What then, did Christ overcome? He had nothing to overcome? And before His crucifixion, He said, "I have finished the work you have sent me to do". If sin were just a legal problem, then Christ dying is enough. He could have died as an infant!

But that he can manifest himself in flesh laden with sin and with all the tendencies of sin, such as ours is—that is a mystery.

The legal problem involves two aspects.

Although Adam enjoyed God’s favor because he had no sin, yet he was to obey, if he would enjoy eternal life. Thus he must have:
1) not only a negative righteousness - he was not guilty of anything; but also
2) a positive righteousness - he must obey that he might inherit eternal life

When he sinned,
1) he became guilty of transgression, forfeited God’s favor and became subject to the penalty
2) he failed to obey positively, failed to overcome the devil, and thus forfeited eternal life.

Therefore, in the covenant of grace, the representative of humanity, the second Adam, must
1) by satisfying the penalty, clear the slate and reinstate us in God’s favor _ Adam’s original condition. (This is called Christ’s passive obedience.)
2) accomplish the probationary assignment of overcoming the devil and presenting a perfect obedience, earning for us eternal life _ God’s promised reward. (This is called Christ’s active obedience.)

This is not a mystery - this is a mistake.

Be careful, exceedingly careful as to how you dwell upon the human nature of Christ. Do not set Him before the people as a man with the propensities of sin. ... He could have sinned; He could have fallen, but not for one moment was there in Him an evil propensity. {5BC 1128.4}

Jones says exactly the opposite of what Ellen White says. Yet people perfer uninspired words over inspired words.

M: During His 33 year sojourn on Earth when did Jesus:

1. Punish sinners by withdrawing His retraining hand and allowing nature to act in and of itself resulting in viruses, diseases, epidemics, earthquakes, fires, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, typhoons, volcanic eruptions, sink holes, etc?

2. Punish sinners by withdrawing His protection and permitting evil angels to employ nature as a weapon causing viruses, diseases, epidemics, earthquakes, fires, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, typhoons, volcanic eruptions, sink holes, etc?

3. Command someone like Moses to stone sinners to death and to wage war killing enemy combatants because they mistakenly believed killing is right?

A: In the life of Christ on this earth, what do we learn about how He treated His enemies? In His life on earth, what do we learn of how He treated sinners? What was the role of the Jewish people in the Old Testament? They were to reveal God's character to the world. Did they fulfill that role? NO. The whole story of the Old Testament is full of apostasy, with a few glimmering examples of faithfulness. Over and over in the OT, we read about how God did this and that for destruction. Over and over we see that the character of the God that worked with the Israelites was like the Christ in the New. Deuteronomy 31:17-18 Then my anger shall be kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide my face from them, and they shall be devoured, and many evils and troubles shall befall them; so that they will say in that day, Are not these evils come on us, because our God is not among us? 18 And I will surely hide my face in that day for all the evils which they shall have worked, in that they are turned to other gods. God is not the causative agent. The lack of God is the causative agent. Paul understood the meaning of the wrath of God. Read Romans 1. We do learn of what happens when Christ withdraws His protection as foretold by Christ on the destruction of Jerusalem. God was not the causative agent in its destruction. When their cup of iniquity was full, God gave them up.

APL and Rosangela, you guys might want to discuss the sinful flesh nature of Jesus elsewhere.

PS - Obviously Jesus did none of the things in the NT you believe He did in the OT (referring to the 3 summaries listed above). And yet you insist we must define the Jesus of the OT by the Jesus of the NT. There is a disconnect here.

So I ask again - what did Christ overcome? From your viewpoint, certainly nothing that we need to overcome.

Is sin hereditary or not? I assume you would say it is not.

The only question that is relevant is whether that 20 year old murder is still the same person, will he have the propensity to kill again or is he now safe to be around because he is "born again". Nothing legal about that.