John Calvin: "This is the hereditary corruption to which early Christian writers gave the name of Original Sin, meaning by the term the depravation of a nature formerly good and pure. The subject gave rise to much discussion, there being nothing more remote from common apprehension, than that the fault of one should render all guilty, and so become a common sin. This seems to be the reason why the oldest doctors of the church only glance obscurely at the point, or, at least, do not explain it so clearly as it required." (Institutes Book 2 Chap 1 section 5)
I would suggest that there is another, more likely, reason "the oldest doctors of the church only glance obscurely at the point." That would be that the oldest doctors of the church, the ones closest to the original apostles, the ones closest to the historical Jesus Himself, did not believe in the doctrine of original sin! Documenting that is beyond the scope of this paper. Suffice to say that there are explicit statements from almost ALL ante-Nicene fathers that indicate that the freedom of the will is central to the paradigm of the oldest doctors of the church. If one believes that each man is free to choose God, or not, and the ante-Nicene fathers most certainly believed that, then one cannot hold to the doctrine of original sin and total depravity, at least not the way John Calvin defines it:
"We thus see that the impurity of parents is transmitted to their children, so that all, without exception, are originally depraved. The commencement of this depravity will not be found until we ascend to the first parent of all as the fountainhead. We must, therefore, hold it for certain, that, in regard to human nature, Adam was not merely a progenitor, but, as it were, a root, and that, accordingly, by his corruption, the whole human race was deservedly vitiated. This is plain from the contrast which the Apostle draws between Adam and Christ, "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; even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord," (Institutes Book 2 Chap 1 Section 6).
Consider these two statements:
1) 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
2) We thus see that the impurity of parents is transmitted to their children, so that all, without exception, are originally depraved.
Does "all have sinned" NECESSITATE "the impurity of parents is transmitted to their children"? Not at all. I would suggest that statement #1 is saying that all have sinned because they are born into a world in which sin and death are present. Sin and death entered that world, our world, because of the disobedience of one man, the first man. Impurity is not "transmitted" by parents. The impurity of children is not the result of a "sin nature" or put another way, being born sinners, but is the result of the parents and children living in a world in which sin and death exist, and so children become sinners, and therefore subject to death.
The NASB says, "...just as through one man sin entered into the world, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned..."
As the saying goes, "Only the good die young - the rest of us just get corrupted."
Verses 13-14 tell us that where there is no law, sin is not imputed. But even though sin is not counted, death still reigned, "...even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam..."
So, there were/are those who do not sin like Adam. How can that be if everyone automatically inherits a "sin nature" from Adam? Verse 14 tells us that even though some do not sin like Adam, ALL are still subject to death. THAT is what we inherit from Adam. Physical death. Adam, and his descendants, have lost access to the tree of Life, which is physical immortality. And, we inherit a world in which sin exists, but that is not saying the same thing as saying that we inherit a sin nature. Verse 12 does say that ALL have sinned. Verse 14 tells us that not ALL have sinned like Adam. Verse 14 mitigates against the idea that ALL have sinned because of a "sin nature" inherited from Adam. There is somewhat of a relativity to sin. Consider:
1) 1 John 5:16-17: "There is a sin leading to death...and there is a sin not leading to death."
2) James 4:17: "...to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, TO HIM it is sin."
3) John 9:41: "Jesus said to them, "If you were blind you would have no sin; but since you say, 'We see,' your sin remains."
4) Romans 7:9: "I was once alive apart from the Law; but when the commandment came, sin became alive and I died..."
When was Paul alive? Before he knew the Law. In verse 11 he says, "...for sin, taking an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me." Where is the concept of "original sin"? Nowhere that I can see. In order to be killed, you have to first be alive. Being alive happens first, and then sin, taking an opportunity through the commandment, deceives and brings about death. Every man dies because of his own sin, not because of Adam's sin - Read all of Ezekiel 18. Verse 4, "The soul who sins will die." Verse 21, "But if the wicked man turns from all his sins which he has committed and observes all my statutes and practices justice and righteousness, he shall surely live, he shall not die." Verse 24, "But when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness, commits iniquity and does according to all the abominations that a wicked man does, will he live? All his righteous deeds...will not be remembered for his treachery which he has committed and his sin which he has committed; for them he will die."
Back to Romans 5 - Verse 15: "...if by the transgression of the one the many died..." Notice that it DOESN'T say, "the many SINNED", it says, "the many DIED."
Verse 16: "...for on the one hand the judgment arose from one transgression resulting in condemnation, but on the other hand the free gift arose from many transgressions resulting in justification." What is the "judgment" and the "condemnation"? Is it being born "originally depraved" as Calvin would have us believe? The next verse tells us.
Verse 17: "For if by the transgression of the one, DEATH reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign IN LIFE through the One, Jesus Christ." Notice that death reigns through the one, not sin. The judgment and the condemnation is death, not an inherited sin nature.
Verse 18: "So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation [that is, death - see verses 16-17] to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men."
Verse 19: "...through one man's disobedience the many were made sinners..." HOW were the many made sinners? By inheriting a "sin nature" from the one who disobeyed? No, but by the one man's disobedience sin entered THE WORLD (see verse 12) and so all are born into a world in which sin exists, but not all sin like Adam (see verse 14). If, as John Calvin maintained, Adam is "...a root, and that, accordingly, by his corruption, the whole human race was deservedly vitiated" then it could not be said that some do not sin like Adam.
Yes, all have sinned, I'm not denying that, but not all have sinned like Adam. There is sin that does not lead to death, and also sin is not imputed when there is no Law. Rom 7:8b: "...apart from the Law sin is dead." Paul was once alive apart from the Law. When was that? I would suggest it was when he was a child, before he knew anything about the Law. As Jesus said, "Suffer the little children to come to me, for to such belong the Kingdom of Heaven."
If this is so, then we must conclude that extracting the concept of original sin from Romans 5:12-21 is extracting more than what is there. It is extracting more than what the oldest doctors of the church extracted, and is more than what the apostle Paul actually said. Saying that all men inherit a sin nature and are born sinners is saying something quite different than, "through one man sin entered the world" and so "all have sinned."
Most Arminians believe in the doctrine of original sin but they do not hold that it results in total depravity. Likewise, Catholic doctrine, according to the Catholic encyclopedia, under Original Sin, says, "...neither intelligence nor free will had been destroyed by original sin and, consequently, there still remained the possibility of material progress, whilst in the spiritual order God did not abandon man, to whom He had promised redemption." One can still believe in the doctrine of Original Sin, as most Arminians and Catholics do, and still not hold to the Calvinist doctrine of Total Depravity. However, if we refute the doctrine of Original Sin, as defined by Reformed theology, the Calvinist doctrine of total depravity falls on its own, and then the need for monergistic predestination falls, then like dominoes, the other doctrines of 5-point Calvinism.