Breaking News: Humanity Still Fallen
Breaking News: Humanity Still Fallen
As I write this, U.S. peace talks with Iran, hosted by Pakistan, may be happening.
Meanwhile, missile and drone attacks persist across the surrounding Gulf countries despite a ceasefire being declared between the two nations. All that to say, we live in a world full of concerns. Some are as mundane as the weather, while others are as serious as national security and world wars.
This post addresses another great concern – The Christian Life. Last time, we discussed how the Puritan John Owen believed that the Christian life involves having a realistic understanding of self-knowledge. He identified four aspects. This post discusses the second one.
#1. The Christian is human (HERE).
#2. The Christian is fallen.
Human fallenness refers to man’s inherent sinful nature. Sin so devastates man’s original nature that it not only alienates him from God but also disorders his soul to such a degree that his will no longer chooses the proper good (i.e., God). Instead, man becomes enslaved to his fallen affections, which conflict with his Creator. Thus, like Adam and Eve, man has an ingrained desire to dodge and defy God. When God approaches Adam and Eve, they resist His grace. Sin is devastating.
For the Christian, sin’s persistent presence has yet to be completely eradicated. We look forward to that day. In the meantime, our self-knowledge should make us somewhat distrustful of ourselves. Knowledge of our fallenness should eliminate self-confidence and self-satisfaction because both indicate a lack of awareness of sin. Our remedy for the influence of sin is a posture of the soul that is sharply aware of and sensitive to sin as sin. This posture keeps our hearts receptive to the gospel, like fertile soil where grace can flourish.
(Adapted from A Quest for Godliness, J.I. Packer.)
As I write this, U.S. peace talks with Iran, hosted by Pakistan, may be happening.
Meanwhile, missile and drone attacks persist across the surrounding Gulf countries despite a ceasefire being declared between the two nations. All that to say, we live in a world full of concerns. Some are as mundane as the weather, while others are as serious as national security and world wars.
This post addresses another great concern – The Christian Life. Last time, we discussed how the Puritan John Owen believed that the Christian life involves having a realistic understanding of self-knowledge. He identified four aspects. This post discusses the second one.
#1. The Christian is human (HERE).
#2. The Christian is fallen.
Human fallenness refers to man’s inherent sinful nature. Sin so devastates man’s original nature that it not only alienates him from God but also disorders his soul to such a degree that his will no longer chooses the proper good (i.e., God). Instead, man becomes enslaved to his fallen affections, which conflict with his Creator. Thus, like Adam and Eve, man has an ingrained desire to dodge and defy God. When God approaches Adam and Eve, they resist His grace. Sin is devastating.
For the Christian, sin’s persistent presence has yet to be completely eradicated. We look forward to that day. In the meantime, our self-knowledge should make us somewhat distrustful of ourselves. Knowledge of our fallenness should eliminate self-confidence and self-satisfaction because both indicate a lack of awareness of sin. Our remedy for the influence of sin is a posture of the soul that is sharply aware of and sensitive to sin as sin. This posture keeps our hearts receptive to the gospel, like fertile soil where grace can flourish.
(Adapted from A Quest for Godliness, J.I. Packer.)
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