The doctrine of original sin has so many tentacles reaching out in so many directions that is an overwhelming task to try to cover them all. Its origin isn’t found in one single misinterpreted Scripture or idea, but in many. Sometimes it is hard to tell if a doctrine has been spun off of original sin or if it is itself one of the foundations for original sin. Such is the idea of spiritual death.
No where does the Bible speak of spiritual death. The Bible never says the spirit dies, or ever has died. There is no evidence whatsoever to prove that Adam’s spirit died when he ate the forbidden fruit. Yet for most Christians who claim to believe the Bible this is a major doctrine. The idea of spiritual death is foundational to their understanding of the Atonement and salvation. Naturally, when you start off with a false teaching that isn’t even mentioned or hinted at in the Bible you are going to get really off-track in your understanding of other things.
The spirit is always associated with life in the Bible – never with death. I challenge you to get a concordance and search it out. You will not find any mention of a spirit dying anywhere, anytime, since God created man.
Man is a three-fold being, made in the image of God. Man consists of body, soul, and spirit. To try to separate them into three separate entities is like trying to separate the Godhead – it can’t be done. What we can do is see the manifestation of each one.
The body is easiest for us to understand because we can see it with our eyes and feel it with our senses. The body is the means by which we experience the physical world we live in. The body dies. That is a fact of life. When the body dies we can no longer experience the world or things of the world, because the body is the only means we have for doing that. It is over! A dead body doesn’t come back to life, no matter what the doctors do. Everyone since Adam has died eventually, and we can be assured that everyone that is alive now will also die unless they are caught up when the Lord returns.
The soul is the essence of who we are. It is our consciousness. The soul will live on after the body is gone back to dust. Man is a living soul – not just a body.
And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. Gen. 2:7
Your soul is YOU, with your affections, your desires, your opinions, and beliefs. The soul is sometimes referred to in the Bible as the heart. It is where sin originates and comes from.
For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: Matt. 15:19
The soul can be lost. The soul can die in the sense of being separated from God forever.
The soul that sinneth, it shall die. Ezek. 18:20
The spirit is the means by which we experience God. God is a spirit and to even be aware of his existence is a spiritual exercise. We cannot communicate with God outside of the spirit, and if we have a dead spirit, or no spirit, God cannot communicate with us. By the way, how could you be born with a dead spirit? A dead spirit is one that doesn’t even exist. A spirit is not physical and not a body. When the soul and spirit leave the body it is dead, but what could be separated from the spirit to make it dead? Whenever you read of the spirit in the Bible it is always associated with life. The spirit is not something that can die.
The argument is that God told Adam that “in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die,” (Gen. 2:17) and they reason that since Adam didn’t drop dead immediately he must have died spiritually. Most people automatically accept that as a good explanation, but don’t consider the fact that there is no Scripture to back it up. Someone just dreamed up that idea one day. The Bible just doesn’t teach that Adam died spiritually. What the Bible does teach is that Adam brought sin into the world and death came with it – physical death. Every person since Adam, except One, has sinned and died, or will die – physically.
Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: Rom. 5:12
And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died. Gen. 5:5
God said they would die and they did. So has every sinner since Adam, and those who are alive and sinning at this moment will also die. Death is a fact of life and a certainty.
More of the reasoning to defend the idea of spiritual death is found in Ephesians 2:1:
And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
Since the natural man cannot understand spiritual things (1 Cor. 2:14) they cannot conceive any idea of death that isn’t literal, with a body lying there to prove it. “Dead” must mean DEAD, like a body lying in a casket. Obviously, they aren’t literally dead, so it MUST mean they are spiritually dead, they reason. Their spirit must be dead and that is why they are unresponsive to God. The truth is that they are SEPARATED from God because of their sin, just like Adam and Eve were. Sin SEPARATES and that is likened unto death in the Bible.
Jesus gave us a very clear example of this in the story of the prodigal son. He LEFT his father and WENT astray. It was HIS OWN doing – NOT his raising, NOT his genes, NOT anything his father or mother, or anyone else did. HE wanted his own way with no restraints or boundaries in his life. When he returned his father said two different times that his son “was DEAD, and is alive again.” (Luke 15:24, 32) Now we know the prodigal son was not literally dead, but he was separated from his father because of his sin. He was not so dead that he couldn’t “come to himself” and remembering his father’s goodness, to say, “I will arise and go to my father.” Neither was he too dead to get up and do it. There was something in him that could still be touched by the goodness of his father. It should be noticed that the father didn’t do anything to contact him while he was in the far country. He didn’t send for him, he didn’t send him a ticket home or do anything for him. What brought the son around was what he ALREADY knew about his father and his father’s house. It was what he ALREADY knew about his father’s character and all that his father had done for him in the past. It was what he ALREADY knew about how his father treated everyone else, including his hired servants.
The spirit of man is the candle of the LORD, searching all the inward parts of the belly. Prov. 20:27
But there is a spirit in man: and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding. Job 32:8
For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him…1 Cor. 2:11
Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it. Eccl. 12:7
Likewise, there is still something in man with which God has to work to enlighten us. That something is the spirit of man, which is not dead or non-existent. The Bible speaks of man’s spirit as if it is present in man. There are no Scriptures that teach that the spirit is dead.
You may believe this is not that important, but it is. You see, if our spirit is dead and God cannot communicate with us, then God has to literally DO something to each individual to “quicken” them before they can even realize that He exists. Now the truth is that God IS the initiator but He has done that through sending his Son to die in our place and make atonement for our sin. When Jesus said it was finished – it was finished. He will not come down and FORCE anyone to look to him. Now the Spirit of God works through the preaching of the Word of God and the testimony of his saints to cause people to consider God. If they have no spirit then all our preaching and all our godly living is in vain, as far as having any influence on them. Besides that, the Bible teaches in Romans 1, for example, that the invisible things of God can be clearly seen in his creation, so that they are without excuse. Without a spirit they would not be able to see those things at all.
For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Rom. 1:20
If the spirit of man is dead and God must do something to each individual to quicken them BEFORE they can begin to consider the things of God, then the Calvinistic teaching of election which says that God just picks out a few and the hates the rest, is true. There is no need for you to seek God because if you aren’t one of the elect there is no hope for you. You should just wait on God and if He DOES something to you then you’ll know, if not, then you have no hope anyway. Thanks be to God for his Word, which plainly denies such a wicked teaching:
That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. John 1:9
The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. John 1:7
And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: Eph. 3:9
Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. 1 Tim. 2:4
For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Titus 2:11
The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. 2 Pet. 3:9
If there is anything that is clear in the Word of God it is the fact that God wants ALL men to be saved, and that He has made provision and provided the means for ALL to come to him. Sadly, not all men WILL come. They hate the light because their deeds are evil. It isn’t that their spirit is dead, and it isn’t because they do not understand and God has left them out – it is because their heart is hard because of their sin.
The idea of spiritual death fits very well into the doctrine of original sin and all its framework of wrong understandings. It is just another offspring of this doctrine that makes it easier for men to sin, and harder for them to repent and turn to God. This is the mark of EVERY tentacle that grows from this false teaching of the ancient Gnostic cults and the church in Rome – it makes sin a objective matter and removes our personal responsibility. It takes the power out of the true Gospel message and makes sinners feel sorry for themselves rather than guilty before God. Jesus never taught a single doctrine that has that effect on sinners. Neither did any of the apostles, including Paul. It is leaven that, without a doubt, was introduced by the devil himself. Mark any doctrine that has these tendencies and get rid of it. It is mud in the water and you will be amazed how God will open your eyes and you will begin to see all things clearly when you lay it aside and just believe the Word of God instead of the false teachings of men.
Showing posts with label Romans 5:12. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Romans 5:12. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Are We Born Sinners? (Part 4 - Objections: Scriptures Used to Support Original Sin) by Mike Miller
Third most common objection:
What about all those Scriptures that teach we are born sinful?
It always amazes me that folks seem to assume that we have never seen those verses in the Bible. Most of us who have rejected the doctrine of original sin were once just as strong in believing it as our critics are now. We have taken a second honest and closer look at those verses that appear to teach this doctrine of devils and found that we had been looking at them with a preconditioned bias that made us see what we wanted to see in those verses. It is amazing how stubborn and blind we can be when we get an idea in our mind. We can look so deeply and at the same time miss the most obvious and simple facts. If we hope to understand God's Word correctly we must lay aside all our prejudices and fears of what others might think and be totally honest in our heart before God. If we have no intention of accepting or obeying what God shows us then you may be assured that God is not going to reveal anything to you.
Of course, the kingpin of all the verses that "teach beyond a doubt" that man is born sinful would be found in Psalm 51:5:
Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. - Psa. 51:5
Just yank this verse out of context and it looks like the issue is settled doesn't it? However, that violates every rule of interpretation by anyone's standards, and so anyone who is going to be honest is going to have to look a little closer. There are several ways to look at this, unless you have your mind already made up and don't intend to change it.
First of all, this is David's prayer of deep and thorough repentance. He sees himself as very low in the light of God's holiness. He has sinned against God and his guilt is great. He is humbling himself before God, as we all have to do. He is saying that he is just unworthy of anything from God. His best has not been anything to compare with God's holiness, and the best he has ever done now looks very worthless in view of his sin. His sin is all that is before him now and it is the great obstacle between him and God.
This is figurative language and that cannot be denied. If we take this statement and make a literal application with it, then we must also take verse 7 and apply it literally.
Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. -Psa. 51:7
But we know that hyssop will not cleanse us from our sins - it is figurative language. The idea is that David wants to be clean from his sin. He is begging God for deliverance and forgiveness and holding forth nothing of his own merit, but putting himself as low as he possibly can. He is saying, "I've never done anything worthy of your mercy, but I'm asking anyway."
Again in verse 8 we see figurative language used:
Make me to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice. - Psa. 51:8
God did not literally break his bones, and bones do not rejoice. It is figurative language and in the same context as verse 5. Again it is speaking of David's low estate because of his sin and his desire to have his innermost heart pure and right with God.
Another way of looking at this to realize that he said "I was shapen IN iniquity, and IN sin did my mother conceive me…" Sin entered the world through Adam. David was born IN this world. His mother conceived him IN a sinful world and he was shapen as he grew IN the midst of a world full of iniquity. This is the way that Jewish writers of old interpreted this verse. We are all in the same boat. We were born into a world full of sin and we have been exposed to it from the day we entered the world. How can anyone imagine that it would not be a factor in our "going astray" or "becoming filthy?"
Some have put forth the idea that David was saying he was conceived when his mother committed fornication. I completely disagree with that idea. I see no evidence to even justify thinking such a thing. In my opinion it is far from a satisfying explanation for this verse.
We can also start dissecting the words in this verse and see much more than the "obvious" meaning that has filled so many textbooks and doctrinal books. "Shapen" means to "writhe or twist in pain." He says he was "shapen in iniquity." It is connected to the later part of the verse, which says, "and in sin did my mother conceive me." The word "sin" there means "a crime or its penalty." Take a look at Genesis 3:16: Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee. - Gen. 3:16 Part of the result of sin entering the world through Adam and Eve is that childbirth is painful. David is saying that he entered the world in the midst of writhing and pain and it was because of the fact that sin had entered the world long ago. We surely see the effects and results of sin everywhere, but that doesn't mean that it is physically transmitted from generation to generation. It is a moral problem - not a physical problem. Sin has definitely affected the entire creation, but INFLUENCE is the way sin is spread - it hasn't done so by physically transmitting itself from one being to another.
Of course, Augustine, the father of this doctrine of devils, believed this verse to say that the union of David's parents in which he was conceived was sinful in itself. Augustine believed that intimacy between a man and woman was sinful because it involved lust. The fact that they were married made no difference, as far as he was concerned. He believed that sin was transmitted to the child because of the lust that was involved in the intimacy between husband and wife. Never mind that it is a natural desire given by God and also blessed by God inside a marriage relationship.
Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge. - Heb. 13:4
Of course, when you look at a verse with your mind already made up you just don't think about all those other verses that contradict your private interpretation.
So you see that there are other interpretations for Psalm 51:5, and they also fit much better with the rest of the Bible and its teaching on sin.
Second proof text for original sin:
The wicked are estranged from the womb: they go astray as soon as they be born, speaking lies. - Psa. 58:3
Once again we see the words "go astray." If this verse teaches us anything it teaches that we are NOT born sinful - it is something that BEGINS at birth. By the way, infants do not "speak" anything, they only cry. They have to be able to "speak" before they can "speak" lies. Infants only have physical needs, they do not have the ability to reason and make choices. They are not capable of the scheming and planning required to "speak" a lie or deliberately deceive someone.
They "go astray as soon as they be born." The trouble begins when they are born into a sinful world. By the time their reason starts to develop they have already made physical pleasure their number one priority. Self-gratification is what their life is about. Before they know anything about God they have already known the lust of the flesh. Paul said: For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died. (Rom. 7:9) Sin is not imputed where there is no law. Infants do not know or understand the law of God and therefore are not sinners according to the Bible definition. As soon as they come to the age where the law of God is revealed to them they become accountable and therefore are sinners in the eyes of God. When they obtain the "knowledge of good and evil" that is when they begin to be accountable to God for choosing evil over good.
Third proof text for original sin:
Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: - Rom. 5:12
This verse is used to "prove" that we are born sinners. However, it is one of the easiest to refute. The verse says plainly that DEATH passed upon all men - NOT SIN! By one man SIN ENTERED INTO THE WORLD. Death entered BECAUSE of sin and DEATH passed upon all men BECAUSE all have sinned. This verse does NOT teach that sin is passed physically through the genes to all the generations since Adam. It is simply reaffirming the fact that all men have sinned, and "sin when it is finished bringeth forth death" 100% of the time. Read it and interpret it correctly and it fits with all other Scripture. Interpret it through original sin-stained glasses and you have added to the Word of God, a crime which carries a stiff penalty according to Revelation 22:18.
Our critics might say that the fact that all people will inevitably become sinners is no different than saying all men are born sinners. Either way it isn't our fault and therefore we could still blame God for letting us be born in a sinful world where we have no chance. Let me remind you that it wasn't God who ruined the world, but men. And it wasn't just Adam who has made such a mess of this world, all his descendents have done their full share, also. Sin is MAN'S fault - NOT God's fault. God has done far beyond what any man would do to save us from sin. God has provided a cure for it. He has provided an escape from its bondage. You can trade your sin for Jesus and get a renewed mind, a new heart, a new life, a new song, new desires, eyes that can see, ears that can hear, and a home in heaven, all to boot!
Fourth proof text for original sin:
For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. - Rom. 5:19
In the first place, if we are going to be consistent then we must say that if Adam MADE ALL men sinners then Jesus MADE ALL men righteous. You cannot change your interpretation between two identical phrases in the same verse. The Universalists use the doctrine of original sin to prove that all men are going to heaven. If you believe in original sin then you have no grounds on which to argue with them - they win the debate. The word used here is not ALL, but MANY. This verse is speaking of the INFLUENCE of Adam - not what he physically passed to his descendents. We are not trying to lessen the significance of Adam's sin because it surely did bring sin into the world. It was the beginning of every heartache and misery that has been experienced by men since that day, not to mention all the death. However, the doctrine of original sin is a terrible distortion and misrepresentation of what really happened.
For example, we could say that Hugh Hefner of Playboy magazine has made many men immoral, adulterers, and perverts. That is certainly true, but we don't think of the sins of Hugh Hefner being imputed to others! That would be a ridiculous twist of reason! We could say that all the devil-possessed rock musicians of our day have ruined multitudes of people with their music and their message of drugs and rebellion. That would be true, but we would not think of them being ruined in the sense that the rock singers' sins were imputed to them by some physical means. Again, we might see a family where the father was a drunkard and all his sons were drunkards, too. We would say that father made drunkards out of his boys with his drinking, and that would be true. But you would never think that the father somehow passed that to his children physically. We understand that it was his INFLUENCE that caused his boys to be drunkards also. We have sense enough to understand these things correctly but when it comes to the Word of God we put a twist on it that doesn't fit with reason, or with the rest of the Scripture.
Along that same line of reasoning, we all have known wicked fathers who had sons who were righteous. The Bible is also full of examples like that. Likewise, we have seen righteous men who have had wicked sons. It is the INFLUENCE - NOT THE GENES! It is whether or not they submit their heart to God and his law or rebel against it. EVERY person must choose for themselves - and they DO!
Fifth proof text for original sin:
Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. - Eph. 2:3
This is another verse held up as PROOF that we are born sinful. The word used here is WRATH - not a thing said here about being born sinful. The book is written to a Gentile church. The context and emphasis of the chapter is that he is speaking to Gentiles who have been saved. They were born Gentiles - by nature they were Gentiles. The Jews considered the Gentiles to be "dogs" and enemies of God. There wasn't much hope for a Gentile as far as the Jews were concerned. They were "children of wrath." They were wicked and estranged from God and would be recipients of his wrath on Judgment Day.
It is just a terrible strain to try to make this verse "prove" that we are born sinful. The only way someone can believe that is because they come to this verse with an idea already fixed in their mind and every verse must be FORCED to fit their preconceived idea. Try reading it IN CONTEXT while forgetting about the doctrine of original sin.
There are other verses that are also used to support this false doctrine, but these we have discussed are the strongest and most commonly misinterpreted. The Bible does NOT teach the doctrine of original sin. Anyone who is willing to look honestly at the Scripture and lay aside their biased opinion will have to acknowledge that fact.
What about all those Scriptures that teach we are born sinful?
It always amazes me that folks seem to assume that we have never seen those verses in the Bible. Most of us who have rejected the doctrine of original sin were once just as strong in believing it as our critics are now. We have taken a second honest and closer look at those verses that appear to teach this doctrine of devils and found that we had been looking at them with a preconditioned bias that made us see what we wanted to see in those verses. It is amazing how stubborn and blind we can be when we get an idea in our mind. We can look so deeply and at the same time miss the most obvious and simple facts. If we hope to understand God's Word correctly we must lay aside all our prejudices and fears of what others might think and be totally honest in our heart before God. If we have no intention of accepting or obeying what God shows us then you may be assured that God is not going to reveal anything to you.
Of course, the kingpin of all the verses that "teach beyond a doubt" that man is born sinful would be found in Psalm 51:5:
Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. - Psa. 51:5
Just yank this verse out of context and it looks like the issue is settled doesn't it? However, that violates every rule of interpretation by anyone's standards, and so anyone who is going to be honest is going to have to look a little closer. There are several ways to look at this, unless you have your mind already made up and don't intend to change it.
First of all, this is David's prayer of deep and thorough repentance. He sees himself as very low in the light of God's holiness. He has sinned against God and his guilt is great. He is humbling himself before God, as we all have to do. He is saying that he is just unworthy of anything from God. His best has not been anything to compare with God's holiness, and the best he has ever done now looks very worthless in view of his sin. His sin is all that is before him now and it is the great obstacle between him and God.
This is figurative language and that cannot be denied. If we take this statement and make a literal application with it, then we must also take verse 7 and apply it literally.
Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. -Psa. 51:7
But we know that hyssop will not cleanse us from our sins - it is figurative language. The idea is that David wants to be clean from his sin. He is begging God for deliverance and forgiveness and holding forth nothing of his own merit, but putting himself as low as he possibly can. He is saying, "I've never done anything worthy of your mercy, but I'm asking anyway."
Again in verse 8 we see figurative language used:
Make me to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice. - Psa. 51:8
God did not literally break his bones, and bones do not rejoice. It is figurative language and in the same context as verse 5. Again it is speaking of David's low estate because of his sin and his desire to have his innermost heart pure and right with God.
Another way of looking at this to realize that he said "I was shapen IN iniquity, and IN sin did my mother conceive me…" Sin entered the world through Adam. David was born IN this world. His mother conceived him IN a sinful world and he was shapen as he grew IN the midst of a world full of iniquity. This is the way that Jewish writers of old interpreted this verse. We are all in the same boat. We were born into a world full of sin and we have been exposed to it from the day we entered the world. How can anyone imagine that it would not be a factor in our "going astray" or "becoming filthy?"
Some have put forth the idea that David was saying he was conceived when his mother committed fornication. I completely disagree with that idea. I see no evidence to even justify thinking such a thing. In my opinion it is far from a satisfying explanation for this verse.
We can also start dissecting the words in this verse and see much more than the "obvious" meaning that has filled so many textbooks and doctrinal books. "Shapen" means to "writhe or twist in pain." He says he was "shapen in iniquity." It is connected to the later part of the verse, which says, "and in sin did my mother conceive me." The word "sin" there means "a crime or its penalty." Take a look at Genesis 3:16: Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee. - Gen. 3:16 Part of the result of sin entering the world through Adam and Eve is that childbirth is painful. David is saying that he entered the world in the midst of writhing and pain and it was because of the fact that sin had entered the world long ago. We surely see the effects and results of sin everywhere, but that doesn't mean that it is physically transmitted from generation to generation. It is a moral problem - not a physical problem. Sin has definitely affected the entire creation, but INFLUENCE is the way sin is spread - it hasn't done so by physically transmitting itself from one being to another.
Of course, Augustine, the father of this doctrine of devils, believed this verse to say that the union of David's parents in which he was conceived was sinful in itself. Augustine believed that intimacy between a man and woman was sinful because it involved lust. The fact that they were married made no difference, as far as he was concerned. He believed that sin was transmitted to the child because of the lust that was involved in the intimacy between husband and wife. Never mind that it is a natural desire given by God and also blessed by God inside a marriage relationship.
Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge. - Heb. 13:4
Of course, when you look at a verse with your mind already made up you just don't think about all those other verses that contradict your private interpretation.
So you see that there are other interpretations for Psalm 51:5, and they also fit much better with the rest of the Bible and its teaching on sin.
Second proof text for original sin:
The wicked are estranged from the womb: they go astray as soon as they be born, speaking lies. - Psa. 58:3
Once again we see the words "go astray." If this verse teaches us anything it teaches that we are NOT born sinful - it is something that BEGINS at birth. By the way, infants do not "speak" anything, they only cry. They have to be able to "speak" before they can "speak" lies. Infants only have physical needs, they do not have the ability to reason and make choices. They are not capable of the scheming and planning required to "speak" a lie or deliberately deceive someone.
They "go astray as soon as they be born." The trouble begins when they are born into a sinful world. By the time their reason starts to develop they have already made physical pleasure their number one priority. Self-gratification is what their life is about. Before they know anything about God they have already known the lust of the flesh. Paul said: For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died. (Rom. 7:9) Sin is not imputed where there is no law. Infants do not know or understand the law of God and therefore are not sinners according to the Bible definition. As soon as they come to the age where the law of God is revealed to them they become accountable and therefore are sinners in the eyes of God. When they obtain the "knowledge of good and evil" that is when they begin to be accountable to God for choosing evil over good.
Third proof text for original sin:
Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: - Rom. 5:12
This verse is used to "prove" that we are born sinners. However, it is one of the easiest to refute. The verse says plainly that DEATH passed upon all men - NOT SIN! By one man SIN ENTERED INTO THE WORLD. Death entered BECAUSE of sin and DEATH passed upon all men BECAUSE all have sinned. This verse does NOT teach that sin is passed physically through the genes to all the generations since Adam. It is simply reaffirming the fact that all men have sinned, and "sin when it is finished bringeth forth death" 100% of the time. Read it and interpret it correctly and it fits with all other Scripture. Interpret it through original sin-stained glasses and you have added to the Word of God, a crime which carries a stiff penalty according to Revelation 22:18.
Our critics might say that the fact that all people will inevitably become sinners is no different than saying all men are born sinners. Either way it isn't our fault and therefore we could still blame God for letting us be born in a sinful world where we have no chance. Let me remind you that it wasn't God who ruined the world, but men. And it wasn't just Adam who has made such a mess of this world, all his descendents have done their full share, also. Sin is MAN'S fault - NOT God's fault. God has done far beyond what any man would do to save us from sin. God has provided a cure for it. He has provided an escape from its bondage. You can trade your sin for Jesus and get a renewed mind, a new heart, a new life, a new song, new desires, eyes that can see, ears that can hear, and a home in heaven, all to boot!
Fourth proof text for original sin:
For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. - Rom. 5:19
In the first place, if we are going to be consistent then we must say that if Adam MADE ALL men sinners then Jesus MADE ALL men righteous. You cannot change your interpretation between two identical phrases in the same verse. The Universalists use the doctrine of original sin to prove that all men are going to heaven. If you believe in original sin then you have no grounds on which to argue with them - they win the debate. The word used here is not ALL, but MANY. This verse is speaking of the INFLUENCE of Adam - not what he physically passed to his descendents. We are not trying to lessen the significance of Adam's sin because it surely did bring sin into the world. It was the beginning of every heartache and misery that has been experienced by men since that day, not to mention all the death. However, the doctrine of original sin is a terrible distortion and misrepresentation of what really happened.
For example, we could say that Hugh Hefner of Playboy magazine has made many men immoral, adulterers, and perverts. That is certainly true, but we don't think of the sins of Hugh Hefner being imputed to others! That would be a ridiculous twist of reason! We could say that all the devil-possessed rock musicians of our day have ruined multitudes of people with their music and their message of drugs and rebellion. That would be true, but we would not think of them being ruined in the sense that the rock singers' sins were imputed to them by some physical means. Again, we might see a family where the father was a drunkard and all his sons were drunkards, too. We would say that father made drunkards out of his boys with his drinking, and that would be true. But you would never think that the father somehow passed that to his children physically. We understand that it was his INFLUENCE that caused his boys to be drunkards also. We have sense enough to understand these things correctly but when it comes to the Word of God we put a twist on it that doesn't fit with reason, or with the rest of the Scripture.
Along that same line of reasoning, we all have known wicked fathers who had sons who were righteous. The Bible is also full of examples like that. Likewise, we have seen righteous men who have had wicked sons. It is the INFLUENCE - NOT THE GENES! It is whether or not they submit their heart to God and his law or rebel against it. EVERY person must choose for themselves - and they DO!
Fifth proof text for original sin:
Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. - Eph. 2:3
This is another verse held up as PROOF that we are born sinful. The word used here is WRATH - not a thing said here about being born sinful. The book is written to a Gentile church. The context and emphasis of the chapter is that he is speaking to Gentiles who have been saved. They were born Gentiles - by nature they were Gentiles. The Jews considered the Gentiles to be "dogs" and enemies of God. There wasn't much hope for a Gentile as far as the Jews were concerned. They were "children of wrath." They were wicked and estranged from God and would be recipients of his wrath on Judgment Day.
It is just a terrible strain to try to make this verse "prove" that we are born sinful. The only way someone can believe that is because they come to this verse with an idea already fixed in their mind and every verse must be FORCED to fit their preconceived idea. Try reading it IN CONTEXT while forgetting about the doctrine of original sin.
There are other verses that are also used to support this false doctrine, but these we have discussed are the strongest and most commonly misinterpreted. The Bible does NOT teach the doctrine of original sin. Anyone who is willing to look honestly at the Scripture and lay aside their biased opinion will have to acknowledge that fact.
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