2/26/12- In Adam's Fall We Sinned All

5- 2/26- 1^st Sunday in Lent- WSC- 16

Q. 16- Did all human beings fall in our first parents’ sin?
A. Since the covenant was made not only with our first parents but also for those who naturally descended from them; all human beings, fell with them in their first sin.

For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. (1 Corinthians 15:22)

¹² Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned— ¹⁷ For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!  ¹⁸ Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. ¹⁹ For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous. (Romans 5:12, 17-19)

Thoughts: In many ways we are all in this together.  We are all in the same boat, and we are all effected by what is done before us.  The sins of our parents are visited upon us.  If our parents decide to waste their lives in alcohol, that effects their children.  We know that the diet of a mother clearly effects the development of the child in utero.   While we may say it is unfair that we have to pay for what our parents did before us, it is often a fact in life.  What the first man of our country (the president) does affects all of us as well.  The first human beings (protoplasts is the technical term) were made innocent, but chose to defile their innocence because something forbidden seemed okay to them.  They listened to their heart’s cry instead of the voice of God.  If their heart was attuned to God and yearned for Him, they would have escaped the consequences of their sin, and life would be vastly different.  Romans 5 speaks of the “federal” idea that while one person can bring us down (our first parent), it is also possible that one person can bring us up (Christ).  We have the opportunity for life again through the one man, Jesus Christ, if we put our hope in Him.  We should care about the sin and misery of others in part because it eventually affects us as well.

Prayer: Though my heart is corrupt, help me to desire what is right, O Lord.  Give me grace and strength to love and serve you with all my heart, mind, soul, and strength. 

(Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil- Lucas Cranach 1475-1553)

1986 Q. 16. Did all mankind fall in Adam’s first disobedience?

A. Since the covenant was made not only for Adam but also for his natural descendants, all mankind

sinned in him and fell with him in his first disobedience.

1647 Q. 16. Did all mankind fall in Adam’s first transgression?
A. The covenant being made with Adam, not only for himself, but for his posterity; all mankind, descending from him by ordinary generation, sinned in him, and fell with him, in his first transgression.