Since man was made in the image of God, he possesses a good nature that matches God’s nature, with virtues such as truthfulness, goodness, loveliness, wisdom, kindness, and valor.
However, there is also an evil nature in man which wars against his good nature. The Chinese metaphysicists refer to this war as a battle between reason and lust. Throughout history, both in the East and West, those who understand human nature acknowledge the existence of this evil nature which the Bible calls:
Because sin is in man, he is unable to carry out his good intentions.
No one likes to be greedy, jealous, or murderous.
No one likes to be boastful, arrogant, or deceitful.
No one likes to be irritable, licentious, or lustful.
No one likes to murmur, complain, or curse.
Nevertheless, man cannot escape his evil nature. Please read the following verses:
This is a portrait of man.
Sin entered into man and caused him to fall. See diagram below:
(1) Sin caused man’s spirit to be deadened:
(2) Sin caused man’s mind to rebel:
(3) Sin caused man’s body to sin:
The fallen man is like:
A damaged and untunable radio which cannot receive and play music, but rather meaningless noise.
He is also like:
A cup that has fallen into the gutter still having its original fine form but now covered with mud.
Throughout history, man has tried every possible way to escape sin, but he has found that:
Good works cannot save him from sin.
Education cannot save him from sin.
Ethics cannot save him from sin.
Chanting cannot save him from sin.
Religion cannot save him from sin.
This picture of man simply depicts the battle between his good nature and his evil nature.