"But sin took advantage of this law and aroused all kinds of forbidden desires with me! If there were no law, sin would not have that power [to foment what it prohibits]" (Rom. 8:8, NLT).
"... [S]in is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must not let it" (Gen. 4:7, HCSB).
[sin is ready to destroy you, but don't' let it!]
The New England Primer begins: "In Adam's fall, we sinned all." This references original sin in the Garden of Eden--the result of this first sin. We are all subsequently "in Adam" and live out our solidarity in Adam experientially; it's the only doctrine that can be proved, said G. K. Chesterton in a tongue-in-cheek manner. Yes, Adam and Eve jointly connived and plotted to take of the forbidden fruit, otherwise known as the proverbial apple, which was the only rule and off-limits. I'm not saying they had aforethought or it was a premeditated act, but the sin had been hatching and this only incubated it. They were indeed vulnerable and Satan took advantage of their weaknesses.
All sin has its root in this prototype sin that prefigures all our rebellion in one notorious and infamous act. Adam acted as the head of the human race and that is why we are accountable and culpable as being represented by our race in Adam. Likewise, in Christ, we are saved as the head of the new man. It is worth noting in passing that Eve was deceived and Adam joined her revolt against God's authority knowingly and willingly.
In being in Adam, we are only capable of sin and not righteousness in God's eyes and are not as bad as we can be, but merely as bad off as we can be; we are as far from the kingdom of God as possible and need to repent and believe the gospel to be restored. Salvation is a reconciliation with God or brings back ourselves into the right relationship with God that we should enjoy with Him. The fellowship had been severed and broken as Adam broke faith with God in the covenant of works in the Garden of Eden. Ever since man has had an alienation from God, being estranged from communion and a slave to his sinful nature. Jesus acts as the intercessor and mediator of a New Covenant of grace. This depravity is the result of the original sin and is God's estimation of man, not man's own estimation of himself--for he may think he's all right. The problem with man is that he doesn't see his own sin!
To be good we must see how bad we are (this is the catch-22) and to see how bad we are we must try to be good. We all have feet of clay (sin not so readily apparent). But salvation is a work of grace transforming the heart of man from stone to flesh, making him willing to do God's will. God can make the unwilling willing and causes us to believe. We are not elected because God foresees faith (which would be meritorious), but elected unto faith as a gift. We are all a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde; i.e., we all have a dark side no one sees, but God. God may expose us for what we are to make us have a spiritual wake-up call.
The first sin in a perfect environment prefigured all sins and we all would've done the same and dittoed Adam and followed suit. It has been delineated: He spurned God's grace; contradicted His truth; rejected His authority; disputed His wisdom; repudiated His justice; and resisted His grace. Adam was not choosing evil over good even though the tree was called the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, he was choosing his way over God's way and to find fulfillment outside of God's plan for him. He became selfish and saw things as they relate to him, not God's glory.
What is so sad is that we all confirm ourselves in Adam's sin and do the same thing--eating our forbidden fruit and apple of wisdom. We all can say that there are things we wish we hadn't seen or heard. We have lost the innocence of our own volition and it cannot be retrieved. Consequently, we are all born in sin, and the slave to our "old sin nature" and can only be set free by the Son of God who is Jesus Christ. In the meantime, Christians are justified sinners (cf. Gal. 2:17) or possessing a dual nature--in the nature of the old man Adam and the new man Christ. We are declared righteous, not made righteous!
Ever since Adam, we have a legacy and virus of sin--our birthright! Adam declared independence from God's sovereign plan. Defying God's plan, we have all broken faith in the Designer. We are not inherently good, but evil and not ever good enough to be saved, but bad enough to need salvation. Jesus sees through the veneer of our guise or semblance of righteousness (even hypocrisy and sanctimoniousness) and knows we all have feet of clay or flaws not readily apparent. We all see the good and don't do it because of this slavery to sin--"Who will deliver me from the body of this death?" (Cf. Rom. 7:24). It's no use just giving us rules to keep; we cannot keep them! We never ceased to be human but ceased to be good, inclined to please God.
In fact, every part of our nature and essence is tainted with sin: our wills are stubborn, our thoughts are evil, and our conscience is corrupt, our minds are defective, and feelings selfish--every part of us needs salvation (intellect, emotion, will or heart, soul and mind). We went from creation to corruption! We all even stand self-condemned and in need of grace and mercy from God--and since we are great sinners, He is a great Savior. In sum, we are not sinners because we sin, but we sin because we are sinners; i.e., we're born in sin enslaved, not free to become set free in Christ. Only Christ can set us free! Soli Deo Gloria!
"... [S]in is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must not let it" (Gen. 4:7, HCSB).
[sin is ready to destroy you, but don't' let it!]
The New England Primer begins: "In Adam's fall, we sinned all." This references original sin in the Garden of Eden--the result of this first sin. We are all subsequently "in Adam" and live out our solidarity in Adam experientially; it's the only doctrine that can be proved, said G. K. Chesterton in a tongue-in-cheek manner. Yes, Adam and Eve jointly connived and plotted to take of the forbidden fruit, otherwise known as the proverbial apple, which was the only rule and off-limits. I'm not saying they had aforethought or it was a premeditated act, but the sin had been hatching and this only incubated it. They were indeed vulnerable and Satan took advantage of their weaknesses.
All sin has its root in this prototype sin that prefigures all our rebellion in one notorious and infamous act. Adam acted as the head of the human race and that is why we are accountable and culpable as being represented by our race in Adam. Likewise, in Christ, we are saved as the head of the new man. It is worth noting in passing that Eve was deceived and Adam joined her revolt against God's authority knowingly and willingly.
In being in Adam, we are only capable of sin and not righteousness in God's eyes and are not as bad as we can be, but merely as bad off as we can be; we are as far from the kingdom of God as possible and need to repent and believe the gospel to be restored. Salvation is a reconciliation with God or brings back ourselves into the right relationship with God that we should enjoy with Him. The fellowship had been severed and broken as Adam broke faith with God in the covenant of works in the Garden of Eden. Ever since man has had an alienation from God, being estranged from communion and a slave to his sinful nature. Jesus acts as the intercessor and mediator of a New Covenant of grace. This depravity is the result of the original sin and is God's estimation of man, not man's own estimation of himself--for he may think he's all right. The problem with man is that he doesn't see his own sin!
To be good we must see how bad we are (this is the catch-22) and to see how bad we are we must try to be good. We all have feet of clay (sin not so readily apparent). But salvation is a work of grace transforming the heart of man from stone to flesh, making him willing to do God's will. God can make the unwilling willing and causes us to believe. We are not elected because God foresees faith (which would be meritorious), but elected unto faith as a gift. We are all a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde; i.e., we all have a dark side no one sees, but God. God may expose us for what we are to make us have a spiritual wake-up call.
The first sin in a perfect environment prefigured all sins and we all would've done the same and dittoed Adam and followed suit. It has been delineated: He spurned God's grace; contradicted His truth; rejected His authority; disputed His wisdom; repudiated His justice; and resisted His grace. Adam was not choosing evil over good even though the tree was called the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, he was choosing his way over God's way and to find fulfillment outside of God's plan for him. He became selfish and saw things as they relate to him, not God's glory.
What is so sad is that we all confirm ourselves in Adam's sin and do the same thing--eating our forbidden fruit and apple of wisdom. We all can say that there are things we wish we hadn't seen or heard. We have lost the innocence of our own volition and it cannot be retrieved. Consequently, we are all born in sin, and the slave to our "old sin nature" and can only be set free by the Son of God who is Jesus Christ. In the meantime, Christians are justified sinners (cf. Gal. 2:17) or possessing a dual nature--in the nature of the old man Adam and the new man Christ. We are declared righteous, not made righteous!
Ever since Adam, we have a legacy and virus of sin--our birthright! Adam declared independence from God's sovereign plan. Defying God's plan, we have all broken faith in the Designer. We are not inherently good, but evil and not ever good enough to be saved, but bad enough to need salvation. Jesus sees through the veneer of our guise or semblance of righteousness (even hypocrisy and sanctimoniousness) and knows we all have feet of clay or flaws not readily apparent. We all see the good and don't do it because of this slavery to sin--"Who will deliver me from the body of this death?" (Cf. Rom. 7:24). It's no use just giving us rules to keep; we cannot keep them! We never ceased to be human but ceased to be good, inclined to please God.
In fact, every part of our nature and essence is tainted with sin: our wills are stubborn, our thoughts are evil, and our conscience is corrupt, our minds are defective, and feelings selfish--every part of us needs salvation (intellect, emotion, will or heart, soul and mind). We went from creation to corruption! We all even stand self-condemned and in need of grace and mercy from God--and since we are great sinners, He is a great Savior. In sum, we are not sinners because we sin, but we sin because we are sinners; i.e., we're born in sin enslaved, not free to become set free in Christ. Only Christ can set us free! Soli Deo Gloria!
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