Questions to be answered:

1.      Why, how and when did God create the universe?

2.      Why did God create man?

3.      How did God make man like himself?

4.      What does Scripture mean by “soul” and
“spirit”?

5.      What is sin?

6.      Where did sin come from?

7.      Do we inherit a sinful nature from Adam?

A.   Creation.

Definition:  God created the entire universe out of nothing (Ex Nihilo); it was originally very good;
and he created it to glorify himself.

1.      God created the universe out
of nothing (Genesis 1:1-31).

·
Biblical evidence for creation out of nothing.

Hebrews 11:3
– By faith we understand that the universe was formed
at God's command, so that what is seen
was not made out of what was visible.

·
The direct creation of Adam and Eve.

Genesis 1:26-27 – Then God said,
"Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the
fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the
earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” So God
created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and
female he created them.

Genesis 2:7 – the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the
ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a
living being.

Genesis 2:20-21
– So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he
was sleeping, he took one of the man's ribs and closed up the place with flesh.
Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he
brought her to the man.

·
The work of the Son and the Holy Spirit in creation.

The Son:

John 1:3
– Through him [Jesus] all things were
made; without him nothing was made that has been made.

The Holy Spirit:

Genesis 1:2 – Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was
over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was
hovering over the waters.

2.      Creation is distinct from
God, yet always dependent on God.

Materialism teaches that the only thing that exists
is the material universe.

Pantheism teaches that all of creation is God.

Dualism teaches that both God and the material
universe have eternally existed.
Typically in this view, God is seen as a force of good and the material
universe is seen as a force of evil.

Deism teaches that God is distinct from the
creation, but has no direct involvement in the universe.  This is the “divine
watchmaker” view of God.  God
created the universe, wound it up, and let it go on its own.

3.      God created the universe to
show his glory.

Psalm 19:1
– The heavens declare the glory of
God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

Revelation 4:11 – You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive
glory and honor and power, for you
created all things, and by your will they were created and have their
being.

4.      The universe God created was
“very good.”

Genesis 1:31 – God saw all
that he had made, and it was very good.

5.      The relationship between
Scripture and the findings of modern science.

·
When all facts are rightly understood, there will be “no final
conflict” between Scripture and natural science.

·
Some theories about creation seem clearly inconsistent with the
teachings of Scripture.

i.
Secular theories (e.g., the “Big-Bang” theory)

ii.
Theistic evolution (a “marriage” between science and the
Bible)

iii.
Darwinian theory of evolution.

·
The age of the earth.

“Old” earth theories (4.5 – 5
billion years old) vs. “Young” earth theories (10,000 –
20,000 years old).  These theories
all hinge on the reliability of scientific dating methods and the
interpretation of the word “day” in the Genesis creation account.

Uniformitarianism vs.
Catastrophism.

2 Peter 3:3-7
– First of all, you must understand
that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil
desires. They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised?
Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning
of creation.” But they deliberately forget that long ago by God's word
the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water. By
these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. By the same
word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.

B.    The Creation of Man.

1.      The use of the word
“man” to refer to the entire human race.

·
In Hebrew, “Adam” means “man.”

Genesis 5:1-2
– When God created man, he made him
in the likeness of God. He created them male and female and blessed them. And
when they were created, he called them “man.”

2.      Why was man created?

·
God did not need to create man (God’s independence), yet he created us for his own glory.

·
What is our purpose in life?

Our purpose in life is to enjoy being in the
presence of God and to give him glory.

Psalm 23:7
– Surely goodness and love will follow
me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

1 Corinthians 10:31 – So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for
the glory of God.

3.      Man in the image of God.

·
The meaning of the “image of God.”

Definition:  The fact that man is in the image of God means that
man is like God and represents God.

·
The fall:  God’s image
is distorted, but not lost.

·
Redemption in Christ:  A
progressive recovering of more of God’s image.

Ephesians
4:22-24 – You were taught, with
regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being
corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your
minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness
and holiness.

·
At Christ’s return:
Complete restoration of God’s image.

1 John 3:2 – Dear friends,
now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be
like him, for we shall see him as he is.

·
Specific aspects of our likeness to God.

i.
Moral aspects

ii.
Spiritual aspects

iii.
Mental aspects

iv.
Relational aspects

·
Our great dignity as bearers of God’s image.

It gives us a sense of worth and value.  God thought it so important to guard his
image in mankind that he established the death penalty for murder (Genesis
9:6).

4.      The essential nature of man.

·
Trichotomy, dichotomy, or monism.

i.
Soul, Spirit, & Body

ii.
Soul/Spirit & Body

iii.
Soul/Spirit/Body

·
Biblical data.

1 Timothy 5:23 – May God himself, the God
of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and
body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

·
Man is a dichotomy with overall unity.

James 2:26
– As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith
without deeds is dead.

C.   Sin.

1.      Definition of Sin.

Definition:  Sin is any failure to conform to the moral law of
God in act, attitude, or nature.

James 2:10-11
– For whoever keeps the whole law and
yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. For he who
said, "Do not commit adultery," also said, "Do not murder."
If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a
lawbreaker.

1 John 3:4
– Everyone who sins breaks the law;
in fact, sin is lawlessness.

The problem with gaining a proper understanding of
sin is usually traced to an inflated view of the “goodness” of man,
a deflated view of the holiness of God, or a combination of the two (Matthew
5:20-48).

2.      The Origin of Sin.

·
God did not cause sin.

·
God is not responsible for sin.

·
God did ordain that sin would come into the world.

Genesis 3:1-7
– Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had
made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat
from any tree in the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent,
“We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say,
‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the
garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’” “You
will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For
God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be
like God, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the
fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable
for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her
husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were
opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together
and made coverings for themselves.

3.      The Doctrine of Inherited
Sin.

·
Inherited guilt:  We are
counted guilty because of Adam’s sin.

Romans 5:12,
15-19 – Therefore, just as sin
entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death
came to all men, because all sinned….But the gift is not like the
trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more
did God's grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus
Christ, overflow to the many! Again, the gift of God is not like the result of
the one man's sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but
the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. For if, by the
trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will
those who receive God's abundant provision of grace and of the gift of
righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ. Consequently,
just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the
result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all
men. For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made
sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made
righteous.

·
Inherited corruption:  We
have a sinful nature because of Adam’s sin.

i.
In our natures, we totally lack spiritual good before God.

ii.
In our actions, we are totally unable to do spiritual good before God.

Genesis 6:5
– The LORD saw how great man's
wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts
of his heart was only evil all the time.

Ephesians
2:1-3 – As for you, you were dead in
your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the
ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who
is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at
one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its
desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.

·
Are infants guilty before they commit actual sins (i.e., “age of
accountability”)?

·
How can infants who die be saved?

4.      Actual Sins in Our Lives.

·
All people are sinful before God.

Romans 3:23 – For all
have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

·
Does our ability limit our responsibility?

The true measure of our responsibility and guilt is
not our own ability to obey God, but rather the absolute perfection of
God’s moral law (Matthew 5:48).

·
Are there degrees of sin?
(Yes and No)

i.
Legal guilt (No).

ii.
Results in life and in relationship with God (Yes).

·
What happens when a Christian sins?

i.
Our legal standing before God remains unchanged.

Romans 8:38-39 – For I am convinced that
neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the
future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all
creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ
Jesus our Lord.

ii.
Our fellowship and our Christian life is
damaged.

Hebrews 12:5-7
– And you have forgotten that word of
encouragement that addresses you as sons: “My son, do not make light of
the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the
Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a
son.” Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For
what son is not disciplined by his father?

iii.
The danger of “unconverted evangelicals.”

·
What is the Unpardonable Sin?

The unpardonable sin is slandering (or blaspheming)
the work or the testimony of the Holy Spirit through Jesus Christ.

Matthew 12:31-32 – And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will
be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone
who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who
speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in
the age to come.