QT 30 Sep 11, The law added sin so that we might see ourselves as sinners

Rom 5:20-21 (NIV) The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, 21 so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

NOTE: It seems like a strange thing, to add the law so that sin would increase.  Why would God want sin to increase?  I think this is really evidence of God's mercy.  Our sin is what reveals to us our need for a savior.  The more evidence of sin, the more realization that we cannot be perfect before God.  Additionally, some things, like giving to God, coveting, filthy language, selfishness, and others, might not have been recognized as sin without the law, leaving the individual with a sense that they were not that bad after all.  The knowledge of our sin is a mercy to us.  Jesus' further definition of lust and murder, into our thought life and words, increased our understanding even more of the powerful influence of sin upon our life.  God does not desire sin--God desires that we see our sin.  And when we see our sin, that brings us to repentance and into a right relationship with God.