Sin Nature

The Sin Nature is that part of the essence of The trends of the old sin nature are derived from
the soul acquired at Adam’s fall and subsequently the individual lust pattern. There are certain areas
passed on to every person at birth. The Sin Nature in which we lust, and other areas where we do not.
is the center of the soul’s rebellion against God.
The trends of the old sin nature are classified in
The essence of the soul contains:
two categories, legalism and lasciviousness.
• Self-consciousness
Legalism unrestrained results in moral degeneracy.
• Mentality
Lasciviousness unrestrained results in immoral de-
• Volition generacy.

• Emotion Both trends in the old sin nature result in distor-

tion and erroneous conclusions.
• The Sin Nature
For example, moral degeneracy with its self-
The Essence of the Sin Nature righteousness and self-vindication is often mistaken
for the Christian way of life. People who are
The Sin Nature has an “area” of strengths in which
morally degenerate are often considered to be great
human good is produced, that is, those good deeds
Christians.
and thoughts which are acceptable to man but
which are unacceptable to God for purposes of sal- Morality originates from the laws of divine es-
vation or spiritual growth. Isa. 64:6; Rom. 8:8. tablishment, designed for the entire human race.
In the Bible, human good is contrasted with divine Morality is designed for both believer and unbe-
good which is the work produced by the Spirit of liever.
God in the life of a believer who is walking in daily
fellowship with the Lord under the control of the Anything the unbeliever can do is not a part of the
Holy Spirit. Christian way of life. The Christian way of life is a
supernatural way of life and demands a supernatu-
The Sin Nature also has an “area” of weakness ral means of execution, i.e., the filling of the Holy
which directs the production of all personal sin. Spirit.
Heb. 12:1. Three types of personal sin are pro-
duced here: mental attitude sins, sins of the tongue, Virtue supersedes morality in the protocol plan of
and open sinful activity. God. But if your trend is toward legalism, people
assume you’re a great Christian.
The Sin Nature has patterns of lusts, or desires,
There is also a distortion involving those with a
the basic motivators of all the activities of human
trend toward lasciviousness.
life. The basic drives include the desire for power,
approbation, ego satisfaction, sexual satisfaction, Christians say such a person cannot do “those
material satisfaction, and so forth. things” and still be a Christian.
Trends in the Sin Nature Immoral degeneracy, with its fornication, violence,
terrorism, murder, dope addiction, is construed as
The Sin Nature has a system of trends, or inclina-
not being Christian.
tions, which vary among individuals. Some people
have an inclination toward immorality or lascivious- So in the first distortion, people think that if you’re
ness. Rom. 1. Others have trends toward morality very moral you’re living the Christian life. In the
or asceticism. Either trend is a product of Sin Na- second distortion, people think that if you raise hell
ture activity. you’re probably not a Christian at all. Legalistic

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Sin Nature 2

shock concludes it must have been a “head belief The Sin Nature is not found in the believer’s resur-
and not a heart belief.” rection body. 1 Cor. 15:56; Phil. 3:21; Col. 3:4; 1
Thess. 5:23.
Born-again believers still possess an old sin nature
and still commit sins. If the believer has a trend to- Solutions to the Problem of the Sin Nature
ward legalism, he will commit sins related to moral God has arranged to provide all that is needed to
degeneracy. If the believer has a trend toward las- deal with the problems caused by the Sin Nature in
civiousness, he will commit sins related to immoral a believer’s life. The personal sins of the individual
degeneracy . were borne by Jesus Christ on the Cross. 1 Pet.
When born-again believers commit sins related to 2:24. These sins will never be mentioned again
immoral degeneracy, they’re judged by their Chris- because they have already been judged in Christ.
tian peers as being not really saved. They erro- Rev. 20:12.
neously allege, “a person cannot do such things and Furthermore, Jesus Christ rejected the human good
be saved.” produced by the Sin Nature in terms of its use as
What determines the reality of one’s salvation is “currency” to purchase salvation, Eph. 2:8,9. This
personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, not the made the way clear for God to provide salvation by
category of one’s sins . grace. The unbeliever will be at the Great White
Throne judgment because of his rejection of this
The believer out of fellowship, living in the cosmic grace provision. Rev. 20:11-15.
system, can actually commit any sin that his unbe-
liever counterpart would commit, i.e., an unbeliever The believer’s sins were borne on the Cross by the
with a compatible old sin nature. Lord, as were those of all people. 2 Cor. 5:21.
When a believer sins, Satan accuses him in heaven.
Bible Synonyms for the Sin Nature Jesus Christ is our Advocate; He pleads our case,
There are several terms used in scripture to refer and the case is thrown out of court.
to what is known as the Sin Nature. God has provided confession of sin as a means of
Sin (in the singular) – Ps. 51:5; Rom. 5:12; 7:14; 1 restoring the broken fellowship with God caused by
John 1:8. the believer’s personal sin. The believer can repent
and confess and be filled with the Spirit. 1 John
Flesh – the emphasis here is on the location of the 1:9; Prov. 1:23.
Sin Nature in the “flesh” or life of the individual.
Human good, rejected by Jesus Christ (Eph. 2:8,9),
Rom. 8:8; 7:18; 13:14; Gal. 5:16-21; Eph. 2.3.
is never acceptable to God, and it does not produce
Old Man – referring to the the believer’s former blessing in the life of the believer. It is contrary to
manner of life as an unbeliever. Eph. 4:22; Col. the principle of Grace, in which God does the work.
3:5–9. In Christian growth, the Holy Spirit provides for
Heart – in some usages the word “heart” refers to the production of divine good in the believer’s life,
a facet of the soul which is the source of sin. Jer. through His filling, control, and teaching functions.
17:9; Mt. 12:34; 15:19; Mark 7:21-23; Ps. 58:2-5. God does the giving; man does the receiving.
Legalism is human good production for the pur-
Carnality – derived from the Latin for “flesh”. Rom.
pose of earning and receiving merit or blessing from
7:14; 8:6-8; 1 Cor. 3:1-3.
God. In Legalism, man does the work and receives
Principles Related to the Sin Nature the credit. Therefore, Legalism is a product of the
Sin Nature lust patterns. Under Grace, God does
The Sin Nature is the source of spiritual death.
the work and receives the “credit” (glory). Human
Rom. 5:12; Eph. 2:1,5.
good production of the Sin Nature will be judged
The Sin Nature is perpetuated in human beings at the Judgment Seat of Christ. It is called “wood,
through physical birth. Ps. 51:5; 1 Tim. 2:13,14. hay, and stubble” and will be burned. The “gold,
The believer continues to have his Sin Nature after silver, and precious stones”, of divine good produc-
salvation. 1 Cor. 3:1; 1 John 1:8. The believer un- tion of the Holy Spirit, will remain. 1 Cor. 3:10-15
der the control of the Sin Nature is called “carnal”. to him at sixteen drachmae…”
Rom. 7:14; 1 Cor. 3:1ff
Source materials for this article: Unger’s Bible Dic-
The Sin Nature frustrates the production of divine tionary; Kittel’s NT Greek Lexicon; Chester Mc-
good. Rom. 7:15. Calley’s written notes on imputation; Moulton and
Milligan studies in the papyri.
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