Grace in darkness

Where darkness dwelt, grace abounded.  Paul sets this up in Romans 5 as the only way that could have made sense.  For me it seems like a paradox, but nevertheless Paul says it makes sense this way.  However, for this to be true it must mean that grace must have gone to and experienced the darkness - especially the deepest of darknesses.  Did Christ really experience a darker darkness than you or I have experienced or could handle?  Hard to believe, but otherwise I wonder if we could have even been brought out of it.

       So. Through Adam sin entered, through Christ grace abounded.  Yet, daily we choose the relationship to Adam over the relationship to Christ.  Do we not realize that the strength of Christ's grace is incomparable to the strength of the sin brought into the world by Adam?  The relationship to Adam is like a cup of stagnant water, whereas our relationship to Christ and the grace He brought is like an ever-flowing river streaming with no beginning or end - it's just always there and always alive.  Why then do we continually decide to eat the fruit again?  I'm not sure.  But. We do.

       The Adam reality indeed exists, but the Christ reality of grace exists in abundance.  Both are realities but "how much more" is the reality of grace.  While the reality of Adam seemed the only option, grace permeated and soaked those. us. who were in the. dark.  Somehow, by some chance, however unlikely it seemed - this is the state that grace came to us in.  Christ died for us while we were His enemies.  Enemies?  Yes.  And if the light of Christ could conquer in death, how much more can it guide us in life.  How much more. What an interesting phrase - how much more.  So I guess we shouldn't speak in the past about darkness and grace, because both are still realities and sure enough it is still true - where darkness dwells, grace abounds.  

(Inspired by stuff learned from Karl Barth and Bill Dogterom)