Religious Errors - Inherited Depravity - srf
What is it?
The belief that we inherit the guilt of sin and a depraved nature from Adam through our
parents. Pure Calvinism teaches it is total depravity. It is also called the
doctrine of "original sin." Here it is as stated in the Westminster Confession
of Faith:
II. By this sin they [Adam and Eve, srf] . . . became dead in sin, and wholly defiled in
all the faculties and parts of soul and body.
III. They being the root of all mankind, the guilt of this sin was imputed, and the same
death in sin and corrupted nature conveyed to all their posterity, descending from them by
ordinary generation.
IV. From this original corruption, whereby we are utterly indisposed, disabled, and made
opposite to all good, and wholly inclined to all evil, do proceed all actual
transgressions.
Who teaches it?
Presbyterians
The above quote is from "The Confession of Faith of The Presbyterian Church in
the U. S."
Lutherans
"We believe... (b) that by this fall not only our first parents, but also all
their natural descendants have lost their original righteousness; (c) that therefore all
men are by nature dead in sin and children of wrath; (d) that men cannot, by any efforts
of their own, or any good works, progress, or culture become reconciled to God and
overcome death and damnation...We reject as unscriptural the following teachings:...5.
That there is no original sin, and that human nature has not been entirely corrupted and
perverted by original sin..." My Church and Others, John Theodore Mueller,
Professor of Systematic Theology, Concordia Theological Seminary, St. Louis, MO, pp.
12-13.
Methodists
"Article VIII. Of Original or Birth Sin. Original sin...is the corruption of the
nature of every man, that naturally is engendered of the offspring of Adam, whereby man is
very far gone from original righteousness, and of his own nature inclined to evil, and
that continually." History and Exposition of the Twenty-five Articles of Religion
of the Methodist Episcopal Church, Henry Wheeler, p. 174.
Baptists
"III. The Fall Of Man. [The New Hampshire Confession, srf] We believe the
Scriptures teach that man . . . by voluntary transgression fell . . . in consequence of
which all mankind are now sinners not by constraint by choice; being by nature utterly
void of that holiness required by the law of God, positively inclined to evil; and
therefore under just condemnation . . ." The Standard Manual for Baptist Churches,
Edward T. Hiscox, p. 60.
Roman Catholics
Roman Catholicism teaches original sin with a different twist. They do not teach the
nature of man was depraved so that he lost free will. But their view results in similar
conclusions.
"Original sin injured the soul of man in the following ways: His understanding
was darkened, his will weakened and made prone to evil; he lost supernatural grace
["enabling him to know and serve God"] . . . Not merely the consequences of sin,
but the sin itself, has in some sense passed on from Adam to his descendants . . . We are
already tainted with sin before we draw our first breath . . ." The Catechism
Explained, Francis Spirago, Richard Clark The quotes in brackets are from The New
Catholic Dictionary. Both of these books are official Catholic publications.
Others
Many other religions teach this doctrine and variations of it.
Is it true?
No, it is not.
1. There is nothing in Gen. 3 that says the nature of man was changed so that he was
wholly inclined to evil, nor that his descendants would be. Read it for yourself.
2. What caused Adam and Eve to sin? They had not inherited depravity. It's the same thing
that causes us to sin‹unbelief and love of the world, 1 Jn. 2:15,16 ‹not
inherited depravity.
3. We are free moral agents, i.e. we have the power to choose to serve God or not. Josh.
24:15. (Sermon topic this morning.)
4. Infants are spoken of as humble and innocent of evil‹not corrupt in nature and
will. Mt. 18:3; 1 Co. 14:20.
5. God plainly stated that a person would die for his own sins, not those of his father,
Eze. 18:20.
6. Baptism is for remission of sins, but infants were not baptized in the NT. Ac. 2:38;
8:12. (This is why Roman Catholicism practices infant baptism‹they believe baptism is
for remission of sins and infants are born in sin.)
7. Unsaved men and women could hear, believe, and obey the gospel before and without
any supernatural influences of the Holy Spirit. Ac. 8:12...15,16.
8. Rom. 5:12 says "through one man sin entered into the world . . . and so death
spread to all men, because all sinned"‹not because Adam sinned.
9. Sin is an act, not an inherited trait. 1 Jn. 3:4;5:17
News of Interest
Jim Crain's prostate biopsy came back negative! . . .Evelyn
Evans suffered a heart attack Thursday night. She is in the ICU at Kingwood
Hospital. . . Debbie Ferguson was admitted to Northeast Hospital Wednesday night
due to irregular heartbeat and disorientation; she has returned home now . . . John
Lowrance went to a cardiologist Friday due to abnormalities with his heart . . . Evelyn
Lowrance is scheduled to undergo an endoscopy Monday, April 5 . . . Jim Porterfield
has discovered he has hepatitis. Further tests are being conducted to determine the status
of the disease and what procedures will be recommended to deal with it . . . Biopsies were
taken from Bill Faulkner's esophagus and stomach last Monday . . . Ester
Hargrove continues to debilitating health problems . . . The replacement hip surgery
on Lauren Hutson's uncle, Bill Castleman, was successful. He will be at a
rehab hospital for about two weeks. . . The cataract surgery on Gregg Hutson's
father seems to have gone well . . . Zelma Bobbitt's sister, Alice Barnfield,
passed away and was buried last Tuesday . . . If you can assist in providing rides for Zelma,
please sign up today . . . Judy Ruddle's uncle passed away and was buried last
Wednesday . . . After the evening assembly TODAY, the elders will meet with those
men who will stay to discuss practical applications of the family study. The aim is to
meet for about 30-40 minutes . . . Margie Blackburn, who recently moved into the
area and has attended here several weeks, wishes to be recognized as a member of the
church here in Humble. Address: 14906 Hickory Tex, Humble, 77396. Phone: 281/441-2066. If
you haven't met her, make it a point to do so and welcome her into the congregation . . .
New reports from Ruben Amador, Dan Huddleston and James Wilson are available
in the foyer . . . You can download the adult class lessons and the bulletin from the
church's web site: http://www.kingwoodcable.com/colblip/humblechurchofchrist/.
If, for example, you wished to save the information on inherited depravity for future
reference, you could download the bulletin, copy the article, and save it as a separate
file. By the way, a new link has been added‹check it out! If you find the web site
useful, or have suggestions about it, drop Wally Ottersbach a note using either the
"Feedback" option on the web site or his email address: col.blip@bigfoot.com. Of
course, I guess, you could just tell him!
Transportation for Zelma Bobbitt <April >
Sun., 4, am - Bernard
pm - Bernard
Wed., 7, pm -
Sun., 11, am - Fontenot pm - Hurst
Wed., 14, pm -
Sun., 18, am -
pm
-
Wed., 21, pm - Rocky
Sun., 25, am - Legg
pm - Rice
Wed., 28, pm -
Area Gospel Meetings
SCHEDULED TO SERVE
Wednesday, April 7
Song Leader: David Osteen
Sunday AM, April 11
Announcements: Larry Legg
Song Leader: Dwight Osteen
First Prayer: Rocky Rodriguez
Lord's Table:
Bread: Gary Tuttle
Fruit of the Vine: Charles Tu
Contribution: Verlan Wilson
Assistant: Arthur Wilborn
Closing Prayer: Craig Ottersbach
Sunday PM, April 11
Song Leader: Charles Tu
First Prayer: Robert Rice
Lord's Table:
Bread: Jay Lietka
Fruit of the Vine: Dwight Osteen
Contribution: Ennis Osteen
Closing Prayer: Billy Lovell
If you are a song
leader, but know you will be unavailable, please notify Jim Crain. If you are
scheduled to serve in any other capacity but cannot serve as scheduled, please notify Gregg
Hutson.