1. Protology and How We Messed Things Up

2. In the beginning GOD…

3. We believe that God created the universe (Genesis 1:1) and everything in it (Psalm 24:1-2) out of nothing/ex nihilo (Hebrews 11:3, Hebrews 1:2, John 1:1-3). Christians believe in one foundational truth… God. From that foundational truth everything else makes sense. Atheists suppress the truth about God and thus have to come up with absurd explanations for everything else. (Paraphrase from John MacArthur)

4. We believe that God created man in his own image (Genesis 1:27) in an instant, as He did the rest of creation, thus negating the “scientific” theory of evolution. The first two human beings, Adam (Genesis 2:20) and Eve (Genesis 3:20), were created in the image of God and were morally upright, and “very good,” like the rest of creation (Genesis 1:31). Mutable: not in a fixed state of righteousness, but capable of sinning “…having the law of God written in their hearts, and the power to fulfill it, and yet under the possibility of transgressing, being left to the liberty of their own will, which was subject to change.” (The Baptist Confession of Faith of 1689 ch.4 p.14 “Of Creation”)

5. The Fall of Man, Sin, and the Result

6. However, by their own wills (instead of obeying God)(Genesis 2:17) they chose to listen to Satan and as a result sinned against God by eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 3:6). Consequently, Adam and Eve plunged themselves and all of humanity into sin and death, having fallen from their original innocence and communion with God (Genesis 3:7-8, Romans 5:12, 1 Corinthians 15:21).

7. Because Adam is the head of the human race, his fall and spiritual death became the fall and spiritual death of every single human being (Romans 5:12). We have all now inherited a disease that will ultimately kill us (Genesis 3:19), the disease of sin (Romans 5:12- 19). Jesus is the 2 nd Adam that does what the 1 st Adam failed to do and rescues his people from the curse.

8. Having inherited this sin disease, otherwise known as “original sin,” all human beings are now corrupt by nature (Ephesians 2:2-3), enslaved (Romans 6:16, 20), and dead in sin (Ephesians 2:1) even from their conception (Psalm 51:5).

9. As a result, we are totally depraved and morally unable to please God apart from His grace (1 Corinthians 2:14, Romans 8:7-8, Deuteronomy 29:4), having no ability to perform any truly righteous deed in His sight. (Isaiah 64:6) Additionally, we are by nature children of God’s wrath (Ephesians 2:3) and remain his enemies until rescued by Christ (Romans 5:10).

10. Furthermore, because of our spiritually dead condition apart from Christ (Ephesians 2:1), we are powerless to and completely incapable of coming to Christ on our own (Romans 3:10-11). Illustration: The Starved Lion God Himself must draw us. (John 6:44) The Miracle of Regeneration

11. Not only was mankind affected by sin, but the entire creation now bears the curse of man’s sin (Genesis 3:14, 17-18). It is for this reason that the creation is presently plagued by sickness, decay, tragedy, and loss and longs for the day when it too, will be redeemed (Romans 8:20-22, Revelation 22:3). “No longer will there be anything accursed…”