Sin

What is sin?

• Greek: The word for sin was hamarita, which means missing the mark, and the Greek philosophers often equated sin with ignorance.

• Hebrews: The verb pasa and the noun pesa mean rebellion.

• Augustine: All sin is turning from God, but perhaps the most deadly sin is the attempt to take over from God.

• Westminister: Sin is any want of transgression of the law of God.

• Bible: Sin is anything which does not express, or which is contrary to, the Holy character of God.

Original sin/corporate sin/Adamic sin

• Dead Sea Scrolls and other post-biblicial Jewish literature: there is a tendency to speak of sin less an individual deed than as a power that governs humans and inspires their conduct.

• Roman 5-7: Sin, like death, originated with Adam.

• Schleiermacher: In each the work of all, and in all the work of each.

• Reinhold Niebuhr: Moral man and Immoral Society

• D. Myers: It is irresponsible to say that we are not responsible for our sin because we are affected by or inherit other people's sin. On the contrary, since we realize that our own sin may bring negative impact to others, we should be more responsible for our behaviors.

What if an infant die?

• Baptists: Children who die before they reach the age of accountability will be covered by the grace of God and spend eternity in heaven. It is generally said that 8 or 9 year of age is when most people reach the age of maturity or accountability.

• Catholics and Lutherans: It requires a belief in the sacrament of baptism which transmits God's grace to the infant.

• Calvinism: This view stresses salvation comes through the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit rather than the free will of human. And all infants who die are viewed as being part of the elect.

• Dennis Shaw: Infants are still subject to the punishment for the original sin. But our prayer can bring them to Christ even without the decision of their own.