^.

Thesis #7 of 95 – Adam is mankind’s federal head^note#1 and the type of those Paul describes as “dead” (in trespasses and sins) due to the malign influence of the procreated vessel inhabited by the soul whose moral instincts oppose that of the God-given spirit. Cain is effectively the type of the twice dead in whom both flesh and spirit have died to God so as to be united in evil

BIBLICAL REFERENCES

1Cor15:22 “For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive”

 Jude12 “These are spots in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves. They are clouds without water, carried about[a] by the winds; late autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots”.

COMMENTS

A key motif running through The Little Book of Providence and therefore apparent within these 95 theses is an affirmation of trichotomy against duality (3 not 2). That starts with the Godhead as most Christians would agree, but equally applies to soteriology/spirituality (see below), anthropology (body, soul and spirit) and the ongoing witness to God’s saving work on earth (Spirit, water and blood – 1Jn5:8). In Romans7, Paul speaks of an inner tension between the moral impulses of the flesh (“the body of this death”) and the spirit or inner man. Only those who come to know Christ as Saviour, being empowered by the Spirit are able to overcome this so as to experience spiritual Life even whilst in mortal flesh (Rom7:25; Jn6:53).

However (and as ever), there is a third category: In Jude’s language they are the twice dead, devoid of fruit (without any compassion, moral integrity or respect for the truth), having been “pulled up at the roots”. Such, like Cain, have given in to evil and the Evil One. Their fleshly mind like everyone else’s is dead (in the Pauline sense) but their spirit (encompassing conscience) is also dead or at least non-functional such that the material and spiritual components of the person are no longer in tension. Dead (flesh) versus dead (spirit) results in a chilling serenity in which the soul is unhindered in its response to the instincts of the flesh. Such a soul may satisfy its worldly, carnal appetite by any means.

Unlike all who are to be liberated as the children of God (Rom8:19-23), these desolate ones have no Pauline “inner struggle” for what is dead does not struggle. They therefore may be cool, calm and at peace with themselves as they pursue evil. This is death of the soul; this is total depravity, and these are the children of hell (Mt23:15). They are the wicked and godless who must be despatched at the renaissance, for they (i.e. their spirits) were not planted by God but by His enemy (Mt13:25 & 15:13). This pertains to the mystery of providential evil, considered more fully in chapters six and seven of The Little Book.

NOTE#1 “Federal” in the sense that all mankind inherits the effects of Adam’s sin (Paul’s “body of this death”) as a result of which we ourselves sin. We are  not personally deemed guilty of Adam’s disobedience in Eden, as the likes of Augustine and Calvin taught. There is a substantial difference, especially if one is unbaptized and dies in infancy. There is no need, as Augustine insisted, that such unfortunate infants should “experience mild sensual pain throughout eternity” to pay for Adam’s guilt. Even my (or rather Paul’s) amelioration may still  appear harsh to many. Should you read through my 95 theses (especially the last few), you should perceive that it is actually  good news – better than if Adam had never sinned.