July 12, 2006

• Jamie asked this:
  

  
  

  This is an honest to good question:

  
  

  What is Sin? 

  
  

  I know what it says in Galations but, for an unbeliever, what is it??

  
  

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  There is no double standard for sin – if you concede that there is absolute truth, there cannot be degrees of sin. Sin is sin is sin. The unbelievers will be as accountable for their actions as believers – we can see in Revelation that all will stand before the throne of God and be judged. That being said, God is a just judge, and he will deal justly. No one will walk away from the throne of God believing that their outcome was unfair. God knows more than we do, and knows a person’s heart. But for us we have been given a remarkable gift of salvation and liberty from sin, all we need to do is repent and ask Jesus into our hearts. The truth be told, when we go before God we go alone. We will not be compared with another. We will stand on our works and actions, sins and faith. God will not compare us with another. So what really matters is if we have accepted Jesus into our lives.

  
  

  In our discipleship course, Pastor Don wrote about sin something that might be helpful.

  
  

  A Fisherman’s Definition of Sin (page 101)

  
  

   ”    Sin is behavior in thought or deed that is contrary to the nature of or in violation of God’s laws. The Bible says, “whatever is not from faith is sin” (Romans 14:23). Doubt, unbelief, worry, any fear other than fear of God is also sin, especially if improperly given more place than Faith. Any thought or action that is “unloving” is sin. All the above separate us from God and ultimately violate self. We are created beings capable of violating our own best interest and design. God’s love for us and His need to be loved caused Him to give us “free will.” This “free will” means that we can and must continually make choices. Sometimes we choose immediate gratification based on false information and violate God, self and others. Sin usually has instant rewards. If nothing else, sin is the result of the flesh (carnal nature) pleasing the self.”

  
  

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  We cannot put a meter on sin, all sin is sin – all sin kills. But the consequences of the sins we commit could vary – stealing a pack of gum could get a reprimand, killing someone in some states could cost you your life. Sowing and reaping is guaranteed.  Our actions will impact our future. Tell one small lie and get caught, then many will not believe any words out of your mouth. We can ask God for a crop failure in our lives, that the things that we have sowed will be reduced or destroyed so that we do not reap the full harvest from our sins. But God is sovereign and He will do what is just.

  
  

  John 1:9 says “If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

  
  

  God is absolute truth, absolute justice, absolute love, absolute grace, etc. While we, in our limited understanding cannot comprehend how God can be judge and loving at the same time, God can and does do just that. There is an absolute standard of right and wrong – and God has laid down the rules in his Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth (BIBLE). These rules and commandments (Jesus got them down to two – love God and love each other), are there for our good, because like a good parent, God knows the consequences of disobedience. Adam and Eve allowed satan to come in and take over earth by one act of disobedience. When we obey God we will find greater joy and happiness.

  
  

  Although people might say that it is unfair that we are judged by this standard, and those who don’t know the standard are then left out. That is not true. The Laws of Moses, the Ten Commandments are a ruler to let us know that we can’t keep all the law without God. But Abraham did not have the Law of Moses, yet many of the things we read about in Genesis are precursers of the Law and of Jesus. The law is there written in our blood, in our conscience, in our being. Most cultures have basic laws about not killing each other, not stealing from each other, and other laws to keep society civilized.

  
  

  Unbelievers cannot pretend that they have no evidence of their creator, it is written in creation. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see how interconnected all of creation is, and that at the very least there had to be an intelligent designer.

  
  

  I spent 40 years in sin, hating God, disregarding all of his rules. I felt, as many in the new age do, that I was god, that I was in control, that I could make my rules and live by them. The problem that we have is that people are pretty self-centered, and if left to it’s own logical conclusion, we would end up at each other’s throats because we would violate each other’s “freedom.” To be truly free we need to obey something. And God gives us a choice. We can choose to obey one who loves us, one who loved us so much to die for us for our sin’s forgiveness, or we can choose to obey the enemy, the flesh, that which is out to destroy us. We have a choice.

  
  

  We cannot weigh sins on a scale either. We cannot say, ”I told a little white lie, you told a whopper.” A lie is a lie is a lie. Once we let one tiny, tiny sin in, we are polluted. Imagine a glass of white, pure milk. Take one drop of chocolate syrup and mix it into the milk. Stir it up and taste. It will look like pure milk, smell like pure milk, taste like pure milk, but scientific analysis will detect the tiny drop of syrup that destroys the purity of the milk. Sin is like that, we are all sinners.

  
  

  What I find amazing is that Jesus died for our sins, took them on Himself, and all we have to do is to accept this remarkable gift that He gave us. Some people feel that we have to work out our salvation – that good works will get us in Heaven. It is not true. It is not works, it is His Grace that provides our salvation. But once saved, we do love Jesus and are so touched by His love for us that we want to help do the work of the kingdom. If we did nothing, He would still love us, but in loving Him, we want to help.

  
  

  I hope this is helpful. I am open to others comments on this topic which is a great topic.

  
  

  Heather

  • 1:02 am
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