The Universality of Sin

Read: Romans 1; 18-32; 2:1-6.

Note: we are to define (bring in definitions) the following catolog of sins for the upcoming class.

Adultery, Fornication, Uncleanness, Lasciviousness, Idolatry, Witchcraft, Hatred, Variance, Emulations, Wrath, Strife, Seditions, Heresies, Envying, Murder, Drunkenness, Reveling, and,

Such likes; Foolishness – Lacking sense of judgment, Anger – To make angry or mad, Lying – Not being truthful, Stealing – Taking something that is not yours

Despite this awful picture of a catalog of sins, God’s long suffers with mankind, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9. He’s not willing that any should perish. (Matthew 19:13, 14)Even though ignorance has no age limit, there is a time in each individual’s life when he reaches an age of reason where his knowledge matures. 1 Corinthian 13:9-11. There is a time when light is shed upon the path of every human being, and He receives the understanding of good and evil, i.e. he knows the difference between the two. And light is condemnation. (John 3;17-21; James 4:17; 1 John 3:4; Romans 7:9-11). Even though man who have not the written law, shall be judged by the law of his conscious. Romans 2:11-16.

With this in mind, the scriptures is truly correct in saying that all men have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23

Progressive Revelation

The Plan of “Progressive Revelation”

The Fall and Restoration of Man

While this plan was from the beginning complete in the mind and purpose of God, its revelation to man was progressive.  We shall show you this plan in seven progressive steps.

Adam and the “Edenic  Covenant”

This Covenant that God establish with Adam was based on the act of obedience and submission to the creator.  God created Adam for his glory and for fellowship.  God enjoyed communing with Adam because He would meet and fellowship (Walk) with the pair in the “cool of the day”, probably evening (Gen. 3:8).

The  Seed and the “Covenant of Promise”

1. The first intimation we have is in Gen. 3:15, where it is predicted that the seed of the woman shall bruise the head of the serpent.  “The Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering” (Gen 4:4).  In the days of Enos, son of Seth, men apparently had a relationship with God; for we read, “Then began men to call upon the name of the Lord” (Gen 4:26).  A little later we read “Enoch walked with God” (Gen. 5:24).  And in any generation those who called on the name of the Lord was considered a “saved people” (Rom 10:13, 14).

Noah, The Ark and the “Covenant of Grace”

1. God has always had a people who were separated from those that did not worship him, God people has always been distinct with righteousness.  In the generation of Noah God had a chosen people who were called the “sons of God”, where did these people come from one may ask.  In the first step of this progressive plan you will see these people in that “The Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering” (Gen 4:4).  In the days of Enos, son of Seth, men apparently had some relations with God; for we read, “Then began men to call upon the name of the Lord” (Gen 4:26).  A little later we read “Enoch walked with God” (Gen. 5:24).  These sons of God were the same group of people that called on the name of the Lord.  ).  These were of the generation of Adam.  (Gen. 5:1-32).  They were of the seed of Seth, those who called on the name of the Lord.  (Gen. 4:25-26).  This period of time many writers call the Antediluvian Age, that is the time period right before the flood.  During this time we see where the sons of God apostatize and began to mixed with the daughter of men, a people who did not worship God, and this displeased God, “and God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (Gen. 6:5).  God vowed that He would destroy men off the face of the earth.
2. “But Noah found Grace in the eyes of the Lord (Gen. 6:8).

The Abraham and the “Covenant of Faith”

But when we come forward to the time of Abraham, we find a remarkable revelation of the plan of redemption in the special covenant that God made with the father of the Hebrew nation.  This covenant was divided into two parts. 

• The first part related to Abraham and his literal seed: that God would make of him a great nation; that his descendants should sojourn for a time in the land of Egypt, after which God would bring them into the land of Canaan and give it to them for their inheritance. 
• The second part of the covenant was of a spiritual nature; for in Abraham and his see all the families of the earth should be blessed.  (Gen. 12:1-2; 13:14-15; 15:5, 13-16; 17:1-8; 22:17, 18).

This second division of the covenant so clearly depicted Christ and his universal gospel that Jesus said, “Abraham rejoiced to see my day: he saw it, and was glad” (John 8:56).  Paul says: “The promise that he should be heir of the world, was not to Abraham or his see through the law (of Moses), but through the righteousness of faith….therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all (as it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations)” (Rom. 4:13-16).   And again: “Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises of one, And to thy see, which is Christ.”  “That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith” (Gal 3:16, 14).

Moses and the Law, the “Covenant of Works”

In the fulfillment of the first part of this covenant to Abraham’s seed, God gave the law of Moses, the ostensible object of which was to govern and benefit the Israelite nation, but the greatest object of which was doubtless to furnish a system of types and shadows—of sacrifices and ceremonies, offerings and oblations—pointing forward to the second division of the covenant, when the spiritual and real worship of Jehovah God should be established among all the nations of the earth.  This law, and the manner in which it was delivered, imparted a clearer revelation of God’s nature and character, as well as of his plan, and thus furnished the means of disciplining the Jews in preparation for the coming Messiah.

The Prophets, and the “Covenant of Prophecy”

The later prophets, however, were not limited to an external system of types and shadows, but the Spirit of God made known to them directly the higher standard of revelation to be brought about by Christ.  Thus Isaiah affirms that “God….will come and save you” (Isa. 35:4) and that this salvation would be effected by His vicarious suffering and death (Isaiah 53).  Daniel predicted that the Messiah would come to “to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness: (Dan. 9:24).  Joel prophesied that in the last days god would pour out his Spirit upon all flesh (Joel 2:28, 29).  Zechariah pointed to the fountain of cleansing for sin and uncleanness which should be opened in the house of David (Zech. 13:1).

Jesus, the Christ and the “Covenant of Blood”

Jesus Christ brought the highest revelation of God and taught a perfect standard of human conduct; but above all, we find in him God’s perfect remedy for sin.  He came “to save his people from their sins” (Matt. 1:21).  The beloved apostle says, “Ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins,” and, “Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not” (1 John 3:5,6).  Thus the perfect moral restoration of man to the original condition of holiness and purity is accomplished.  He “gave himself for us, that he might REDEEM us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works” (Tit. 2:14).

The Need of Restoration

 Because of man’s fall into sin it is necessary for restoration.  The Restoration plan or the act of restoration implies “to restore that which was lost” Through the fall of man, we as mankind lost something and that something was the image of God.  By sin, man’s image was changed into a sinful image (nature) and God is a God whose eyes are too pure to behold evil.  (Hosea).  Therefore, this separated us from him (Isaiah 59:1, 2).  Man corrupted the very breath of life (spirit) that God breathed into his nostrils.  Did not the scriptures say “ye are gods”?  We are His very offspring Acts 17:28.  This is why God saw this need of restoration, that he might restore man back unto himself, back unto His image and fellowship.

David saw a glimpse of this restoration and expressed it like this, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.  He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; He leadeth me beside the still waters.  He restoreth my soul: Psalms 23:1-3.  In 1 Peter 1:9-12, we see where Peter spoke concerning the prophets, foretelling of this salvation plan.  Read the following scriptures.  Isaiah 57:15-19; 61:7,2; Zechariah 13:1.  We see it was God’s will to bring man back to where he fell from.  That image, likeness and fellowship. 

 

The Redemptive Plan

The Plan of Salvation

The Redemptive Plan

The Fall and Restoration of Man

The fall of man wrought a complete change in his nature and condition; the primitive purity was lost, and sin and condemnation rested upon his guilty soul.  As a result, the entire race was plunged into the depths of sin; therefore all men stood in need of redemption.

 Self-Redemption impossible 

But redemption would imply a return to the original perfect state, both as to character and condition, and this restoration man could not of his own will effect.  In the first place, there was a legal difficulty that he could not surmount.  As a moral being, he had been placed under a moral law, and this law required his perfect obedience.  Its requirements might all be summed up in the words,  

“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind” (Matt. 22:37).  

It is in man to worship God, but how to of himself, he doesn’t know.  God is a Spirit and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and truth.  God breathed his spirit in us that we might make contact with him.  God has put a part of himself in us, that is what it means to have his image.  In this image it is written this moral and great law; 

“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind” (Matt. 22:37). 

This is the greatest of all commandments, even greater than the Law and the prophets, which were to follow.

Thus, it will be seen that, having disobeyed, he could not make reparation for his transgressions, since no surplus obedience is possible.  So also there was an insurmountable moral difficulty.  Having lost purity and innocence, he could not by self-effort regain what had been lost.  “Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? Not one” (Job 14:4).  Yet such restoration is indispensable to redemption.  “Except a man be born again, he can not see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3).  “Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord” (Heb.  12:14). Self-redemption was therefore clearly impossible. 

Nor could the angels of heaven effect the redemption of man;  for they also are God’s intelligent creatures and therefore moral beings subject to moral law, which law, as in the case of man, exacts perfect obedience.  The highest love, service, and obedience that they are able to render to the Almighty is only sufficient for themselves alone.  Therefore in the nature of the case God only could redeem. 

Man Wholly Responsible for sin. 

So far as we are able to determine, God was under no obligation to attempt the redemption of fallen man. His original work was perfect.  Man’s constitution was such that he was not obliged to sin; therefore the entire penalty for disobedience properly rested upon him.  Those who rashly charge God with responsibility concerning man’s sin should hesitate long enough to consider the fact that the universe is not a physical unit: that with intelligent creatures’ provision must be made for the operation of moral law and government.  This accounts for both the fact of sin, and for the responsibility of sin.  And who will dare to say that this system is not in its own nature good—the only perfect one?  Could man wish for the extinction of his personal, rational self—forfeit all the privileges of honor and virtue, of happiness and joy, in time and in eternity—in order to escape the responsibility of willful disobedience?  Perish the thought. 

Will God Redeem? 

Since God stands acquitted of all responsibility in the fall, is there any evidence that he will redeem?  In the realm of nature we observe that God distributes many of his gifts to men irrespectively of their moral character.   “He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities” (Psa. 103:10).  “Thou openest thine hand, and satisfies the desire of every living thing” (Psa. 145:16).  “He maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain or the just and on the unjust” (Matt. 5:45).  The universal prevalence of sacrifices testifies that men have in all ages believed that God would redeem.  It is highly probable that this practice was instituted by God’s appointment (Gen. 3:21 with 4:4).  If so, then we have in this a clear evidence of God’s redemptive purpose. 

A Divine Plan 

Revelation itself, however, makes this subject clear; there existed in the divine mind a plan of restoration for fallen man.  This plan was for ages a “mystery” to men and to angels, but it was the “hidden wisdom which God ordained before the world” and which centers in the crucifixion of the “Lord of Glory” (1Cor. 2:7-8).  Yes, he was a “Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Rev. 13:8) -  (Heb. Chapter 1-2) There was plan made before the we had the foundation of world (The example of an Architect Mind)—(Eph. 1:1-4).

The Fall and Restoration of Man

The Plan of Salvation

 The Problem of Sin

The Fall and Restoration of Man

The presence of moral evil in God’s universe is one of the great questions that have puzzled the mind of man. The Bible represents God as a being almighty in power, intrinsically good, and holy in all of his works; still we are confronted by the stupendous fact of sin in the world.

The subject of the origin of moral evil and the reason for its existence naturally resolves itself into one of the three following positions, each of which has been earnestly maintained by many people:

1. That God is the direct author of sin and is alone responsible for it, man being but an irresponsible agent in carrying out His will.

2. That although sin is not according to the nature of God, he has seen fit to employ it as his method in bringing about certain good results not otherwise obtainable. This is somewhat related to the first position.

3. That moral evil is in no sense according to God’s will; that it forms no part of his plans, his purposes, or his ways; that it originated in the finite and by apostasy from God, and that therefore God is not responsible for it; that all his relations to it are antagonistic, and in the way of prevention, remedy, or punishment.

God is the author of what is termed physical evil; there we read;

“I make peace, and create evil: I the Lord do all these things: (Isa. 45:7)
“Shall there be evil in a city, and the Lord hath not done it?” (Amos 3:6)

Such evil consist of temporal punishments or judgments that God brings upon men because of their sins. God threatened the men of Nineveh with a great evil, even the entire destruction of their city; but when they turned form their wicked way, “God repented of the evil which he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not” (Jonah 3:10).

But God is not the author of moral evil, or sin; he is infinitely holy. It is blasphemy to charge upon God, “that can not lie” (Tit. 1:2), all of the falsehoods that have been uttered during the ages; to state that the Holy One, who is “of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity” (Hab. 1:13), is, after all, its direct cause.

The second position, that sin is God’s choice of methods for bringing about the great good, has received a larger number of supporters. In this it is assumed that, although sin is contrary to the nature of God, it is nevertheless according to his will that men should sin, in order that his glorious power may be manifested in bringing into effect the plan of redemption, so that the sinner can experience the exquisite delights and enjoyments of contrast by being saved from sin. But if all this be necessary in order to insure happiness, the angels of heaven must be perfectly miserable; for as far as we know they have never had the privilege of experiencing this blessedness of contrast!

The Nature of Sin

 Two verses of scripture give us a correct interpretation of sin.  1John 3:4—“Whosoever committed sin transgressed the law:  for sin is the transgression of the law.” Jas 4:17—“Therefore to him that knows to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.”  Sin is therefore either the direct transgression of God’s law or else the willful failure to conform to its requirements.  But God’s law is an infinite law; therefore its violation becomes a serious offense, involving the soul in spiritual ruin, both in time and in eternity.  “Is not thy wickedness great? And thine iniquities infinite?”  (Job 22:5).  The first act of this character committed by our fore parents caused their banishment from Eden and the consequent train of sickness, pain, sorrow and death.

Sin’s Universality

The consciousness of sin is universal, all men having fallen under its dismal and blighting sway.  One of the grand arguments of Paul in the Roman letter was to show that all men are sinners, in order that he might emphasize the truth of Christ’s mission as the universal Savior.  He charges the Jewish nation with sin, notwithstanding their revealed law of God, and quotes their Scriptures to prove the assertion.  His description of the Gentile world shows their wretched condition morally.  Then he proceeds to say:  “for when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things continued in the law, these having not the law, are a law unto themselves: which show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another: (Rom 2:14, 15).

The argument is plain.  The Gentiles, independent of the written revealed law of God, possessed a revelation of God’s law within their own natures sufficient to fix responsibility; therefore in transgressing this law they also became sinners.  He is not teaching that men are saved by their conscience, independent of revelation, but that they are by this means all condemned and lost.  Listen to his conclusion:  “We have before proved both Jew and Gentiles that they are all under sin” (Rom. 3:9).  “There is no difference:  for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (verses 22, 23).  In another place he says, “the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe” (Gal. 3:22).  It is unnecessary to multiply text5s on this point.  The uniform testimony of scripture is that all men are “by nature the children of wrath.”

Next to follow: The Redemptive Plan