The Entrance of Sin

So through the ‘trespass’, the disobedience to God’s command, the wrong doing of Adam and eve, in their act of ‘missing the mark’, they brought judgement into the whole of creation. Everybody, everything, ‘fell’.  For mankind, he is no longer immortal.  He gets a death sentence.  Not immediate.  But he is sentenced to a sure and eventual death.  Genesis 2:17 NIV:  “but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.”  And that consequence passed to all of Adam’s offspring.  All humanity, forever, would face death.   And all of mankind, would be cut-off, separated from, a relationship with God.  The imputed judgement created physical death and spiritual separation from God..for all.

I Corinthians 15:22 NIV   “For as in Adam all die,”

Romans 5:12 NIV   “Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned –“

Romans 5:18 NIV   “Consequently, just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men,”

As a consequence of the ‘Fall’, evil as an entity, a thing with distinct existence, took residence in the flesh of all men..all.

II Corinthians 4:4 NIV   “The god (not God the Creator) of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light..”

Evil’s dominion of darkness presents itself inside our being as an alien virus or entity. It brings awareness of the knowledge of evil.  Its objective is to corrupt the original operating software as designed for us by God our Creator.  God designed us to know Him and to have a relationship with Him.   The entity installs a default system that serves to install a blindfold over the original operating software ‘so that’ we are not able to know God and have a relationship with God.  This entity, this condition of blindness, this principle that works inside us, is identified to us in the bible as ‘sin’…’sin’ as used in the singular form.  The bible also uses the word ‘sin(s)’ in the plural form.  Sin is what we are.  Sins are what we do because of what we are.  Think of ‘sin’ in the singular form as an apple tree.  Think of ‘sins’ in the plural form as the apples on the tree.   An apple tree produces apples.

In 1 John 3:4 NIV, John states “Everyone that sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness.”   Sin in its essence is being a transgressor of law.  Sin means ‘to miss’.  To miss a prescribed mark.

The leader of the darkness and evil is Satan (aka, Lucifer, devil).   The apostle John, in 1 John 3:8 NIV, stated “He who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning.”

For biblical reference to create perspective, proximity, and realm as relates to the ‘being’ of Satan, Lucifer, the Devil, see  Ezekiel 28:12-17, Isaiah 14:12-15, and Revelations 12:7-9 NIV:  “And there was war in heaven.  Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back.  But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven.  The great dragon was hurled down – that ancient serpent called the devil or Satan, who leads the whole world astray.  He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.”  (Does this ‘serpent’ mentioned in Revelations remind you of the ‘crafty serpent’ in Genesis?)

John 8:44 NIV   Jesus said …”He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him.  When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”

We have talked a lot about darkness and evil. Thus it is good for us to be reminded that God has always been and remains in full control of the destiny of planet earth, and you and me.   The dark side has never been in control.  The bible does not reveal to us the full mind of God, His plans, or His reasons for doing what He does or doesn’t do.

Isaiah 55:8-9 NIV: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.  As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

Colossians 1:16 NIV, “For by Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him.”

God is good and light.   1 John 1:5 NIV, states “God is light; in Him there is no darkness at all.”

(Coming soon…the way out of the Darkness)

The Dominion of Darkness

As stated in the prior post, “because of the fall, the world now is abnormal. Things are not in the state that they should be in. Man, as a result of the fall, has been separated from God. Nature is not always kind to man and the animal world can also be his enemy. There is conflict between man and his fellowman. None of these conditions were true before the fall. Any solution that might be given to the problems mankind faces must take into consideration that the world as it stands is not normal.”

The ‘fall’ resulted in ‘evil’ coming onto and into planet earth.   The essential nature of evil has a primary and singularly focused objective.   Evil’s nature is contrary to and alien to God’s intended purpose and design for ‘life’ on planet earth.   God created planet earth to be a perfect habitat/environment for ‘man’ to live in knowledge of God and in a relationship with God.  Evil’s primary objective is to thwart the plans of God, to disrupt, confuse, frustrate, and destroy the concept, intention, and design of the God/man relationship.   Evil’s purpose is to keep us from coming into the knowledge of God and a relationship with God.

Evil has many manifestations of its nature.   At the ‘fall’, evil gained entrance into the operating system of the human body/mind.   Think of it as an alien power that installs itself as a virus into the operating software of a computer program.  Think of it as an alien virus with the purpose to ‘corrupt’ the original design and purpose of the designer.  Think of it as an alien virus that is designed to install a default system that installs a blindfold over the original operational software ‘so that’ the user is only aware of the ideas that are presented within the design of the alien default system.    Think of it as a default system that is designed to keep people in darkness ‘so that’ they cannot see the ‘true’ light.   Such is the dominion of darkness.

Defining Evil – Part 2

1 John 5: 19 NIV   The whole world is under the control of the ‘evil’ one.

Ephesians 6:12 NIV   For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Colossians 1:13 NIV   For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness…

Evil has an origin. Evil has an author. Evil has intention and purpose. Evil has a leader. The bible clearly states that Satan (the devil) is the ruler, or ‘god’ of this present age.   As a consequence of the Fall, Satan (the devil) was permitted to introduce the principle of ‘evil’ into the whole of creation on planet earth.  What is important for us to know is that God was always in control and remains in control.   In the realm of understanding that is relegated to the realm of ‘mystery’, the bible does not explain or provide God’s reasoning  for ‘why’ He allows what He allows or ‘why’ He does what He does.  God’s ways are His ways.   But the bible is clear that God has ultimate authority and control over all things, all time, all events, and that He is pure, He is good, and He is love.

1 John 1:5 NIV   God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.

1 John 4:8 NIV   ..God is love.

Psalm 18.30 NIV   As for God, His way is perfect;

James 1:13 NIV   For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone;

“The Bible says that God is a God of love and He desired to create a person and eventually a race that would love Him. But genuine love cannot exist unless freely given through free choice to accept God’s love or to reject it. This choice made the possibility of evil become very real. When Adam and Eve disobeyed God, they did not choose something God created, but, by their choice, they brought evil into the world. God is neither evil nor did He create evil. Man brought evil upon himself by selfishly choosing his own way apart from God’s way.

Because of the fall, the world now is abnormal. Things are not in the state that they should be in. Man, as a result of the fall, has been separated from God. Nature is not always kind to man and the animal world can also be his enemy. There is conflict between man and his fellowman. None of these conditions were true before the fall. Any solution that might be given to the problems mankind faces must take into consideration that the world as it stands is not normal.

Although evil is here and it is real, it is also temporary. Evil will eventually be destroyed. This is the hope that the believer has. There is a new world coming in which there will be no more tears and pain because all things will be made new (Revelation 21:5). Paradise lost will be paradise regained. God will right every wrong and put away evil once and for all, in His time.

However, some people are still bothered that God even allows evil in the first place. They question His wisdom in giving man a choice in the matter. Dorothy Sayers put the problem of evil in the proper perspective: “For whatever reason God chose to make man as he is — limited and suffering and subject to sorrows and death — He had the honesty and the courage to take His own medicine. Whatever game he is playing with His creation, He has kept his own rules and played fair. He can exact nothing from man that He has not exacted from Himself. He has Himself gone through the whole of human experience, from the trivial irritations of family life and the cramping restrictions of hard work and lack of money to the worst horrors of pain and humiliation, defeat, despair and death. When He was a man, He played the man. He was born in poverty and died in disgrace and thought it well worthwhile” (Dorothy Sayers, Creed or Chaos? New York, Harcourt Brace, 1949, p. 4).

The Bible tells us that God’s purposes are sometimes beyond our understanding. “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:8, 9, NASB). Paul, in a similar vein, wrote to the church at Rome, “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unfathomable His ways” (Romans 11:33, NASB).

Although the Bible informs us how and why evil came about, it does not tell us why God allowed it to happen. However, we do know that God is all wise and all knowing and that He has reasons for allowing things to happen that are beyond our comprehension.” (Excerpts taken from Answers to Tough Questions Skeptics Ask About the Christian Faith, Josh McDowell and Don Stewart. Tyndale House Publishers, 1980.)

Defining ‘Evil’ Part 1

Light and Dark…… Good and Evil

Because of the disobedience of Adam and Eve, ‘we’ inherited the knowledge of good and evil. In theory, one might theorize that before the ‘Fall’,  Adam and Eve were aware of only good.   Everything around them, the entire organic environment, their mental/emotional/physical awareness/spiritual being only consisted of the knowledge of ‘good’.  Maybe they didn’t realize how good ‘good ‘was or what good was prior to their gaining awareness and knowledge of evil.   A consequence of the Fall created the knowledge and contrast between good and evil.

So what happened?   God assigned consequences to Adam and Eve’s disobedience.   Severe consequences.   Penalties were installed and enforced.  Not just for Adam and Eve, but for ‘all’.  Wow.  Sounds ‘way over the top’ severe.   To come to understand why it was not ‘too’ severe and to actually come to accept that the penalties  were right and fair, one must undertake a larger theological journey through the whole of the bible to ‘come to’ experience and understand the full nature and attributes of God.   In such study, one comes to see that God is Holy.  And to come to understand what it means that He is Holy, we have to experientially travel through the attributes of His love and mercy.  In that journey we experience that He is kind and gracious and tender and patient.   We learn that His love and mercy are always manifest to us before we experience His judgment.   We cannot fully ever come to understand His attribute of judgment ‘until’ we know and experience His love.   It is only in personally coming to the knowledge of His love that we can understand the attribute of judgment.    God’s laws and manifestations of love and mercy always precede (trump) the law and manifestation of judgment.   Only when we experience His Love can we begin to understand the revelation of His Holiness.

Thus the entrance of evil. The entrance of darkness into the light.

Romans 8:20-23     For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope, that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.  We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.

(more coming in Defining Evil – Part 2)

 

Light in relationship to ‘good’.   Darkness in relationship to ‘evil’.

The ‘darkness’ I wish to define is identified in the bible as ‘spiritual blindness’.   If we do not know God within the deepest understanding of our human ability  for ‘awareness’,  it is not because we are not ‘willing’ to know God.  It is that we are not ‘able’ to know God.  There is a mechanical malfunction in our operating software system that prevents us coming out of the darkness and into the illuminating revelation of a personal knowledge of God.  Knowledge within the deepest sense of our human ability to be ‘aware’.   It is a complicated story, the story of the Fall of Man.  But this ‘Fall’ did occur and it resulted in consequences that would not only affect the first humans, Adam and Eve, but would affect every man that was born thereafter.   One of the consequences was that all men would be cut-off from a relationship with God.   All men would become spiritually blind.

Genesis 3:1-4 NIV     Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”  The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”  “You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman.  “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

Romans 5:12 NIV        Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned –

5:18 NIV     Consequently, just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men,

I Corinthians 15:22 NIV     For as in Adam all die,

II Corinthians 4:4 NIV     The god (not God the Creator) of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light..

(Part 2  Light and Dark….Good and Evil)