June 27, 2025,
It is very common for Christians to talk about having two natures. They are taught, and most believe, that they are born with a sinful nature. This sinful nature stays in them throughout their entire Christian life. When they are born again as a new creation in Christ, they receive a new nature. According to many Christians, this new nature enables them to obey God, understand His word, and discern the truth. However, this new nature is no match for their sinful nature.
Christians are taught that they will never stop sinning, even with this new nature from God. This raises questions about God’s power to conquer the old, sinful nature. How is it that the grace of God, in giving us a new nature, did not also give us a new nature capable of overcoming all sin? God commands us to stop sinning under the threat of eternal hellfire. Are Christians supposed to believe that God commands us to stop sinning but doesn’t provide us with the ability to obey His command? The sad truth is that this is precisely what most Christians believe. Let us see what the word of God teaches.
Before we draw any conclusions, let’s briefly examine what some prominent Christian teachers believe about the two natures.
Got Questions YouTube channel: On the question, ‘Do Christians have two natures?’
I often visit this channel because it is well-known and more faithful to the Word of God than many other channels. This group defines nature as the capacity to do something. The unbeliever cannot do good; they do not have that capacity. Even what appears to be good in the unbeliever is not good, according to this channel. Only the believer has the capacity to do good and not sin. What follows is a quote from a video they produced.
“The unbeliever has no such competition within; he has only the sin nature. That’s not to say he cannot do ‘good works’, but his motive for those works is always tainted by his sinfulness. In addition, he can’t resist sinning because he doesn’t have the capacity not to sin.”
On the other hand, a believer (a Christian) can do good, be righteous, and live a godly life. The believer has a new nature and the ability to do all these things because of becoming a follower of Jesus Christ.
“At the moment of conversion, the Christian receives a new nature. It is instantaneous. Sanctification, on the other hand, is the process by which God develops our new nature, enabling us to grow into more holiness through time. This is a continuous process with many victories and defeats as the new nature battles with the “tent” in which it resides-the old man, old nature, the flesh.”
This channel explains that Romans 7 illustrates the ongoing struggle in a Christian’s life. They say this was true for Saint Paul and applies to every other Christian as well. This new nature must be renewed constantly.
“This is why believers are encouraged to put to death the deeds of the body (Romans 8:13), to put to death that which makes a Christian sin (Colossians 3:5), and to put aside other sins such as anger, wrath, malice, etc. (Colossians 3:8). All this to say that the Christian has two natures-the old and the new-but the new nature needs continual renewing (Colossians 3:10. This renewing, of course, is a lifetime process for the Christian.”
My objections to the Got Questions website are as follows.
Got Questions claims that the “good works” performed by unbelievers are “always tainted by his sinfulness,” but this is not true in reality, and they cannot prove it to be always true. Many examples exist of non-Christians doing good works that are not ‘tainted’ by their impure and sinful motives. For instance, during World War II, Christians and unbelievers hid Jews from the Nazis at significant personal risk and did so out of genuine love with pure motives. Greater love has no man than he lay down his life for another.
My second objection to their statement is this: If it is true that every good work non-Christians do is tainted by their selfish motives because they lack the capacity (simply another word for ability), then it follows that nothing they do is either good or evil. It also implies that they do not have free will. Free will is the capacity and ability to choose either good or evil. Virtue is the choice of good over evil, and vice is the choice of evil over good.
Got Questions then states that Christians receive a new nature at the time of conversion. Over time, God nurtures this new nature, and it sins less and does more good. There are many victories and setbacks along the way.
I object because this suggests that God is responsible for our moral growth, instead of us. If we do not stop all sin, it must be because God either lacks the ability or capacity, or because He doesn’t want us to be victorious over sin. Neither option is acceptable. The Word of God tells us that through His magnificent promises, we can become partakers of the divine nature (2 Peter 1:4). Romans 6, 1 John, and many other passages confirm this—that genuine followers of Christ walk in victory over sin, the world, the flesh, and the devil.
I also object to their claim that Romans chapter 7 depicts the Christian life and represents Paul’s life as a Christian. Neither is true. See my article titled ‘Romans 7’ for a complete refutation of this widespread misconception about Romans 7.
My final objection to their statement is that while it may be accurate to say that the Bible encourages Christians to be godly, it does more than inspire us. It requires us to cast off the old self and embrace the new self, walking in the newness of life. The Bible states that no one born of God sins habitually or as a way of life, as shown in 1 John and Romans 6, among many other passages. Furthermore, their comments reveal a complete lack of understanding of what genuine biblical repentance is. Whether they realize it or not, Got Questions is telling Christians to expect to sin more or less for the rest of their lives—no wonder our churches are full of Christians who sin. They are telling Christians that it is impossible to fully repent of all sin, directly contradicting what the Word of God teaches throughout its pages.
From the Lion and the Lamb Ministry YouTube Channel. Pastor David. The child of God and the two natures within.
Pastor David claims that Christians gain a new nature from God when they are born again. However, they do not lose their sinful nature. He argues that many Christians have fooled themselves into thinking they can eliminate this sinful nature, but they cannot. According to him, this belief contradicts scripture and real Christian experience. Pastor David explains the Christian experience in Romans 7, saying that sin lives in the believer, but they should not let sin rule in their mortal bodies. Additionally, he states that Christians can and do fall into sin but will never lose their salvation. He references many scripture passages, most of which teach the opposite of his claims. He also suggests that victory over sin can be achieved by walking in the Spirit and bearing the fruit of the Spirit, rather than walking according to the flesh. (He should clarify that victory over sin is, at best, only partial, not complete.)
Then, Pastor David quotes this passage: “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us” (1 John 1:8). Sin will never leave us, but it will hinder us. Even so, we can have victory over sin. Our parents gave us a sinful nature. When we are born of God, the divine nature allows us to stop sinning. Nonetheless, Christians continue to sin. Some sins may cease, but not most or all sins.
The Pastor then rambles off several passages that contradict his position, but he uses them as evidence of the new nature and the old nature.
My objection to the pastor’s comments.
I object to the dogmatic claim that both Romans 7 and 1 John 1:5-10 support his belief in two natures and his view that Christians always continue to sin habitually. These passages do not teach what he asserts they do. See my articles on Romans 7 and 1 John 1, “If We Say We Have No Sin.”
As mentioned earlier, I also oppose his comments about achieving victory over sin, since it’s clear he does not believe that. He believes Christians continue to sin their entire lives. That’s not victory; it’s defeat.
Basic Gospel Answers by Bob Christopher. This is a YouTube video.
The teaching that Christians have two natures comes from the NIV, which reads in Galatians 5:16-17: “So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the Sinful Nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature.”
It certainly seems like we have two natures. Schizophrenic Christians (Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Christians) are everywhere if the two-natures dogma is true. However, Mr. Christiopher doesn’t think we have two natures. He believes we only have one, which is our human nature.
The NIV uses the same word, which is more often translated as “the flesh” and not the sinful nature. Even the NIV has acknowledged its mistake, and newer versions of the NIV now translate this as “flesh” rather than “sinful nature.” (Better late than never.)
At one point, our nature was controlled by sin and death. We are born into the world as sinners, and he references Romans 5 and Ephesians 2:3. By nature, we were born children of wrath. Something changed when we came to Christ. We died with Him and were transformed. The old self is dead, buried, and crucified with Christ. He cites Romans 6:6, “We know that our old self was crucified with Him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin”.
The following passage he mentioned is Colossians 2:11, which reads, “In Him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ.” Christ conquers the power that sin had over us. We are a new creation in Christ Jesus, as stated in 1 Corinthians 5:17.
He quotes this next passage: “For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.” Romans 8:14. We are born sinners, but we have died in Christ, and the new man lives. We have a new identity. Next, he quotes Romans 6:17-18, which states that we are now slaves to righteousness, not to sin. Our human nature was once under bondage to sin and death, but we now have a new heart that desires to obey God. The Holy Spirit is leading us.
As believers, we live in a fleshly body, and sin still resides in our members; those desires will persist. That is not our true nature, but rather the body of flesh. He references Romans 7:23, stating that someday our new body will not have flesh, and we will be free from it. The desires of the flesh do not entirely disappear. We will still experience these fleshly desires, but that is not our core nature. We overcome this by considering ourselves dead to sin but alive to God, as Romans 6:13 teaches. Walk in the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh, as Galatians 5:16 says. In 2 Peter 1:4, the precious promises given to us allow us to become partakers of the divine nature. We have one true nature—a new nature that the Spirit has redeemed.
My objections to Basic Bible Answers: I object to his belief that we are born sinners, which I do not think is taught in the Bible and is unreasonable. Many of the passages he quotes, I also use to disprove much of what he teaches. The Bible says that genuine Christians can have victory over the world, the flesh (sin nature), and the devil. He does not believe that, even though it might seem like he does. Because he believes in eternal security, we know that sin in the Christian is no longer deadly.
All that said, I agree with him that human beings have only one nature, which is human nature. God has no issue with our human nature, since He gave it to us. His concern is how we use our human nature.
I watched the video produced by Basic Gospel Answers: Can I Lose My Salvation?
They argue that salvation isn’t just about forgiving sins, which I agree with. Adam and Eve died spiritually or eternally the day they sinned against God. Why? Because the wages of sin are death. Salvation restores our life; we go from death to life. He did not specify whether he believes there are conditions for salvation, such as repentance from sin. This short video did not mention repentance from sin as part of salvation. Those who hold his view usually believe that faith is the only condition for salvation and that it is only a one-time requirement. A single act of faith can secure eternal salvation forever.
The author believes that Jesus is indestructible, and if we are in Jesus, we are also indestructible. Because He lives, Christians live and are indestructible like Christ. Therefore, Christians cannot lose their salvation. This is the good news. We are eternally secure in Christ, according to this website.
My objection to this video by Basic Bible Answers is that I believe the doctrine of eternal security is one of the most harmful and wicked teachings ever created. Many Christians have been misled by it and have put their souls at risk, thinking they can live in unrepentant sin without facing the consequences of sin, such as spiritual or eternal death. See my book, “When Lies Become Truth,” chapter 6, on Eternal Security.
Summary,
I could keep listing ministries, seminars, books, Christian universities and seminaries, websites, and YouTube channels—most of which teach and believe similar, if not identical, things to what we’ve just reviewed. Christians have two natures and can never entirely stop sinning in this life. Most Christians think it’s heresy to believe that we can do all things through Christ, who gives us strength—something many quote from scripture—yet they argue that Christians can’t do all things through Christ. They also believe Christians can’t stop sinning in this life.
Why do I believe that Christians do not have two natures and that Christians can have victory over sin, the flesh, the world, and the devil?
Consider the following passage from scripture: “For when Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the meanwhile accusing or else excusing one another.” Romans 2:14-15, KJV, emphasis added.
The Greek word for nature is phusis (foo’-sis), which can mean the following: 1) growth through germination or expansion; 2) (by implication) natural production (lineal descent); 3) (by extension) a kind or type; 4) (figuratively) native disposition, constitution, or usage. According to the Lexical Summary and Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance in the Bible Hub app, physis refers to the inner nature, the underlying constitution, or makeup of a person (or thing). Different Bible translations may use words like instinct for nature, but most use the term nature.
In Romans 2, the apostle mentions an innate moral sense that humans are born with, as if it’s part of our DNA. Gentiles, who didn’t have the written law of Moses, still show its principles through their actions and conscience. This enables all humanity to tell right from wrong, even without specific written laws. This natural law will either justify or condemn them.
Nature can refer to the natural world, such as the laws of nature or our physical existence. However, it is essential to understand that the word Nature can also mean our character, temperament, and disposition, which are shaped by our habits rooted in our motives.
Additionally, nature can be described as the combination of qualities inherent to a person, animal, object, or class by birth, origin, constitution, and/or habits.
“Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.” Ephesians 2:3, KJV, emphasis added.
This is the same Greek word for nature used in Romans 2. Nature refers to the principle of growth or the nature of growth. This verse states that “we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desire of the flesh and mind; and were by nature children of wrath.” We became children of wrath because we often indulged the lusts of the flesh and mind. This signifies growth in wickedness, not righteousness. The verse does not claim that we were born sinners, unable to do any good. Instead, it shows that we become sinners by unlawfully satisfying the lusts of the flesh, which then become our nature.
We are not born with a sinful nature. Instead, we are born neutral. The concept of a sinful nature was introduced into Christianity from pagan origins, mainly by Augustine. As humans, we are driven by the principle of growth or progress; we either become slaves to our base, fleshly desires or servants of righteousness.
“Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to the whom ye obey, whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness. Romans 6:16, KJV. If a professing Christian obeys sinful lusts, he or she will die. If this person obeys God, the result is righteousness, which is life.
When the Gentiles do ‘by nature’ the things contained in the law, it means that they were not born totally depraved and totally unable to obey the law, for they were obeying it. Therefore, they were not born sinners. When Jews and Gentiles habitually fulfill the unlawful desires of their flesh, they are, by nature (character), children of wrath. The ancient writers understood that, by the nature of growth (long habits and practices which become characteristics of a person), they could either choose to serve good or evil. How did the Gentiles do the things contained in the law if their ‘Nature’ itself was sinful? It can’t be both ways, our nature can’t be totally depraved and also be able to choose what’s right at the same time.
Humanity is born of flesh and blood, with a moral conscience and natural inclinations. Our ‘flesh’ cannot be sinful by itself without our natural passions and desires being enslaved to sin. For something to be immoral, it requires a choice of the will. Each of us is tempted when drawn away by our desires and enticed; then, when desire has conceived ‘a sinful passion,’ it gives birth to sin. When sin is full-grown, it brings forth death (to a person’s spirit), James 1:14-15. Our literal physical flesh has no desires lurking within it—only tissue, blood, and sinew. It’s only when our mind conceives a desire to unlawfully indulge the flesh (mortal body) that sin is born. Not all desire is wicked. Desire can either be a natural yearning, such as for food to survive or rest to recuperate, or it can be a lust (as in evil desires) for unlawful self-indulgence and self-gratification.
There is no dual nature taught in the Bible, only a human nature that develops or grows as it practices certain habits, which may be inherited through tradition from our families. See 1 Peter 1:18. The idea of inheriting a sinful nature from Adam was introduced by early Gnostic groups around the 4th century. They believed that everything in the material world was corrupted or immoral, while everything in the spiritual realm was pure and incorruptible. Their leading figure, Augustine, incorporated these ideas into Christian thought by misapplying the frequent mention of the word ‘Flesh’ (SARX in Greek) used in Scripture to a Latin term he created called *concupiscence*. He did this by applying it to passages like Romans 7:8. It turned natural human desires and our ability to choose between good and evil into something ‘dwelling in the flesh’ that prompts these evil desires to serve sin. Therefore, the KJV translators, who accepted this misconception, translated ‘Desire or Evil Desires’ into the word *Concupiscence* three times—here in Romans 7:8, 1 Thessalonians 4:5, and Colossians 3:5. Instead of all kinds of ‘evil desires’ being prompted by the law in Romans 7:8, it’s all kinds of *concupiscence*, implying a mysterious sinful nature residing in the flesh, whereas ‘evil desires’ clearly show that a choice must be made between evil and good,” according to Mike DeSario.,
Romans 7:18 states: ‘For I know that in me (that is, my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.” Romans 7:18, KJV. Most professing Christians over the past 15 centuries believe it means that their literal flesh and blood are corrupted with some devilish contamination (inbred sin) that forces them to sin. As a result, preachers teach Christians that they are ‘by nature’ children of wrath, see Ephesians 2:3. The simple fact that they are walking around in their mortal bodies of flesh and blood shows they are not just sinful substances, but living beings created in God’s image. Augustine is generally credited with introducing this line of thinking into Western Christianity. These theological errors form the basis for concepts like provision, substitution, moral transfer, and election.
All of us are born into a completely depraved state. We have no free will and cannot perform deeds worthy of repentance. Therefore, God must make a ‘provision’ in Christ to save mankind “in” their sins. It is not about what we do, but about who we are by nature. We cannot obey God’s laws; hence, Christ is our substitute. Christ’s righteousness and sinlessness become ours through this moral transfer of His virtue to us. If we are born with a totally depraved and sinful nature that disables us from saving ourselves, then God alone is responsible for our salvation. Based on this flawed foundation, God saves only the elect unconditionally, while all others are lost forever. Recognizing this foundation helps us reject this theological error, which has corrupted theology for many centuries.
“Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.” Romans 8:7-8, KJV.
When scriptures say that those “who are in the flesh cannot please God,” it means that in our unlawful satisfaction of our ‘passions and desires’ of the flesh, we can’t please God. Scripture instructs us to ‘crucify our flesh with its passions and desires’ Galatians 6:15. Does that mean we should drive nails through our hands and feet and die on a cross? Of course not. It simply means we should ‘Put to death’ (Colossians 3:5) our sinful passions and exercise authority over them in Christ.
We serve God each day ‘in the flesh’ as it reads in Galatians 2:20. “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me”.
We are not walking around as disembodied spirits. We are in our ‘mortal bodies’ quickened by the Spirit (Romans 8:11). And our evil passions and desires are crucified in Christ by repentance and faith, which our fruit and our deeds must prove. (2 Corinthians 7:10-11). The ‘body of sin’ is done away with in Romans 6:6, meaning not our mortal body of flesh, but our evil lusts that once were slaves of sin. Romans 6:16-17. So, the lifewe live (in the flesh) is by this faith (working by love and obedience to the truth) through Christ who has saved us by the ‘washing, regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit’ (Titus 3:5). Thus, sin no longer reigns in our ‘mortal body’. Romans 6:12 declares that the flesh (not our actual physical body of flesh but our sinful desires) has been crucified with Christ, through repentance and faith, as evidenced by our works or deeds (fruit).
Our flesh and blood will not inherit the Kingdom (1 Corinthians 15:50), not because of sin living inside our flesh, but because our mortality must put on immortality (1 Corinthians 15:50-53). Our physical body will decay in death. Still, because Christ lives in us, death will be swallowed up in victory. In Adam, we die (as mortals), a physical death, but in Christ, our spirit lives on forever. That’s why it says that the body is ‘sown’ in corruption (meaning the corruption of the grave) but raised in incorruption, as a ‘spiritual body’ (1 Corinthians 15:43-44). The fact that man dies physically has nothing to do with a ‘sin nature’ dwelling in his flesh; it’s simply because he is created as a mortal being (after the likeness of Adam) and has a limited lifespan.
Romans 7 illustrates the condition of man given over to the evil desires of his flesh, struggling under conviction but refusing to ‘crucify his sinful indulgences.’ The reason he is ‘carnal sold under sin’ is his unwillingness to rule over it, not that something in his ‘flesh’ prevents him from doing so. The solution to his dilemma is found in the baptism of repentance, as described in Romans 6:4-6. The evil desires are crucified with Christ, and the body, given over to self-indulgence, is put away once and for all. Giving yourself over to the ‘captivity of sin’ is like selling yourself for nothing, as Isaiah 52:3 states, into the bondage of slavery. That is why, in the flesh (this terrible state of bondage), we cannot please God (Romans 8:8). Until this ‘evil desire’ for unlawful self-indulgence is removed through repentance, you can never fulfill the righteous requirements of the Law, as outlined in Romans 8:1-8, emphasis and clarification added by me.
In this section of scripture, I am going to add clarification by including comments in parentheses. “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit (of God). For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death (by obeying the Spirit of God, we live above the unlawful lusts of our flesh). For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh (flesh is a metaphor for unbridled passions and lusts), God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh (notice therefutation of thedogma of original sin and a sinful nature), and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh (our physical flesh is not the issue. The issue is our lust which we satisfy unlawfully): that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit (Christians fulfill thelaw). For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh (they obey the unlawful desires ofthe flesh); but they are that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded (bent on satisfying the lusts of the flesh) is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity (hatred) against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh (not our actual physical body, but those who gratify unlawful passions and lusts) cannot please God.”
“Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the flesh, ye shall live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. Romans 8:12-14. The life we now live on earth is a life wrapped in flesh and blood, which is neither sinful nor holy. Sin and righteousness are not substances. The apostle is not talking about that. He is using the word Flesh as a metaphor for carnal and sinful living, which is “to live after the flesh”. Gratifying the desires and lusts of the flesh is natural and good. And it is not sinful as long as those do not involve gratifying unlawful passions, desires and lusts. For instance, having intimate relations with your spouse is not immoral and is a great blessing. Having those relations outside of marriage or with another married person is unlawful and a sin. It is minding the flesh and hatred toward God.
The responsibility of leaving this state of bondage lies with us, achieved by making the right choice to rise above our sinful ways and be honest with the Father. The process of repentance (or godly sorrow) is meant to be our self-cleaning humility, where we cast aside all filthiness of the flesh and spirit and humbly receive the implanted Word that can save our souls. In James 1:21-22, the Spirit is present during this process, convicting, guiding, and drawing us toward the mercy seat of reconciliation. However, He will not dwell within us until the purging is complete and we become vessels suitable for the Master’s use (2 Timothy 2:21). Then, the washing, regeneration, and renewal of the Holy Spirit can occur. Otherwise, as is common in many Christian circles today, salvation often appears to be a myth, where the evil passions and desires of the flesh dominate every part of the Church. And few Christians are likely to become “doers of the word instead of hearers who are only deceiving themselves.” Until Christians accept their personal responsibility to obey God and do what is right, they will not find true reconciliation at His Mercy Seat.
This will require a level of diligence and obedience that exceeds anything currently known among most carnal Christians today, where human effort is forbidden. Of course, this doesn’t include their constant efforts to persuade all Christians that they will sin daily in thought, word, and deed until the day they die. In spreading that demonic idea, they put in every effort, and it is not forbidden.
Man can reason with God as a sinner, still unregenerate. In his natural state, he maintains a moral conscience that helps him tell right from wrong. Based on this, God speaks to him, inviting him to choose whether to obey or rebel.
Reasoning together with God
“Come now, and let us reason together, Says the Lord, Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool. If you are willing and obedient, You shall eat the good of the land; But if you refuse and rebel, You shall be devoured by the sword; For the mouth of the Lord has spoken. Isaiah 1:18-20
Reasoning with God requires a mind capable of understanding logical thought. In the Hebrew sense of figurative speech, reasoning with God means bringing something into the light to make it clear and obvious (literally defined as: ‘prove, decide, judge, rebuke, reprove, correct’). Unfortunately, most Bible preachers and pastors today do not share this understanding. They are strongly convinced by the myth of Original Sin that humans cannot understand the mind of God until their ‘sinful nature’ (Adamic nature, corrupted nature, carnal mind) is regenerated by the Spirit in some miraculous way in which God chooses, calls, and rebirths them. Only then can they begin a renewing process, guided by the Spirit, and will see through revelation what is true versus error.
Suppose man cannot understand Divine truth until his ‘supposed’ Adamic nature is regenerated. Why did the Prophets constantly warn him to repent, confess, amend his ways, turn from evil, and ‘REASON’ with God? If God and man have no common ground for communicating the core truths of repentance and faith, then all preaching (since Moses) is invalid, and God should apologize for asking man to do something he cannot do. The Scripture states that it takes a ‘willing and obedient’ heart to reason with God, as seen in 1 Chronicles 28:9 and Luke 8:15. Those who come to Him with honesty and humility will find mercy and reconciliation. Then the ‘Washing, Regeneration, and Renewing of the Holy Spirit’ will happen. (Titus 3:5)
You must come closer to God in your natural state, meaning as a living, breathing human being capable of rational thought and able to make sensible decisions between right and wrong. It’s your carnal mind, given over to sinful self-indulgences, that cannot discern anything spiritual. James 4:7-10 explains the process.
“Therefore, submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.”
The renewing of the mind begins when you clear it of all guile, deceit, uncleanness, and double-minded motives—presenting yourself as that ‘living sacrifice’, acceptable to the Lord. Do not conform to your worldly ways any longer, but be transformed in Christ (Romans 12:1-2). Then you can start to see things from a ‘spiritual perspective’ instead of trying to understand God in a ‘natural’ sense. The ‘natural’ mind (human wisdom, intellect, and understanding) cannot properly discern ‘spiritual’ matters. You must compare ‘spiritual things with spiritual’ (1 Corinthians 2:13-15). Since the Spirit speaks through the Scriptures, this means comparing Scripture with Scripture to gain a proper understanding of God’s truth.
Man, in his natural and often carnal mindset, must understand God through a filter called Systematic Theology, which allows him to develop a system of thought that defines God fairly based on his double-minded premise. This is how they conclude that a Spirit-filled, born-again person in Christ can be both spiritual and carnal, walk in darkness and light, produce both good and bad fruit, and sin yet not die. They tell people that man is incapable of understanding God’s mind in his ‘Natural, Carnal’ state, but then also convince him that he becomes ‘magically’ spiritual by ‘receiving’ Jesus and can now start to untangle the complex notions in their theology systems. Once caught in this trap, he is handed over to the wretched man’s profession of filthy rags and blinded to all things spiritual. What he really needed to do from the start was discard his ‘carnal’ self-indulgent ideas and focus on finding God, so he could understand spiritual matters and come to know the truth. (1 Timothy 2:4). According to Mike DeSario.
What has happened to the vast majority of professing Christians is that they have fallen prey to these false theologies and have never submitted to God on His terms. They remain separated from genuine spiritual discernment because they are still ‘DOUBLE-MINDED’. They possess everything that seems like religion—charity, human wisdom, and the intellectual ramblings of their pastors—but lack anything that resembles the Truth found in Scripture. The Word of God is described as living and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and it discerns the thoughts and intentions of the heart (Hebrews 4:12).
But to those born into the faith under the false assumption of inability, it’s just ‘ink on a page.’ How can the word of God be alive in them if they constantly disobey it? How can it sharply divide truth from error in their minds when they have never ‘cleansed themselves of all filthiness and overflow of wickedness and received with meekness the IMPLANTED Word that is able to save their souls (James 1:21)? They wait for God to do the cleaning, believing they were saved in their sinful state of lust because they were born sinners. God, not they, does the cleansing.
As before, the ‘double-mindedness’ persists, so such a person can ‘receive nothing from God’ (James 1:8). They have never ‘reasoned with God’ to begin with, but instead rationalized with men. Many are prideful with earthly wisdom and spread their vain imaginings widely, deceiving others. They like to appear as if they have a ‘special anointing from the spirit,’ as though God is revealing these deeper spiritual truths to them. If others want to experience it, they must also submit to this spirit and be taught in the same way. It seems the common thread among these people is that they remain under the ‘spirit of error’—which includes age-old theologies, teachings, invented doctrines, and fallacies—and believe that this mixture of nonsense is sound spiritual guidance, according to Mike D.
They seldom accept the Word of God for instruction, reproof, correction, and doctrine. Therefore (as the scripture states) ‘This Wisdom does not come from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic, self-seeking, and confusing.’
It sounds very harsh, but isn’t it demonic to tell people that they cannot reason with God as a living, breathing human being capable of making a rational choice to diligently seek His mercy through repentance? And to assume that God must first ‘regenerate’ his mind (meaning send the Spirit to indwell), while they remain in rebellion, double-minded, and unpurified in heart, is reversing the process God designed to redeem them from the corruption of sin. These false assumptions are all based on man-originated theology, not on the truth. Man is not born ‘dead in his sins, powerless to respond to God’s call, so morally depraved he cannot do anything right or acceptable in God’s sight.’ Carnal men invented these concepts to absolve themselves of the responsibility to seek God and obey Him. They have deceived you into believing that man, by simply obeying God’s commands and doing what He has said, is trying to ‘save himself and boast in God’s face that he has the ability within to follow Christ.’ Many Christians fail to understand that meeting the conditions of salvation does not mean we have earned it.
Most of humanity, including Christians, remains in a perpetual state of bewilderment toward God because of these long-standing errors invented by men. They struggle through the religious chaos, mystified by the grandiose words of emptiness emanating from the pulpit across the land. The simplicity that is in Christ has been discarded long ago. Hardened into a state of carnality by their refusal to purify their minds, their souls become hollow and void of spiritual life. While they sit idly by, waiting for God’s redemption, the voice of reason grows ever dimmer in their ears, and the likelihood of obedience diminishes. And the probability of salvation diminishes with each passing day.
We all have a nature, and God aims to purify it. God will guide us and provide the help we need, but He won’t do it for us if we refuse to repent of our sins. Because Christians have been conditioned to believe they depend entirely on God and that they cannot save themselves, they often do nothing. They leave everything to God, even though that purification rarely happens in this life. Christians are taught to believe they will sin in thought, word, and deed every day they live. Strict Calvinists believe exactly that. However, that is not what common sense, reason, and the Word of God declare.
Evangelical leaders today have persuaded almost every Christian that the worst belief a believer can hold is that they can be saved from their sins, meaning stopping their sinning. Their gospel is salvation now and ongoing permission to sin. Anyone who claims they can repent of all sin is seen as a lunatic and a heretic. They should be rebuked and rejected for causing division within the body of Christ. They believe that the only true Christian is the carnal Christian, who dishonors Christ by living a fleshly life. Could Satan have come up with a better way to expand his kingdom?
