What is “federal headship”?

Question: I really enjoy the content you put out. Very straight and to the point. What do Calvinists mean when they talk about “federal headship?” I’ve heard someone mention this in a podcast in an episode on Calvinism. I had not heard the expression until listening to the podcast. Answer: Calvinists believe that Adam’s sin…

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Calvinism in Psalm 51?

by Matthew W. Bassford During my time as a preacher, I studied with people from a wide variety of religious backgrounds. Of them all, the people who knew their Bibles best were unquestionably the conservative Calvinists. They approached the Scriptures with a different perspective than ours, but the most devoted of them spend as much…

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Does God Create Sinners?

by Jerral Kay Photo by Jonathan Borba on Unsplash Catholics and Protestants teach that God creates sinners. They say that all babies are born totally depraved, wicked from birth. The Bible does not teach this. Jesus was born totally human, coming from a sinful mother, and according to their doctrine, all humans inherit sin from…

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How is it that we don’t suffer for the sins of Adam?

Question: Hello, I am a baptized believer. I often use your website, so a big thanks to you all for the great work being done. I have one question about the doctrine of the sin of Adam. Mostly we hear that we do not suffer for the sin of the father. However, Adam sinned and…

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How did sin spread if it was not inherent in men?

Question: Hello! I agree with your belief that the Bible does not speak of inheriting a “sin nature” from Adam. If you wrote your own version of the Bible, how would you translate Romans 5:12? Or, can you explain how death “spread” to all men, since it’s our own personal sin that brings death? How…

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Infant Baptism

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/InfantBaptism.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Romans 7:7-25 I.          Historians will admit that infant baptism did not appear in the church until the second or third century              A.         Roman Catholics                           1.          “There is no express mention of the baptism of infants in the New Testament” [Question Box, page 23].                           2.          “It is difficult to give strict proof from the…

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I liked your article on whether sin is inherited from Adam

Question: Dear Minister, I liked your article on whether sin is inherited from Adam. I have been reading Moody’s Handbook of Theology and found the arguments by many theologians on this issue, including Calvin, to be questionable at best. Thanks for your post. Answer: You’re welcome. I’m glad you found it useful.

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Original Sin

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/OriginalSin.mp3 by Ed Myers

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Since man is created in God’s image, how can he have a sinful nature?

Question: Since we were created by God and in His image, how is it possible that we have a sinful nature? Answer: The Bible doesn’t use the phrase “sinful nature.” It is the New International Version that substitutes “sinful nature” for the word “flesh” in many places. In doing so, it introduces a concept not…

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You make no attempt to understand the Salvation Army

Question: I just read with much displeasure the article, “Can Christians Help Support the Salvation Army?” I am admittedly somewhat biased as a third-generation Salvationist, but I found your posting quite misleading. It makes no attempt to understand the Salvation Army doctrines and looks simply to highlight doctrinal differences with other denominations. A few points…

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Aren’t men born sinful?

Question: I’m just emailing about a little something I found in an article of yours. It’s answering a question about where the Word talks about all men being equal. Not to be picky, but it says in the article we are all born without sin, which isn’t true. One of the basic concepts of Christianity, as…

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How could Jesus be sinless when he was born of Mary?

Question: As Mary was the mother of Jesus, she was also, like all of us, a descendant of Adam and Eve. Even though Mary was a virgin, she was in human flesh as Adam and Eve and of sin nature. How can it be said Jesus was without sin after having come into the world…

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Four Facts Fatal to Original Sin

by Larry Ray Hafley via Guardian of Truth; December 6, 1984; Vol. XXVIII, No. 23; pp. 713, 716 The doctrine of original or Adamic sin states that every person is born in sin. Because of Adam’s sin, all men are corrupt and guilty of sin at birth. Note the testimony of the Philadelphia Confession of Faith:…

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Was David a Sinner at Birth?

by Jimmy Mickells “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me” (Psalm 51:5). Those who teach and try to prove that one inherits the sin of Adam use this verse as a proof text. Does it really say that David was born a sinner because of what Adam did…

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Are Babies Born Sinners?

Clem Thurman via Gospel Minutes, Vol. 57, No. 5, Feb. 7, 2008. QUESTION: I have a friend that believes that all babies are born into the world as sinners because of Adam’s sin. Could you please discuss this for me? ANSWER: The idea of the “original sin” of Adam being passed on to all mankind is…

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Could you explain the different translations of Psalm 51:5 in detail?

Question: Could you explain the difference between the NIV and the rest of the versions concerning Psalms 51:5? In detail, if you can. The NIV seems to be saying we are born sinful, while the rest indicates we are born into a sinful world. I understand the difference but I have a hard time explaining…

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Could you clarify why you say we don’t inherit Adam’s sin?

Question: Hello. I am a Christian, not a Catholic, and have been very pleased with your website where you lay things out very clearly and precisely. Thank you for providing such a resource to the world. I especially enjoyed the article on the Epistle to Laodicea. I was reading this sermon on Catholicism. I find…

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Why do you teach that men are born without sin?

Question: I am perplexed by the fact that you can expound upon the idea that all man is born sinless. I am afraid that you need to complete the chapter in Ezekiel 18 – where God says He invites us all to repent, after which He can give us the Holy Spirit which provides us with…

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Do we inherit sin, but do not inherit the punishment?

Question: In light of Ezekiel 18:20, do you feel we are products of our fathers? Can the sin nature be passed down from our fathers to us? I realize there is no punishment from the sin nature of our fathers to us, but the possibility is always there, is it not? Also genetically we are…

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Why did Catholicism start and when did it happen?

Question: Why did the religion Catholicism start and what year did Catholicism start? Answer: Why Catholicism started is fairly straightforward. Man has a difficult time leaving something alone. There is a strong desire to modify things with the goal of “improving” things. This tendency is encouraged by Satan who wants to destroy the works of…

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Where in the Bible does it say we inherit the nature to sin?

Question: Where in the Bible does it say that we only inherit the nature to sin and not the original sin? Answer: Don’t you just love questions that want you to choose between two possibilities, but neither one is correct? The concept of man inheriting the original sin of Adam was espoused every early on…

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What proof is there that Mary was born without sin?

Question: What proof is there that Mary was born without sin? Answer: Every person in the world is born without sin. Catholicism and most forms of Protestantism teach that Adam and Eve’s fall brought sin into the world and that sin is passed down from generation to generation. This causes them a bit of difficulty.…

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What is wrong with Catholicism?

Question: What is the difference between Catholicism and Christianity? What is wrong with the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church? Answer: This is a large subject on which many books have been written. I will not be able to address this question in detail, but perhaps giving an overview will help. Catholicism has its roots…

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What happens to children when they die?

Question: What happens to children when they die? Answer: The Bible states that children go to heaven when they die. Take a look at this example: “So Nathan went to his house. Then the LORD struck the child that Uriah’s widow bore to David, so that he was very sick. David therefore inquired of God…

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