sojourner said:
And yet, God breathed God's Spirit into us in creation...
I don't believe we are born "spiritually dead."
Humanity was made complete in Christ. To live into that completeness is to be born again. IMO. For what it's worth.
Yes, Adam was born 'spiritually alive', as was Eve. But when they ate of the tree, they died just as God said, yet, not physically, but they died spiritually. All who came after Adam were born 'spiritually dead'. This is exactly what the Bible teaches.
2:16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 2:17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it:
for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
(King James Bible, Genesis)
3:2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: 3:3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said,
Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
(King James Bible, Genesis)
5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: 5:13 (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law.
5:14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.
5:15 But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.
5:16 And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification.
5:17 For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.) 5:18
Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.
5:19 For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.
(King James Bible, Romans)
2:1
And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
(King James Bible, Ephesians)
2:13
And you, being dead
in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;
(King James Bible, Colossians)
We see from these verses that Adam and Eve did not die physically when they ate the fruit, but they did die that day spiritually, and began to die physically, too. Adam passed this to all men, and as the verses above say, by Adam all sin, but by Jesus many will be made righteous, and ine Ephesians and Colossians (and others) it says we who WERE DEAD, were quickened, (made alive). See, we WERE DEAD, not physically, but spiritually, and are now made alive spiritually, the moment we placed our trust in Jesus to save us.
