Sin entered the world through one man, Adam, and death entered with it.
Romans 5:12 says that by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin, and that death passed upon all men. Les Feldick teaches that Adam, not Eve, was the federal head of the human race, so everyone inherits his fallen nature. That inherited nature is the singular 'sin' that produces the plural 'sins' we commit.
Romans 5:12 — This is the verse Paul uses to state plainly that sin and death came into the world by one man, Adam.
Genesis 3:6 — This verse records the actual event of the first sin, when Eve ate and gave the fruit to Adam, and he ate.
Romans 3:23 — This verse shows the universal consequence of Adam's fall: all have sinned.
The Bible answers this question most directly in Romans 5:12: 'Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.' This verse places the entrance of sin with one man, Adam, and links death immediately to sin. Paul reinforces the universal result in Romans 3:23: 'For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.' The Genesis record shows the event itself: Eve saw the tree was good for food, she took the fruit, ate, and gave it also to her husband, and Adam ate.
Les Feldick emphasizes that Adam, not Eve, was the federal head of the human race. Because Eve was taken out of Adam, the whole human race — including Eve — inherits its sin nature through Adam. Sin came on the human race by way of Adam, even though Eve ate first. The singular word 'sin' (S-I-N) in Romans refers to the old Adamic nature every person is born with; the plural 'sins' are the acts that old nature produces. People are therefore not sinners primarily because of things they do; they are sinners because they are children of Adam. As children of Adam, the old Adam in us naturally says the opposite of whatever God commands. Les also points to Romans 5:12, noting the text says 'by one man' — not by two people — sin entered the world, and it was then that death entered creation.
Les teaches that Adam was the federal head of the human race. Because Eve came out of Adam, everyone, including Eve, comes from Adam's line, and the human race did not come under sin by virtue of Eve even though she ate first. Instead, sin came on the whole human race by way of Adam, and since all of us are in Adam, we all inherit the sin nature. As Les puts it, we are sinners first and foremost because we are sons of Adam.
Les stresses keeping the two words separated. The singular 'sin' (S-I-N) in Romans is the old Adamic nature that we are born with; it is the fountainhead. The plural 'sins' are the acts that this old Adam produces. Thus the old Adam is what produces sins, plural.
Les is emphatic that we are not sinners because of anything we have actively done. We are sinners because we are children of Adam. Being a child of Adam, everything God says to do, old Adam says the opposite, and everything God says not to do, old Adam wants to do. That is why no one escapes the condition described in Romans 3:23: all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.
Romans 5:12 says, 'Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin.' Les draws attention to the wording: it does not say that by two people sin entered. This matches his point that Adam was the federal head and that Eve, though she ate first, was in Adam; the human race came under sin through Adam.
Why Did Adam's Sin Affect All of Us? Romans 5:10-14
And all these good things have happened simply because we believe the gospel. Now I'm not taking away other ramifications of the Christian experience. The only reason I do not mention the local church more than I do is because there are so many local churches that I wouldn't want anybody to even try to get anything from because they're going to be misled, and they're not going to be fed from the W…
Sinners because of Adam
Les says you are not a sinner because of your acts; you are a sinner because you are a child of Adam. The old Adam within us automatically opposes God's commands.
Sin vs. sins
Les explains that singular 'sin' (S-I-N) in the text is the old Adamic nature we are born with, the fountainhead that produces the plural 'sins.'
Adam, not Eve, is the federal head
Les stresses that Eve was in Adam and that the human race came under sin by way of Adam, not by Eve, even though Eve ate first.
The old nature we are born with
Les teaches that the singular 'sin' in Romans speaks of the old Adamic nature we are born with, and it shows up in a child as soon as it can.
Inheriting our nature from Adam
Les says Adam was the federal head, and in Adam all of us inherited the sin nature; we are sinners first and foremost because we are sons of Adam.
Death entered by sin
Les explains Romans 5:12: before Adam ate, nothing died; once he ate, sin came in and with sin came death, and death passed on all people.
By one man, not by two
Les points out that Romans 5:12 says sin entered by one man, Adam; it does not say by two people.
Romans 5:12: Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
Paul answers how sin and death entered the world and affected everyone.
Genesis 3:6: And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.
The act by which sin entered the world: the woman ate and gave to the man, and he ate.
Romans 3:23: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
Paul sums up why no one escapes the condition Adam brought on the race.
Through Adam. Romans 5:12 says that by one man sin entered into the world, and Les notes the text does not say by two people. Eve ate first, but because Adam was the federal head of the human race, sin came on the whole human race by way of Adam.
It is the sin nature every person inherits from Adam. Les calls it the singular 'sin' in Romans — the fountainhead that produces the plural 'sins' we commit. This nature automatically opposes God: whatever God says to do, old Adam says not to, and whatever God forbids, old Adam wants to do.
Yes, according to Les. He points out that many people are outwardly good — a beautiful home, well-behaved children, honest business dealings — but that does not change their identity. They are still sinners because they are children of Adam, and the old sin nature is present even when it is not visible.
Death entered when Adam sinned. Romans 5:12 links death to sin, and Les explains that before Adam ate, nothing died; death was an unknown entity. Once Adam sinned, death passed upon all people because everyone comes from Adam.
Watch the Teaching: Why Did Adam's Sin Affect All of Us? Romans 5:10-14