Posted on 12/22/2016 8:06:09 AM PST by Salvation
Continuing our series of questions related to the Incarnation, we next ponder whether Jesus would have come at all had we not sinned in the Garden. We also wonder why He waited thousands of years before coming to our rescue.
Regarding the question of whether Christ would have come if Adam had not sinned, St. Thomas Aquinas (in his Summa Theologica) first states that there are different opinions on the matter. He also notes that God’s power is not limited and therefore God could have become incarnate even if sin had not existed. However, St. Thomas believes that if man had not sinned then the Son would not have become incarnate. As I often do, I’ve presented St. Thomas’ words in bold italics, while my commentary appears in red.
For such things as spring from God’s will, and beyond the creature’s due, can be made known to us only through being revealed in the Sacred Scripture, in which the Divine Will is made known to us. Hence, since everywhere in the Sacred Scripture the sin of the first man is assigned as the reason of Incarnation, it is more in accordance with this to say that the work of Incarnation was ordained by God as a remedy for sin; so that, had sin not existed, Incarnation would not have been (Summa Theologica, Part III, Question 1, Article 1).
While theological speculation may have its place, it is most certain that the Incarnation was instituted by God first and foremost as a remedy for sin. And while the Incarnation offers more than is required to remedy sin (e.g., an increase in human dignity (since God joined our family), God’s visitation, the opening of a heavenly (not merely earthly) paradise), Scripture presents remedy for sin as God’s primary motive. In remedying our sin, God shows the greatness of His mercy, because He does not merely restore us but elevates us to a higher place than before. The least born in to the Kingdom of God is greater that the exemplar of the Old Covenant, John the Baptist. Had we not sinned and had God merely wanted to elevate us, He could have done so in other ways. Hence, St. Thomas’ position is best suited to the evidence.
If the Incarnation is a remedy for sin, why did God wait so long to apply it? St. Thomas provides an answer that is sensible and addresses aspects of the question we might not have considered. His answer is found in the Summa Theologica (part III, question 1, article 5). First he addresses why the Incarnation did not happen before sin:
Since the work of Incarnation is principally ordained to the restoration of the human race by blotting out sin, it is manifest that it was not fitting for God to become incarnate at the beginning of the human race before sin. For medicine is given only to the sick. Hence our Lord Himself says (Matthew 9:12-13): “They that are in health need not a physician, but they that are ill … For I am not come to call the just, but sinners.”
Next, St. Thomas addresses why the Incarnation did not happen quickly, soon after Original Sin, rather than thousands of years later. He sets forth four reasons:
I. Nor was it fitting that God should become incarnate immediately after sin. First, on account of the manner of man’s sin, which had come of pride; hence man was to be liberated in such a manner that he might be humbled, and see how he stood in need of a deliverer. … For first of all God left man under the natural law, with the freedom of his will, in order that he might know his natural strength; and when he failed in it, he received the law; whereupon, by the fault, not of the law, but of his nature, the disease gained strength; so that having recognized his infirmity he might cry out for a physician, and beseech the aid of grace.
Quick solutions to problems do not always permit proper healing to take place. Most parents know that if they solve every problem a child has, important lessons may be lost. It is often beneficial to live with our questions for a while so that the answers are more appreciated and more effective.
Indeed, it took us humans quite a while to really acknowledge the seriousness of our sin and pride. Shortly after Eden, the tower of Babel indicated that human pride was still a grave problem. Even when given the Law, a good thing, the flesh corrupted it, turning perfunctory observance of it into an occasion for pride. The prophets then had to keep summoning Israel and Judah back to the Lord and away from prideful self-reliance. The Assyrian invasion of the Northern Kingdom and the Babylonian Captivity only further illustrated the depths of our sin, so that this cry went up: “O Lord, that you would rend the heavens and come down” (Is 64:1).
We had to be led gradually to recognize our profound need for a savior. Otherwise, even if the remedy were offered, too few might reach for it.
II. Secondly, on account of the order of furtherance in good, whereby we proceed from imperfection to perfection. Hence the Apostle says (1 Corinthians 15:46-47): “Yet that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; afterwards that which is spiritual … The first man was of the earth, earthy; the second man from heaven, heavenly.”
There is a kind of theology of grace implicit in this answer. Grace builds on our nature. And it is our nature, physically and spiritually, to grow gradually. While sudden conversions and growth spurts have their place, the best and most typical growth is that which occurs steadily and in stages.
Thirdly, on account of the dignity of the incarnate Word, for on the words (Galatians 4:4), “But when the fullness of the time was come,” a gloss says: “The greater the judge who was coming, the more numerous was the band of heralds who ought to have preceded him.”
Here is underscored the dignity of the Son of God, that many should precede Him, announcing Him. But there was also a need for us to be prepared to meet Him, so that we would not miss Him or refuse Him when He came. As Malachi says, See, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents; or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction (Mal 4:5-6). Those who were prepared were able to abide the day of the Lord’s coming and heed His call.
Fourthly, lest the fervor of faith should cool by the length of time, for the charity of many will grow cold at the end of the world. Hence (Luke 18:8) it is written: “But yet the Son of Man, when He cometh, shall He find think you, faith on earth?”
This is an interesting aspect of the question that many might not consider; we typically ponder more what is good for us than what is good for succeeding generations. But it is sadly true that fervor, both collective and individual, can fade as a wait becomes lengthy. And thus, St. Thomas suggests that God appointed a time for the Incarnation within human history such that the greatest possible number of people could be saved.
Here’s one for you:
God knew adam and eve would eat the fruit before he made them.
i.e. it was like puting a fox in a hen house and telling it to do whatever it wanted but don’t mess with the chickens.
And all that that implies.
Monsignor Pope Ping!
There is another answer: God’s actions are not bound by space and time, even if their manifestations to us are. Jesus is the Lamb who was slain from the foundation of the world (Rev. 13:8), as well as the child who would grow up to die on the cross during the early decades of the Roman Empire, for He is fully God and fully man.
My belief is that we were created to show the consequences of sin, if it were allowed to reign freely.
God knew adam and eve would eat the fruit before he made them.
Absolutely.
God created man in his own image. This includes free will.
God knew from the beginning that man would sin but he also knew he had a plan of salvation through his son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
To answer the question put forth. He never would have left. He did walk with Adam in the Garden of Eden and who is to say Adam would still be with us today as well as Jesus and the Garden of Eden.
Thanks for posting.
I’ve often thought that one reason Christ’s Incarnation was long in coming was in order to allow the understanding that there is only one God (not exactly a common belief in the times B.C.) to become so deeply believed within the Jewish faith that the revelation of the Trinity wouldn’t be misunderstood as a revelation that there are three gods.
Here’s the part I find fascinating: If they had not sinned, man would have no knowledge of good and evil. I wonder if that would have left us like the squid creatures in Galaxy Quest. Or, more down to earth, if it would have made us more like the animals.
i.e. in the end, will our condition, after our resurrection, be BETTER than it would have been had they not sinned?
I’m just asking for discussion’s sake. I’m not trying to start a new theology. :)
i.e. in the end, will our condition, after our resurrection, be BETTER than it would have been had they not sinned?
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I believe so. It will give us a better appreciation and understanding of how good God really is.
Spare the rod, spoil the child.
It’s almost like the fact that you actually damage muscle to build it.
The Bible says Jesus was the “lamb slain from (before) the foundation of the world”.....i.e., his incarnation, death, burial and resurrection were all in God’s plan from eternity past.
In fact, the cross itself is in the center of the heart of God - it reveals who Jesus is more than any other thing. Jesus had his eyes on the cross BEFORE he took on human flesh.
The cross was NOT “Plan B” in case man sinned and fell. God knew man’s sin was inevitable - and He poured out His grace anyway......
It’s almost like the fact that you actually damage muscle to build it.
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- Satan and 1/3 of the angels didn’t really understand how good God is.
- Adam & Eve lacked understanding of how good God is.
- All of us lack full understanding of how good God really is. God’s goodness is incomprehensible to our minds.
Thankfully, we have a loving and forgiving God that sent his son Jesus to save the world.
X2
I have to say that I think the best example of exercising faith I’ve seen was in an Indiana Jones movie. They were looking for the “cup” and at a ledge above a deep ravine.
The instructions said to take a step of faith. Indiana did, and it turned out there was a bridge there they could not see. But what if he had been misinterpreting the instructions? He’d have fallen to his death.
That’s the problem, in real life. We always want to second guess whether or not we are reading the instructions correctly. So we always find excuses to NOT take those steps of faith.
But then, I think I’ve strayed from the topic at hand - his Lordship.
But, this faith walk you speak of adds to the Lordship of Christ, instead of questioning it.
Thanks, Salvation!
Thank you. Advent blessings to you.
I agree. I’ll give you an example of what I’m talking about:
Often in church someone will say that “the Lord has put it on my heart to say...”. But what they mean is that they are a sanguine personality like me and everything they think they just want to share with everyone else. It is a subtle form of narcissism. Yet they say “the Lord put it on my heart.”
And yet sometimes he really DOES. It can be hard to tell the difference sometimes when you are that kind of person.
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