https://youtu.be/Lm9SsMm64Ak
In our study of Romans we are between chapters 7 and 8 where we have taken up some topical studies. Last time we finished the doctrine of the Mosaic Law and started on the doctrine of the old sin nature.
We noted that man's fall resulted in many changes. Man was forced out of the Garden, satan became the ruler of this world, the old sin nature became the ruler of man's body, mankind became spiritually dead, and as a result mankind came under condemnation from God's justice that became mankind's point of reference to God.
The new trend toward sin produced personal sins in the three categories of mental, verbal and overt. A new trend toward human good and evil reproduced satan's policy of establishing a new pseudo-millennium on the earth to mitigate its fallen state.
God's judicial imputation of all personal sins to Jesus Christ on the cross, removed personal sins as an issue for mankind except in rebound but the trend toward good and evil remains an issue.
Adam took a perfect soul and, with his negative volition, he revolted against God's authority and thereby created the old sin nature. Adam's volition was perfect; but since he was free he could reject God's authority.
We all have this same template. While the soul is not occupied by the sin nature, the soul becomes the battlefield that the sin nature attacks and the sin nature is often tactically successful and therefore controls the soul.
The influence of the old sin nature on the soul is seen in mental attitude sins and motivations of life. The condition and status of the body often affects how a person thinks. There is no question that the body affects the soul and the mentality, just as the soul affects the body.
This phenomenon of not only the immaterial influencing the material but also the material influencing the immaterial is noted in the "heart" passages of Jer 17:9; Matt 12:34-35; Matt 15:19; Mark 7:21-23.
In the Bible the old sin nature is described by several different words. The most common is the singular of the Greek word "hamartia" that generally refers to the old sin nature, Rom 5:12, 7:14; 1Cor 15:56; 1 John 1:8; but can also refer to Adam's original sin.
When referring to the old sin nature the singular use of "hamartia" is usually preceded with the generic use of the definite article "ho," making it monadic so it specifically describes the principle source of personal sin. The plural of "hamartia" generally refers to personal sins.
Rom 5:12; "Therefore, just as through one man (Adam), sin (the sin nature) entered into the world, and (spiritual) death through sin (the sin nature), so (spiritual) death spread to the entire human race because all sinned (when Adam sinned)."
Rom 7:14; "Certainly, we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of (belonging to the realm of) the flesh (sin nature), sold in bondage to sin (sin nature)." The Mosaic Law is spiritual because it came from God. It is God's establishment mandate for the entire human race.
Another word that is used to describe the old sin nature is "flesh" translated from the Greek word "sarxz." The Greek word "sarxz" emphasizes the location of the old sin nature in the genetic cell structure of the biological body. Because the sin nature is related to the biological life, it is called the flesh.
We are sold into bondage to "the flesh" at physical birth, when Adam's original sin is imputed to the old sin nature that was genetically formed biologically at conception.
Gal 5:16, "But I say, walk by means of the Spirit and you will not execute the lusts of the flesh." Eph 2:3; 1 John 2:16; Rom 6:6, 7:14; also mention the lusts of the flesh;
Another word for the old sin nature is "The old man" translated from "palaios anthropos." This reference to the old sin nature emphasizes the origin of the old sin nature when Adam sinned in the Garden of Eden.
Adam's original sin is propagated and perpetuated through the twenty-three male chromosomes that fertilize the female ovum at conception. That is why every human being is born spiritually dead with an old sin nature and condemned by God.
Eph 4:22, "With reference to your former lifestyle (self- fragmentation through post-salvation sinning), you yourselves lay aside (through rebound) the old man (sin nature), you who are becoming corrupt on the basis of the lusts of deceit."
"You who are becoming corrupt" refers to being corrupted in polarized fragmentation from the polarized trends of the sin nature. The "lusts of deceit" include power lust, money lust, approbation lust, sexual lust, chemical lust, and emotional lust (fear, worry, anger).
The word "carnal" is translated from the Greek word "sarkinos" that means "fleshly," "of the flesh," or "belonging to the flesh." This refers to the believer whose soul is under the control of his old sin nature and therefore out of fellowship with God through personal sins that results in being in satan's cosmic system
Rom 7:14; "Certainly, we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of (belonging to the realm of) the flesh (sin nature), sold in bondage to sin (sin nature)."
1Cor 3:1-3; "And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual persons (spirit filled believers) but as to belonging to the sin nature believers controlled by the sin nature), as to babes in Christ (childish believers).
v2 I gave you milk, and not solid food (advanced doctrine), for you were not able to receive it; in fact, you are not yet able.
v3 For you are still belonging to the sin nature. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not belonging to the sin nature, and keep walking in conformity with men?"
The Corinthians believers were not able to advance in God's Word of truth because their souls were under the control of the old sin nature and the sin nature limits the spiritual information that a person can properly understand.
The fact that they were still carnal means they weren't using rebound to recover fellowship with God through the filling ministry of God the Holy Spirit by the acknowledgment of any known personal sin.
Paul mentions jealousy that is one of the mental attitude sins of arrogance as an example of carnality. The Corinthian believers are therefore "of the sin nature" that means they are carnal, and walking as unbelievers.
Another reference to the sin nature is "our body of sin" in Rom 6:6 emphasizes that the old sin nature resides in the cell structure of the body. Its genetic home that is in the biological chromosomes of the cells.
"Corruptible man" refers to the sin nature in Rom 1:23. Corruption refers to the old sin nature and the results of the old sin nature. Man is corrupted physically, spiritually, and therefore morally. "Corruptible seed" in 1Pet 1:23; refers to the transmission of the old sin nature.
There are passages that describe sin, human good or evil as coming from the "heart." The heart that is the right lobe of the soul is not indwelled by the old sin nature but the old sin nature often gets influence over man's soul by attacking and taking over the authority of the heart of the soul.
This is the old sin nature influencing thought so that sin, human good and evil are motivated in the thinking by being programmed into the brain. Jer 17:9; Matt 12:34-35; Matt 15:19; Mark 7:21-23.
There are three references to the old sin nature in Rom 6:6. "Knowing this, that our old man (old sin nature) was crucified with Him (retroactive positional truth), that our body of sin (old sin nature) might be rendered powerless, in order that we should no longer be slaves to sin (the old sin nature)."
This verse tells us that we are in slavery to the old sin nature from physical birth until God identifies us with Jesus in retroactive positional truth when we believe in Jesus and are born again.
When the old sin nature gains control of the soul, the heart is often described as "desperately wicked." Jer 17:9, "The heart of man is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked."
The Hebrew word "leb" is used for the right lobe of the soul, in this verse it refers to the right lobe of the soul when it is under the influence of the old sin nature's temptations. The sin nature's temptations are directed into the soul and its activities through the decision making functions of the heart.
The heart, the right lobe of the soul is the place where sin is defined before volition grabs it and executes it. All sin originates from the volition of the heart, but the sin nature projects temptations into the heart.
This explains Jer 17:9 that describes the right lobe of the soul under the control of the old sin nature's temptations.
Matt 12:34-35 and Matt 15:19; tells us that the heart is the source of certain sins. This is describing a heart that is under the control of the temptations of the old sin nature.
In other words, the sin nature comes from the cell structure of the body and presents a temptation that goes into the right lobe where it is defined in terms of language or emotion. At this point, you can know that you are being tempted if you know what God's Word tells us about sin.
Then you face a decision regarding that temptation. Negative volition means you will commit the sin you are tempted with, whether you know it's a sin or not.
Positive volition means you will choose not to commit that sin, so that the temptation remains a temptation. A temptation can never become a sin until your volition chooses to execute it. This is true of all people, normal or abnormal because God holds every person responsible for their personal sins
Rom 7:14 has two references to the old sin nature. "For we know that the law is spiritual (comes from God who is spiritual, but I am of the flesh (the old sin nature in the physical body), having been sold into bondage to sin (into slavery to old sin nature)."
1John 1:8, "If we say (contend, maintain, assert) that we have no sin (nature), we deceive ourselves, and God's Word of truth is not in us."
1John 1:10, "If we say (contend, maintain, assert) that we have not sinned (after salvation), we make Him a liar and His Word of Truth is not in us."
The old sin nature is the genetic home for the imputation of Adam's original sin at physical birth causing real spiritual death. Real spiritual death is separation from God in a state of total depravity.
The old sin nature resides in the cell structure of the body and is the source of all inner temptation. Anything that is a temptation to you must be filtered through your soul. The sin nature is passed down genetically through the twenty-three male chromosomes in conception.
While man's soul comes from God at physical birth, the old sin nature originates from the original sin of Adam in the Garden. The old sin nature works through the heart of the soul. All inner temptations come from the old sin nature. Most temptation comes this way, though occasionally we face an external temptation
Two imputations occur simultaneously at birth. When the fetus emerges from the womb, God imputes human life to its home, the human soul. In every case God creates that human life.
Simultaneously, God's justice imputes Adam's original sin to the genetically prepared home of the sin nature residing in the cell structure of the biological body establishing real physical and soul life with real spiritual death.
Adam's original sin is acquired by imputation. Adam's sin nature is acquired genetically. There is a huge difference between biological life and soul life. Biological life originates at conception. Soul life originates directly from God at birth.
The sin nature does not become active until birth, when biological life is combined with soul life to form the human being. God cannot and did not create the sin nature. The sin nature originated from Adam's disobedience to God. God is not the author of sin or temptation; that is blasphemous and unthinkable.
Biological life is genetic, originating from one cell, the zygote. Soul life originates from God at birth. Biological life begins at conception; soul life begins at birth. The sin nature is transmitted through biological life. Therefore, the sin nature is transmitted through the body, not the soul.
That is the reason that the Greek word "sarxz" translated "flesh" is used as a synonym for the sin nature. Biological life begins with mother dependence in the womb. Soul life begins with God dependence at birth.
While both the man and the woman are carriers of the old sin nature, transmission of the old sin nature only occurs through twenty-three male chromosomes passed down from the man. The man is the transmitter of the old sin nature because Adam committed the original sin of cognizance, and Eve committed the original sin of ignorance.
1Tim 2:14, "And it was not Adam who was deceived, but the woman, being deceived, was in the transgression.
Rom 5:12, "Therefore, just as through one man (Adam), sin (the sin nature) entered into the world, and (spiritual) death through the sin nature, so (spiritual) death spread to the entire human race because all sinned."
Psa 51:5, "Behold, I was born in iniquity, and in sin (the sin nature) I was conceived." David means that Adam's original sin was imputed to the old sin nature at the point of birth. He is not saying that his parents weren't married.
The sin nature is genetically formed in the womb, along with biological life. Because there is no soul life in the womb, God is not the author of the sin nature or the personal sin it incites.