The fall and redemption of mankind is explained here with a visual aid called “The Heart Chart.” The Heart Chart illustrates the various spiritual conditions of the human heart, depending on a person’s standing with God.
This explanation of the chart will begin with the first heart on the top left side of the chart, and proceed from left to right.
Mankind’s Original Heart at Creation (top left heart on the chart)
If you look at the chart, you will notice that this heart is completely pure, with nothing in it to mar its state. This is the spiritual condition in which God created Adam and Eve’s heart during the Creation of the world. In the book of Genesis, the Bible tells us that God created man in His own image.
Genesis 1:27 “So God created man in his own image; in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.”
It is important to note that when this verse says God created man in His own image this means in God’s spiritual image (holy-without sin) rather than a physical image. We know that God does not have a physical image, since He is a Spirit, and therefore does not have a physical body.
John 4:24 “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.”
Thus, the original heart that Adam and Eve had at the very beginning was perfectly pure, since it was made in God’s spiritual image: holy.
Mankind’s Heart at Birth
The Heart Chart shows this heart with a seed in it. Because of Adam and Eve’s sin, their children and every child born into the world since that time (except Jesus, because God was His Father) has been born with this sinful nature. The Bible refers to this nature as “carnality,” the “carnal nature,” or the “seed of Adam.” Below are just a couple of the scriptures that illustrate this:
Genesis 5:3 “And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image…”
Romans 5:12 “Wherefore, as by one man [Adam] sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:”
It is important to note that the seed by itself (before it grows and produces the fruit of sin) does not make a child guilty before God; God still views children as being innocent spiritually even though they do wrong things, because they have not yet reached the age of accountability. The age of accountability is not necessarily a specific age, but rather the point in a person’s life where they clearly understand that disobedience to God’s law is sin, and sin’s penalty is death. Once a person comes to that understanding, God begins to count their wrong actions as sin, and the seed grows into the tree of sin represented by the next heart on the chart.
Mankind’s Heart in an Unsaved (Sinful) State
You can see that this heart shows a tree with fruit on it. This depicts a person’s heart after they have reached the age of accountability and have not repented of their sins. The carnal nature which they inherited at birth has sprouted and produced a tree, and the fruit of this tree is sin. Any person who dies with their heart in this state will suffer the penalty of sin.
Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
This spiritual condition requires repentance with godly sorrow in order to be remedied! A person cannot simply “turn over a new leaf” or “rehabilitate” their own life without God’s help; they need salvation. Real salvation comes from repenting of their sins and turning away from sin and asking God for forgiveness through Jesus’ blood which He shed on the cross for the remission of sins.
2 Corinthians 7:10 “For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation…”
Mankind’s Heart in a Saved (Justified) State
Here, you see a heart that still contains the root of the tree of sin (the carnal nature), but the tree itself has been cut down. This person has repented of their sins and is now saved (justified). There is no more fruit of sin, because God forgave the person of the sins they had committed before they got saved, and this person is not committing sin any longer.
1 John 3:9 “Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin;”
If they do commit sin again after getting saved, they immediately revert back to the heart at the bottom of the chart, which contains the tree of sin. Sin instantly makes a heart impure, and therefore requires another repentance in order to restore the person’s relationship with God. There is no such thing as a sinning Christian! A person who sins is a sinner, not a Christian. That is one of the things this chart illustrates.
1 John 5:17 - 18 “All unrighteousness is sin…We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not.”
Mankind’s Heart in a Sanctified State (top right of the chart)
You can see that this heart is completely pure. It has been restored back to the original state in which God created Mankind’s heart: holy and without blemish. Even the seed of the sinful nature inherited from Adam has been removed from this heart! There is only one way this can happen; God must do it. Sanctification is a definite second work of grace received after justification, not at the same time as getting saved (justified). When a saved person comes to God for sanctification, God will burn out the sinful nature completely from this person’s heart and life. This requires a complete dedication of one’s heart and life to God’s purpose and a total submission to God’s Will. God wants His people to be sanctified and have a perfectly pure heart!
1 Thessalonians 4:3 - 4 “For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication: That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honor;”
It is important to understand that just because God has removed the carnal nature from a sanctified person’s heart, this does not mean they are forevermore incapable of committing sin! A sanctified individual can still choose to give in to temptation and commit sin—and if they do so, their heart will immediately revert back to the bottom heart on the chart, because they will have a tree of sin in their life. Just as Adam and Eve had a perfectly pure heart at the beginning, but still chose to sin, a modern-day person who has been sanctified and had their heart purified could still choose to sin, too, with exactly the same results: an unsaved heart with a tree that produces the fruit of sin.
Dear friend, if you have any questions about the fall and redemption of man or the information in this article, please feel free to contact us; we would love to answer your questions.