Sin

Sin is a violation of the law of God, either by purposeful transgression or failure to meet its standard. Theologians commonly distinguish between original sin and personal sin, as well as between sins of commission and sins of omission. While Scripture teaches that God sovereignly ordained all things, it equally maintains that God is neither the author of evil nor an agent of coercion who forces people to do evil against their wills. Rather, sin originated when creatures freely chose to disobey the Lord. Under the covenant of works, Adam’s one act of disobedience resulted in the entrance of sin and misery into the world. By virtue of Adam’s federal headship, sin spread to all who descend from him by ordinary generation. Sin results in both temporal and eternal consequences. The just penalty for sin is eternal death, since every act of disobedience is an offense against the infinite, holy, and unchangeable God. In His eternal wisdom God atoned for the sin of His people through the incarnation and saving work of His eternal Son.

Westminster Shorter Catechism 14 states, “Sin is any want of conformity unto, or transgression of, the law of God.” This answer speaks to the distinction between sins of commission or sins of omission. Theologians also distinguish between private and public sins and between intentional and unintentional sins. Scripture employs the terms sin, iniquity, and transgressions to summarize the various aspects of spiritual lawlessness. The Greek word translated as “sin” carries the idea of falling short of the mark. Among the other English words for sin, transgression means* *“to cut against” God’s law and iniquity conveys the notion of “twistedness.” R.C. Sproul explained that sin is “cosmic treason against the God of heaven.” Although Reformed and Protestant theologians have historically rejected the Roman Catholic distinction between mortal sin and venial sin, they have nevertheless affirmed the teaching of Scripture regarding differing degrees of sin and punishment.

The Scriptures consistently teach that God is sovereign over all things (creation, providence, and redemption), yet He is not the author of sin and evil, which means that He cannot be blamed for evil and that He does not Himself do evil or create evil. People are culpable for their own actions, though God has ordained whatsoever comes to pass. At creation, God made man upright (Eccl. 7:29). After making Adam and Eve in His own image, the Lord entered into the covenant of works with Adam, forbidding him to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. By this prohibition, man was to remember that he is merely a creature and is morally obligated to God as Creator. When tempted in the garden, Adam followed the devil, rebelled against God, broke the covenant of works, and brought sin and misery into the world (Gen. 3).

Adam’s actions were representative actions on behalf of all who would descend from him by ordinary generation. The Westminster Shorter Catechism explains this collective representation in the fall: “All mankind, descending from him by ordinary generation, sinned in him, and fell with him in his first transgression” (Q&A 16). The sinful condition of man consists of “the guilt of Adam’s first sin, the want of original righteousness, and the corruption of his whole nature, which is commonly called original sin; together with all actual transgressions which proceed from it” (WSC 18).

The guilt of Adam’s sin was imputed, and the corruption of his whole nature conveyed, to Adam’s descendants by ordinary generation (i.e., by natural birth). Consequently, all human beings, except for Jesus Christ, are born in a condition of spiritual death (Eph. 2:1–4). Man is not simply crippled by sin; he is dead in sins and trespasses. This doctrine that says man is born dead in sin and thoroughly corrupted by wickedness is commonly called total depravity. Fallen man is pervasively sinful in every part of his constitution.

Adam’s sin brought all misery into the world (broken relationships, natural disasters, disease, famine, man-made catastrophes, war, physical death, etc.). In the covenant of works, the Lord warned Adam (Gen. 2:17) that when he ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil he would surely die. Death is the just penalty for sin. As the Apostle explained, “The wages of sin is death” (Rom. 6:23). The ultimate misery brought about by sin is spiritual, physical, and eternal death. When Adam disobeyed, he experienced spiritual death; he later suffered physical death; and, because of the just penalty on sin, he deserved to suffer the death of eternal judgment (though it may be that Adam turned from his sin later in life and experienced God’s salvation).

Sin also had consequences for the whole of creation. In Romans 8, the Apostle speaks about creation’s groaning in anticipation of the resurrection of believers on the last day. Adam’s sin had cosmic consequences. As Herman Bavinck explained, “Sin ruined the entire creation, converting its righteousness into guilt, its holiness into impurity, its glory into shame, its blessedness into misery, its harmony into disorder, and its light into darkness.”¹

In His eternal decree, the triune God planned the redemption of His people. The three persons of the Godhead agreed to purchase and apply redemption to the elect. At the center of this plan of redemption is the saving work of the Son in dying for the sins of His people. The Father sent the Son as the sin-bearing Savior (Matt. 1:21). To atone for sin, the infinite and eternal Son of God was incarnate in the womb of the Virgin Mary. He lived a sinless life, fulfilling all the commands of God (Matt. 3:15; John 10:17–18). He substituted Himself for sinners on the cross and so bore the wrath of God that they deserve for their sin so that when people trust in Christ alone for salvation, they receive the forgiveness of their sins and are clothed in His perfect righteousness (2 Cor. 5:21). In His death on the cross, Christ broke the power of sin (Rom. 6:14). By the transforming power of the gospel, God renews believers and conforms them to the image of Christ in knowledge, holiness, and righteousness (Eph. 4:23; Col. 3:10).