The Disastrous Effects Of The Doctrine Of "Original Sin"

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< > Chapter Two The ancient origin and dreadful effect of the doctrine of "Original Sin" N.B. The mindset behind the doctrine of “Original Sin” has been around since the days of Adam and Eve. People have usually tried to deny their guilt, or “excuse” their actions, by blaming someone else for their own wilful individual personal sin, when they have been confronted with their sin! Eve blamed the Serpent; Adam blamed Eve, and suggested that it was even God’s fault for giving him Eve. Gen.3v12,13. In the account of Cain’s murder of his brother Abel, God said in Gen.4v7., “If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.” God told Cain to follow his brother Abel’s example of “faith” and godly living, and then, by God’s grace, Cain would be able to resist and “overcome” the temptation to wilfully sin. Heb.11v4. It is quite clear that God did NOT consider either Cain or Abel as being “born in sin,” and incapable of living right, (as most Theologians incorrectly state!), for God very clearly tells Cain that he “should rule over sin.” The word for “rule” is “mashal” 4910, which means, to master, to have dominion, to reign, to rule. However, we know that Cain rejected God’s instruction on this issue and murdered his brother Abel. When God asked Cain where his brother was, Cain replied, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” Gen.4v9. This was a vain attempt to deny his guilt. No doubt, like many today, Cain tried to excuse his evil actions to himself, with the excuse that he could not be blamed for his sin, for how could he be expected to lead a righteous life, when his father and mother had set him such a bad example, and sinned so grievously. So we see that in the first family the foundation for the mindset of the “born in sin” doctrine was clearly laid down, they all desired to evade personal responsibility for their sin, and this was the bush to hide behind. The Exodus Of Israel From Egypt. By the time of The Exodus of Israel, in the 15th Century BC, from Egypt, Israel had been in Egypt for 400 plus years, during which time many had forgotten “the way of the Lord,” and had worshipped the idols of Egypt. We read in Ezek.20v7,8. v7 "Then I said to them, 'Each of you, throw away the abominations which are before his eyes, and do not defile yourselves with the idols of Egypt. I am the LORD your God.' v8 "But they rebelled against Me and would not obey Me. They did not all cast away the abominations, which were before their eyes, nor did they forsake the idols of Egypt. Then I said, 'I will pour out My fury on them and fulfil My anger against them in the midst of the land of Egypt.' (NKJ). We read in Exodus.20v5. “Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me.” The Lord was informing the Israelites that if the children followed and continued in the sins of their father's, then, and ONLY then, would they share in their punishment. God refuted their belief that they were compelled to sin, because their father’s had sinned, and that they would share in their father’s punishment. The Lord was clearly stating that each person would die for their own sin, and NOT for their father’s or Adam’s sin. This statement of a person’s own personal responsibility for their own individual sin is also clearly stated again to the second generation by Moses in Deut.24v16., where it states: “The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, neither shall the children be put to death for the fathers: every man shall be put to death for his own sin.” The second generation were still harbouring thoughts that they sinned because their fathers had sinned, and so would share in the father’s punishment, but the Lord tells them that, “the soul that sinneth it shall die.” God emphasises that each person is responsible for their own individual sin, and will be individually punished for it; clearly teaching the personal responsibility for one’s own actions! A thought strongly reiterated by God again in Ezek.18v20., which we will now consider in more detail. N.B. In Ezekiel 18., God strongly teaches against, and rejects, the doctrine of Original sin. The doctrine of “Original Sin,” that is, “Born in Sin” theories, had been around for many centuries before Our Lord’s first Advent, indeed, it was still held by the Jews at the time of the Babylonian Captivity. We read (in about the year 590/589B.C.), in Ezekiel.18v1,2., that, “the word of the Lord” came to Ezekiel, “saying, What mean ye, that ye use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying, the fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge?” God strongly refutes Israel’s wrong perception of the cause of their sin, which they believed was because they had been “born in sin,” for we read in Ezek.18v4., “the soul that sinneth, it shall die.” God states that their sin was THEIR own individual responsibility, NOT the result of their father’s, or Adam’s sin. The Jews, by claiming that they had been “born in sin,” endeavoured to remove their OWN personal responsibility for their own sin to somebody other than themselves, that is their fathers. In Ezek.18v4,20., God censures and rejects the belief of the Jews, that they were “born in sin.” To emphasise this point in Ezek.18v4,20., God TWICE repeats, “the soul that sinneth, it shall die,” to really bring home to the Jews their OWN personal responsibility for their OWN sins! God also gives several telling examples of how a father’s sin is NOT imputed to the son, nor a son’s sin imputed to the father. This statement by Almighty God destroyed their excuse that a family ancestor was responsible, and really to blame, for their own personal sin. God clearly states the truth of a person’s own personal responsibility a person’s own individual actions and sins. This same mindset was not only in the Jews who had been carried off into captivity to Babylon, it had also gripped and darkened the minds of the Jews still in Israel. It is written in Jer.31v29,30., “In those days they shall say no more, The fathers have eaten a sour grape, and the children's teeth are set on edge. v30 But every one shall die for his own iniquity: every man that eateth the sour grape, his teeth shall be set on edge.” Here again, in a very clear and unequivocal way, God affirms the truth that “every one shall die for his own iniquity,” or as it is stated in Ezek.18v4,20., “the soul that sinneth, it shall die.” God again makes it very clear that each individual is responsible for their own sin; He rejects the excuse that their fathers, or Adam, were responsible for their own personal sin. This truth is also stated in Jer.18v1-11., when the Lord sent Jeremiah down to the potter’s house to give this same important truth to the Jews in Israel, that He would deal with them according to their own individual sinful actions, NOT according to their father’s sinful actions. God implores them in Jer.18v11., “return you now every one from his evil way, and make your ways and your doings good”. The tragic consequences of the rejection of the Divine warnings. It is quite clear that the Jews did not listen to God’s warnings through Jeremiah or Ezekiel, regarding the terrible consequences of their wilful sin, which were produced by their false “born in sin” theories. For we read in 2Chron.36v15-17., v15. “And the LORD God of their fathers sent warnings to them by His messengers, rising up early and sending them, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place. v16 But they mocked the messengers of God, despised His words, and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against His people, till there was no remedy. v17 Therefore He brought against them the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion on young man or virgin, on the aged or the weak; He gave them all into his hand.” (NKJ). God held them personally responsible for their sins, and brought them to account for them; He did not blame Adam for them. The great darkness that this destructive mindset brought upon the minds of ALL the people can be seen from their incredible wilful stubbornness, even after Nebuchadnezzar had come up against Jerusalem for a second time, and had set Zedekiah upon the throne of Judah (he reigned from 599BC-588BC). We read in 2Chron.36v12-14., “He (Zedekiah) did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD his God, and humbled not himself before Jeremiah the prophet speaking from the mouth of the LORD. And he also rebelled against king Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God: but he stiffened his neck, and hardened his heart from turning unto the LORD God of Israel. Moreover all the chief of the priests, and the people, transgressed very much after all the abominations of the heathen; and polluted the house of the LORD which he had hallowed in Jerusalem.” In Acts.7v51., Stephen castigates the Jewish religious leaders of his day; “Ye stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.” This shows that the wilful “stubbornness and rebellion” of the Jewish nation was a well-established fact going back many generations! It is not surprising to find that this destructive heresy of “Original Sin” was also still around and taught by the religious leaders of Israel at the time of Christ’s first Advent. In John 9v34., Israel’s religious leaders interrogated and excommunicated the man who had been born blind, whose sight had been restored by Jesus: “They answered and said to him, "You were completely born in sins, and are you teaching us?" And they cast him out.” (NKJ). Just before this incident, even the Apostles asked Jesus in John.9v2,3., “Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind? v3 Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.” < >
The Disastrous Effects Of The Doctrine Of Original Sin \| By His Stripes We Are Healed \| The Book Of Revelation \| The Second Coming Of Christ \| The Baptism And Gifts Of The Holy Spirit \| The Comforter Is Come

Chapter Two

The ancient origin and dreadful effect of the doctrine of "Original Sin"

N.B. The mindset behind the doctrine of “Original Sin” has been around since the days of Adam and Eve.
People have usually tried to deny their guilt, or “excuse” their actions, by blaming someone else for their own wilful individual personal sin, when they have been confronted with their sin! Eve blamed the Serpent; Adam blamed Eve, and suggested that it was even God’s fault for giving him Eve. Gen.3v12,13.

In the account of Cain’s murder of his brother Abel, God said in Gen.4v7., “If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.” God told Cain to follow his brother Abel’s example of “faith” and godly living, and then, by God’s grace, Cain would be able to resist and “overcome” the temptation to wilfully sin. Heb.11v4. It is quite clear that God did NOT consider either Cain or Abel as being “born in sin,” and incapable of living right, (as most Theologians incorrectly state!), for God very clearly tells Cain that he “should rule over sin.” The word for “rule” is “mashal” 4910, which means, to master, to have dominion, to reign, to rule.

However, we know that Cain rejected God’s instruction on this issue and murdered his brother Abel. When God asked Cain where his brother was, Cain replied, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” Gen.4v9. This was a vain attempt to deny his guilt. No doubt, like many today, Cain tried to excuse his evil actions to himself, with the excuse that he could not be blamed for his sin, for how could he be expected to lead a righteous life, when his father and mother had set him such a bad example, and sinned so grievously. So we see that in the first family the foundation for the mindset of the “born in sin” doctrine was clearly laid down, they all desired to evade personal responsibility for their sin, and this was the bush to hide behind.

The Exodus Of Israel From Egypt.
By the time of The Exodus of Israel, in the 15th Century BC, from Egypt, Israel had been in Egypt for 400 plus years, during which time many had forgotten “the way of the Lord,” and had worshipped the idols of Egypt. We read in Ezek.20v7,8. v7 "Then I said to them, 'Each of you, throw away the abominations which are before his eyes, and do not defile yourselves with the idols of Egypt. I am the LORD your God.' v8 "But they rebelled against Me and would not obey Me. They did not all cast away the abominations, which were before their eyes, nor did they forsake the idols of Egypt. Then I said, 'I will pour out My fury on them and fulfil My anger against them in the midst of the land of Egypt.' (NKJ).

We read in Exodus.20v5. “Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me.” The Lord was informing the Israelites that if the children followed and continued in the sins of their father's, then, and ONLY then, would they share in their punishment. God refuted their belief that they were compelled to sin, because their father’s had sinned, and that they would share in their father’s punishment. The Lord was clearly stating that each person would die for their own sin, and NOT for their father’s or Adam’s sin. This statement of a person’s own personal responsibility for their own individual sin is also clearly stated again to the second generation by Moses in Deut.24v16., where it states: “The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, neither shall the children be put to death for the fathers: every man shall be put to death for his own sin.”

The second generation were still harbouring thoughts that they sinned because their fathers had sinned, and so would share in the father’s punishment, but the Lord tells them that, “the soul that sinneth it shall die.” God emphasises that each person is responsible for their own individual sin, and will be individually punished for it; clearly teaching the personal responsibility for one’s own actions! A thought strongly reiterated by God again in Ezek.18v20., which we will now consider in more detail.

N.B. In Ezekiel 18., God strongly teaches against, and rejects, the doctrine of Original sin.
The doctrine of “Original Sin,” that is, “Born in Sin” theories, had been around for many centuries before Our Lord’s first Advent, indeed, it was still held by the Jews at the time of the Babylonian Captivity. We read (in about the year 590/589B.C.), in Ezekiel.18v1,2., that, “the word of the Lord” came to Ezekiel, “saying, What mean ye, that ye use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying, the fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge?” God strongly refutes Israel’s wrong perception of the cause of their sin, which they believed was because they had been “born in sin,” for we read in Ezek.18v4., “the soul that sinneth, it shall die.” God states that their sin was THEIR own individual responsibility, NOT the result of their father’s, or Adam’s sin. The Jews, by claiming that they had been “born in sin,” endeavoured to remove their OWN personal responsibility for their own sin to somebody other than themselves, that is their fathers.

In Ezek.18v4,20., God censures and rejects the belief of the Jews, that they were “born in sin.”
To emphasise this point in Ezek.18v4,20., God TWICE repeats, “the soul that sinneth, it shall die,” to really bring home to the Jews their OWN personal responsibility for their OWN sins! God also gives several telling examples of how a father’s sin is NOT imputed to the son, nor a son’s sin imputed to the father. This statement by Almighty God destroyed their excuse that a family ancestor was responsible, and really to blame, for their own personal sin. God clearly states the truth of a person’s own personal responsibility a person’s own individual actions and sins.

This same mindset was not only in the Jews who had been carried off into captivity to Babylon, it had also gripped and darkened the minds of the Jews still in Israel. It is written in Jer.31v29,30., “In those days they shall say no more, The fathers have eaten a sour grape, and the children's teeth are set on edge. v30 But every one shall die for his own iniquity: every man that eateth the sour grape, his teeth shall be set on edge.” Here again, in a very clear and unequivocal way, God affirms the truth that “every one shall die for his own iniquity,” or as it is stated in Ezek.18v4,20., “the soul that sinneth, it shall die.” God again makes it very clear that each individual is responsible for their own sin; He rejects the excuse that their fathers, or Adam, were responsible for their own personal sin.

This truth is also stated in Jer.18v1-11., when the Lord sent Jeremiah down to the potter’s house to give this same important truth to the Jews in Israel, that He would deal with them according to their own individual sinful actions, NOT according to their father’s sinful actions. God implores them in Jer.18v11., “return you now every one from his evil way, and make your ways and your doings good”.

The tragic consequences of the rejection of the Divine warnings.
It is quite clear that the Jews did not listen to God’s warnings through Jeremiah or Ezekiel, regarding the terrible consequences of their wilful sin, which were produced by their false “born in sin” theories. For we read in 2Chron.36v15-17., v15. “And the LORD God of their fathers sent warnings to them by His messengers, rising up early and sending them, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place. v16 But they mocked the messengers of God, despised His words, and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against His people, till there was no remedy. v17 Therefore He brought against them the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion on young man or virgin, on the aged or the weak; He gave them all into his hand.” (NKJ). God held them personally responsible for their sins, and brought them to account for them; He did not blame Adam for them.

The great darkness that this destructive mindset brought upon the minds of ALL the people can be seen from their incredible wilful stubbornness, even after Nebuchadnezzar had come up against Jerusalem for a second time, and had set Zedekiah upon the throne of Judah (he reigned from 599BC-588BC).
We read in 2Chron.36v12-14., “He (Zedekiah) did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD his God, and humbled not himself before Jeremiah the prophet speaking from the mouth of the LORD. And he also rebelled against king Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God: but he stiffened his neck, and hardened his heart from turning unto the LORD God of Israel. Moreover all the chief of the priests, and the people, transgressed very much after all the abominations of the heathen; and polluted the house of the LORD which he had hallowed in Jerusalem.”

In Acts.7v51., Stephen castigates the Jewish religious leaders of his day; “Ye stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.” This shows that the wilful “stubbornness and rebellion” of the Jewish nation was a well-established fact going back many generations!

It is not surprising to find that this destructive heresy of “Original Sin” was also still around and taught by the religious leaders of Israel at the time of Christ’s first Advent. In John 9v34., Israel’s religious leaders interrogated and excommunicated the man who had been born blind, whose sight had been restored by Jesus: “They answered and said to him, "You were completely born in sins, and are you teaching us?" And they cast him out.” (NKJ). Just before this incident, even the Apostles asked Jesus in John.9v2,3., “Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind? v3 Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.”

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