11. Spiritual Consequences
11.1 Separation from God
The primary consequence of sin is alienation from God. Isaiah declares, “Your iniquities have separated you from your God” (Isaiah 59:2 NRSV). This separation is not geographical but relational—loss of communion between Creator and creature. Augustine (1998) defined this state as aversio Dei (turning away from God), the soul’s movement from its true centre. Spiritual death, the absence of divine life, follows naturally: “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). Death here encompasses both physical mortality and the spiritual estrangement that preceded it (Genesis 2:17).
11.2 Bondage to Sin and Death
Sin not only separates but enslaves. Jesus taught, “Everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin” (John 8:34). Paul echoes this: “I am sold under sin” (Romans 7:14). Such bondage denotes moral incapacity—humanity’s will is corrupted and powerless to attain righteousness without grace (Romans 8:7–8). Luther (1520) described this as the servum arbitrium (the bondage of the will). Deliverance is found only in the Mediator: “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Romans 7:25).
12. Psychological and Social Consequences
12.1 Guilt, Shame and Alienation
Sin fractures the inner self. Immediately after disobedience, Adam and Eve experienced shame and concealment (Genesis 3:7–10). Psychological guilt functions as an echo of divine conviction (Romans 2:15). Kierkegaard (1849) viewed despair—the self’s refusal to be itself before God—as the psychological expression of sin. The human conscience, designed as moral witness, becomes burdened and distorted (Titus 1:15). Thus, sin yields anxiety, denial, and alienation, both from God and from the self.
12.2 Breakdown of Human Community
Interpersonal relationships also deteriorate. Cain’s murder of Abel (Genesis 4:8) represents humanity’s first social fracture. Sin breeds envy, violence, and division: “What causes quarrels among you? Is it not your passions?” (James 4:1). Structural manifestations—war, injustice, and oppression—extend these ruptures into collective life (Amos 5:12). Bonhoeffer (1937) observed that self-centred sin destroys genuine fellowship, replacing community with competition. Thus, reconciliation with God is inseparable from reconciliation with neighbour (Matthew 5:23–24).
13. Cosmic Consequences
13.1 Decay and Entropy within Creation
The biblical narrative presents sin as infecting the whole cosmos. The ground was cursed for humanity’s sake (Genesis 3:17); creation was “subjected to futility” (Romans 8:20). Entropy—the tendency toward disorder—illustrates physically what Scripture depicts spiritually: creation’s bondage to decay. Barth (1956) interprets this cosmic consequence as the “shadow side” of human freedom; when the creature rebels, the created order groans in sympathy.
13.2 The Universal Need for Redemption
Because sin’s reach is universal, redemption must likewise be cosmic. Paul affirms that God intends “to reconcile to Himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven” (Colossians 1:20). The corruption of matter and mortality will yield to renewal: “There will be a new heaven and a new earth” (Revelation 21:1). Consequently, salvation cannot be reduced to private piety; it embraces ecological, social, and cosmic restoration. Human stewardship, healed through Christ, anticipates that renewal (Romans 8:21).
References
- Augustine (1998) Confessions, trans. H. Chadwick. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- Barth, K. (1956) Church Dogmatics III/1: The Doctrine of Creation. Edinburgh: T & T Clark.
- Bonhoeffer, D. (1937) The Cost of Discipleship. London: SCM Press.
- Kierkegaard, S. (1849) The Sickness unto Death, trans. H. V. Hong and E. H. Hong, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1980 edn.
- Luther, M. (1520) Works, Vol. 33. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1960 edn.
- The Holy Bible (NRSV, 2011). London: HarperCollins.