Pastor John,
You wrote in the book, God Had a Son before Mary Did*, “Adam and Eve were not made sinful by eating the forbidden fruit and obtaining ‘the knowledge of good and evil’ (Gen. 2:16–17; 3:6–7, 22). They ate the fruit and obtained that knowledge because they had already become sinful. Sin is a matter of the heart, and their choice to disobey God was the sin.”
That makes me think of Judas. What difference did it make to God if Judas returned the 30 pieces of silver? It was a matter of the heart.
Wow! What a thought!
“Children, in their innocence, are in some measure clean before God. Jesus even said that we must become like innocent children if we hope to ever see God’s kingdom (Mt. 18:1–3). But when young children in Israel came of age and learned from the law what sin was, they realized their guiltiness before God and “died” to their innocence. Paul described how this happened to him:
Romans 7
9.I was alive without the law once, but when the commandment came, sin came alive and I died.
10.And then, the very commandment that was ordained for life was found by me to be for death.”
Beth D.
* Going to Jesus.com – God Had A Son Before Mary Did