Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sdd.hp.com!mips!dimacs.rutgers.edu!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: Frank.Farkas@eng.sun.com (Frank Farkas) Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Re: Is Original Sin a sin? Message-ID: Date: 25 Apr 91 01:15:45 GMT Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu Lines: 48 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu In article , pkk36438@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (Polygon) writes: >Were Adams and Eve born to be bad? No. However, they decided to do something >that was against the God's wish. It was reason that they were seperated from >God. > >Are human born to be bad? No. However, people decided to do things against the >God's wish or whatever, then they become evil. The idea whether a man is born to sin or not has always intrigued me. You have asked the question, "Are human born to be bad?". Your answer was, no. However, if I look at what supporting facts we have for your answer, than I must admit that I have none. The pure fact is that *all* man has sinned, and came short of the glory of God. *All*, except one, who was perfect. How many people was born to date? I would say, may be 10 billion, and not one, with the exception of Jesus Christ, has been without sin. Now, I could argue that small children are sinless, and if they died before the age of accountability, they died innocent. But lets ignor that controversial issue. The point is that if man would have a *real* choice, at least some would remain sinless. The fact that none does, indicates to me that the choice is really not there at all. So, what does this do to Christian beliefs? I personally believe that the issue here is not whether we sin or not, but the fact that we have the capacity to recognize that we do. Once we do recognize it, than we become liable to do something about it. The law of repentence is available to all of us, and through the atonment of Christ in our behalf, we can be made clean, to experience rebirth into the kingdome of God. These are the basic laws which govern progress, and by which we eventually can reach perfectness, or in other words a sinless state. 1. We have the capacity to understand that we are sinful 2. We have the law of repentence. 3. We have a Savior by whose atonement we can be forgiven, and by him we can be perfected. Once the spiritual *rebirth* has taken place, we no longer sin. John has clearly taught this doctrine. I John 3:9 ========== "Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God." Some food for taught. With brotherly love, Frank