What is your understanding of the consequences of Adam's sin?

[UnitedWithChrist]

What is your understanding of the consequences of Adam's sin?

I am continually surprised by the number of Christians who deny original sin, biblically defined, or misunderstand it.

There are groups that specialize in this (Pelagians and the followers of Charles Finney in particular), however many normal, run of the mill Christians don't really seem to understand the chaos and disruption caused by Adam's sin. And, still others claim that every man is a "fresh Adam" and needs to sin himself before he is accounted as a sinner in God's sight. A simple reading of Romans 5 would refute this notion.

In my opinion, if someone denies original sin, they really can't understand the Bible very well.


Romans 5:15-21 15 But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man's trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many. 16 And the free gift is not like the result of that one man's sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification. 17 For if, because of one man's trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ. 18 Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. 19 For as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous. 20 Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, 21 so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
(ESV)

 

[tourist]

I believe that we all are born with a sin nature that is inclined to sin but that the act of conception and being born is hardly an act of sin. Sin is first committed when you willingly disobey God and not one moment before.

 

[PennEd]

I believe that we all are born with a sin nature that is inclined to sin but that the act of conception and being born is hardly an act of sin. Sin is first committed when you willingly disobey God and not one moment before.

Have to disagree with you there young man.

Ignorance of sin is not a defense. I believe it is true that knowing, willing sins will be held to a higher standard, but the person/people worshiping false idols for instance, are still sinning even though they may not know that they are.

I do not however believe that children under the age of accountability are held responsible for their sin. I believe Christ's Blood covers them and the mentally challenged.

 

[Locoponydirtman]

Born with a predisposition toward sin or with a sin nature, and will indeed sin, but not actually guilty of sin until sin is committed, whether you are cognitively aware of it or not.
Being conceived and born is not a sin. In fact man was commanded be fruitful and multiply.

 

[Lifted_by_the_word]

I choose all humans inherit a sinful nature.To me it means the body is satanic and needs to be overcome by the battle of the mind.

 

[Dino246]

I choose all humans inherit a sinful nature.To me it means the body is satanic and needs to be overcome by the battle of the mind.

The idea that the physical body is satanic is gnostic in origin, not Christian. It is a false teaching. Further, the mind (on its own) cannot overcome sinful flesh.

 

[tourist]

Have to disagree with you there young man.

Ignorance of sin is not a defense. I believe it is true that knowing, willing sins will be held to a higher standard, but the person/people worshiping false idols for instance, are still sinning even though they may not know that they are.

I do not however believe that children under the age of accountability are held responsible for their sin. I believe Christ's Blood covers them and the mentally challenged.

I fully concur with your estimation.

 

[breno785au]

I choose all humans inherit a sinful nature.To me it means the body is satanic and needs to be overcome by the battle of the mind.

Yikes! The body is satanic? God created the body, its the most marvellous thing He ever created! It is a marvel of engineering beyond human comprehension and satan had nothing to do with it.
Yet, it is infected with sin from birth, and because of that, every person will sin because we are controlled by it. But thanks be to God, He had a plan! A plan to set us free from this bondage and give us His nature.
And yes, now, the battle is in the mind. For it needs to be renewed to the reality of what He has done for and within us.
God loves the body so much He's going to give us a new, incorruptible one in the age to come.

 

[Nehemiah6]

In my opinion, if someone denies original sin, they really can't understand the Bible very well.

"Original sin* is actually a Roman Catholic term which originated with Augustine. But their understanding of its meaning is biblical.

"Original sin may be taken to mean: (1) the sin that Adam committed; (2) a consequence of this first sin, the hereditary stain with which we are born on account of our origin or descent from Adam." (New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia.)

The biblical statement is thus (Rom 5:12): Wherefore, as by one man [Adam] sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

Some falsely teach that the guilt of Adam was imputed to every human being. That is patently false. God does not hold people accountable for the sins of others -- only for their own sins.

Also, had there been no sin, there would have been no death, because the wages of sin is death (Rom 6:23).

 

[UnitedWithChrist]

I believe that we all are born with a sin nature that is inclined to sin but that the act of conception and being born is hardly an act of sin. Sin is first committed when you willingly disobey God and not one moment before.

Romans 5 teaches that all men were accounted guilty of Adam's sin and are considered "sinners" as a result.

Being born and the act of conception is not a sin, although the interesting thing is that the unclean period was twice as long for a female child as a male child. Since Eve led Adam into sin, I think that is the reason why.

 

[UnitedWithChrist]

Have to disagree with you there young man.

Ignorance of sin is not a defense. I believe it is true that knowing, willing sins will be held to a higher standard, but the person/people worshiping false idols for instance, are still sinning even though they may not know that they are.

I do not however believe that children under the age of accountability are held responsible for their sin. I believe Christ's Blood covers them and the mentally challenged.

I wouldn't disagree with that possibility, but nothing in the Bible teaches it. Instead, the Bible teaches that all are counted sinners by virtue of Adam's sin.

However, I have no issue with children and the mentally challenged being included under Christ's sacrifice. Perhaps all of those are "elect". I don't know. The Bible doesn't speak on that issue, nor does it teach an "age of accountability".

The inferences that others use are vague, including the age of those who entered the Promised Land (all those under 20 at the time of their rebellion). There's really no solid evidence.

 

[UnitedWithChrist]

Born with a predisposition toward sin or with a sin nature, and will indeed sin, but not actually guilty of sin until sin is committed, whether you are cognitively aware of it or not.
Being conceived and born is not a sin. In fact man was commanded be fruitful and multiply.

At the same time, Romans 5 says that Adam's sin made all humans sinners.

 

[Magenta]

Whether one sins or not is not the point, for nobody can attain the righteousness required to meet God's holy standard aside from Christ's own righteousness. The first birth is physical. A second birth by grace through faith in Christ's sacrificially shed righteous blood on our behalf is necessary: a Spiritual rebirth, the baptism of the Holy Spirit of God.

 

[UnitedWithChrist]

I choose all humans inherit a sinful nature.To me it means the body is satanic and needs to be overcome by the battle of the mind.

Actually that's a dualist, Gnostic way of thinking. The body is not evil because it was created by God. In fact, the physical body will be redeemed at the resurrection. The resurrection is a material one.

I will agree that corruption has occurred with the body due to the Fall, though I view it as physical corruption. From the point of birth forward, we are marching toward our ultimate death, and the body is decaying over time.

What might be causing this confusion is that some view the phrase "the flesh" to apply toward the literal flesh, rather than the sinful nature of mankind. A remnant of this sinful nature remains even in the believer.

 

[UnitedWithChrist]

"Original sin* is actually a Roman Catholic term which originated with Augustine. But their understanding of its meaning is biblical.

"Original sin may be taken to mean: (1) the sin that Adam committed; (2) a consequence of this first sin, the hereditary stain with which we are born on account of our origin or descent from Adam." (New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia.)

The biblical statement is thus (Rom 5:12): Wherefore, as by one man [Adam] sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

Some falsely teach that the guilt of Adam was imputed to every human being. That is patently false. God does not hold people accountable for the sins of others -- only for their own sins.

Also, had there been no sin, there would have been no death, because the wages of sin is death (Rom 6:23).

One, death has a spiritual component. It can be used to describe physical death or spiritual death. Death in a spiritual sense is separation from God. God is the source of all life, and to be separated from him is spiritual death. One no longer dwells in the presence of God once this has occurred.

Adam and Eve were thrown out of God's presence in the Garden of Eden, and suffered spiritual death as a result. Additionally, all unbelievers are in a similar position per Eph 2:1-10.

As I have indicated on other threads, Ezekiel 18 cannot be used to claim that Adam's sin doesn't apply to them. If they use that logic, they also cannot accept the idea of the imputed righteousness of Christ giving them life. Ezekiel 18 does not have Adam's sin in mind; it is speaking about the excuse israelites were using to pursue obedience to God, because they were claiming the sin of their ancestors made such obedience irrelevant.

While no one would want to be called a Pelagian, the viewpoint of many is, in fact, Pelagian. They think they are a fresh Adam at birth, and Adam's actions had no real spiritual bearing upon them. This is a false teaching that leads to a misunderstanding of the Bible as a whole.

Two, Romans 5 definitely says that Adam's sin led to CONDEMNATION. This is a spiritual term that is used to describe spiritual death in Romans. Those who are condemned are not just condemned to physical death, but they are condemned spiritually and don't have salvation. I underlined the appropriate verses in Romans 5 in the initial post.

Fallen mankind is under the wrath and condemnation of God, not only for their own sin, but also for Adam's sin.

One cannot properly understand the Bible without understanding corporate headship. We are all born "in Adam" due to physical birth and are condemned as a result. Those who are "in Christ" due to the new birth are accounted righteous due to his sacrifice.

These themes are all over the NT and one cannot make sense of the storyline of the Bible without them.

 

[UnitedWithChrist]

I will quote these Scriptures again:


Romans 5:15-21 15 But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man's trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many. 16 And the free gift is not like the result of that one man's sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification. 17 For if, because of one man's trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ. 18 Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. 19 For as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous. 20 Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, 21 so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
(ESV)

Notice that CONDEMNATION came about due to Adam's sin.

Note that Adam's one sin caused men to be considered sinners.

To be "in Adam" means to be, by virtue of physical birth and association with him, a sinner and condemned by his disobedience.

To be "in Christ" means to be, by virtue of spiritual birth and association with him, a saint and justified by his obedience.

You can't claim one is true, and the other is false. If you don't agree, you don't correspond to God's logic but are imposing your own carnal sense of reality and justice onto God's word. The reality is that God's word teaches triple imputation.

1. Adam's sin is placed on all men.
2. The saved man's sin (imputed and actual) is placed on Jesus.
3. Jesus' righteousness is placed on the saved man.

Anything else is a wrong understanding.

 

[ilkinengin76]

Death. wages justly earned, not only by and from adam, but by our own selfish desired. did adam sin? what are his wages? do we sin, what are our wages?

 

[Lightskin]

1. Adam's sin is placed on all men.
2. The saved man's sin (imputed and actual) is placed on Jesus.
3. Jesus' righteousness is placed on the saved man.

I vote for these three ^^^^^

 

[ilkinengin76]

I vote for these three ^^^^^

issue with the 1st point. placed, needs defining, man is responsible for all his depravity, otherwise we are unjustly condemned since God hates all who sin. Psalm 5:5. its basically he said she said, when God questioned Adam. she made me do it, and eve blamed the devil, he made me do it. that may as well be, but hey they were given a command not a choice.

 

[Lifted_by_the_word]

Yikes! The body is satanic? God created the body, its the most marvellous thing He ever created! It is a marvel of engineering beyond human comprehension and satan had nothing to do with it.
Yet, it is infected with sin from birth, and because of that, every person will sin because we are controlled by it. But thanks be to God, He had a plan! A plan to set us free from this bondage and give us His nature.
And yes, now, the battle is in the mind. For it needs to be renewed to the reality of what He has done for and within us.
God loves the body so much He's going to give us a new, incorruptible one in the age to come.

It is infected with sin from birth.sin is satanic.