SIN

Wow! A topic I’ll bet you just can’t put down until you read the title. Maybe I should change the name. Wait, read a little further. I do have something to say. Sin is Sin and I don’t hear much about it from the pulpit anymore. I think I’ll go on.

A “quick draw” definition of Sin is: Knowing the will of God and refusing to follow. But wait a minute. Did you know that you don’t go to Hell if you sin. Nowhere does the scripture say that – look it up. You do go to Hell, however, if you don’t Repent. John the Baptist made that clear. We know we have all sinned.

“So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.” (James 4: 17)

“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God…” (Romans 3: 23)

A Word About John the Baptist

John the Baptist was a Judaean preacher, related to Jesus Christ Himself (some say His cousin but this is not substantiated), active in the area of the Jordan River in the early 1st century AD. He is also known as John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy, John the Immerser in some Baptist Christian traditions, Saint John by certain Catholic churches, and Prophet Yahya in Islam. (click here)

Jesus Himself said the John the Baptist was/is the greatest of all Prophets. Yet his message was only one word: REPENT! And he shouted it loud and wide.

“For I tell you the truth, throughout history there has never been a man who surpasses John the Baptizer.” (Matthew 11:11)

“For all the prophets and the Torah prophesied until John appeared. If you can receive this truth, John is the Elijah who was destined to come.” (Matthew11: 13, 14)

“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.” (Malachi 4: 5,6)

John the Baptist bears listening to.

Now, On to Sin.

We know what Sin is, we’ve done that, got the ball cap and all. Some of us refuse to remove that cap. Here-in lies a problem. If you are unclear as to what Sin is and want to know, you must read God’s Word, the Bible. And, if you are willing to meditate and “look inward” into your inner most self, you will find God. Abraham did. He was an idol worshiper and in his private introspection and reasoning of God’s creation, he found the one true God and went from believing in many gods to one God. I quote the entire text below because few will take the time to look it up themselves.

1. Now Abram, having no son of his own, adopted Lot, his brother Haran’s son, and his wife Sarai’s brother; and he left the land of Chaldea when he was seventy-five years old, and at the command of God went into Canaan, and therein he dwelt himself, and left it to his posterity. He was a person of great sagacity, both for understanding all things and persuading his hearers, and not mistaken in his opinions; for which reason he began to have higher notions of virtue than others had, and he determined to renew and to change the opinion all men happened then to have concerning God; for he was the first that ventured to publish this notion, That there was but one God, the Creator of the universe; and that, as to other [gods], if they contributed any thing to the happiness of men, that each of them afforded it only according to his appointment, and not by their own power. This his opinion was derived from the irregular phenomena that were visible both at land and sea, as well as those that happen to the sun, and moon, and all the heavenly bodies, thus: – “If [said he] these bodies had power of their own, they would certainly take care of their own regular motions; but since they do not preserve such regularity, they make it plain, that in so far as they co-operate to our advantage, they do it not of their own abilities, but as they are subservient to Him that commands them, to whom alone we ought justly to offer our honor and thanksgiving.” For which doctrines, when the Chaldeans, and other people of Mesopotamia, raised a tumult against him, he thought fit to leave that country; and at the command and by the assistance of God, he came and lived in the land of Canaan. And when he was there settled, he built an altar, and performed a sacrifice to God. From Josephus, The Antiquities of the Jews Chapter 7:1. Click here.

Also, in God’s Word, Ecclesiastes 3:11, states that mankind possesses an innate knowledge that there is something more to life than what we can see and experience in the here and now.

“He has made everything beautiful and appropriate in its time. He has also planted eternity [a sense of divine purpose] in the human heart [a mysterious longing which nothing under the sun can satisfy, except God]—yet man cannot find out (comprehend, grasp) what God has done (His overall plan) from the beginning to the end.” (Amplified)

Therefore, for the fate of the non-believer, there is no excuse.

Being a Christian does not free us from sinning. Look at this from 1 John 8, 9, 10.

“If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.”

“If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us (This denies the presence of the principle of sin)

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (This speaks to particular sins.)

If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.” (This verse basically denies that we personally can sin.)

A Christian looses nine (9) things when he/she sins. (Writing out all these scriptures would take up too much space. Please look them up. Also see Wilmington’s Guide to the Bible for more information.)

1. The loss of light. (1 John 1:6)
2. The loss of joy (Psalms 51:12, John 15:11, Galatians 5:22, 1 John 1:4)
3. The loss of peace (Two kinds)

a.) The peace enjoyed by the believer regardless of their Spiritual condition. (Romans 5:1)

b.) The peace enjoyed by the believer living in the center of His will. (Philippians 4: 7)

4. The loss of Love (1 John 2:5, 15-17, 4:12)
5. The loss of fellowship (1 John 1: 3, 6-7)
6. The loss of confidence (1 John 3: 19-22)
7. The loss of testimony (1 John 3: 9-10)
8. The loss of rewards (Hebrews 2:1; 10:35; 2 John 1:8;
9. The possible loss of health and physical life. (1 Corinthians 11:30)

Sin can be broken down into two types

Original Sin

This is the sin passed on from the Fall of Adam per Augustinian doctrine. The Catholic Church calls it Original Sin, you may call it by another name. Basically, if you have not accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior you fall into this category and are assigned to eternal punishment. This is a condition you are in and not something you have done. It was already done and passed on by Adam. There is only one way to get out of this condition. Repent (Re; John the Baptist) and accept Jesus as your Savior.

The Sin of the Believer

These are sins committed after your “Salvation”. It is caused by what you do or have done not by your condition as being inherited. The result of this sin is explained in the nine points mentioned above.

The Cure, as always, is in Scripture

“My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” (1 John 2:1)

“Admit your faults (not anther’s faults as some do) to one another and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous man has great power and wonderful results.” (James 5:16)

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)

I Do Not Judge

I do not know where you stand with regard to Sin. I can not read your heart. Only God can and the verdict of where in eternity you will stand, will come from His mouth not mine. However, I do know the Word of God, as do many, and for many of mankind’s actions, they are already judged by His Word. That I can proclaim because He has already spoken. For example: If you lie you sin. There are no excuses. You can not rationalize this sin. It is black and white. Regarding this, the Scriptures are clear.

“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.” (Exodus 29:16)

It is also clear.

“Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and shrewd in their own sight!” (Isiah 5: 20-21)

If this is your state you must Repent.

Do Not Rationalize your Sins

Never say, “Oh, its only a little sin.” “It’s only a white lie”; “I did it so as not to hurt someone.” (What the other person does or feels is not your problem.); or “I had a good reason.” REALLY? God is very black and white. When He says “Thou Shalt Not!” He means’ Thou Shalt Not! Never call Black, White and White, Black as mentioned above. That is the work of Satan himself.

Now, Let’s Look at Repentance

My question to mankind in general is: “Have you sinned or are you in sin?” and “Have you since Repented?” I really don’t care what you call yourself: Black/White; Gay/Straight; I, you, he, you, she, it, we, you, they, (as some request); or if you call yourself Male, Female or It. Your label does not define you in this arena. Sin does. ARE YOU IN SIN and/or HAVE YOU REPENTED? The Word of God Himself defines this. If you want to debate this, you need to reason with Him.

How do you know if you’ve Repented?

To repent is to turn away, from whatever you have been doing and do not go back. If you go back to that Sin then the obvious is true; you have not Repented. The Apostle Paul fell into this category as we all do from time to time.

“For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin. For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.” (Romans 7:14, 15)

How to Fight Reoccurring Sin

I’ve quoted scripture above such as: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” in 1 John 1:9. Having done so we always ask ourselves, How many times…”. The answer is in Matthew 18: 21 and 22.

“Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.”

Now if Jesus asks this of us, how much more so will He grant us the same forgiveness, if we keep short accounts with Him. Keeping short accounts means that as soon as we catch ourselves sinning (because we still have a sin nature within us) we come before Him and ask forgiveness. Do not delay because you do not know when your end comes or whom will be affected by you sin.

Enough Said

A book can be written about Sin. In fact one has. It’s a Love Book called The Holy Bible. It’s a must read for all believers and non-believers alike. In it Sins are committed and Repentance and Salvation is offered to all those who will receive. Just ask. It is not given.

Thy Words were found, and I did eat them; and Thy Word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by Thy name, O LORD God of hosts. (Jeremiah 15:16)