Study Guide
Doctrine of Dual Nature
4,403 words, about 22 min read
I believe one of the most successful weapons of the enemy against the Church is the “Doctrine of Dual Nature.” Dual denotes reference to two. Therefore, the definition of dual is:
DUAL: 1a : consisting of two parts or elements or having two like parts : DOUBLE b : having a double character or nature Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
Some of the most prominent bible teachers have made it a point to fervently minister this doctrine. They have thoroughly convinced millions of Christians that it is impossible for them to live a sinless life. These brethren are sincere in their quest to instruct the Body of Christ. However, the inference of such a doctrine is that God will never have a church that is holy, blameless, and without spot or blemish. Hear me, brethren, as I suggest that this doctrine was birthed in error due to a lack of understanding and revelation of the mystery of Christ. If it is your desire to know the heart and mind of our Father, then give me this opportunity to expose the error of that doctrine and explain the mystery. All I ask of you is that you allow the holy Word of God to be the authority. I simply ask you to agree with what the scriptures have to say about this matter.
THEOLOGICAL THEORY
First of all, it is impossible to be 100% accurate when a doctrine is developed out of observing the failures of men to produce God’s purpose, as it is proclaimed in the Word.
Romans 8:29
29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
To be conformed means to be fashioned like unto. In composition, it means completeness. The Father purposed or predetermined to fashion the Sons in the image of Christ. They are to be complete in Him, lacking nothing. The Lord ministered to me on the deception in the teachings that led to this perverted doctrine. It is a matter of perception regarding the indwelling Christ. I hope that I am able to articulate this error in a manner that illuminates the hearts and minds of those who are sincerely seeking the knowledge of God.
When there is a general consensus that there is no one walking in the perfection of Christ, or living a sinless life, then it is easy for men to come up with a scapegoat. In this case the scapegoat is the flesh. It has been concluded that living in this human body makes it impossible to live a holy existence 24-hours a day, 7 days a week. Thus, we have a doctrine that was born out of failure.
However, in order for the doctrine to appear meaningful, the failure must not be considered a failure, it must become a non-expectation. In other words, if a saint does not live a perfected life, it is not because he failed, it is because he was never expected to do so. Therefore, it must follow that it was not the intent of God to create a Son of God who was altogether free from sin. He is merely the same man, essentially a sinner who has now accepted Jesus Christ as a shield that protects him from the wrath of God that will come upon unbelievers. In this theory, the blood of Jesus merely covers our sin and the Spirit of Christ is only the seed or seal that identifies us as one who has accepted Jesus.
Though we teach the attributes of Christianity as written in the Word, such as the Ten Commandments, the Beatitudes, etc., God never expected us to fulfill those laws and attributes on a daily basis. At some point, He knows that we will sin, so He made Jesus Christ our advocate and intercessor. Now that the foundation has been established, let us see what God’s real intentions were. If the Lord never intended or expected the Sons to be sinless in their walk here on earth, then the fact that the scriptures imply that we have taken on the divine nature, does not exclude the presence of the lower nature of the flesh. This means that flesh was not in the least bit affected by the salvation experience.
The two things that stand to support this theory are:
* These are the same bodies we had before salvation.
* These bodies commit sin against the Lord.
All of this seems so matter of fact. It all seems like the perfect explanation for the spiritual condition of the Body of Christ. But it is all fiction. There is no God-defined purpose in this theory. It is the most blatant undermining of the purpose of God that we could ever experience. Millions of Christians have been made party to this gross misrepresentation of our God and His plan for man. It has robbed them of the very hope of being able to please the Father in their daily walk. It has bred an expectation to sin and dishonor the Lord. Although some people measure sin in degrees of severity, each time we sin, we put Him to an open shame.
THE TRUTH ABOUT SALVATION
It is understanding the salvation experience that has eluded ministers of the gospel. After all, this is the mystery that was hid in God before the foundation of the world. This mystery was only revealed to the apostles and holy prophets.
THE LAW OF SIN
The key to understanding the mystery of godliness is to understand what happened in the Garden of Eden. We know that Adam and Eve were created innocent. God gave them a commandment, wherein He forbade them to touch or eat of the “Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.” He warned them saying, But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die (Genesis 2:17).
Eventually, they did eat, throwing the whole human race into the captivity of sin and death. I am going to go through a barrage of scriptures and facts that will show the awesome power of God, as He worked His purpose in redemption. Please open your heart and follow me into a spiritual revelation that will change your life and then your ministry. Consider each of the facts as to whether or not they are adequately supported by scripture. Also, consider whether or not other scriptures can contradict them. This method of examination of a teaching is fair and totally acceptable to the Holy Spirit. Besides, it is what I did with the doctrine of Dual Nature. It does not stand the test of all scripture; therefore, it cannot be the Word of God.
1. MAN MOVED FROM INNOCENCE TO CAPTIVITY
Romans 5:12
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:
Psalm 51:5
5 Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.
After sin entered the world, all who came from the seed of Adam came under the captivity of sin and death. The testimony of the psalmist is that his shape or body is one of iniquity. The human body became the body of sin. Sin was in its conception, thus providing it with a sin nature. The sin nature is what I want us to look at a bit closer.
THE SPIRIT OF SATAN LIVED IN MAN
Here we need to understand thoroughly what caused Adam to become sinful in nature. This is important because if we can discover how Adam moved from spiritual innocence to a sinful nature, then we can see if the problem was ever remedied.
Ephesians 2:2-3
2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
We can see from these scriptures, the workings of the spirit of iniquity in Adam and all his descendants. It is necessary to understand that in the fall of man, there was an occupation. THE SPIRIT OF DARKNESS ACTUALLY LIVED IN MAN. It was this spirit living in man that changed his nature from one of innocence to sinful. The important thing that should not be missed here is that the indwelling of the foreign spirit provided a new and sinful nature for the human race. Notice also that Paul implies that in times past, we were by nature children of wrath, even as others. In other words, before we received Christ, we were of the same nature as those who have never accepted Him. Due to man’s sin nature, Jesus was able to make this statement to the scribes and Pharisees.
St. John 8:44
44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
Jesus explains even further that Satan had become the father of the human race, and it is his lust that worked in the flesh. In conclusion, the devil created a race of beings that were no longer subject to the law of God. They took on the character and attributes of their father, Satan. Man became a liar, a murderer and an enemy of God.
3. SATAN CONTROLLED MAN COMPLETELY: BODY, SOUL AND SPIRIT
The following scriptures follow the progression of man’s captivity to this evil spirit.
Genesis 6:5
5 And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
Romans 7:22-23
22 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:
23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
St. Mark 7:20-23
20 And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man.
21 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,
22 Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness:
23 All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.
THE EFFECT OF THE SPIRIT OF INIQUITY LIVING IN MAN ON THE FLESH WAS EVIL CONCUPISCENCE.
You also need to understand here that the presence of the spirit of darkness in man did not leave him with a choice regarding sin. Man was completely and thoroughly under the control of the spirit of iniquity; the strong man abiding within.
Romans 7:8
8 But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence. For without the law sin was dead.
WROUGHT: NT: 2716 Do work fully, i.e., accomplish; by implication; to finish; fashion; cause; to (deed); perform; work (out). (Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright (c) 1994. CONCUPISCENCE: NT: 1939 Desire, lust after, a longing (especially for what is forbidden): Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright (c) 1994.
The common thread here is concupiscence. It is more than occasional lust. It is a continual longing for those things God has forbidden. This was the consequence of eating from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Lust for the things of this world began to work in the members of the body.
Romans 7:5
5 For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death.
This is the law of sin: evil concupiscence. It is emotions, influence and affection for sin continually working in the members of the body. Remember, Eve saw the fruit to be pleasant (lust of the eyes), good for food (lust of the flesh), and desirable to make one wise (the pride of life). The law of sin created continual lust in the flesh that could never be quenched.
THIS LAW OF SIN BROUGHT MAN’S FLESH INTO CAPTIVITY.
This evil could not be overcome by the will of man. The corruption within had corrupted the flesh.
Romans 7:5
5 For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death.
But is this the testimony we have now that we are born again? Were we reborn with the same sinful nature that was able to characterize us as children of wrath? This is where there is a parting of the minds. Some theologians have erred right here in their revelation of salvation. They have carried this evil concupiscence into the salvation experience. They have assumed that the body (flesh) was not included in any way whatsoever in the salvation process. Thus, they have concluded that the flesh is still under this captivity and always will be. If you are going to be a true scholar and teacher or preacher of the Gospel of Christ, then you need to understand the operation of God in this matter.
6. SALVATION BROUGHT ABOUT A CHANGE IN THE PHYSICAL LOCATION OF OUR SPIRITUAL PARTS (SOUL AND SPIRIT).
Romans 7:5
For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death.
What does Paul mean by “when we were in the flesh?” Are we not in the same bodies as before we met the Lord? I think so. Then there has to be further explanation of this statement. First of all, in Romans 7:5, Paul is describing the state of an unregenerate man. To prove this point, seeing as how the 7th chapter of Romans is such a controversy in some schools of thought, you must read this passage in light of these others.
Romans 8:9
But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
It seems that at one point we were in the flesh. Our soul and spirit lived in the fleshy body without the presence or influence of God. But something happened to change our physical location.
Colossians 3:3
For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.
Acts 17:28
For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.
It seems that the spiritual or inward parts were placed in the Holy Ghost. This is what Paul means when he declared that we are not in the flesh. We have been placed in Christ.