How then does mental illness develop? Is it a physical thing, brought on because of chemical imbalance or other changes in the brain which do not allow the soul and spirit to express themselves properly? Or is it mainly in the nonphysical realm — the soul and spirit? Is it sometimes a combination of the two? Or does the origin go even beyond this and involve the conscious “I” that is controlling the spirit, soul and body? Is the origin always the same, or do different forms of mental illness have different causes?
In seeking to answer such questions from a scriptural point of view, we must start with the root cause—sin. All of the disorder and confusion in this world stems from that awful thing that was introduced into the world in the Garden of Eden. In considering the effect of sin and its consequences in this world, we must take up the question in at least three different ways. First of all, we must consider sin in each one of us as creatures of Adam and who thus feel the effects of sin in our being because we have been born into a fallen race. Second, we must consider sin that may be willfully allowed in our lives and which can also have an effect on us. Finally, we must consider sin as being in the world and thus affecting each one of us from without, as in adverse circumstances or something that may be done to us.