Are we Born With a Sinful Nature

• Are We Born With a Sinful Nature ?
• Ephesians 2:1-3
• Ephesians 2:3
• “.. among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.”
• Many today teach ..
• We are “naturally” sinners ..
• Born as sinners ..
• Sinful nature, fallen nature ..
• Original sin ..

• 1st .. What is this sinful nature ?
• When Adam sinned ...
• His nature was changed, corrupted, permanently altered ..
• Passed on to all his descendants …

• Our primary nature ...
• They say the fallen nature of Adam ..
• We are inclined to do evil ..
• Some even say we are born sinful ..
• Our fallen nature drives us to sin ..
• Charles Stanley ..
• Romans 6:16 says we are slaves of the one whom we obey, slaves of either sin or obedience to the Lord, because every human is born with a fallen nature. Being the master of our own lives is the same as being enslaved to sin"

• Charles Spurgeon ..
• "as salt flavors every drop in the Atlantic Ocean, so does sin affect every atom of our nature. It is so sadly there, so abundantly there, that yet if you cannot detect it there, you are surely deceived."

• Children’s books ..
• "Now because we are the descendants of Adam, we are sinners, just like him. Our very nature is such that we don't really want to obey God's word. That's why we are so easily led astray by evolutionists, teaching things such as millions of years of history. Down deep in our heart, we would rather listen to fallible scientists opinions than the clear word of God."

• Children’s books ..
• "Why don't scientists believe that God created the world?" and "Why don't they believe in the flood"? Here is their
• “Scientists are sinners and because of this they don't want to believe. It has nothing to do with evidence. There is an exception, of course, for those whose hearts have been changed by the Holy Spirit, becoming true Christians."
• "Perhaps at no other point do secular and Christian philosophies of counseling separate ways so sharply as in our belief in the work of the Holy Spirit. A responsible view of persons in Christian counseling must recognize the sinful nature of man and encourage him to rely on the power of the Holy Spirit to change his life."
• Sin located in the genetic code ?
• "the sin nature begins in each person when sperm with its 23 male chromosomes fertilizes the ovum of the female with its 23 chromosomes. So the genetic code in general and the sin nature in particular is found in the very first cell and spreads to all 100 trillion cells during gestation
• Sin located in the genetic code ?
• "The sin nature manifests itself overtly in the central nervous system and has an excellent opportunity from birth onward to influence the soul which is interfaced with the brain, so all men are inherently sinners due to genetic engineering."
• 2nd Where do people get this idea?
• Doctrine of original sin developed by Irenaeus in 2nd century ..
• He believed Adam’s sin is the source of all human sinfulness ..
• All human beings participate in Adam’s sin and share his guilt ..
• John Calvin’s doctrines ..
• Total hereditary depravity was the foundation of his system …
• Taught we inherit the sinful nature and are utterly inclined to evil ..
• Some see it in Ephesians 2:3
• “.. among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.”
• Some see it in Ephesians 2:3
• B.H. Carroll: "This passage knocks the bottom out of the thought that sin consists of a willful transgression of a known commandment. He argued it is an allusion to original sin. You don't sin because you choose to sin, but because of your nature. You were born that way.
• By nature ...
• This phrase can mean "because of longstanding practice".
• "you were by custom" children of wrath” …
• Habitual practice ..
• Psalm 58:3 ..
• Psalms 58:3 The wicked are estranged from the womb; they go astray as soon as they are born, speaking lies.
• Psalms 58:6 Break their teeth in their mouth, O God! Break out the fangs of the young lions, O Lord!

• NIV translation ..
• NIV translated Greek “Sarx” (Flesh) as “sinful nature” … 23 times
• No other translation so translates ..
• Some see it in children ..
• "Newborn infants legitimately cry for one of three reasons. Hunger, soiled diapers, and pain, usually from gastronomic distress. During the first few weeks or months of a baby's life, whenever he cries Momma will change his diaper, feed him, burp him, and that takes care of it. When she sets him back down everything's okay. But after a few months when she sets him back down he continues to cry. Now he is crying for attention, but you thought it was hunger or soiled diapers or pain, but it was none of those.
• Some see it in children ..
• Then comes Sunday and you are sitting in church. He begins to cry during the church service. Taking him out you check him for hunger or soiled diaper or pain and you find nothing but he stops crying when you take him out and he starts crying when you return to the service. And it starts all over again. He is tired of sitting still and he wants to get down and play. You get in your car to go on a road trip and the same thing happens.
• Some see it in children ..
• Now is the time to recognize that the wicked are estranged from the womb and they go astray as they are born, speaking lies. Lies and sin in general are based on our natural self centeredness. This self centeredness is part of man's fallen sin nature inherited from Adam."
• 3rd .. What does the Bible say ?
• The Bible does not teach that babies are born evil …
– Matt. 19:14; Matt. 18:2-4; 1 Cor. 14:20


• 3rd .. What does the Bible say ?
• Sin is committed, not inherited ..
– Ezekiel 18:20 The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.
• 3rd .. What does the Bible say ?
• God made man upright …
– Ecclesiastes 7:29 Truly, this only I have found: That God made man upright, But they have sought out many schemes."

• 3rd .. What does the Bible say ?
• We are separated by our own sins ..
– Isaiah 59:1-8 2 But your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you,So that He will not hear.
– 8 The way of peace they have not known, And there is no justice in their ways; They have made themselves crooked paths;Whoever takes that way shall not know peace.



• Some questions …
• If babies are born sinners, then what happens when a baby dies?
• If we sin because of a sinful nature, then why did Adam sin?
• What would it say about the justice of God if God charged me with sin that somebody else committed?


• Are We Born With a Sinful Nature ?
• Ephesians 2:1-3