Post by Jesse Morrell on Jan 27, 2010 11:45:33 GMT -5
Physical death can't always be a punishment, since animals die and they never sinned, babies die and they haven’t sinned, and Christians die and they have been saved from punishment. Death is a punishment for the wicked but a reward for the righteous, because the former goes to hell but the latter goes to heaven...
There are three types of death: physical, spiritual, and eternal. Physical death is a consequence of Adam's sin, spiritual death is a consequence of our sin, and eternal death is the punishment for our sin.
Physical death in Adam is not a punishment for our wickedness, anymore that physical life in Christ is a reward for our righteousness. The resurrection is a consequence of the atonement, just as death was a consequence of Adam's sin.
If the head of a home is fired by his employer for his bad work, his whole family suffers from the lose of income. The employer is not punishing the family for the bad work of the father, but the family is suffering the natural consequences of the fathers bad work.
Likewise, Adam is the head of our race. He was kicked out of his employment in the Garden where the tree of life was. Now the whole family of mankind suffers from this lose. God is not punishing all of mankind for Adam's sin, but all of mankind is suffering the natural consequences of Adam's sin.
When God placed Adam in the Garden, He told him that he could eat of any tree that was in the Garden except for the tree of knowledge (Gen. 2:16-17). This means that man was allowed to eat from the tree of life. If man was created necessarily immortal, there would be no reason for the tree of life to be in the Garden. But the tree of life was in the Garden and it must have been a reason for this, it must be that Adam was created mortal, or at least conditionally immortal. So long as Adam continued to obey God, He would be allowed to continue to eat from the tree of life and therefore continue to live. His immortality was conditional upon his continued obedience. Food is sustenance which we all consume to sustain our body, but the fruit of the tree of life is the missing ingredient that would perfectly and forever sustain life. Once Adam sinned, He was cut off from this life sustaining sustenance (Gen. 3:22). As a natural consequence of Adam’s sin, we all suffer physical death. Even innocent infants suffer physical death as victims of Adam’s sin.
Irenaeus said, “By means of our first parents, we were all brought into bondage by being made subject to death.” (c.180, A Dictionary of Early Christian Beliefs by David Bercot, p. 271, published by Hendrickson Publishers)
Dr. Wiggers said, "Here it is to be remarked that, with the fathers [Early Church Fathers before Augustine], as Erasmus has suggested, the expression to die or to die in Adam, is synonymous with being driven out of Paradise, because they who were driven out of Paradise, were no more allowed to eat of the fruit of the tree of life. At least this is the common meaning. For us to have died in Adam, is nothing else than what Methodius, in a fragment in Epiphanius (Haer. 64), thus expresses, "We were driven out of Paradise in the first father." (Historical Presentation of Augustinianism and Pelagianism, pg 399-400)
Gordon C. Olson said, "The tree of life that was doubtless endowed with a mysterious ability to sustain perfect bodily health, without the slightest decay or deterioration” (Essentials of Salvation,.pg.82) He also said, “The ‘tree of life’ in the midst of the most pleasant garden where man was invited to dwell must be suggestive of something. I suggest that it may have been the means of keeping man’s physical body and soul in vigor and to prevent decay and death. This is suggested also in Ge 3:24, where man is prevented from taking of the tree of life after the fall. In vs 22, the reason is stated, ‘lest he…eat and live forever.” Not, presumably, that if he had eaten one time from it, he would have lived forever, but lest he keep on eating from it and thus keep on living forever.” Gordon Olson (The Foreknowledge of God, pg 25)
It is very worth noting that the "wages of sin is death" is contrasted with "eternal life" (Rom. 6:23). Therefore the death spoken of is eternal death. Eternal death is the punishment for our sin. the "wages of sin is death" cannot be talking about physical death, because Christians have been saved from the wages of their sin and yet they still physically die.
Here is a logical syllogism:
- Jesus saved us from the punishment for our sins
- Jesus saved us from eternal death, not from physically dying
- Therefore eternal death is the punishment for our sins
Charles Finney wrote, "If natural death be the penalty of God's law, the righteous, who are forgiven, should not die a natural death... If natural death be the penalty of God's law, there is no such thing as forgiveness, but all must actually endure the penalty." He went on to say, "the penal sanction of the law of God is endless death, or that state of endless suffering..." (Finney's Systematic Theology, published by Bethany House, p. 203-204)
The wicked “shall go away into everlasting punishment…” (Matt. 25:46). “Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power” (2 Thes. 1:9). Ray Comfort said, “What then is the punishment for sin? It is everlasting damnation.” (God Doesn’t Believe in Atheists, published by Bridge-Logos, p. 120)
There are three types of death: physical, spiritual, and eternal. Physical death is a consequence of Adam's sin, spiritual death is a consequence of our sin, and eternal death is the punishment for our sin.
Physical death in Adam is not a punishment for our wickedness, anymore that physical life in Christ is a reward for our righteousness. The resurrection is a consequence of the atonement, just as death was a consequence of Adam's sin.
If the head of a home is fired by his employer for his bad work, his whole family suffers from the lose of income. The employer is not punishing the family for the bad work of the father, but the family is suffering the natural consequences of the fathers bad work.
Likewise, Adam is the head of our race. He was kicked out of his employment in the Garden where the tree of life was. Now the whole family of mankind suffers from this lose. God is not punishing all of mankind for Adam's sin, but all of mankind is suffering the natural consequences of Adam's sin.
When God placed Adam in the Garden, He told him that he could eat of any tree that was in the Garden except for the tree of knowledge (Gen. 2:16-17). This means that man was allowed to eat from the tree of life. If man was created necessarily immortal, there would be no reason for the tree of life to be in the Garden. But the tree of life was in the Garden and it must have been a reason for this, it must be that Adam was created mortal, or at least conditionally immortal. So long as Adam continued to obey God, He would be allowed to continue to eat from the tree of life and therefore continue to live. His immortality was conditional upon his continued obedience. Food is sustenance which we all consume to sustain our body, but the fruit of the tree of life is the missing ingredient that would perfectly and forever sustain life. Once Adam sinned, He was cut off from this life sustaining sustenance (Gen. 3:22). As a natural consequence of Adam’s sin, we all suffer physical death. Even innocent infants suffer physical death as victims of Adam’s sin.
Irenaeus said, “By means of our first parents, we were all brought into bondage by being made subject to death.” (c.180, A Dictionary of Early Christian Beliefs by David Bercot, p. 271, published by Hendrickson Publishers)
Dr. Wiggers said, "Here it is to be remarked that, with the fathers [Early Church Fathers before Augustine], as Erasmus has suggested, the expression to die or to die in Adam, is synonymous with being driven out of Paradise, because they who were driven out of Paradise, were no more allowed to eat of the fruit of the tree of life. At least this is the common meaning. For us to have died in Adam, is nothing else than what Methodius, in a fragment in Epiphanius (Haer. 64), thus expresses, "We were driven out of Paradise in the first father." (Historical Presentation of Augustinianism and Pelagianism, pg 399-400)
Gordon C. Olson said, "The tree of life that was doubtless endowed with a mysterious ability to sustain perfect bodily health, without the slightest decay or deterioration” (Essentials of Salvation,.pg.82) He also said, “The ‘tree of life’ in the midst of the most pleasant garden where man was invited to dwell must be suggestive of something. I suggest that it may have been the means of keeping man’s physical body and soul in vigor and to prevent decay and death. This is suggested also in Ge 3:24, where man is prevented from taking of the tree of life after the fall. In vs 22, the reason is stated, ‘lest he…eat and live forever.” Not, presumably, that if he had eaten one time from it, he would have lived forever, but lest he keep on eating from it and thus keep on living forever.” Gordon Olson (The Foreknowledge of God, pg 25)
It is very worth noting that the "wages of sin is death" is contrasted with "eternal life" (Rom. 6:23). Therefore the death spoken of is eternal death. Eternal death is the punishment for our sin. the "wages of sin is death" cannot be talking about physical death, because Christians have been saved from the wages of their sin and yet they still physically die.
Here is a logical syllogism:
- Jesus saved us from the punishment for our sins
- Jesus saved us from eternal death, not from physically dying
- Therefore eternal death is the punishment for our sins
Charles Finney wrote, "If natural death be the penalty of God's law, the righteous, who are forgiven, should not die a natural death... If natural death be the penalty of God's law, there is no such thing as forgiveness, but all must actually endure the penalty." He went on to say, "the penal sanction of the law of God is endless death, or that state of endless suffering..." (Finney's Systematic Theology, published by Bethany House, p. 203-204)
The wicked “shall go away into everlasting punishment…” (Matt. 25:46). “Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power” (2 Thes. 1:9). Ray Comfort said, “What then is the punishment for sin? It is everlasting damnation.” (God Doesn’t Believe in Atheists, published by Bridge-Logos, p. 120)