Sin Abounded To People Through One Man's Offense...

...And Grace Abounded To People Through One Man's Righteous Act

Romans 5:20 says that the law entered that "the offense" might abound, and that when sin abounded, grace abounded all the more. For years I've taken this to mean that when a person is confronted with God's law, it causes sinful behavior to increase in their lives, and then grace "abounds" even more. But looking at the whole passage (Romans 5:15-21), I think Paul is saying something else. Consider it with me, if you will. In a nutshell: Through one man's offense/disobedience, sin abounded to people. And then through one Man's righteous act/obedience, grace abounded to people. This has nothing to do with sinful behavior being increased when a person is under the law.