The Origin of Sin - The Fall of Adam

Willmington’s Guide to the Bible; and H.C.Theissen’s Lectures in Systematic Theology.

Background.

There are two things to consider before we look at the Fall of Man.

1. The Law of God and 2. The Nature of sin.

We need to know about the Law of God in  order to understand the transgression of it which was sin, and we need to know the nature of sin in order to understand its origin as regards Adam and Eve.

1. The Law of God

Speaking generally, law is an expression of will enforced by power; it implies a lawgiver, a subject, an expression of will, and power to enforce that will. Strong p.533 in Theissen p. 238

The terms “ laws of nature”, “laws of the mind”, etc., are contradictions when used to denote the mode of action or an order of sequence behind which there is conceived to be no ordering will or enforcing power and authority.”Physics derives the term “law” from jurisprudence, instead of jurisprudence deriving it from Physics.” Strongs ibid…. This is taking the position of agnosticism if we drop the terms law and lawgiver. This leads to anarchy.  Laws always presuppose a Lawgiver.

(1) The Law of God:  means the expression of His will enforced by His Power..

a) All Physical laws are elemental and these govern the physical universe.

But in every rational being, is inwrought the moral law. It implies a Lawgiver, God; subjects upon which it terminates, a positive command; duty or obligation to obey and sanctions for disobedience.

This is an expression of God’s Moral nature and intimates that complete conformity to that nature is the normal condition of man,

THE LAW OF GOD IS NOT ARBITARY : since it springs from His very nature.

It is not TEMPOARY, devised to meet some exigency;

It is not merely NEGATIVE, but also positive, dmanding positive conformity to God and His nature;

It is not PARTIAL, addressed to just onepart of man’s being, but to both Body and Soul alike;

It is not limited  to our consciousness of it but exists whether we recognise it or not;

It is not confined to any locality or class of people, it includes all moral creatures.

Strongs Pps. 539-542

b) God’s positive enactment of His Laws means He has published His Ordinances.

These are His definitely Moral precepts.

• The decalogue (the Ten Commandments) Ex 20:1-17
• The Sermon of the Mount Matthew Chps 5 - 7
• In the New Testament all but the Fourth Commandment are repeated and sanctioned.
• Ceremonial Legislation such as the laws of the Offerings Lev 1-7; the laws of the priesthood Lev 8-10 are only temporary.

Some laws are rooted in god’s nature and are eternal; others are founded on the relationship of men to each other. Theissen p. 239-241

(2) The Purpose of the Law of God.

It was not given for :

• a means whereby we can be saved. Gal 3:21
• It could not make us alive to God” it was weak through the flesh” Romans 8:3
• Man is hopelessly enslaved to self and the sin nature that he cannot keep God’s law. therefore neither life nor righteousness are possible by the law.

It was given to intensify MAN’S KNOWLEDGE OF SIN, reveal the HOLINESS OF GOD, and the LEAD A SINNER TO CHRIST.

Man knows that he is a sinner by the testimony of his own conscience.

Rom 3:19  Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God.

Rom 3:20  For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.

cp Rom 7:7 What follows? Is the Law itself a sinful thing? No, indeed; on the contrary, unless I had been taught by the Law, I should have known nothing of sin as sin. For instance, I should not have known what covetousness is, if the Law had not repeatedly said, "THOU SHALT NOT COVET."

 

b.  The Law reveals the Holiness of God.

Rom 7:12  So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good.

John Gill comments “The commandment is holy,” because of its author, the holy God, from whom nothing can come but what is holy; and because of the matter of it, it is a transcript of the holy nature of God, a declaration of His holy will; it requires holiness both of heart and life; it forbids whatever is unholy, and commands nothing but what is holy; it teaches men to live holy, sober, righteous, and godly lives. It may be truly called

just, or righteous, as it demands perfect obedience to all its precepts, or it will not admit of it as a righteousness; as it pronounces guilty, curses and condemns for every disobedience of it; as it deals impartially with persons the transgressors of it; and as it acquits believers upon the foot of the righteousness of Christ, the fulfilling end of it. It is rightly called

good, from the author of it, God, from whom every good thing comes, and nothing else; from the matter of it, and from the use of it both to saints and sinners.

c. The Law leads a sinner to Christ.

Rom 10:4  For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.

For Christ is the end of the law - Where the law ends, Christ begins. The law ends with representative sacrifices; Christ begins with the real offering. The law is our schoolmaster to lead us to Christ; it cannot save, but it leaves us at his door, where alone salvation is to be found. Christ as an atoning sacrifice for sin, was the grand object of the whole sacrificial code of Moses; his passion and death were the fulfillment of its great object and design. Separate this sacrificial death of Christ from the law, and the law has no meaning, for it is impossible that the blood of bulls and goats should take away sins: wherefore the Messiah is represented as saying, Sacrifice and observing thou didst not desire; burnt-offering and sin-offering thou hast not required; then said I, Lo, I come to do thy will; a body hast thou prepared me, Psa_40:6, Psa_40:7; Heb_10:4-10; which proves that God never designed that the sacrifices of the law should be considered the atonement for sin, but a type or representative of that atonement; and that the atonement was the sacrifice offered by Christ. Thus he was the End of the Law.

Gal 3:21  Is the law then contrary to the promises of God? Certainly not! For if a law had been given that could give life, then righteousness would indeed be by the law.

Gal 3:22  But the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.

Gal 3:23  Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed.

Gal 3:24  So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith.

Gal 3:25  But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian,

Gal 3:26  for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.

Gal 3:27  For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

The Law, the Guardian or Paidagogos.

G3807 παιδαγωγός paidagōgos

Thayer Definition:

1) a tutor, i.e. a guardian and guide of boys. Among the Greeks and the Romans the name was applied to trustworthy slaves who were charged with the duty of supervising the life and morals of boys belonging to the better class. The boys were not allowed so much as to step out of the house without them before arriving at the age of manhood.

So the law prepared those under the law for the Reception of Christ.

Thus the law did not teach us the living, saving knowledge; but, by its rites and ceremonies, and especially by its sacrifices, it directed us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. This is a beautiful metaphor, and highly illustrative of the apostle’s doctrine. See the note on Rom_10:4, where this figure is farther explained. Rom 10:4  For as a means of righteousness Christ is the termination of Law to every believer.

First in the sentence as the emphatic point of thought. Expositors differ as to the sense. 1. The aim. Either that the intent of the law was to make men righteous, which was accomplished in Christ, or that the law led to Him as a pedagogue (Gal_3:24). 2. The fulfillment, as Mat_5:17. 3. The termination. To believers in Christ the law has no longer legislative authority to say, “Do this and live; do this or die” (Morison). The last is preferable. Paul is discussing two materially exclusive systems, the one based on doing, the other on believing. The system of faith, represented by Christ, brings to an end and excludes the system of law; and the Jews, in holding by the system of law, fail of the righteousness which is by faith. Compare Gal_2:16; Gal_3:2-14.

VWS.

Watch http://www.wayofthemaster.com/audiolessons.shtml

Declare God's Law and show the seriousness of sinning against God.
"Preach 90% law and 50% grace " John Wesley