Universal Sin and Moral Ruin

In our last post on "Righteousness and Law", we saw that people across cultures share a deep sense of personal sin and a fearful awareness of punishment beyond death. Alongside this is another powerful experience: the feeling of being morally trapped. We sense what is right, we even approve of it — but something within us holds us back. It is like a chain we cannot break. When we look honestly at ourselves, we find this inner condemnation and bondage clearly present in our own hearts. And when we look outward, we see the same reality vividly reflected throughout human literature.

This same understanding of the human moral condition appears clearly in the letters of Paul. In Romans, Paul pauses his explanation of the Gospel to give a careful description of humanity’s condition apart from it — both Gentiles and Jews alike. In Romans 1:18–32, he explains that God made Himself known to the Gentiles through creation, so that they would have no excuse for their sin. Their moral collapse, he says, shows God’s righteous anger against them for turning away from that revelation and embracing idolatry instead.

The Visible Reveals the Invisible Beyond and Above It

The first thing that naturally draws human attention is the visible world around us. It is filled with an endless variety of things — lifeless and living, irrational and rational. Many of these things are beautiful in a way that delights us; others show such clear usefulness and purpose that they stir deep admiration. The more closely we observe this world, the more our sense of wonder grows. Everywhere we look, we find objects that reward careful and thoughtful study.

This complexity, combined with the constant change we see in the universe, strongly suggests — indeed, almost forces us to conclude — that the universe is not self-existent, but derived. And so we naturally ask: Where did this astonishing panorama come from — this world that often fills us with such delight?

Among the natural objects that no human hand has made, we also notice the works of human beings. And when we look at these works, we see a clear pattern: the best of them are always the result of deliberate design. Before a great work exists outwardly, it exists first as an idea in the mind. Often that idea develops gradually before it is ever brought into reality. We see this in the many sketches that lead up to a great painting, or in the slowly refined plan behind a major literary work. Humanity’s finest achievements are always the result of careful thought combined with patient effort. And in every case, the creator is far greater than the creation. When we admire a painting, what we are really admiring is the painter.