What does original sin mean?

Original sin comes from the legend of Christianity and refers to the "sin" that human beings are born with and cannot get rid of. According to the Bible, there are two kinds of sins-original sin and original sin. Original sin is the sin and the root of sin left by ancestors' crimes. This sin is the crime committed by everyone in this life.

This original sin is called:

(1) "old man" (F. 4: 22), called the "old man" here, is not because of the weakness of the old man, but because of its long-standing existence and ugliness. When you are old, beautiful blooming flowers wither; Therefore, original sin is called "old man" because it decays our original beauty and makes us ugly in the eyes of God.

(2) the original sin is called "the law of sin" (Luo. 7: 25). Original sin has the power of law (vim coactivam), which can make people submit and serve faithfully. Because the love of sin attracts them and the law of sin compels them, people must listen to what sin says.

First, the original sin has both negative and positive aspects.

1, negative aspects. We lost the meaning of the past. We have lost the image that the soul once had, and sin has cut off the original pure bun of our source of strength.

2. Positive aspects. Original sin polluted our pure nature. Just like in Roman times, water was poisoned and caused death. Original sin poisoned the source of our nature, which turned our original beauty into ugly leprosy; It turns the blue light of our souls into the darkness of midnight.

Original sin has become an inseparable part of our natural nature. As far as human nature is concerned, crime is necessary; Even if there is no evil person to tempt him, there is no bad example for him to follow. However, he has an innate principle that he cannot avoid not committing crimes (2 Peter 14). A person can't stop committing a crime (A peccato cesare nesciunt), just like a lame horse can't avoid limping.

The original sins are:

(1) antipathy and hostility to good things. People long for happiness, but they are hostile to what makes them happy. He hates holiness and change. Since we deviated from God, none of us has turned to his heart.

(2) criminal tendencies. If, as pragmatists say, people still have many beautiful things after they fall, then why don't people tend to do good as they tend to do evil? Our own experience tells us that our innate tendency is to commit crimes, and even pagans can see this through universal enlightenment. The philosopher Hiercoles said, "Crime is rooted in our nature." People treat evil like honey, licking it with their tongues. "They drink like water" (Job 15: 16). Just like a patient with edema, he is thirsty and wants to drink water, but he is not satisfied; So are sinners. They have drought and water shortage, and they are eager to commit crimes. Although crime makes it more difficult for them, they will continue to commit crimes. "They indulge their selfish desires and do all kinds of filthy things" (Christopher. 4: 19). Just like a hunter, although he is very tired, he is still willing to chase and track his prey, and even can't stop (Jer. 9: 5). Although God has set some burning arrows to stop people from continuing to commit crimes, people still continue to commit crimes. All these show how strong people's desire for forbidden fruit is.

Ii. in order to let us know more about the nature of original sin, we should think about the following things:

1, the universality of original sin. Original sin is like poison, and its toxicity has spread to every corner of the soul and every talent. "My head is full of pain and my whole heart is faint" (Isaiah 1: 5). Just like a patient, no organ in the body is healthy, the liver is swollen, the feet are gangrenous, and the lungs are failing; Our souls seem to have been seriously infected and gangrenous until the blood of Christ became a good medicine and cured us.

Original sin corrupts our knowledge. Just like before God created the world, "one side of the abyss was dark" (Genesis 1 2), so was human knowledge; This depth is dark to us, just like every drop of seawater has salt and every wormwood has bitterness; By the same token, every part of a person is guilty. Our minds are fuzzy and we know nothing about God. Since Adam ate the fruit of the tree of good and evil, our eyes have brightened and we have lost sight. Therefore, people's minds are not only ignorant, but also have mistakes and fallacies; Our judgment is extremely poor. We regard bitterness as sweetness and sweetness as bitterness (Isaiah 5: 20). In addition, we are full of pride, arrogance and prejudice, and have many sensual thoughts, "How long will evil thoughts stay in your heart" (Jer. 4: 14)?

(2) Original sin pollutes people's hearts, and people's hearts are extremely bad (Jer. 17: 9). The human heart is a small hell. There are many legions of selfish desires, rigidity, disloyalty, pretending to be good and many evil intentions in people's hearts; The human heart is like the sea, stirred by resentment and revenge. "I was arrogant when I was alive" (Ecclesiastes 9: 3). The human heart is the devil's studio, which decides all evil things.

(3) People's will becomes extremely stubborn and rebellious. Stubborn resistance is the root of resistance. Sinners violate God's commandments, and in order to satisfy their own will, "we must ... burn incense to the queen of heaven" (Jeremiah 44: 17). There is deep hostility to sacredness in human will; Muscle like steel, it refuses to give in to God. Since people's will is not spiritual, but blocked by the enemy, how can there be free will?

(4) emotion. These emotions are like maladjusted strings. Emotion is like a pinion, strongly supported by the main gear of will. Our emotions are based on the wrong goals. Our love is attached to evil things, and our happiness is fixed on material enjoyment. Our emotions are naturally like a patient's appetite, longing for something toxic and harmful to him; He wants to drink when he has a fever. So what we have is filth, physical lust, not sacred desire.

2. The closure of original sin. It clings to us like black on Ethiopian skin, and we can't get rid of it. Paul once got rid of the poisonous snake in his hand, but we can't get rid of our inherent corruption. It can be compared to a fig tree growing on the wall. Although its roots have been uprooted, there are still some fibrous roots of trees entangled in the cracks in the stones of the wall and will germinate again until the wall is torn to pieces. The original sin is not like a tourist, only staying for one night, but a permanent resident. "The sin of living in me" (Luo. 7: 17).

Original sin is an evil spirit, and it will follow me wherever I go. "Canaanites persisted in living there" (book 17: 12).

3. Original sin hinders and hinders our worship of God. Where does the dullness and sluggishness of faith come from? This is the fruit of original sin. Shaking on duty will make us fall asleep. "Therefore, I will not do what I want to do" (Luo. 7: 19). Sin is compared to a heavy burden (Hebrews 12: 1). Just like a person tied to the weight of a scale, he can't run fast. As Pliny said, a moray eel stuck to the bottom of the boat hindered the speed of the boat.

Although the original sin lurks in the soul, it gushes out from the ground at an unpredictable moment like a spring. Christians, you can't imagine how evil would suddenly rush out of your's heart if God left you! "Is your servant a dog? How can you do this great thing "(2 Kings 8 13)? Hazael didn't believe that there was a bitter root in his heart, so he cut open the pregnant woman's stomach and fell to death like a baby. Is your servant a dog? Yes, when the inner original sin is stirred, it is far less than a dog. If someone says to Peter, Peter, in a few hours, you will deny Christ. He will definitely say, "Is your servant a dog?" Oh, dear! Peter doesn't know his own heart, and he doesn't know that corruption in him will surpass him. Maybe the calm sea looks clear; But when the wind blows, how rough the waves are! In the same way, although your heart looks good now, when you are tempted and encouraged, how will the original sin be revealed and make your lust and passion surge? Who would have thought that David concealed adultery, Noah concealed drunkenness, and Job concealed a curse? As long as God lets a person go, even the most holy person in the world, his original sin will suddenly show its ferocious face!

5. Original sin is mixed with our due responsibilities and gifts.

(1) on duty. Just like a paralyzed or stroke hand, it is inevitable to tremble because it lacks some inner strength; Similarly, because we lack original righteousness, we can't live any innocent good deeds. Just like a leper, anything touched by this person becomes unclean; Original sin is like leprosy. It pollutes our prayers and tears. Just like when we write, we can't avoid not getting dirty. Although I am not saying that the holy behavior and good deeds of the reincarnated person are sins in themselves, because saying so is tantamount to accusing the spirit of Christ, because this is the work he completed and operated. But, I mean, even the best behavior of godly people, evil still adheres to them. Only the blood of Christ can make a redemptive sacrifice for our holiness and goodness.

(2) Our gifts. Unbelief and confidence, lukewarm and enthusiasm, pride and humility are mixed together. Like an unhealthy lung, it causes asthma or shortness of breath; Similarly, original sin pollutes our hearts and makes our gifts short-lived and powerless.

6. Original sin is a dynamic principle that exists in our hearts. It is not lying quietly, but constantly exciting and confusing us to commit crimes; Like a imprisoned, unstable prisoner. "I want to do what I hate" (Luo. 7: 15). How could Paul do this? It was original sin that inspired and inspired him to do so. Original sin is like restless mercury. When we are asleep, sin is still awake in our wishful thinking. Original sin keeps our minds plotting evil and our hands practicing evil. There is no static principle, but an unstable principle (principium motus); Like a beating pulse.

7. Original sin led to all these evils. Original sin is to light the flame of sin, which is the place where all actual sins are bred. It is the root of all murder, adultery and plunder. Although the actual crime (this crime) is more notorious than the original sin, the original sin is even more hateful; There are more reasons for the beginning than the result.

8. Original sin cannot be completely cured in this world. Although grace can overcome sin, it cannot completely remove it. Although we are like Christ and have the firstfruits of the Holy Spirit, on the other hand, we are still not like him because we have the remains of the flesh. There are two countries in the womb. Original sin is like a tree in Daniel 4: 23. Although the branches and trunks have been cut off, the roots are still there. Although the Holy Spirit constantly weakens the sin of godly people, the root of original sin still exists. It is the sea that will never dry up in this world.

But why does God still allow original sin to remain on us after we are born again? He can get rid of it if he wants.

(1) He did this to show the weakest believer the power of his grace. Grace will overcome the torrent of corruption. Why is this happening? Because corruption is ours and grace is God's.

(2) God left original sin on us so that we could long for heaven, because there is no sin of pollution and no evil tempter. When Elijah was taken to heaven, his robe fell off; Similarly, when angels take us to heaven, the robe of original sin will fall off. We no longer bemoan headaches, and we no longer have unbelief.

Since the original sin has been passed on to us, it has already lived in our hearts while we are still living in this world. Therefore, this refutes the prodigal son and Quaker, because they say they are innocent. They advocate complete sanctification and believe that people can reach a complete level in this life; They show great pride and ignorance; In fact, we see that the seeds of original sin still remain in the most upright people. "There is really no righteous man who always does good without sinning" (Ecclesiastes 7: 20). Paul lamented "the body that takes death" (Luo. 7: 24). Although grace purifies our nature, it doesn't make it perfect.

However, didn't the apostle Paul say that "the old man has been crucified" (Romans. 6: 6); They "die to sin" (Luo. 6 1 1)?

In fact, Christians die in several ways.

(1) spiritually, their punishment for sin is dead; And they also died in the power ruled by sin; Their sinful hearts have been crucified.

(2) Christians are legally dead to sin. Just like a person sentenced to death, he is legally dead; Similarly, Christians are legally dead to sin. God condemned the crime to death. It must die and be thrown into the grave; But in this world, God still allows evil to linger on us. Nothing can completely separate us from this dead body except the death of the body.

Using two makes us think carefully about the original sin that still exists in our hearts, and we should feel humble about it. It haunts us like a disease, and it is a living active principle in our hearts, which stirs us to commit crimes. Original sin is worse than all original sins, and fountains are better than tributaries. Some people think that as long as you follow the rules, it is enough to do good things on the surface; Alas! But humanity has been poisoned. The surface of a river may be clear water, but its bottom is dirty. You wear a filthy hell, and you defile everything you do; Your heart, like muddy land, pollutes the clear running water. Even if you have been reborn, there are still old people in your new life. Oh, dear! Original sin should make us greatly humble! This is one of the main reasons why God still leaves original sin on us, because he makes original sin a thorn in our side and makes us humble. Just like Alexander's supervision, people there destroyed all their idols when they accepted Christianity, leaving only one to remind themselves of their previous idol worship and hate themselves. Similarly, God still leaves original sin on us and lets us pluck the feathers of pride. Under our elegant silver wings, we have black feet.

Take advantage of the fact that we let go of our original sin, and let us ask God for help every day. We should pray for the blood of Christ to wash away our sins and the holy spirit to put evil forces to death. Pray for more grace. Although grace can't completely eliminate sin for the time being, it makes it impossible for sin to rule over us; Although grace can't get rid of sin for a while, it can restrain it. As long as grace fights sin on you, you will surely overcome it after death, which is a great comfort to Christians.

The fact that we use the Four Freedoms makes us wake up and act as human beings. Sin is like a sleeping lion in our nature. Anything that wakes it up a little will make it beast. Even if the sin in our nature seems calm, it is like a fire hidden in charcoal. A small temptation will ignite it, and it will immediately burn an evil scandal! Therefore, we must always be vigilant. "What I say to you is also to all people, so you should watch out" (Kyle Gospel 13: 37). A wandering heart needs a pair of vigilant eyes.