The Truth About Sin

 

You know it’s interesting how we humans are so prepared to snatch at shadows in the attempt to avoid accepting the reality of some inconvenient truths. Satan is also a master of whispering lies into our minds in the pursuit of getting us to accept false perceptions involving the truth. The truth about sin is a case in point.

To set the scene for what I am trying to share with you I think it is worth discussing what the Lord Jesus Christ said to two people that He healed and helped during His ministry among the folk of Israel 2000 years ago. There are two specific instances in the bible of Christ Jesus saying to people go and sin no more. The first is described in John 5:1-15 and is about a paralytic who lay by the Pool of Bethesda each day for thirty seven years. Jesus healed the man and later sought to speak with him instructing him to sin no more so that he was not made unwell again.

The second instance is in John 8: 3-11 and describes how the Scribes and Pharisees sought to trap Jesus by bringing a woman caught in the act of adultery to Him to judge. Jesus famously told them “Let him who is without sin cast the first stone.” He then knelt down and drew in the dirt. No one actually knows what he drew but some have surmised that it may have been the sins of the men accusing the woman. In any case we will never know but the men apparently departed one at a time until the woman was left alone with Jesus. He then said to her “Woman where are your accusers?” To which she answered “They have all gone Lord.” He then said “Then neither do I accuse you. Go and sin no more.”

So what can we learn about the truth of sin from these two instances. I think the first item that we can take away is the in Christ Jesus our sins can be forgiven. In the first case with the paralytic man we learn that certain sin can make us physically unwell and we need to stop sinning to avoid those kinds of consequences. In the second case with the adulterous woman we learn that in Christ we can be forgiven any sin and that once forgiven it is imperative that we resist the urge to continue sinning. The obvious way to achieve this is by being obedient to God and by seeking him to fortify us through prayer. In the case of the woman we believe she became one of the women who followed Jesus with the disciples and was at the cross when He died for us all.

Now one thing I want to stress here is the in the eyes of God all sin is equal. There are no paramount sins as we humans might see them. For instance murder is a big sin whereas speeding in our vehicle is minor. 1 John 5: 16-17 says this “If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask, and God will give him life—to those who commit sins that do not lead to death. There is sin that leads to death; I do not say that one should pray for that. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that does not lead to death.” So all wrongdoing is sin but as I understand it the apostle John is saying that the sin that leads to death is to deliberately refuse to believe on Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins.

So looking back at the adulterous woman and the situation that occurred there. What would happen if we substituted other sins into that scenario? For instance if we put a person accused of homosexuality into that situation what would Jesus have said and done. Well I believe that it would have played out exactly as it did with the adulterous woman. The accusers would have left one by one as Jesus named their sins and then he would have been alone with the accused person. He would have asked “Where are the accusers.” and the person would have replied “They have all gone Lord.” To which the Lord Jesus would have replied “Then neither do I accuse you. Go and sin no more.”

You see we are all descended of Adam and Eve our first parents. They sinned and fell by disobeying God and we have inherited their fallen natures. None of us are lesser sinners than anyone else and all wrongdoing is sin in the eyes of God. So regardless of who we are, we stand before Christ Jesus laid bare. He is the only one who can accuse us and instead he offers us forgiveness. He is the only one in whom we can be forgiven and His is the only name under heaven by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12).

Now there is plenty of disinformation out there. One of the favourite pass times in our era is to state what science has discovered as an excuse for disobeying God. We could take homosexuality as an example and attach to that the current furore over gender assignment. Now science says that a gay person has a different kind of mind than a straight person and they are essentially a different sex mentally than they are physically. Not only that but gender bias is most unhelpful to people who can’t be simply defined as male or female. What is being argued is that these people can’t help being who they are and so if a male feels like a female then we must accept that this is the case.

What is actually the case is that the devil has gotten control of the hearts and minds of the people and has them believing that they have the right of things when in fact they are deceived into thinking that there is no God and there is no sin. Thus there is no one who can hold them accountable. The sad truth of the matter is that there is a God and everyone of us will be held accountable for our sins in the day of judgement. Only those who have found forgiveness for our sins by believing on Jesus Christ will be saved from the consequences of sin and receive eternal life. This is the truth of the matter.

Many Christians believe the liberal propaganda about sin and feel sorry for the people who are told that they are sinning when science actually shows that can’t help being how they are. Other Christians are scared to challenge the dominant discourse or even to correct those Christians that believe the liberal perspective. Thus they are silenced for fear of attack and backed into a corner.

Personally, I believe that we are near to the end of the age and Jesus is coming soon. So it is important to get the gospel to the lost and to share a pertinent scripture with our liberal Christian brethren. 2 Chronicles 7:14 says “If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”

In a world where righteousness is in steep decline and paganism is back with a vengeance. Where the weather seems to be bringing calamity after calamity to much of the Earth. While war, poverty and famine are causing heart ache upon heart ache to much of humanity (Matthew 24). It is time to share the gospel of salvation in the redemptive work of Jesus Christ on the Cross to all who can hear it (John 3:16). A final thought is from Isaiah 52:7 “How lovely on the mountains Are the feet of him who brings good news, Who announces peace And brings good news of happiness, Who announces salvation, And says to Zion, “Your God reigns!” Amen.