Total Depravación, part 1

Here are some verses that have me convinced. The more I meditate on what exactly they are communicating, the more real the depravity of sinful mankind becomes to me, not only of those lost in the world, but especially of myself apart from the grace of God.

Man says, "Man is good."
God says, "Man is evil."
Who is telling the truth?

Genesis 6:5
The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

Genesis 6:11
And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth.

Psalm 51:5
Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.

Psalm 58:3
The wicked are estranged from the womb;
they go astray from birth, speaking lies.

Proverbs 28:26
Whoever trusts in his own mind [or heart] is a fool,
but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered.

Ecclesiastes 7:20
Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins.

Jeremiah 13:23
Can the Ethiopian change his skin
or the leopard his spots?
Then also you can do good
who are accustomed to do evil.

Jeremiah 17:9
The heart is deceitful above all things,
and desperately sick;
who can understand it?

Matthew 7:11
If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!

Mark 7:20-23
And he said, "What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person."

Those last two verses were spoken directly from the mouth of our Lord Jesus Christ! Loving, compassionate, gentle, gracious, merciful, Jesus spoke some very sharp words about the true heart of mankind. I believe He said it all with deep compassion and love, even when He blasted the Pharisees in Mattew 23, but nevertheless He spoke the truth plainly.

My hope is that in reading these verses, and becoming more familiar with them, my heart (as well as yours) will grow more deeply in love with the great mercy and kindness of God our Savior. As I wrote before about Hell and Grace, grace would not be necessary if we were not in this situation.

"For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." (Ephesians 2:8-10 ESV). "For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life." (Romans 5:10 ESV).