Understanding Sin

As a follower of Jesus one of my central desires should be to grow and mature in my faith and in my love for God

If we were all honest with ourselves I think we would all agree that our spiritual lives are not where they should be

That there is significant room for growth

At the start of our year I wanted to take a look at a few areas in which I believe growth needs to happen

Here’s the thing about growth and maturity - to grow and mature you must be willing to change

To change we must be willing to admit that we might be wrong

That is something that I think most people are willing to at least consider intellectually, but when it comes to actually doing it there is typically a lot of resistance

People generally do not like change, even if they know that change needs to happen

I mentioned this quote by Paul Rulkens last week -

“If you want results you’ve never had before, you have to do things you’ve never done before”

If I want different results, I need to do different things

Yet, as a whole, we still avoid change as much as possible

We get comfortable in the way things are, even if the way things are is not good

Last week I mentioned that people change when they learn enough that they want to, receive enough that they are able to, or hurt enough that they have to

Learn enough that they want to - someone discovers that they way they were doing things was wrong, and they willingly change

Receive enough that they are able to - Someone recognizes the need to change, wants to change, but does not have the necessary resources to change. Once they get the resources they need, change happens

Hurt enough that they have to - someone knows that they need to change, but they refuse to do so until they absolutely have to. Example: an addict that waits until they hit rock bottom to seek help

So, part of growth and change is identifying the issue - knowing what needs to change

This brings me to my topic for today

It’s something that’s a problem for everyone, yet it’s also something that is, in my opinion, largely misunderstood

Today we’re going to be taking a look at the topic of Sin

I know some of you might be thinking “Oh great, here comes a fire and brimstone sermon” - no need to worry, this is nowhere near that

What I want to do today is explore what sin is, and what to do about it

Why have I chosen this topic?

Simply because our view of what sin is and what to do about it directly affects our view of God

Our view of God directly affects every other aspect of our lives

Before I get into the meat of my message I wanted to clarify something that I think you all know

Nobody has perfect theology

All of us have areas in which we are wrong, especially when it comes to God and the Bible

There is a lot that I think we get right, but there are also some areas where we think we are right, when in actuality we are wrong

What are those areas? I have no idea!

If I knew where I was wrong I would obviously correct it!

Why am I mentioning this?

Because today I am going to be talking about what I firmly believe to be true and right, but I also want to state that it is entirely possible that I am wrong

I don’t believe that I am, but it’s possible

So, in light of that, if I say something that doesn’t sound right or doesn’t sit well within your spirit, let’s talk about it later

I believe that there are always new things to learn and perhaps we can learn more on this topic together!

So, back to our topic today

First, I want to take a look at what sin is

For many sin is simply a long list of do’s and don’ts - mostly don’ts

The mindset of these people is that if it’s fun

For others sin is what makes God hate us

Neither of those are true

So, this begs the question - what is sin?

To understand the what sin is we need to go all the way back to the beginning in Genesis

The Bible tells us that in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth

That when He had created everything He looked down and said it was good

At that moment everything was perfect

There is a Hebrew word that describes the way the world was at that time

Shalom

This is a word we are all familiar with and typically it is translated as Peace

However the meaning of Shalom goes deeper, it also means Completeness, Prosperity, and Welfare

Shalom can refer to peace between two people, peace between man and God, and even peace between two countries

Shalom can refer to the well-being, welfare, or safety of an individual or a group of individuals

So in the beginning, in Genesis 1 and 2, there was perfect shalom

Shalom existed between man and God, between man and nature, and between Adam and Eve themselves

Can you imagine a world with perfect Shalom?

Then in Genesis 3 we see the entrance of sin, which destroyed that perfect shalom

Shalom has not really existed since Genesis 3

Mankind has been striving for shalom ever since, and failing miserably!

Think about it – what do most people desire in life?

What do most people spend their time, effort, and energy trying to obtain?

Shalom

We fail because it is impossible for us to obtain Shalom on our own

This is why Jesus came

Jesus came to restore Shalom

Primarily shalom between us and God, but also between us and each other and us and nature as well

This is where the definition of sin comes in

In its simplest form Sin is anything that disrupts Shalom

Stop and think about this for a moment

What did Jesus say the message of the Bible was?

In Matthew 22 someone asked Jesus what the greatest commandment in Scripture was

Matthew 22:37-40 Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' 38  This is the first and greatest commandment. 39  And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' 40  All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

Notice Jesus said All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments

In other words Jesus is saying that every command, every law in the Bible is summed up in loving God and loving our neighbor

Anything that disrupts loving God and loving our neighbor is sin

I’ve had people ask me “is such and such a sin?”

My response is “Does it interrupt shalom between you and God or you and your neighbor?”

If it does, then it’s sin, if not, then it’s not sin

There are certain things that are listed in Scripture as sin

If you look at any of them, at their heart is the interruption of shalom

At the same time we need to be careful not to twist this concept to justify bad behavior

Let me give you an example:

A few years ago I preached a similar message to a Christian group at Mansfield University

After the message I had a student come up to me and ask “There are girls on the Internet that have paid porn sites. Since I am supposed to love my neighbor as myself, and these girls need to make a living, is it okay for me to pay to view their sites?”

My answer was an emphatic NO!

Why did I say no?

Because he was trying to spiritually justify his desire to look at porn

Some may ask “what’s wrong with porn?”

Here’s the problem with porn

The problem is not that there’s naked people - nudity in and of itself is not at all a sin

The problem with porn is that it is lust based, not love based

It’s designed to inflame lust

The difference between lust and love is this - lust is all about me

It’s totally and completely selfish - I want to get my jollies and I don’t really care about you

I cannot be selfish and love someone - selfishness and love cannot coexist

So the reason that porn is a sin is that it disrupts the love - the shalom - between me and my neighbor

Now that we’ve talked a little about what sin is I want to take a look at another issue surrounding the topic of sin

I’ve heard many people say that our sin separates us from God

I will agree that this is a true statement but it needs further explanation

Some have said that God is Holy and just and cannot be in the presence of sin, therefore our sin causes God to distance Himself from us

I have even preached this very thing myself in the past

Sometimes we hear it said that when Jesus cried out on the cross “my God, my God why have You forsaken Me?” that it was at that moment that God laid the sins of the world on Jesus and because God cannot look upon sin He had to turn His face away from Jesus

Again, this is something that I have preached in the past

However I no longer believe this

Yes, I believe that God is holy and just, but I cannot believe that our sin causes God to distance Himself from us, nor do I believe that God ever turned His face from Jesus because of sin

Think about it logically for a moment

The Spirit of God came down to Abraham when God established the covenant – Abraham was a sinner when this happened

Jacob physically wrestled with God while he was still very much a sinner

We are told in Scripture that God met with Moses face to face

Moses was in the very presence of God, and Moses was a sinner like you and me

We are also told that the Spirit of God was in the center of the Israelite camp in the form of a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night

You cannot read the Exodus story without encountering the repeated sin of Israel

The biggest proof that God does not distance Himself from the presence of sin is found in the book of Job

Job 1:6 very clearly tells us that Satan – the very author of sin – came into the presence of God

If God can allow the creator of sin in His presence I do not think my sin will keep God away

The problem is not that my sin causes God to withdraw from me

The problem with my sin is that it causes me to withdraw from God

God desires Shalom with us

The lack of Shalom between mankind and God is not God’s issue, it’s mankind’s issue

Joke about old man and old woman riding down the road “I’m not the one who moved”

I want to look at this from one more angle just to further cement my position

We all would agree that Jesus is God come in the flesh

In fact, Jesus very plainly said that if we wanted to know what God was like, look at Him

That He, Jesus, was the very embodiment of God

So how did Jesus react in the presence of sinners?

He loved them

Jesus didn’t separate Himself from sinners at all

In fact one of the accusations that the religious leaders brought against Jesus was that He was a friend of sinners

Jesus was always getting called out for hanging with the wrong kind of people

No, I do not believe for one minute that our sin causes God to separate Himself from us

I am fully convinced, however, that my sin causes me to separate from God

It’s not God that moves, it’s me

My sin causes my eyes to be taken off from God and put on myself

My sin makes me selfish, and I cannot have perfect shalom and be selfish

Why am I spending so much time talking about this?

Because this issue affects how we look at God

If my sin causes God to withdraw from me then it is very easy for me to see God as someone who is totally disgusted with me

That He can’t stand to look at me because of all the bad things I’ve done

To add to that I had no choice over being a sinner

Scripture tells us that all of us have sinned

David said he was a sinner from the moment he was conceived

What kind of God would detest me for something that I had no control over?

What kind of God would pour out His wrath on someone for simply being born?

Jesus did not die on the cross to save me from the wrath of God, Jesus died on the cross to restore Shalom between me and God

God has not separated Himself from us because of our sin

Our sin has caused us to be separated from God

This brings me to a question

How is perfect shalom restored?

How do we get shalom between us and God, us and each other, and us and nature?

This is where the Gospel message comes in!

The best explanation of the Gospel that I can find in Scripture is in 1 Corinthians

1 Corinthians 15:1-8  Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2  By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. 3  For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4  that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5  and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. 6  After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7  Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8  and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.

Here it is folks, the Gospel message

Jesus died for our sins, the thing that interrupts perfect shalom

Jesus was buried and three days later overcame death and was resurrected

What does it mean that Jesus died for our sins?

Romans 6:6-7 For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin-- 7  because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.

According to this passage Jesus died so that we would no longer be slaves to sin

This implies that before we accept the Gospel message that we are slaves

We do not belong to God, we belong to sin, to the devil

We are following after our own wants and desires rather than God – we are slaves to sin

Jesus’ death paid our ransom, His blood was the price necessary to buy our freedom!

Ephesians 1:3-8 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 4  For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5  he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will-- 6  to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7  In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace 8  that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.

Not only did Jesus’ blood pay the ransom to set us free from sin, His blood is the method that we are forgiven of sin

Not only that, the blood of Jesus is the price that was paid for our adoption!

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Now that we are set free, forgiven and adopted by God we are no longer sinners, but children of God!

Check out what 1 Peter says

1 Peter 2:9-10 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10  Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

Oh I love the sound of that!

I am not a despicable sinner, I am chosen, I am royal, I am a priest, I belong to God!

Not because of anything that I have done, but because of everything that Jesus did!

This is the Gospel message!

Now we come to the So What portion of my message

What does all of this mean for us?

Well, let me ask you - do you have shalom in your life?

Is there shalom in your life?

Shalom with yourself?

Shalom between you and God, you and other people, and you and the world?

Before I go any further let me say this - perfect shalom is nearly impossible to obtain in this world

But to quote one of my favorite phrases from AA - we seek progress, not perfection

Perfect shalom is the goal, but it is a journey

Jesus’ death on the cross makes the journey possible

Our goal is to be closer to perfect shalom today than we were yesterday

If this is something that you desire - shalom within yourself, with God, with others, and with the world - then accept what Jesus did for you on the cross and begin that journey today!