Central to this belief is the assumption that we as humankind are born with a built-in urge to rebel against goodness and morality, and that our depraved state leaves us in desperate need of rescuing from divine wrath. Everything that makes us human—our bodies, our flesh—is instinctively bent towards disobedience and evil. We cannot save ourselves, we cannot trust ourselves, and whatever is in us that is of the flesh and not of the spirit is corrupted by sin. Believing that “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of god” often makes it difficult to develop positive feelings towards
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