Sin
Why Do All People Sin? A Rational Defense
One intriguing aspect of Jonathan Edwards’ defense of the doctrine of original sin is his appeal to reason.
He suggests that if the Bible were silent on the matter, thinking people would still come to the conclusion that sin is a universal reality.
Here’s how he did it.
Questions for Those Who Reject the Doctrine of Original Sin
People who deny original sin often point to decadent societies as the cause of our degradation.
In other words, people are born innocent…but are corrupted by the culture they grow up in.
But if that’s the case, then shouldn’t some societies be innocent? Or at least one society in which the prevailing influence is virtue and not vice?
Furthermore, what corrupted these societies in the first place? Where did that evil creep in?
And why isn’t there at least a statistical average of, say, 50% innocent people? Forty percent? Thirty?
These are just a few questions Edwards raised. But there’s more.
The Problem with the “Nobody’s Perfect” Appeal
Optimistic and sanguine views of human nature–those that say man is basically good–will appeal to the phrase “Nobody’s perfect.”
Okay. Why?
If man at the core is good and innocent and evil is tangential, peripheral and on the outside, why doesn’t good eventually win out?
Why doesn’t the substance win over the accidental?
Strangely enough, in a culture like ours where objective, absolute values are rejected, people still appeal to “nobody’s perfect.”
Wait.
That can’t be. Haven’t we denied objective perfection?
Besides, even when the ethical bar is lowered, we recognize that this “standard” isn’t even met. We reduce what’s acceptable and still fail.
Funny thing is, people will appeal to an objective standard if you cross them.
Sleep with some one’s wife and see if they don’t hunt you down. Steal their car and see if they don’t call the police. Cheat on an exam and see if the professor doesn’t flunk you.
See, the credo “everything is permissible” often is thrown out the window when what someone else wants conflicts with what you want.
“Come On You Curmudgeon–Can’t We Do Any Good?!”
John Calvin recognized that we are, though fallen, capable of doing so-called good deeds. He called this “civic righteousness.”
Augustine referred to these deeds as “splendid vices.”
He went on to say that while these may on the outside conform to the law of God, deep down they proceed from a rebellious and woefully detached heart.
The Bible teaches that our deeds must not only conform to prescriptions of God’s law–but also rise from a heart that loves God.
This is apparent from the beginning of the Old Testament to the end of the New.
And in the final analysis, the great commandment to love God with all your heart lies underneath all human morality and activity.
How Many Sins Is Too Many?
At one point in Edwards’ defense he says that there is a preponderance of evil deeds over good ones. But he points out even one sin is too many.
Edwards goes onto echo James: Sin against one point of the law is to sin against the whole law…
And of course against the law giver himself.
Furthermore, one act of obedience doesn’t negate one act of disobedience. In God’s economy, obedience is a mere condition to being a child of God.
A Few More Examples of Our Native Sin Nature
Edwards also sees evidence for man’s depraved nature in our bent to sin the moment we are morally capable.
Anyone with children will know what Edwards is talking about.
But original sin is also evident in the fact that we continually and progressively sin. There’s no secret: Suffering dominates world history.
And never diminishes.
Thus even the most sanguine observer must confess that something is wrong with this world.
Nor is sin entirely absent from the most sanctified saints. [Indeed, sanctified saints may sin less--but they WILL grieve more.]
The Final [Literally!] Piece of Evidence
Edward’s closes his argument by stating that the evidence of universal sin is also found in the universality of death.
That’s the biblical interpretation. And it represents a judgment on wicked mankind–a judgment even babies, who are presumably innocent, aren’t excused from.
The question one has to ask himself is this: Why do babies die? Why do we die? For that matter, why does anything die and not live forever?
I’m curious to hear your thoughts. Brutal and all.
Secret Sin: The Hideous Corpse in the Closet
**Guest post by Daniel Wilson of Desire Spiritual Growth.**
You know what it’s like to struggle with secret sin that has a death-grip around your throat…
Secret sin gnaws at your conscience more than anything else…
You feel like a hypocrite with moral standards fluctuating with the presence or absence of an audience…
Endless cycles of determined resolve and dismal failure continue as you try to break off the secret sin…
Your soul has some sickened bent toward feeding at the swine trough even though every taste leaves you with a regretful hangover…
Intimacy with God is almost nonexistent because no two lovers can remain relationally intimate while one plays the harlot…
You may rightfully doubt your own salvation because–despite having gained a lot of knowledge about God and the gospel–you look back on the past few years and see little victory over secret sin…
And you are weary of new techniques and three-step processes to bring freedom.
They never work.
If that sounds like an insider’s description, it’s because I left tracks in mud on the miserable path of secret sin.
Secret sin creates an inconsistency between our outer and inner lives.
Hypocrisy. We do behind mentally or physically closed doors what we would never do out in the light. This shows that whatever is motivating our public deeds is not strong–or not relevant–enough to govern our private deeds.
Where Does the Struggle with Secret Sin Originate?
In general, we sin because we are sinners. Until our sanctification is complete, we will not cease to wrestle with sin.
We are seduced by promises that sin cannot deliver on. We struggle to believe that sin is profitless and costly and thus we are blindly attracted to something that is repulsive in reality.
In particular, our heart is fertile ground for secret sin when we use righteousness to gain approval. We become concerned only with outward appearance. That opens the door for secret sins because they are hidden from view and do not affect public approval ratings.
Struggling with secret sin is an indicator that our outward righteousness is primarily motivated by a love for man. If our outward righteousness was motivated by a love for God, then we would use the same motivation to live righteous private lives.
This is a heart problem: love for God is not filling our heart, enabling and motivating our deeds publicly or privately.
Jesus gives us a profile of this problem in His diagnoses of the Pharisaical heart. The Pharisees did all of their deeds to be seen by men. That’s all they wanted. Concerned only with outward appearance, their hearts were far from the Lord. They were like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness (Matthew 23:5, 26-27; Mark 6:7).
Contrast that with a former Pharisee whose heart was changed–the Apostle Paul:
For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ. Galatians 1:10
The difference between convenient obedience and full obedience is a matter of where our heart’s affections lie. We either serve and love God above all, or we serve and love man. And only one of those two loves can enable and motivate us to reject secret sin.
The Unsurprising Yet Singularly Effective Solution
Where do we get such a love for God that enables and motivates us to obey?
“If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” John 14:15
We are not naturally filled with love for God. Nor are we the filler that we may fill ourselves. We are helpless to bring about the required heart change so that we can overcome secret sin.
On Our Knees
Gripped and crushed by our powerlessness, we are finally where we ought to be. We are ready to cry out for God to fill us with love for Him. Let Him break, mold and fill us as He sees fit.
“Let thy personal weakness, O Christian, be an argument to make thee pray earnestly to thy God for help…Let not the doctrine that you, unaided, can do nothing, make you sleep; but let it be a goad in your side to drive you with an awful earnestness to Israel’s strong Helper.” – CH Spurgeon
“By the law is the knowledge of sin’ [Rom 3:20], so the word of grace comes only to those who are distressed by a sense of sin and tempted to despair.” Martin Luther
“The loss of all confidence in one’s self is the first essential in the believer’s growth in grace.” A. W. Pink
What is our desperate prayer request? That the Lord will direct our hearts to the love of God and the steadfastness of Christ so that we will do the things that we have been commanded, for our good and His glory.
But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one. And we have confidence in the Lord about you, that you are doing and will do the things that we command. May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ. 2 Thessalonians 3:3-5
[Also see Ephesians 3:14-21]
That is the gospel: God requiring of us what we cannot supply on our own. And then giving us the supply.
Does anyone wish to overcome secret sin, to be rid of it at last? Then take hold of the gospel daily. You will find no victory as you wage war against sin until your heart is filled with love for God.
Our Wretched State [Exhibit A]
I’m profoundly intrigued by human nature. Our wicked human nature in particular.
This is probably why I’m drawn to tragic literature. Psychological disorders. Aberrant sociology.
Unfortunately, this taste bleeds into my Bible reading.
Seduced by a Biblical Story
For instance, late last week I was reading the story of Jacob in the book of Genesis.
You know the story.
Jacob robs his brother of his birthright. Dupes his father into blessing him instead of Esau. And manipulates Laban’s cattle to breed so that Jacob’s flock gets larger.
Funny thing is, Jacob is an instrument of God. A man who is a critical part of His redemptive plan for mankind.
A man who was constantly on the run because of his crooked, mischievous nature.
No wonder I read Jacob’s story with wide-eyed fascination. And a growing temptation to deceive.
That’s right.
Brewing within my own soul while I read Jacob’s biography was this sense, “If he got away with all this…so can I.”
And this coming from a sanctified saint. [As much as one can be, of course.]
The Way Wicked Hearts Go
Trouble is, I’ve got a genetic, spiritual aptitude for rebellion. [A phrase, by the way, I shamelessly borrowed from Matt Chandler in his The Authoritative Word sermon.]
Some call it an issue with authority. An incorrigible bent to do things my way.
That means I don’t learn–very often–from the mistakes of others. And the temptation to do what I’m NOT supposed to do? Utterly inviting.
Unfortunately, that’s my wretched state…and yours…the constant bent towards disobedience. Mischief. Sin.
It can be frustrating.
See, salvation breaks the penalty of sin through justification by faith. It’s the story of the grace of God reconciling a rebellious people.
But until I die–until WE die–we remain in corrupt bodies. Bodies bred in a fallen world.
Bodies susceptible and drawn to sin.
Here’s My Point
Everywhere and at all times we must be alert, sober and on our guard against temptation and disobedience. Temptation can–and will–come from everywhere.
Thus, we must never give up on the gospel. For others–and ourselves.
Furthermore, Jacob’s sin doesn’t excuse us from our own sin. We can’t claim amnesty from guilt because a hero of our faith is a model of despicable behavior.
That model of despicable behavior on display is intended to point us away from ourselves and towards at least two entirely different things:
1. It points to the fact that we are broken beings with a thirst for lawlessness in desperate need of a savior.
2. And it points to a sovereign, merciful God who uses wreckage like us to accomplish His will.
That is the intention of documenting Jacob’s misdeeds. Agree? Disagree? Has Satan ever used a biblical text to tempt you? Share your thoughts. Brutal and all.
An (In)appropriate, Old School Reaction to Sin
In the heat of crafting the old school reaction to sin and another old school reaction posts I thought it might be helpful to answer the question “What’s an inappropriate reaction to sin?”
Here’s one way to answer that question: An inappropriate reaction is the opposite of David’s biblical lament.
And because we’ve got accounts of ancient and modern ungodly remonstrances, labeling these reactions “new school” wouldn’t be fair.
One more thing before you scan this list: Even though I simply reversed these reactions, I built some of them based on my own personal experience. Let me know what you think.
1. Complains about unjust, meaningless suffering.
2. Thinks God is picking on him. And that he has no right to pick on him.
3. Resists the idea that he’s done anything even remotely deserving of punishment.
4. Lashes out in anger due to his inability to deal with the weight of his suffocating guilt.
5. Shocked people would even consider he sinned.
6. Grieved he’s got to endure his brutal, self-made consequences.
7. Leverages periods of bodily affliction to blame God.
8. Groans that he has to suffer devastation through his self-made circumstances.
9. Trusts in no one–except himself–to deliver him.
10. Pants as if barely alive.
11. Bitter over his abandonment by family and friends.
12. Paranoid his enemies will destroy him while he’s sick.
13. Motionless because of the shock over his circumstances.
14. Rails against those who suggest he’s done something wrong.
15. Confident God is a monster.
16. Complains about his persecutors who mock him while he’s ill.
17. Appalled God would leave him in such a state.
18. Declares he’s deeply troubled that God would allow innocent people to suffer.
19. Ridicules those who ridicules him.
20. Denounces God for his unfair wrath spread out on the world he created.
21. Insists God forgot him and is far away.
22. Curses God.
Granted, some reactions remained the same to David’s, like no. 10. Whether humble or defiant, crushing events can nearly kill you.
And some reactions, like no. 21, are understandable. We’ve all had times in our lives where we felt God forgot or left us.
It’s our response that counts. So, what did I miss? Anything you’d like to add to this list? Share your thoughts in the comments.
Another Appropriate, Old-School Reaction to Sin
Want another example of an appropriate, old-school reaction to sin?
Then pay attention to what David is doing as I summarize each verse of Psalm 38, a classical penitent prayer of suffering.
1. Petitions God to withhold his corrective wrath.
2. Recognizes God is correcting him… and that God has the right to correct.
3. Understands he deserves the illness in his body–the punishment–because his sin was great.
4. Admits he alone cannot deal with the weight of his suffocating guilt.
5. Confesses his sins are loathsome.
6. Grieves over his sins.
7. Uses this period of bodily affliction to cry out to God in mental anguish.
8. Groans that he is broken and devastated by his circumstances.
9. Trusts in God to deliver him.
10. Pants as if barely alive.
11. Sorrows over his abandonment by family and friends.
12. Worries his enemies will destroy him while he is sick.
13. Lays in silence because of sin-induced humiliation.
14. Acknowledges it’s pointless to try to justify his sins.
15. Confident God will answer him.
16. Complains about his persecutors who mock him while he is ill.
17. Admits he doesn’t believe he will recover.
18. Declares he’s deeply troubled by his sins.
19. Despairs over the fact that his enemies ridicule him.
20. Proclaims he’d rather endure the wrath of the world than fail God.
21. Begs God to never forget him or stand aloof.
22. Shouts for God to save him.
So, what do you think about David’s response to his sin and suffering?
Here’s a Few Things We Know
David didn’t waste his physical pain. He understood the corruption his sin caused. He understood God was punishing him. Thus, he trusted God–and God alone–for his salvation…rather than his mind or the world.
And just as David wrote this psalm to remember the conviction his sin brought him, I’d encourage you, too, to write in your journal about what you learn when under heavy or light affliction.
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