Behold, the Man

The total depravity of man is one of the core Biblical doctrines recovered in the Protestant Reformation, and is among the doctrines of grace. They are so named because they frame and demonstrate our absolute need for God's grace, as revealed in Scripture. Apart from it, we are exactly as those that demanded Jesus' crucifixion, scourged Him, and nailed Him to the cross. And because we are still sinners who are at war with God because of our old sinful nature (even while we may be positionally at peace with Him) we are constantly in need of His grace every moment of every day to kill it. Whenever we sin, we essentially yield ourselves back to that god of "self" which continually demands the death of our Lord. Praise be to Him that though we were rebels, the grace to be both forgiven of our sins and freed from its power are completely ours, found entirely in Christ alone. We are no longer utterly held captive by it, and one day we will be totally removed from its presence. This is what every Christ-follower patiently longs for.