However, you do Not have to practice sin; and you certainly do Not have to die as a sinner. It may be a bit shocking, but it is true that every human being had to be born in sin, (see Psalm 51:5). And here is the reason: Before the birth of the first human child, sin was already committed in the Garden of Eden, due to the transgression of the first ever human couple, Adam and Eve i.e. the first Adam. Further, as a result of the sin of Adam and his wife, Eve, while they were still living in there, God had them removed from the Garden of Eden. And once outside that garden, only then did they begin to have children.
Therefore, all of mankind, which are the children of Adam and Eve, was born in sin. Further because God cursed Adam and Eve with death, due to their transgression, both they and their children would not live forever but would die, instead, as a result of that curse. However, while sin is much bigger than any individual sinner, it is of little consequence to those belonging to Christ. I Corinthians 15:55-57 reads as follows: “55 O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting? 56 For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. 57 But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Additionally, because sin leads to suffering and afterwards it leads to the first death, (which is the death of the body) and may even lead to the second death, (the death of a person’s spirit-body on Judgement Day for those who do not accept the redemption given by Christ), sin is most certainly nothing to brag about, wave a flag for, or to have private or public celebrations concerning. (I’m going a bit deeper here, if by chance God will use this as an opportunity to bring in a harvest of souls and save some as from fire.)
“You may say there are still four months until harvest time. But I tell you to look, and you will see that the fields are ripe and ready to harvest.” John 4:35, CEV. Further, Amos 4:11, NASB says the following: “I overthrew you as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and you were like a log snatched from the fire; Yet you have not returned to Me,” declares the LORD.” God has clearly dealt with the judgement of cities, entire countries, and individuals throughout human history.
Nonetheless, each person also Had To Be born with the particular affliction of sin that every individual was born with! And, unfortunately, every sin is accounted for within the human experience. In other words, there is not a statute, judgement, or law that human beings have not violated. Furthermore, GOD DOES NOT MAKE MISTAKES!
You may wonder: How could all of this be simultaneously true? Well, it is all quite essentially true because God is Holy. God is Love. God is Truth. God does not cause or condone sin, although He has given free will to every human being. Further, God has given each person a conscience to know right from wrong. Most importantly, however, due to the nature of sin and the stronghold it represents, Jesus has made a way for each person to escape eternal damnation caused by their willful sin or by their sinful state as to man’s original sin.
In fact, the matter was so weighty, that God’s solution had to be unspeakably more profound: He put on flesh and allowed Himself to be the sacrifice for all human sin and its effect on His entire creation. Instead of allowing humanity to perish in its sins, God has once and for all bought back His creation with His own priceless shed blood as the ransom paid for redeeming every sinner. And because of God’s immeasurable gift and unspeakable sacrifice, no one any longer has to face eternal damnation or the second death. However, until Jesus returns for those who have received His salvation, believed on His Name, and remained faithful to Him, mankind will continue to face the first death, or the death of the physical body, which is a punishment for sin. Hebrews 9:27, CEV, says, “We die only once, and then we are judged.”
In the account of the original fall of mankind into sin, the snake and tempter in the Garden of Eden is also referred to in Revelation 12:9 (KJV), as “the great dragon… that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.” Therefore, the Holy God rightfully punish the serpent for his deception, which has influenced all of humanity; but God also punished each and every participant who played an active role in the occurrence of sin i.e. the serpent, Eve, and Adam, were all notably punished, in that order, according to the significance of their sinful participation.
Of particular importance, however, is the often overlooked and silent accomplice (without which sin is never possible). That silent accomplice is lust, a very strong desire that is contrary to the will of God, as in the following Bible verse: For everything in the world–the lust of the flesh, the desire of the eyes, boasting about material possessions–is not from the Father but from the world. (See 1 John 2:16, EHV.) This is why we must rely on every word of God to guide us into righteousness. “I treasure your word above all else; it keeps me from sinning against you.” Psalm 119:11, (CEV.)
I sometimes wonder how sinless and peaceful the world would have remained if Adam and Eve had consistently obeyed God, abhorred temptation, and resisted their desire to eat the forbidden fruit from the Tree of Life. (Nonetheless, we can all take great comfort in knowing that from the beginning, God in the person of Jesus Christ was prepared to save mankind and all of creation, at the time of His choosing, from the plight of sin. God’s very name, YHWH are Hebrew letters meaning: “Hand, Behold, Nail, Behold. First, the letter, Yad or Yod literally means “hand”, while, Hay means “behold”, and Waw means “nail”. Crucifixion is execution by nailing someone’s hands and feet to a tree.
25 But Jesus called the disciples together and said: “You know foreign rulers like to order their people around. And their great leaders have full power over everyone they rule. 26 But don’t act like them. If you want to be great, you must be the servant of all the others. 27 And if you want to be first, you must be the slave of all the rest. 28 The Son of Man did not come to be a slave master, but a slave who will give his life to rescue many people.” See, Matthew 20:25-28. However, due to their participation in the original sin that has entered into the human experience, Adam and Eve and have passed down that sin to their offspring, (except their children who chose to be faithful to God.)
And because each person is responsible for living a sinless life or to face the wrath of God, it was necessary for all of humanity to have a Holy Redeemer, Jesus Christ, who at birth was called Emmanuel, meaning: God is with us. “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” See Isaiah 41:1, (NIV.) Additionally, “… we are more than conquerors through HIM who loved us! Read more in Romans 8:31-39.
Each person’s allegiance is to God, regardless of the temptation to sin or who the catalyst of that temptation happens to be. Further, God is the same yesterday, today, and forever; and HIS response of righteous indignation over human sin is the same today as it was in the Garden of Eden, whether a person is persuaded to sin, due to the sin of the Devil, a family member, etc.
However, for those with the humility of mind to invite the Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ to live inside their heart and to be the righteous judge of every decision they make, using the Holy Bible, (His written word), as their guide as well as prayer resulting in His counsel, (which is His living word), God will guide you and increase your faithfulness toward Him.
Therefore, HE will no longer see a believer in Him person as merely a physical child of the first Adam, (as the flesh is worthless, due to sin and must be transformed by the Spirt of God to inherit HIS Kingdom), but God will instead see that individual as the spiritual child of Christ (a Christian), and an offspring of the Second Adam, who is Jesus Christ. Still, the choice is yours: Which of those two would you rather be?
Thankfully, Jesus has paid the entire sin debt for all of humanity. However, as we draw every breath that God gave in order to make man a living soul; (See Genesis 2:7), we must realize that God cares much more deeply for each of us, as His mission is to save and justify people by spiritually shaping them to be more like Jesus. There is much to be said for the desire and choice to do God’s will. We have seen the effects of choosing otherwise; however, each person has a great responsibility as to their eternal destiny i.e. to remain a sinner or to accept and receive God’s gift of eternal life that justifies fellowship with Him as Adam and Eve did before being tempted to sin.
Sadly, the punishment for sin is imminent, it’s severity is never quite foreseen, never specifically chosen by the individual sinner, and the unrepentant practice of sin could mean ultimate separation from the Holy God, who clearly has already done everything possible to redeem humanity from every known sin!
Therefore, the first Adam was carnal, of the flesh, earthy, (adamah in Hebrew, means, “soil” or “earth” AKA “man” or “humanity”) and is associated with the first and second death. By stark contrast, however, the Second Adam, Jesus Christ, is the Son of God, who redeems humanity from the fate resulting from sin and of being children of the first Adam.
Again, it baffles the human mind to realize the depth of love that the Holy God has for each person in making Jesus, His beloved and only begotten son, the way, the truth and the life that leads us back to Him. And along the way, may we all come to hate sin as much as God does. Further, can any doubt remain that we can certainly confidently trust and believe in God Almighty?
If we diligently search the scriptures, we will find its teaching that God is a spirit, who hates sin so much that HE became Jesus, (Savior), who shed His Holy blood for every Earthly sinner and returned to Heaven to intercede in regular prayers for the continued salvation of each individual person who remains on the Earth, who fully believe that they will one day be united with their self-sacrificing Eternal God, Father, Friend, Brother, Savior, Healer, Teacher, Prince of Peace, Redeemer, tireless Advocate, and many other blessed names throughout scripture as to mankind’s salvation.
This same Holy God cannot and must not tolerate sin, now, or in the eternal, completely sinless life to come. Therefore, He leads us to victory over sin and is available to strengthen us throughout the spiritual battle. Consider this lovely song from Psalm 42:1, (NIV): “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my heart pants for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.” Additionally, the words and examples for living that God gives us are like spiritual food and drink. Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” John 6:35, (NIV).
“… but whoever drinks the water I give them will never be thirsty. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:14, (NIV). So we must follow our doting Eternal Father as obedient children. Let us each regularly come before Jesus Christ, (our only Savior) in prayer and resolve to agree with HIM to absolutely hate (abhor) sin and love righteousness, as much as God does.
And as individuals, to truly love God, let us each actively choose righteousness, whereby we reunite with our loving Heavenly Father, and so be with HIM in everlasting agreement for a current and future life of faith. We must request of Him that we become a new creation in Christ, free from all sin. “This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone, a new life has begun!” See 2 Corinthians 5:17, New Living Translation (NLT).
Additionally, God is a God of second chances, especially if Adam and Eve were among those whom Jesus preached to; see verses 18-20 as follows: “15 But treat the Messiah as holy, as Lord in your hearts; while remaining always ready to give a reasoned answer to anyone who asks you to explain the hope you have in you–yet with humility and fear, 16 keeping your conscience clear, so that when you are spoken against, those who abuse the good behavior flowing from your union with the Messiah may be put to shame. 17 For if God in fact willed that you should suffer, it is better that you suffer for doing what is good than doing what is evil.
18 For the Messiah himself died for sins once and for all, a righteous person on behalf of unrighteous people, so that he might bring you to God. He was put to death in the flesh but brought to life by the Spirit; 19 and in this form he went and made a proclamation to the imprisoned spirits, 20 to those who were disobedient long ago, in the days of Noach, when God waited patiently during the building of the ark, in which a few people—to be specific, eight—were delivered by means of water.
21 This also prefigures what delivers us now, the water of immersion, which is not the removal of dirt from the body, but one’s pledge to keep a good conscience toward God, through the resurrection of Yeshua the Messiah. From 1 Peter 3:15-21 (CJB).