The Origin of the Sin Nature Part 2

The Origin of the Sin Nature Part 2
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Adam and Eve were the first individuals to receive the sin nature by acting independently of God's will. Through birth, the sin nature was passed on to their children and today all members of the human race are born with this nature. All personal sins are a result of the sin nature whether the person is a believer or an unbeliever. If an individual is born again, the nature on the inside of him is the nature of God. The believer still has the sin nature within his body, but he is no longer under its dominion. Just as all personal sins are a result of the sin nature, whether the person is a believer or an unbeliever, human good works or self-righteousness is a product of the sin nature as well. Isaiah chapter 64 and verse 6 tells us that all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags. A sinner can only produce his own righteousness or human good. But a believer can produce his own righteousness out of the sin nature or God's righteousness out of his born again spirit.

Titus chapter 3 and verse 5 says, "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us..." When a believer is carnal, he is no longer controlled by the Spirit: he is controlled by the flesh. The carnal believer is not under the dominion of the sin nature even though he is being controlled by it for the moment. A believer is no longer owned by the flesh: he is no longer his own; he was bought with a price through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Although a believer may listen to the flesh, Christ still owns him. The works of the flesh of the carnal believer are brought about by the sin nature. So a carnal believer acts just like a sinner. Many sinners not only sin, though, they also do good things. They give to charities, go to church and help the poor. These actions are not sin, they are, however, human good works. God does not want human good; He wants man to be born again and controlled by the Spirit. Romans chapter 8 and verse 8 tells us, "So then they (believers) that are in the flesh cannot please God." Even though the believer continues to possess the sin nature after the new birth, he is no longer under it's dominion. The believer is no longer under the law of sin and death, but the law of sin and death still exists. The difference between the believer and the unbeliever is that the believer has the power to over ride the sin nature.

If a believer walks according to the new inward nature, he is controlled by the Holy Spirit and not the sin nature. Romans chapter 6 and verses 12 through 14 say, "Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace."

There are various terms used in the Scriptures to describe the sin nature. First is the term "sin" in the singular. Most of the time, the word "sin" (singular) refers to the nature of sin, which produces "sins" (plural). Where the sinner is missing it, is often he is running around trying to stamp out our sinful deeds, but those deeds have a source. There is something within the sinner making him sin. Yet he runs around trying to quit this and trying to reform that. If only he would accept Jesus as his Savior, he would have power over the source of those sins, which is the sin nature. Let us look at a few verses that use the term "sin." Romans chapter 5 and verse 12, "Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world..." Romans chapter 7 and verse 14, "...I am carnal, sold under sin." First John chapter 1 and verse 8, "If we (believers) say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves..." Finally, Romans chapter 6 and verse 12, "Let not sin therefore reign (do not let it control you) in your mortal body."

A second term used to describe the sin nature is the term "flesh." This term emphasizes where the sin nature is located. Romans chapter 8 and verse 8 says, "So then they that are in the flesh (or listening to the sin nature) cannot please God." Romans chapter 7 and verse 18, "For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing..." The term "flesh" is not referring to the actual body parts that make up the body—your fingers, toes and arms. This term refers to the fact that within your body dwells the nature called the flesh, and it contains no good thing. Notice what I mean by "no good thing." The flesh can produce nice looking things called "good works," but their source is not God. The biggest battle in the world today is not over "good vs. evil." The biggest battle in the world is over good verses good. Divine good verses human good. Divine good is Christianity. Human good is religion.

I want to get more specific about where the sin nature is located. Romans chapter 6 and verse 6 says, "Knowing this, that our old man (sin nature) is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed..." This verse tells us that the sin nature is located in the body. What is the body of sin? It is the old man. Verse 12 also tells us where sin is located. This verse reads, "Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body..." Sin is located in your mortal body.Verse 13, "Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin (singular)..." This verse tells us not to yield our members to the nature of sin. Romans 7, beginning in verse 21: "I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: But I see another law in my members (outward man)..." When a believer gets carnal, there is a warfare that erupts between the inward man and the outward man. People often say, "Well, I guess I will never get victory over this thing. It is just a constant warfare—inside, outside; inside, outside..." There is not a constant warfare, though, if you remain in the Spirit by following the Word. It is important for us to learn to isolate where the problem of sin comes from, according to the Word. If one of your friends is born again, and he is having trouble in certain areas, this is only a symptom of a deeper cause; he is following the dictates of the flesh. The Word will always lead you in line with your human spirit and your human spirit will always lead you in line with the Holy Spirit; they work together. The Spirit and the Word always agree.

A third term for the nature of the flesh is the term "old man." The "old man" is the result of natural, physical birth in contrast to the "new man" which is the result of the new birth. You cannot get born again before you get born physically. Physical birth comes first, then the new birth. Romans chapter 6 and verse 6 tells us that our "old man" is crucified with Him. Ephesians chapter 4 and verse 22 tells us to, "Put off ...the old man." When can I put off the "old man" for good? Only when I get strong enough in the Word of God to recognize him and rise up in power and say, "Be still." Colossians chapter 3, verses 5 through 9 tell us to, "Put off the old man with his deeds." If you get rid of the old man, his deeds go with him.

Romans chapter 5 and verse 12 tells us it was through one man's sin that the sin nature entered. Adam opened the door to the old man which produced evil deeds. The sin nature entered into the whole world through one man. When Adam obtained the sin nature, the whole world was in his loins. He possessed the whole world within him. From Adam came everyone else, and he possessed the sin nature before he ever had children. Therefore, it was through physical birth that he passed on to his sons and his daughters the sin nature. Man does not give birth to the spirit. God gives the spirit, and He never gives a dead spirit; He gives only living spirits. God gives life, and your inward man is alive when you are born, but the outward man possesses a curse that was placed on it by Adam.

Adam passed on sin to the whole world. Romans chapter 5 and verse 12,"..as by one man sin entered into the world..."

Verse 18, "Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation..."

Verse 19, "For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners." Who is the "one" being referred to in these verses? It is Adam.

First Corinthians chapter 15 and verse 21 says, "For since by man (Adam) came death, by man (Jesus) came also the resurrection of the dead." Verse 22 gets very specific about it, "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." I want you to see something here. Continually, the Word of God brings out the one being referred to is Adam. Adam is responsible for bringing the sin nature into the world, but I want to ask you a question: Who sinned first in the garden? It was Eve. Notice it does not say, "For as in Eve all died." Why does Adam get the blame when Eve sinned first? First Timothy chapter 2, verses 13 and 14 explain this: "For Adam was first formed, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression." Notice, woman did transgress, but she was deceived. Remember when God questioned Eve about the original sin she said, "The serpent beguiled me..." (Genesis 3:13). Adam, though, knew exactly what he was doing; he made an outright choice. He looked at Eve on the one side and God on the other side, and he chose, with his free will, to go with Eve. He knew what he was doing. He was not beguiled. He was not deceived. Therefore, Eve is in the transgression, but Adam is the one who gets the blame. Listen carefully, the sin nature was passed down to Adam's children through Adam, not through Eve. Eve had a sin nature, but she did not pass it down to her children. The sin nature is passed to the children by the father, not by the mother. Adam, not Eve, passed down sin to all men. Consequently, there is only one way to be born into this earth without a sin nature and that is to be born of a woman without a man. This is the virgin birth. To attack the virgin birth is to attack the very roots of Christianity.

Follow me: Adam and Eve were created free. They had no physical birth. They were created on this earth free: spirit, soul and body. But one day, Satan tempted Eve. She fell for it. She was beguiled, and found herself in transgression. She turned to her husband. She was in captivity, he was not. She became a slave to sin from that moment on. How much of a wage does a slave receive? Zero. The ransom price to get her out of sin was too high; she could not pay the price. Slaves do not receive anything. Satan is a taskmaster. He pays you nothing. In fact, when you fall flat on your face, he will walk over, put his heel on your head, grind your face into the ground and laugh at you. Eve walked into the slave market and she looked at her husband who was outside the slave market, who was free. He could have retained his freedom, but he openly decided to go in with her. Of his own free will, he walked into the slave market with her. Now, both Adam and Eve were standing in the slave market and all they could produce were slaves. Slaves produce slaves. Buddha was born a slave. Mohammed was born a slave. Confucius was born a slave. My friend, a slave cannot free a slave. It takes a free man with the ransom price to buy them out. One day, Someone was born on the outside. His Name was Jesus. Second Corinthians chapter 5 and verse 21 says, "For he hath made him (Jesus) to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him." Only one man could pay the price. Only one man was without sin—Jesus Christ.

Bob Yandian

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