What did Adam loose?
Rom. 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.
This verse is a key to our understanding the question about what Adam lost.
Adam lost eternal life when he sinned. Eternal life does not mean that he lost the ability to live forever. Even sinners will live forever. We are eternal beings created to live forever with God or if you have rejected His sacrifice you will live eternally without God. People are surprised to find out that Adam did not loose the ability to live forever but he lost the ability to know God. Even though Adam died physically he still lived as a spiritual being and so will you even if your body dies. Eternal life is to know God. Ever since the fall of man he has tried to know God and our best effort has made us end up with wisdom but no experience. Sins separated us from God so it is impossible to know Him by experience as long as you are a sinner. You can learn about Him but you will never know Him.
John 17:3 And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.
Eternal life is to know God and to know Jesus who was send. This poses a problem for people that ramble off a prayer and never pursue a relationship with God or Jesus. I am not saying they are not saved, as the scripture is clear that all who call on His name shall be saved. What I am saying is that there will be people in eternity with no knowledge of the Father or knowledge of the Son. They will enjoy living in heaven but they will have no understanding of His heart and purposes. It will be like going to work and ending up in a place you like but you don’t know why you are there or what you need to do.
Adam did not only loose the ability to know God but he also lost the glory of God. Sin made man come up short or as you might have been taught, sin made man to miss the mark. What was the mark for man? If man fell short of the glory of God then the glory of God was the mark. The word sin, to miss the mark, in greek is the word “hamartia.”
266. a hamartia, ham-ar-tee´-ah; from 264; a sin (properly abstract): — offence, sin(-ful).
264. hamartano, ham-ar-tan´-o; perhaps from 1 (as a negative particle) and the base of 3313; properly, to miss the mark (and so not share in the prize)
3313. meros, mer´-os; from an obsolete but more primary form of meiromai (to get as a section or allotment); a division or share (literally or figuratively, in a wide application)
To sin not only meant to miss the mark but it implies that you lost your inheritance. In biblical times inheritance constituted your identity. You inherited the land according to your tribe. That was to stay in your family as an inheritance for your children. The firstborn would receive the double portion of the inheritance. His identity as firstborn would qualify him for the blessing. Joseph received the many-colored garments because he was the beloved of his father. The garment brought him identity that made his brothers jealous. The first thing they took from him was the garment his father gave him before they sold him into slavery. To sin is to loose your true identity. Adam was created from God so when he sinned he lost his godly identity and would now be known as a sinner and not a son. As a sinner he no longer qualified to carry the glory, as his identity would be opposing the identity of God and he would only misrepresent God. Adam would be religious in his actions trying to represent something he knew about, but didn’t have the ability to demonstrate. He lost the glory of God.
The word for glory in Hebrew is the word “Kabod.”
3519. kabowd, kaw-bode´; from 3513; properly, weight, but only figuratively in a good sense, splendor or copiousness:—glorious(-ly), glory, honour(-able).
The translation of this word simply means “weight.” For man to fall short of the glory would mean that man did not weigh up to God. Man did not measure up to God’s expectations. If you had to put man on a scale it would be impossible to balance what man was with what God was. Man lost the glory of God and would always come up wanting in everything he would do. To even try to work and earn God’s glory would be absolutely futile. Work does not impart His glory to you. Only His righteousness could qualify you for His glory again. All work of man would only count as debt. No matter what man does he will always miss the mark. Jesus came to restore to us the righteousness of God.
2Cor. 5:21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
The word righteousness comes from the Hebrew word “Tzadek.”
6663. tsaw-dak´; a primitive root; to be (causatively, make) right (in a moral or forensic sense):—cleanse, clear self, (be, do) just(-ice, -ify, -ify self), (be turn to) righteous(-ness).
This word means to be made right or forensic clean. Forensic experts look for DNA because your DNA is unique and your identity. On a crime scene the forensic evidence left by the DNA of the person involved would proof that he was on the scene during the time the crime was committed. To be made righteous means that there is no forensic evidence or DNA from the old man that can be used to find you guilty. The enemy has no more evidence against you for the sins you committed. The only evidence is the DNA of God that you now carry.
Amazingly the word tzadek is also the Hebrew word used for the balance beam on a scale. Can you see the picture? Adam lost the glory and would not measure up. He restores back to us His righteousness and now we can carry His glory. The measure He uses is His righteousness that is also the balance beam on the scale of God. He imparts His righteousness so that He can measure us on His scale and the results is that we measure up again to His plan and original purpose for us. He qualifies us for His glory.
By God redeeming man and qualifying us He has made it possible for us to walk in our intended purpose. God has predestined us to be conformed to the image of his Son. The obvious question would be to ask what does Jesus have? If his intend is to make us look like Jesus then Jesus must represent what Adam was before sinning or something even better. I want to propose that God had a greater comeback than the enemy. Not only can we have what Adam had before he sinned but we have something much greater than Adam ever had. Adam had no role model to see what he was to be. We have Jesus and we can see what He wants us to be but more than that, He empowers us to be what Jesus was. Adam saw Eve and said that she was bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh. We see Jesus and make the same declaration that we bone of His bone and flesh of His flesh. Adam lost the glory. Jesus came to give us back the glory of God.