I don't know. Am I dense? I think we agree. I think we're using different wording, as Deborah would say.
The SIN NATURE is CAUSED by satan. It's satan's domain. It's HOW he works in us to make us do his bidding. His will does operate in our flesh through our nature, our sin nature. Everytime we sin, he's operating in our flesh.
Misnomer of term. We never stop being sinners regardless of whether it shows up on the outside as an action, i.e. we are not just sinners when we commit an external action of sin or
"everytime we sin." It is a perpetual state of the flesh because of the presence of indwelling sin and evil present with(in) us. Romans 7:17-25, 1 John 1:8.
Without being able to explain it, because basically there is no explanation although many have tried, I'd have to say that God made us good and perfect. Genesis.
See 1 Cor. 15:42-46 to see how Adam and subsequently how all natural men were made. Adam's state of good or perfect ended immediately (if it ever existed in the first place) as good and perfect unless we bring Gods Hands into the picture and view that with the matters.
Then, by eating the forbidden fruit, evil entered into man and into everything, even nature.
The problem started before that. See Mark 4:15 for what happened to Adam. The law came to Adam because the lawless one, the tempter, had already entered his heart immediately after Gods Words of blessings were sown to him.
That evil that entered man is satan's evil. It's his dominion. It's what Paul recognized as the evil he did which he did not want to do.
True, that. We should see then that these are not just observations about ourselves, or our own will, alone, as that doesn't exist. There really are 2 other wills involved. The Will of God and the will of satan.
Of course, Smaller, if it's God prodding us to do good, it's satan prodding us to do evil.
There is no "us" in the prodding of satan. There is satan doing/performing evil. There is no 'satan made us do' when it's satan who does. Critical semantic difference.
The willpower of man will not stop him - he's still and will always be present. But now that we know about him and our nature, we could put on the full armor of God, as Deborah said, and we have a good chance of fighting him off. Not permanently, but in a situation by situation way. We have something to defend ourselves with - the Holy Spirit.
Understanding the futility of trying to make satan perform is part of the understanding. When we see sin for what it is, demonic, it should quite naturally cause us repulsion. Yet to say it doesn't happen turns us into lying hypocrites and puts us into an even worse state. In short, there is no excuse for satan and never will be, even under the guises of "good works and actions." Just because we do them doesn't put satan off the hook or lead us to believe we are not sinners with indwelling sin in our flesh and evil present with us, courtesy of the tempter. When we do good it is in an opposing way, irritating satan or heaping coals upon his head if we prefer to see it that way. Anything that is Godly is a natural irritant to satan.
Does the Holy Spirit have no power in our lives then? Are we doomed to BELONG to satan? I say I BELONG to Christ, although I'm weak and will succumb to satan - probably many times during the day, since thought also counts.
The blanket can not cover the equation.
When we say "we" we must ask, who is "we." Paul shows us that there are 2 vessels in one lump Paul called "me" with two entirely different fates. Romans 9:18-24. 2 Tim. 2:20-21 shows the same thing.
We should understand that there is eternal life for us, and eternal damnation for our adversary in the flesh/mind and heart. In reality the damnation and eternal dire fate/wrath Words of God are actually to our BENEFIT if we apply them properly, to the proper party(s). I deploy the damnation, wrath and eternal hell scriptures to the tempter as often as possible to remind him of what's on the horizon. It's an effective reminder.
