Humanity's Fall

I just got a new book, "The Christian Faith" by Michael Horton (published by Zondervan). I was reading something very interesting, a quote from C.S. Lewis (God in the Dock, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1970, 216-17), and thought you might find it interesting as well (pp.432-434).

"You are always dragging me down," said I to my Body. "Dragging you down!" replied my Body. . . . "Who put an end to all those angry and revengeful thoughts last night? Me, of course, by insisting on going to sleep. Who does his best to keep you from talking too much and eating too much by giving you dry throats and headaches and indigestion? Eh?" "And what about sex?" said I. "Yes, what about it?' retorted the Body. "If you and your wretched imagination would leave me alone I'd give you no trouble. That's Soul all over; you give me orders and then blame me for carrying them out."

Horton continues off of this quote and says,

The biblical view [of human sinfulness] is constantly challenging our attempts to exonerate ourselves by fixing the blame on something outside of ourselves. If we cannot deflect sin to society, we will press charges against our family; if this is inadequate, we will indict our own body as if it were exterior to our real self. The soul flees the approaching footsteps of divine judgment by withdrawing within, protesting its divinity and purity.

. . . The inner self is not the innocent spark of divinity or island of purity, but is the fountain from which every act of violence, deceit, immorality, and idolatry flows out through the body and into the world.

. . . Captive to sin, "in Adam," we are nevertheless willing accomplices to our own imprisonment (Ro 5:12). Only when God seizes us and liberates our captivity are we truly free to be the human beings that we are (Jn 8:36).

God, seize and liberate us!