How did Adam’s sin affect the human race? Did it have no effect? Did it communicate a sinful nature to all humanity? Or did it communicate a sinful nature and guilt for that first transgression? In this message Brian surveys the various ways Christians have understood this subject, and then expounds Romans 5:12-21 to seek to find the answer to this question.
How Did Adam’s Sin Affect The Human Race?
Romans 5:12-21
Thus far in our Christianity 101 series we have asked 3 questions:
Can we trust the Bible?
What must I do to be saved?
How can I know I am saved?
Today, I want to introduce a new question – “How did Adam’s sin affect the human race?”
As you might expect there have been many different answers to that question. We are going to be getting into theology. Don’t let that scare you. Every Christian should love theology, because theology simply means “the study of God.”
Pelagianism. This is the view taught by a British monk by the name of Pelagius in the early fifth century. He taught that Adam’s sin had no effect on the human race other than setting a bad example. He taught that people are not born with a sinful nature. Pelagius taught that all men have the absolute equal ability at every moment to do good or evil. He believed that a man could live sinlessly. In his view, it is absolutely essential that we are able to keep all of God’s commands, for if we cannot, then God was unfair in giving them to us. His slogan was, “Whatever I ought to do, I can do.” This same basic view has been embraced today by some theological liberals who believe that all men are basically good. Given the proper environment and education, they say, men will live righteous lives.
Pelagian was condemned as a heretic and his books burned by the church of his day. However, his teaching can still be found here and there. The evangelist Charles Finny held to Pelagian views. He denied original sin and human depravity, asserting that humans have the natural ability to choose to obey God and to accept salvation without needing supernatural regeneration.
Many Churches of Christ deny that Adam’s sin has affected all people, but rather that people are born neutral, able to choose good without divine grace.
Arminianism. This view is named Jacobus Arminius who lived in the 16th century. This view teaches that Adam communicated a corrupt nature to all of his descendants, but did not communicate guilt to them. The idea that all people have a sinful nature from birth is taught in many passages including:
Eph. 2:3 “Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.” The phrase “by nature” means that we were objects of God’s wrath from birth because of our sin and corruption.
Psalm 51:5 (NIV) “Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.”
Calvinism. This view follows the teaching of Augustine in the 5th century and John Calvin in the 16th century. This view teaches that Adam’s sin not only caused all people to be born into the world with a sinful nature, but also made them guilty before God.
The Eastern Orthodox church and Arminian churches reject this teaching. They believe man receives a corrupt nature because of Adam’s sin but not guilt.
So, what we want to discover is which, if any, of these three views best lines up with all of Scripture.
And the best place to look in Scripture for an answer to this question is Romans 5:12-19, because in that passage the apostle Paul gives us the clearest and fullest explanation on how Adam’s sin has affected the human race.
1. How Is Adam is a Type of Christ?
5:12-14 12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned— 13 for [a]until the Law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. 14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam, who is a [b]type of Him who was to come.
Now, in this passage we learn many important things.
- Sin entered the world through Adam
- When sin entered, death also entered
- Death comes to all people, because all sinned
But the big question is “How did all people sin?” There are two different answers that people give to this question. Some think that Paul is saying that death comes to all people because all people commit individual acts of sin. Others think that Paul is saying that death comes to all people because all people sinned in Adam, because in some deep and mysterious way we were united to Adam in his sinning.
The answer can be found if we understand that Adam is a type of Christ. Now, what do we mean by “type”? A type is something in the Old Testament that is intended to foreshadow something else in the New Testament. For example, Abraham is a type of God the Father, and Isaac is a type of Jesus Christ in Genesis 24, when Abraham is called upon to sacrifice his only son whom he loved. The Passover is a type of God passing over the guilty because of the blood of Christ. The Bronze Serpent that Moses lifted up for the healing of those bitten by serpents is a type of Christ being lifted up on the cross to provide salvation for sinners.
But the larger question is how is Adam a type of Christ?
One Man. Notice throughout this passage how often Adam is referred to as the “one man”.
5:12 “Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world…”
5:15 “For if by the transgression of the one the many died…”
5:16 “The gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned…”
5:17 “For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one…”
5:19 “For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners…”
But not only is Adam referred to as the one, but Jesus Christ is also.
5:15 “much more did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many.”
5:17 “much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.”
5:19 “even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous.”
In a very real sense, there have only been two different people who have ever lived – Adam and Christ. Everyone else is either “in Adam” or “in Christ.” These two men were Public Persons, meaning they represented others. Adam represented those who were born from him physically, and Christ represented those who were born from Him spiritually.
2. What Did Adam Pass On To Those He Represented?
Sin
5:19 “For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners”
Verse 12 says, “and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned.” Here Paul says that death is a result of sin, and we all die because we all sinned. Now the important question is, what does he mean by “all sinned”? I used to think this verse simply meant that all people die because all people commit individual acts of sin. In other words, death comes to every person, because every person commits their own individual sins.
However, that can’t be the meaning of the passage because of verse 13 and 14. Paul knows that his readers are liable to make the same mistake that I made about the meaning of “all sinned”, so he digresses to teach them what he meant. Verse 13-14 read, “for until the Law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam.” Now, what is Paul getting at. He’s saying, “Look, everybody died from Adam until Moses. Yet there was no law to break, for God didn’t give the Law until the time of Moses. So, there were hundreds and hundreds of years when everybody died, but they weren’t committing individual acts of sin. You can’t commit a transgression if there is no law to transgress.
If you take your sports car out on Highway 5, and decide you want to see how fast it will go, and you get up to 85, 90, 100 miles per hour, it won’t be long before you see the red and blue lights of the Highway Patrol car in your review mirror. Ticket time! But if you took a trip to Germany, and took your sports car out on the autobahn, and went 85, 90, 100 miles per hour, hey no problem. Why? You were doing the exact same thing when you go the ticket in California. There is no speed limit on the autobahn, so you can’t get a ticket for driving at high speeds. Thus, if there was no Law to break between Adam and Moses, there should have been no death for sin. Why then did everyone die when they didn’t transgress any of God’s laws? They sinned in Adam.” When Paul says in verse 12, “because all sinned” he means that every person sinned when Adam sinned. What this tells us is that God puts Adam’s original sin to the account of everyone he represents, which is everyone who has ever lived except Jesus Christ.
The inhabitants of the American colonies understood this. They published a book called, The New England Primer in 1690 which was used to teach children to read. They would have a different rhyme for every letter of the alphabet. The rhyme for the letter “A” was, “In Adam’s Fall, we sinned all.” Imagine teaching your 5 year old his ABCs, and you do so by telling him, “In Adam’s fall, we sinned all.” 300 years ago, the very first thing a child would learn was that he sinned in Adam. Some of our own children never learn that vital lesson!
Death
5:15 “For if by the transgression of the one the many died…”
5:17 “For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one”
This is both physical death and spiritual death. We are born spiritually dead – “And you were dead in your trespasses and sins” (Eph. 2:1). And all people who are born spiritually dead, if they are not born again and receive God’s life, will die physically and then perish eternally.
Condemnation
5:16 “resulting in condemnation”
5:18 “So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men”
Because of Adam, we inherit Sin, Death and Condemnation.
Notice in particular that Adam passes on Condemnation to the human race. But if a person is condemned, he must be guilty. Only guilty people are condemned. Therefore, this helps us to answer the question “How did Adam’s sin affect the human race?” Adam’s sin caused all people to inherit a sinful nature, and it caused all people to be condemned before God. In other words, Adam passes on to the human race a sinful nature and guilt on account of his original sin.
3. What Did Christ Pass On To Those He Represented?
Grace
5:15 “much more did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many”
Throughout this passage, we see that there are 2 things that are reigning: sin and grace (5:21). “As sin reigned in death, even so grace would reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Both sin and grace are like kings that reign. They are great powers that hold their subjects under their dominion. Sin holds all unregenerate men under its dominion. But when grace gets hold of a man, it holds him under its dominion. Grace is the undeserved, unmerited, unearned favor of God. The Father planned to grant us His grace, the Son purchased this grace, and the Spirit applies this grace. This grace includes everything related to our salvation. It includes our conviction, enlightening, regeneration, justification, faith, adoption, sanctification, and glorification.
Life
5:17 “will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ”
Notice how Paul brings out the great gift of life that results from Christ’s work in 5:17, 18, and 21. He speaks of the saints “reigning in life”, receiving “justification of life”, and grace reigning “through righteousness to eternal life.” Eternal life is not something that we only experience after we die. Just as lost people are in a state of spiritual death right now, so saved people are in a state of spiritual life right now. Just as lost people will experience eternal death in hell, so saved people will experience eternal life in heaven.
Justification
5:16 “resulting in justification”
5:18 “even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men”
5:19 “even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous”
And we also learn that this justification does not come as a result of our law-keeping or personal obedience, but as a free gift!
5:16 “but on the other hand the free gift arose from many transgressions”
5:17 “much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness”
Notice how Paul is bringing together strands of thought that he has already given us in Romans 3:21-24. There in verse 24 he said, “being justified as a gift by His grace.” Paul is taking those same ideas of God’s justification, God’s gift, and God’s grace, and showing how all of them come to us in Christ, the Last Adam. He tells us in verse 16, “but on the other hand the free gift arose from many transgressions resulting in justification.” Then in verse 18 he says, “even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men.” Then in verse 19 he says, “even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made (constituted) righteous (or justified). As we have already seen, justification is the act of God whereby He does not impute to us our sins, but rather imputes to us the righteousness of Christ by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. This is the only way a sinner can be made right with a holy God, and it flows from our union with Jesus Christ.
Are you seeing that the result of Christ’s actions are the exact opposite of the result of Adam’s actions? Adam sinned – Christ obeyed. Adam brought condemnation – Christ brought justification. Adam brought death – Christ brings life.
Conclusion
Objections:
- It’s Not Fair That I Am Judged Because of Someone Else’s Actions! It’s not fair that I am regarded by God as a sinner, and receive condemnation and death for something that Adam did. It would only be fair if God dealt with me according to my own individual actions, not the actions of another. Whenever this doctrine is brought up, this is the immediate response.
This doctrine tells you that not only does your condemnation and death come upon you because of another, but your justification and life come to you because of Another. If you feel it’s not fair that God would damn you because of the actions of Adam, you also have to feel it’s unfair for God to save you by the actions of Jesus Christ. If you want to reject the whole idea of Federal Headship, you can reject your damnation by Adam’s sin, but you also have to reject your salvation by Christ’s obedience. So, if you reject the doctrine of Adam as your Representative, you also have to reject the doctrine of Christ as your Representative. If you do that, you are left completely to yourself to save yourself. You have no help from Christ. You have to save yourself by your works. Be my guest, and good luck! But if you want salvation from Christ, you have to accept the truth that you are lost because of Adam.
Think about it this way. God doesn’t deal with the human race as individuals. He deals with the human race in terms of 2 persons – Adam and Christ. All who are united to Adam get what Adam earned for them. All who are united to Christ get what Christ earned for them.
Adam was the bus driver and the human race was in the bus, and he drove the bus off the cliff. When Adam drove off the cliff, all of us drove off the cliff too, because we were in the bus Adam was driving.
Let’s imagine that an owner of a large RV park has a problem with mosquitoes. They are biting all the campers in the park. So the owner makes a decision. He is going to have a plane fly over the huge park and drop pesticides on it that will kill all the mosquitoes. In this situation, each individual mosquito doesn’t stand trial for his individual actions. He doesn’t say, “Your honor, it’s unfair to kill me, because I didn’t bite anyone. Honest Injun. I was just minding my own business, buzzing around.” No, simply because he was one of the rest of the mosquitoes he’s killed. So too, because we are descendants of Adam, and part of the human race, we die.
Let’s look at another illustration. When Franklin Roosevelt signed the declaration of war against Japan on December 8, 1941, it didn’t matter whether you agreed or disagreed with him about going to war against Japan. You were now at war with Japan because your Representative just made that decision! Imagine that Japan had dropped the atom bomb on the U.S. and you were killed as a result. You could plead that was not fair all you wanted, but the reality is that your President had made a decision, and because you were an American citizen, that decision directly affected you. He acted as your Representative. So it is with us and Adam. He represented all of us when he sinned in the Garden of Eden.
My friends, if you refuse to have Adam to represent you, then you also refuse to have Christ represent you either. If you want God to deal with you on your own individual actions, and not on the actions of Adam, then you must be saved by your own individual good works. That means you must live a perfect life. If that is the case, every person who has ever lived ends up in hell, because none of us have ever lived a perfect life, save Jesus Christ. If you refuse to be condemned because of Adam’s sin, you also refuse to be saved because of Christ’s righteousness. God uses the exact same principle, both in judgment and in salvation. Whether we like it or not, that’s the system God has set up.
- It’s Not Fair, Because If It Were Me, I Would Not Have Sinned! Wait a minute! Are you serious? That’s like the Americans sending their 4 best runners to the Olympics to compete in the 1,600 meter relay race, and they are badly beaten by the Jamaicans, and then you say, “That’s not fair. They didn’t really beat us. They didn’t let me run. If I had run, we would have won that race!” Really? Are you one of the 4 fastest Americans alive on the planet? Adam was the best the human race had to offer. He was newly created. He wasn’t ravished by sin. He lived in Paradise. You live in a sin-cursed world. Adam was not disposed to sin. You are bent towards evil. If anyone ever had a fighting chance against sin, it was Adam, not you! You and I would have failed far faster and worse than Adam did.
Application:
If this doctrine of Original Sin is true, what does that mean?
- Salvation Is By Grace. When you understand that God deals with all people through a Representative, it becomes clear that salvation is by grace. Salvation is not about your individual actions. Many religious groups tell you that if you do more good works than bad works, you will go to heaven. Not true! The question is never about your works. It is about who you are united to. If you are united to Christ, his sin, condemnation and death are put to your account. If you are united to Christ, His grace, justification and life are put to your account. Salvation does not depend on your works, but the works of Another. And if my salvation depends wholly on the work of Christ, and not my works, then salvation is by grace. When we share the gospel with others, the emphasis should always be Jesus. If that person truly embraces Christ by faith, they receive all that He accomplished. But if they do not embrace Christ by faith, they are still in Adam, and receive all that he accomplished. Salvation is in a Person, not in your individual actions.
- God Must Receive All The Glory. So, who are you united to? Are you in Adam or in Christ? Think of Adam and Christ as two different trees. All of us were born in Adam. We were branches on the tree of Adam. If you die in Adam, you will perish forever in hell. You must be cut off of the tree of Adam and grafted into the tree of Christ. But how? Actually, this is not something we do, but something God does. I can’t cut myself off from the tree of Adam and graft myself into the tree of Christ, but God can! He does that by causing us to be born again. When I am born again, I believe in Christ and follow Him. If you have been born again, it is because God made it happen, not you.
That’s why the apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 1:30-31 “But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written, ‘Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord.’”
That’s why Paul writes in Ephesians 2:8-9 “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
What that means is that God must receive all the credit and all the glory for your salvation. You can’t take the credit, get the glory, or boast about your salvation, because it had nothing to do with you. It was the sovereign work of God on your behalf.
I call upon you this morning to refuse to ever boast in anything you have ever done, but rather to give all the glory to God for putting you in Christ, that His perfect and finished work would be applied to you!
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