I.  Total Hereditary Depravity: that the babies inherit the sin of Adam and are depraved of responding to the Gospel of Christ.

A.  Some world religions that teach this doctrine today:

1.  Presbyterians – “Our first parents, being seduced by the subtlety and temptation of Satan, sinned in eating the forbidden fruit. This their sin, God was pleased, according to his wise and holy counsel, to permit, having purposed to order it to his own glory. By this sin they fell from their original righteousness and communion with God, and so became dead in sin, and wholly defiled in all the faculties and parts of the soul and body. They being the root of all mankind, the guilt of this sin was imputed and the same death in sin and corrupted nature conveyed to all their posterity descending from them by ordinary generation. From this original corruption, whereby we are utterly indisposed, disabled, and made opposite to all good, and wholly inclined to all evil, do proceed all actual transgressions."
2.  Roman Catholics – “Council of Trent 1545-1563: "Adam's first sin has been transmitted to all his descendants". Questions of Catholics Answered by W. Hebst: "Yes, every child born into this world has the guilt of original sin upon his soul. Original sin is the sin that we inherit from our first parents. Original sin excludes us from heaven unless forgiven. It is forgiven only by baptism, hence when an unbaptized baby dies, it can not enter the kingdom of God." 
3.  Lutherans - Augsburg confession Article 2: "It is also taught among us that since the fall of Adam all men who are born according to the course of nature are conceived and born in sin. That is, all men are full of evil lust and inclination from their mother's womb and are unable by nature to have true fear of God and true faith in God. Moreover, this inborn sickness and hereditary sin is truly sin and condemns to the eternal wrath of God all whose who are not born again through baptism and the Holy Spirit."
4.  Methodist – “Methodist Discipline: (Since) "infants are guilty of original sin, then they are proper subjects of baptism, seeing in the ordinary way, they cannot be saved unless this be washed away by baptism. It has already been proved that this original sin cleaves to every child of man, and hereby they are children of wrath and liable to eternal damnation."

B.  What we should have noticed in the quotes we looked at is that they have creeds.  Is this right?  (I Peter 4:11) “If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.”
C.  What the Bible teaches about “inherited sin”

1.  Sin is breaking God’s Law I John 3:4
2.  Sin is not passed on Ezekiel 18:20
3.  You are pure until you sin Ezekiel 28:15
4.  Man causes himself to be a sinner Ecclesiastes 7:29 “Lo, this only have I found, that God hath made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions.”
5.  Sin has do be done by someone realizing right and wrong James 4:17 “Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.” 
6.  Can a baby sin?  God says that we are to become as these little children not little sinners Matthew 18:3.

D.  Out of this doctrine comes infant baptism.

1.  Out of nine conversion examples in the book of Acts not one time was a baby converted (Acts 2:36-41, Acts 8:5-13, Acts 8:26-39, Acts 9:1-20, Acts 10:44-48, Acts 16:13-15, Acts 16:23-34, Acts 18:8, and Acts 19:1-7).

a.  Can a baby believe in God?  You cannot separate belief from baptism (Mark 16:15-16).

A.  The Jehovah’s Witnesses hold that 144,000 are predestined.

1.  The Presbyterian Church teaches - "God from all eternity did by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will freely and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass ... By the decree of God, for the manifestation of his glory, some men and angels are predestinated unto life, and others foreordained to everlasting death. These angels and men, thus predestinated and foreordained, are particularly and unchangeably designed; and their number is so certain and definite that it cannot be either increased or diminished." (The Confession of Faith of the Presbyterian Church, U.S.A., from chapter 111, entitled "Of God's Eternal Decree")

B.  The Bible teaches:

1.  God is no respecter of persons Acts 10:34, Romans 2:11, and I Peter 1:17
2.  If Christians are predestined why worry about the Devil I Peter 5:8?

a.  If Christians could not do anything to change their condition and election then Romans 3:23 and 6:23 do not apply.

***SEE ALSO POINTs THREE and FIVE****

A.  The Presbyterian Church – “Christ’s redeeming work was intended to save the elect only end actually secured salvation for them ... In addition to putting away the sins of His people, Christ’s redemption secured everything necessary for their salvation, including faith, which united them to Him. The gift of faith is infallibly applied by the Spirit to all for whom Christ died, thereby guaranteeing their salvation.” (David N. Steele, Curtis C. Thomas; The Five Points of Calvinism, Defined, Defended, Documented: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing Co., 1975, p. 1 7)”
B.  The Bible teaches:

1.  Christ died for the ungodly Romans 5:6
2.  God did not elect he wants all men to be saved I Timothy 2:3-4 and II Peter 3:9.
a.  Unfortunately the majority will reject Matthew 7:13-14.
3.  Christ said ANY MAN – John 6:51
4.  It was the whole world Christ died for John 3:16, II Corinthians 5:19, and I John 2:1-2.

a.  It is the whole world the saving Gospel is to be taken to Matthew 28:19 and Mark 16:15-16.

5.  Christ did not come to save the saved he came for the lost Luke 19:10.

IV.  Irresistible Grace: God sends the Holy Spirit, only to those on the saved list, which removes their depraved nature inherited from Adam and creates within them a saving faith in Christ. The Holy Spirit thereafter guides them directly to understand and correctly interpret the Bible. 

A.  “Although the general outward call of the dispel can be, and often is, rejected, the special inward call of the Spirit never fails to result in the conversion of those to whom it is made. This special call is not made to all sinners but is issued to the elect only’ The Spirit is in no way dependent upon their help or cooperation for success in His work of bringing them to Christ. It is for this reason that Calvinists speak of the Spirit’s call and of God’s grace in saving sinners as being ‘efficacious,’ ‘invincible,’ or ‘irresistible.’ For the grace which the Holy Spirit extends to the elect cannot be thwarted or refused, it never fails to bring them to true faith in Christ.” (David N. Steele, Curtis C. Thomas, The Five Points of Calvinism, Defined, Defended, Documented: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing Co., 1975, p.49)”
B.  The Bible teaches:

1.  The Spirit can be resisted Acts 7:51
2.  It is the word and preaching that pricks the heart and leads men to know what God desires Acts 2:36-41

a.  See also: Romans 10:14-17

A.  Two Baptist preachers teaching this doctrine (two of many):

1.  Sam Morris, Baptist preacher in Stamford, TX wrote an article entitled, "Do A Christian's sins damn his souls"? Here is a quote from the article: "We take the position that a Christian's sins do not damn his soul. The way a Christian lives, what he says, his character, his conduct, or his attitude toward other people have nothing whatever to do with the salvation of his souls...And all the sins he may commit from murder to idolatry will not make his soul in any more danger.
2.  Billy Graham – Baptist preacher “When you receive Christ into your heart you become a child of God, and have the privilege of talking to Him in prayer at any time about anything. The Christian life is a personal relationship to God through Jesus Christ. And best of all, it is a relationship that will last for all eternity.  You cannot end this relationship.  Once you have accepted Christ you are his forevermore.” -www.billygraham.org

B.  The Bible teaches:

1. We can fall from Grace:

a.  Hebrews 10:38-39
b.  Romans 6:1-2
c.  Galatians 5:4
d.  Galatians 6:7-8
e.  I Corinthians 9:27
f.  I Corinthians 10:12
g.  II Peter 2:20-22
h.  Revelation 2:1-7
i.  Revelation 2:12-17
j.  Revelation 2:18-28
l.  Revelation 3:1-6
m.  Revelation 3:14-21

Copyright 2001 by Brian Yeager may be reproducted for non-commercial purposes at no cost to others.