All wrongdoing is sin - 1 John 5:17a
Sin, which primarily literally means "missing the mark," has two dimensions. The first dimension is sin one commits by doing something bad. This is often straightforward enough to understand. The Bible is typically very clear about these things. Examples are found in the Ten Commandments, the vice lists that Paul mentions in his letters (i.e. Galatians 5:19-21) and many other places. This sin dimension can often be made into a list of don'ts and success/victory here can be measured pretty clearly.
Paul even concludes that Galatians passage with an ominous statement saying, "those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God." There is no getting away from the fact that going against God's ways are serious and the consequences are huge. Anyone who holds the Bible in authority and spends much time in a church understands that for the most part.
However, the second dimension of sin is one that we neglect sometimes, but it is equally serious. The most concise biblical description of that dimension is:
Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins. - James 4:17
So, sin is not just doing something bad, but failing to do something good. Interestingly, Jesus spent more time on this dimension than any other. The people Jesus taught knew the commandments. They knew what the Law prohibited. That is why in passages where he combats the Pharisees he deals with matters of the heart (i.e. Mat. 15:1-20 or Mat. 23). That is why Jesus saw past the surface issue with the rich young ruler and got to the heart of the matter (Luke 18:18-30). It's why he blew their minds talking about what it meant to be a good neighbor (Luke 10:25-37). It's especially why he declared that the greatest commandment was to love God and love our neighbor (Mat. 22:34-40). Paul even summed this idea up in Romans 13:10 saying, "Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law." Then in Galatians 5:1 he says, "The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself."
The trouble with this sin dimension is that it cannot be measured the same way as the other one, but that doesn't mean it isn't a serious issue without consequences. In fact, since Jesus spent so much time on this dimension one could argue that it was even more serious, especially for religious people.
If this is true, how do we deal with the reality that there is sin in our life? The longer we are in Christ, the less we should sin. This much is true. However, the longer we are in Christ the more we should become aware of our sinfulness, especially in the second dimension. With this awareness, I think we should become even more humble and thankful people, depending more and more on the loving grace of God and our need for the salvation Jesus gives us. Also, we should become even more in tune with the power of the Holy Spirit which gives us victory over sin.
Where do you come out on this issue, especially with sin in the second dimension?
In light of this, how do you make sure to be more connected with the saving resources of God's grace and mercy found in the Gospel and the transforming power of the Holy Spirit?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I am so glad that we are into a discussion of this subject....especially at this point in time.Think it is one of the least understood of things in the church.Everyone seems to understand grace and mercy, it seems! But when the subject of sin comes up.. seems we all see things.. through different lenses? Growing up, I was taught that, since sin separates us from God, we were not to sin. Then someone found the verse in the Bible that said that we have a deal with God and He would forgive us if ..no, when...we do sin, because we are all going to keep on sinning, but much less as we grow in the christian life. From the book, UN christian, there is an interesting thought. Something like "Some Christiansrespond to outsiders' negativity by promoting a less offensive faith. The unpopular parts of Christian teaching are omitted or deemphasized. They hijack the image of Jesus by portraying Him as an open-minded, big-hearted,and never-offend- anyone moral teacher.That is an entirely wrong idea of Jesus.He taught remarkably tough truths about human beings and about sin. You cannot read a passage like Revelation 19 (when His second coming is equal parts glorious and dangerous) or His time on earth( where He opposed religious leaders and spoke bluntly of people's spiritual fractures) and not see the strong, righteous side of Jesus. Softening or reshaping the Gospel is an utterly wrong response to the objections peop;e raise." The article explains that young people today like to discuss everything and find Christians unwilling to do this. Like I said in the beginning, so thankful that this subject is being taught ..seems so important and often set aside for more current topics.
ReplyDeleteOK, I do know that God does not make deals. He just so wonderfully forgives us when we do sin. Am always concerned that, because we have that forgiveness, we not take advantage of it.
ReplyDelete