Lent- Day 9 (February 27)

Larger Catechism – Day 9 of Lent

Question 25:  What is sinful about the fallen condition of humans?

Answer:  The sinfulness of that fallen condition is twofold.  First, in what is commonly called original sin, there is the guild of Adam’s first sin with its lack of original righteousness and the corruption of his nature, by which humans are completely indisposed, incapacitated, and opposed to everything that is spiritually good as well as being completely and continually inclined to everything evil.  Second are all the specific acts of disobedience that come from original sin.

Way back before electricity was common place (just joking) I was a student at Sheldon Jackson College in Sitka, Alaska.  The college was “related” to the predecessor denomination of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).  Many of the staff and faculty attended a local church—quite a few went to the Presbyterian Church.  In the fall of my second year I took a directed study class from an instructor that attended the local Presbyterian Church.  He and I had a HUGE disagreement on the nature of humans.  He maintained the humans are basically good and that goodness enables them to solve the world’s problems.  I held to the belief of original sin and the fallenness of humans and that sin had impacted every area of a person’s life.  The instructor did not buy into the biblical concept of original sin and “total depravity.”

Original sin impacts every aspect of a person’s life.  Apostle Paul in Romans 7:15-22 said:

“I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.  And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good.  As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me.  For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature.  For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.  For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing.  Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me.  For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me.”
Original sin is what keeps us doing the things that we don’t want to do and it also keeps us from doing the things that we should do, and want to do.
The battle rages on.  Sinful nature.  Desire to live for Jesus and do what the Bible tells us to do.  Sinful nature.  Desire to live for Jesus and so what the Bible tells us to.  And so on, and so on, and so on…
The good news is the while Jesus was on the cross he took our sin and upon himself and imputed his righteousness onto us (sometimes referred to as the double switch).  My (and your) righteousness is found in Jesus, and in him alone. Praise God!