Questions 17-18: Our Sinful State

Question 17: Into what estate did the fall bring mankind?

Answer: The fall brought mankind into an estate of sin and misery.

Question 18: Wherein consists the sinfulness of that estate whereinto man fell?

Answer: The sinfulness of that estate whereinto man fell, consists in the guilt of Adam's first sin, the want of original righteousness, and the corruption of his whole nature, which is commonly called original sin; together with all actual transgressions which proceed from it.

After dividing the state of the fall into the two categories of sin and misery, the catechism first takes up the topic of the sinfulness of our fallen state. The catechism then further discusses two types of sin, original sin and actual sin.

Original sin is sin which is imputed to us, or counted against us, because Adam is our federal head. The last question raised this issue already, and it is worth remembering once again the parallel here to Christ. It is not any more unfair to have Adam's sin counted against us than it is to have Christ's righteousness counted for us! And once again this is the direct teaching of Scripture. Romans 5:19 states, "As by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous." Original sin includes guilt, lack of righteousness, and a corrupt nature which is naturally disposed to do evil. As Titus 1:15 reminds us, our minds (the way we think) and our consciences (our ability to discern right from wrong) are defiled. All sin begins in the heart (Matthew 15:19).

Actual sin refers to the sins that we commit throughout our lives. Although we prefer to flatter ourselves as being decent people, even that flattery betrays the depth of our actual sin. God's law is broken not only in evil actions, but also in evil words and evil thoughts, as well as failures to think, speak, and act in a good righteous. Ezra's confession in Ezra 9:6 is something that we can all say truthfully: "Our guilt has mounted up to the heavens."

The Bible commands us to confess our sins, but also promises a process of healing through Jesus Christ (1 John 1:9, James 5:16). Will you confess your sins today?

Reference: Explanation of the Shorter Catechism by Thomas Vincent