Where Did Sin Come From?

Last updated on: September 2, 2015 at 1:18 pm by Jack Wellman

Where Did Sin Come From? 2015-09-02T13:18:06-05:00 Jack Wellman

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Where did sin come from? What was the time and place of sin’s origin?

What is Sin?

Before we even attempt to find the origin of sin, we should see how the Bible defines sin. The Bible gives us a very good definition of what sin is from the Apostle John who wrote “Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness” (1st John 3:4). Sin is lawlessness which means breaking the law. What law is John talking about? This is most certainly not the Mosaic Law but the Ten Commandments as John writes, “Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him” (1st John 3:24), therefore “we keep his commandments and do what pleases him” (1st John 3:22). No, we are not saved by keeping the law but everyone who is saved will strive to keep the commandments of God. Not one of us can keep it perfectly but that doesn’t excuse us from trying to live a holy life of obedience to Him which is why “we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.”

The First Sin

If we can find out where the first sin originated then we can find out where sin came from. I believe we have to go back before the Garden of Eden to find where sin came from. Mankind was not the first to sin but actually Lucifer or Satan was as we read in Isaiah 14:12: “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning!” Lucifer” means “shining one” and the Hebrew translates it from “morning star” or “Daystar.” Satan or Lucifer (the Devil) was the first to sin and it was done in heaven as Isaiah writes, “You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; above the stars (angels) of God. I will set my throne on high; I will sit on the mount of assembly in the far reaches of the north. I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High” (Isaiah 14:13-14). Satan wanted to ascend above the angels of God who continually say “Holy, Holy, Holy” (Isaiah 6:3) over God’s throne. Satan also wanted to ascend above the heights of the clouds, which is the Shekinah clouds of glory. Next, he said “I will make myself like the Most High” because he has always desired worship as in the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness as Satan said about all the kingdoms of the world, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me” (Matt 4:9) so Satan wanted to sit in place of God to be worshipped but he was cast down to earth. This was the first sin; cosmic treason against the Most High God. This is the origin of sin but the origin of sin of mankind was to come later, in the Garden of Eden.

Sin Enters the World

Paul gives us the exact place where sin entered in the world and into the human heart in Romans 5:12 where he writes “just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned— for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law.” And so “death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come” (Rom 5:14). It was “because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man” (Rom 5:17) and that one man was Adam and “one trespass led to condemnation for all men” (Rom 5:18). Like it or not, we are all born into a sinful nature as the David wrote “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me” (Psalm 51:5). Sin entered the world through Adam and Eve and their caving into the temptation of Satan (Gen 3:1-13) and we’ve all sinned since that time; every single one of us (Rom 3:10-12, 23).

God’s Forgiving Sin

Now here’s why the gospel is called the “good news.” Paul knows our sinful status and that all of us have earned eternal death (Rom 6:23a) since we’ve all “died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many” (Rom 5:15) but through Christ “those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ” (Rom 5:17b). Just “as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men” (Rom 5:18) “For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous” (Rom 5:19). And just as “sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom 5:21) and that’s not just good news…it is the best of news.

Conclusion

The conclusion is that Satan was the first to sin and sin originated there with him and when he was cast down from heaven, he infected mankind with this sin who choose to disobey God and we’ve all suffered the consequences of this fall. Just look at the world around you. There is no denying the sinful nature of mankind but there’s also no denying the righteousness of Christ. Here is our solution for our sinful state we find ourselves in before God; “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2nd Cor 5:21) “For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive” (1st Cor 15:22).

Article by Jack Wellman

Jack Wellman is Pastor of the Mulvane Brethren church in Mulvane Kansas. Jack is also the Senior Writer at What Christians Want To Know whose mission is to equip, encourage, and energize Christians and to address questions about the believer’s daily walk with God and the Bible. You can follow Jack on Google Plus or check out his book Teaching Children the Gospel available on Amazon.

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