SBS Class April 32011

8/7/2019 SBS Class April 32011

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The Doctrine of Sin

Last week we started to answer the following questions:

What is Sin? (Definition and Biblical Support)

What do we need to understand about Sin?

What is the Fall? (and what resulted)

How does church history aid us in understanding this doctrine?

What is the Scriptural support for consequences of Sin?

How does this apply to our lives?


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What is sin?

Sin is any failure to conform to the moral

law of God in act, attitude or nature.


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Scriptural support for the definition of sin

Romans 3:23 - For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God

The Fall - Original Sin-What went wrong?

Turn to Genesis 3:1-10

The Westminster Confession of Faith states:Did all mankind fall into Adam's first transgression?

Adams sin was imputed to our account

Romans 5:12 - Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the

world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all man,because all sinned


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The problem of SIN has two aspects;

1. Mankind has a bad heart (Mark 7:21-23)

2. Mankind has a bad record (James 2:10)

In the first case man is defiled by who he is

In the second case man is condemned by what he has

done

The bad heart deals with the internal

The bad record deals with the external


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How bad was mankind impacted by The Fall?

This doctrine first became a matter of great controversy during theteaching ministry of Saint Augustine. In the latter 4th and

beginning of 5th Century.

There was a protest by Pelagius, a British monk, that started over a

prayer of Saint Augustine. The prayer statedCommand what Thou will and grant what Thou does command.

Pelagius was a very pious monk. He did not have a problem with

the first part of the prayer but rather the second part of the

command.

Because that assumes that the person is not able to morally do the

will of God.


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The question really has to do with ORIGINAL SIN

The doctrine of original sin defines for us the consequences to thehuman race of Adam's sin.

Augustine taught the people are unable to obey the gospel of God

unless God intervenes by grace and frees them from sin.

According to Pelagius; anyone who wants to obey God can do so.

He taught that the nature of man was not defiled or disabled in any

way by original sin, and that Adam's sin took the entire human race

into sin is just not true.


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Pelagius rejected the teaching of original sin, the results of the Fall

upon humanity. According to him, every person has a freedom of the

will just like Adam, we sin by choice and not by nature or the

compulsion of our nature. Sinners have the power to change those

choices and can do so by their own free will.

Pelagius even went as far as to teach that one could live a sinless

life and merit heaven.

This teaching was formally denounced and Pelagius was declared to

be a heretic at the Council of Carthage in 416 AD.


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But this movement didn't die out and another group followed

shortly after.

This new group agreed that Adams sin had effected human beings in

some measure but that sinners were left with just enough grace to

make the first move by faith toward God and then God's grace

kicked in. This group came to be known as Semi-Pelagianism.

There is a small measure of grace left within each human will thatwould allow them by choice to respond to the gospel.

The idea is that depravity is real but it is not total. Saving grace

from God then becomes a divine response rather than the efficient

cause of our salvation. It too was labeled heresy by the Western

Church in the Second Council of Orange in 529.


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Westminster Confession of Faith

Man, by his fall into a state of sin, hath wholly lost all ability of will

to any spiritual good accompanying salvation: so as, a natural man,being altogether averse from that good, and dead in sin, is not able,

by his own strength, to convert himself, or to prepare himself

thereunto.

What this confession is saying points to the radical nature of thisdoctrine of sin. And it confirms that man's freedom in a certain area

has been totally lost by the fall.

Man has not lost his power of choosing and of making decisions.

But his power to make moral decisions has been lost the ability to

convert himself or will within himself any spiritual good.


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False Teaching and False Doctrine

The most predominant way it seems that false teaching and

false doctrine have entered the church has come from a false

understanding of SIN.

All the other religions in the world are some form of a worksrighteousness religion. These religions say that people are in

essence good enough to contribute to their own salvation.

They can somehow merit the favor of a deity and therefore

have a happy afterlife.

Doesnt it make sense then that this would be an entry point

for false teaching since it is the foundation for other false

religions.


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The orthodox and historic position regarding The Fall

The fall was so serious that it effects the whole person. Iteffects our bodies in that we get ill and eventually die. It

effects our mind and our thinking. The will of man is now

enslaved to lusts and evil desires.

The Bible is clear that this condition (radical corruption or totalinability) effects the; mind, body, emotion, desire, motive, will

and behavior. It is a condition that so powerful that NO sinner

unaided by God can ever overcome it.


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Scriptural Support for the Consequences of Sin

Genesis 6:5 The LORD saw that the wickedness of man wasgreat in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his

heart was only evil continually.

Genesis 8:21 - The LORD smelled the soothing aroma; and the

LORD said to Himself, I will never again curse the ground onaccount of man, for the intent of mans heart is evil from his youth;

and I will never again destroy every living thing, as I have done

Psalms 51:5 - Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in

sin my mother conceived me.

Jeremiah 17:9 - The heart is more deceitful than all else And is

desperately sick; Who can understand it?


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Ephesians 2:1-3

And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which youformerly walked according to the course of this world, according to

the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working

in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived

in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the

mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.

Titus 3:3

For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived,

enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in maliceand envy, hateful, hating one another.


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Romans 8:68For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit

is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward

God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even

able to do so,and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.


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2 Corinthians 4:4in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the

unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the

glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

Sinners are blinded by their own sin, they are blinded by the fact thatthey have inherited condemnation from Adam and they are also

blinded by the devil.


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Romans 1-3

The pagan man The moral man

The religious man

Romans 3:10-18

as it is written, THEREIS NONERIGHTEOUS, NOTEVEN

ONE;

THEREIS NONEWHO UNDERSTANDS, THEREIS NONE

WHO SEEKS FORGOD;

ALLHAVETURNED ASIDE, TOGETHERTHEYHAVEBECOME USELESS; THEREIS NONEWHO DOES GOOD,

THEREIS NOTEVEN ONE.


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Consequence of The Fall

Man in and of himself is unable

and unwilling to come to God byhis own initiative.


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Divine Initiative

Ephesians 2:4-6, 8-9

Colossians 2:13

Titus 3:4-7

Romans 8:29-30

John 5:39-40

John 3:1-8

John 6:63-68


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The gospel of John 6:63-68

It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words

that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.But there are some

of you who do not believe. For Jesus knew from the beginning who

they were who did not believe, and who it was that would betray

Him. And He was saying, For this reason I have said to you, that no

one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the

Father.


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No Man is a universal negative proposition - for those familiar

with grammar It describes a negative condition that applies to all

mankind

The next word which is "CAN" describes one's ability or power.

There is a big difference between may and can

Example:

You are in the third grade and you raise your hand to ask the teacher

if you can sharpen your pencil. She says I am sure you can the

question is may I.

Jesus is saying that no mankind has the power or ability to do a

certain thing. So what is it that mankind can't do in their own power

and Jesus says that no man can come to me. I equate the word come

and believe as synonymous.


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The word "UNLESS" is a necessary condition that must be met in

order for the consequence to be achieved.

The Father must grant the ability for the person to come.God has toenable the person to come to Jesus.

In our natural and sinful fallen state we have all lost the ability to

come to Jesus.

We have our freedom of choice but we are free to choose only what

our sinful natures want and in our fallen state we do not choose

God.


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The unsaved man can do what he wants but not what he ought. And

the Christian man can do what he ought but not what he wants.

The natural man is a slave to his own desires and the natural man hasno desire for God or the things of God.And so we freely reject God

unless God changes the desire of the heart

The Bible teaches the sinner can't and won't move because he

is unable and unwilling. He has no capacity to make a

genuine move toward God without the initiating grace of God.

Unless God moves in power over the dead soul and brings

true life, understanding, repentance, and faith, then no onewill ever come to the true God in a manner of true saving faith.


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2 Timothy 2:24-25

The Lords bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to

all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting

those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them

repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may

come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having

been held captive by him to do his will.

It can only happen should God grant repentance.

This is not a new idea but a historic doctrine which has been

affirmed and reaffirmed throughout church history.


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In Summary

Man is NOT basically good - Man is bad, evil, wicked and corrupt

Even though we learn in Genesis 1:27 we were created in His

image something went terribly and tragically wrong in Genesis 3

when Adam sinned.

From that time until now - man is not a sinner because he sins,

rather man sins because he is a sinner!


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Application

First, never stop fighting sin, destroying sin. Kill, it, mortify itMortify therefore your members which are upon the earth. (Col.

3:5) Do this every day with intention.

Second, be watchful for the enemy (Job: 2:2)If you know what

sins lie in your heart, then watch for them to arisefor they will.

Third, rely completely on the Lord Jesus Christ. Speak to him

always, every day about your sins. He knows how to destroy sin and

give you peace in the midst of it. (Read Ps. 139:23) Do not flirt withit, postpone it, or ignore it. The cross did not ignore our sins. The

scripture tells us that we are dead to sin, so how can we live in it

any longer.( Ro. 6:2)


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Application

Fourth, fix your eyes upon Jesus. (Hebrews 12:2)

Fifth, pray unceasingly and allow grace to enter in to your daily

life, full and rich. If you do not deal with sins that arise, they will

overcome you later.

Sixth, Repent, today. Let sin no longer be your master

(Romans 6:14)

SBS Class April 32011

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