Protestants often claim that our sinfulness is manifest in our efforts to earn God’s favor by our works. That is true, but it doesn’t quite get at the most grievous root of sin. Barth is more penetrating in saying that our sinfulness is manifest in our efforts to usurp God’s place. A sinner who’s trying to earn God’s favor is still acknowledging God as Judge; Barth sees that our sin consists in the fact that we want to be our own judges, measured by our own (rather cushy) standards.
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