Articles
Sin and the Savior (Part 1 of 3)
Sin and the Savior (Part 1 of 3)
Sin is slavery (Romans 6:16). How burdensome and hopeless it is to be trapped in a life of servitude to sin! Since we have all sinned (Romans 3:23), we have all become slaves of sin.
Thus we all deserve death — spiritual death (Rom. 6:23).
The good news is, all hope is not lost. We have been offered the undeserved, free gift of eternal life (Rom. 6:23b). God has shown us how to be freed from the cruel bondage of sin.
This series of three articles briefly explores the problem of sin and the one and only solution: the blood of Christ.
UNDERSTANDING SIN
Our society has an upside-down view of sin. The world not only tolerates sin, it goes so far as to call evil good and good evil, just as in Isaiah’s day (Isaiah 5:20).
Only God can rip the mask off of sin and show it for what it really is.
The Greek word for sin means “to miss the mark”. 1 John 3:4 says, “Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness”. So sin is anything that goes against God’s law, anything that misses the target that God has set up through His word.
We must let the Bible tell us what is sinful instead of deciding for ourselves. Consider three basic categories of sins:
1. Sins of Commission
These are sins that occur when we actively commit things God forbids, such as “immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these” (Galatians 5:19b-21a).
2. Sins of Omission
These are sins that occur when we omit actions God commands us to do, ignoring our God-given responsibilities -- for example, when we fail to take care of those in need (Matthew 25:41-46), when we waste our spiritual abilities and opportunities (Matthew 25:14-30), or when we refuse to forgive others (Matthew 6:15).
It’s easy to go to hell. All you have to do is . . . nothing.
3. Sins of Religious Error
This category of sin occurs when we add to or take away from God’s word, violating His authority. When traditions of men are held on a higher plain than God’s word, that is a transgression of the commandment of God (Matthew 15:3). When manmade doctrines are taught and followed, the result is vain and empty worship (Matthew 15:9; Galatians 1:6-9).
Sins belonging any of these categories can cause a person to be lost. Therefore we must be careful to “abstain from every form of evil” (1 Thessalonians 5:22) while aiming for the target of God’s expressed will.
