Lesson No. 32 

Lesson No. 32 Consequences of Sin

Outline: The different aspects we will address in this topic are the following: God’s sentence to the first couple and their expulsion from the Garden of Eden, the inheritance of sin in their descendants, the loss of holiness, and the state of darkening of their conscience.

Consequences of sin: According to the considerations made in the previous topic, there were several and very serious violations involved in what might seem like a simple act of disobedience by the first couple. For this reason, the man and his wife were subject to the sentence that God had decreed, as expressed in the following biblical passage:

Genesis chapter 3: verses 17 to 19: “And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; 18Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; 19In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return”.51

Thus, this sentence reached not only the first human couple but also all their descendants. The Scriptures declare this, according to the following passage:

Romans chapter 5: verses 12, 18, and 19: “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: 18Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. 19For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous”.51

This biblical passage focuses on two completely opposing theological themes. It is a comparison between the origin and consequences of sin and the manifestation of grace and its effects. But in this case precisely, we are dealing with original sin and its consequences, so our attention must focus on the parts of the verses that appear underlined.

It should be of certain interest to the student to know that, from the subject considered according to the recent passage read, emerges the theological concept of inherited depravity, to which I referred in the previous topic. The human race has inherited the unfortunate moral condition that the first couple acquired in the Garden of Eden when they sinned against their Creator. From that very moment, the human being lost the moral image of God with which he had been created in holiness. Because where there is holiness there is freedom from sin, as declared by the Scriptures in Romans chapter 6: verse 22.51 And according to this concept, when sin is allowed to enter, holiness is lost.

A careful theological analysis, as I previously expounded, has resulted in the concept that upon losing holiness, the human being suffered a certain degree of darkening of his conscience, which does not allow him to make a clear or effective distinction between many aspects of good and evil. In this regard, the Holy Scriptures say the following:

Ephesians chapter 4: verses 17 and 18: “This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind. 18Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart”.51

Due to this situation, humanity has deteriorated in its moral principles to the extent of becoming increasingly degrading in its conduct. In this regard, a prominent Christian thinker expressed:

“As a consequence of sin, a gigantic wave of moral and physical degeneration, misery, disease, pain, and death forcefully attacks humankind”.

That is why God makes a constant call for us to seek holiness, as the following biblical passage declares:

First Peter chapter 1: verse 16: “Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy”.51