aircraft. He leads them in overall airspace dominance and to incredible feats of love and bravery. This is the picture — the contrast — between the downward death spiral of sin and the upward grace spiral of life in Jesus Christ! Through the one man, Adam, a death spiral started, but much more powerfully still, through another man, Jesus, new life is exploding and growing up towards heaven in a spiral of grace. We experience God’s glory all around us because of His Great Gift — Jesus Christ.

Praise you, Jesus, for your amazing course correction in my life! Thank you, Father God, for giving us Jesus Christ to pilot our ships! You are our Redeemer, our Savior, our Leader to Victory, and our King. When my life was spiraling out of control, Jesus saved me!