| If we fail to grasp God's
perspective on the issue of sin, then we will be in danger of offending
our Creator. If we don't have a clear picture of the nature of sin then we
will be very likely to commit sin. So what is sin?
The Bible gives several definitions:
Sin is not simply a weakness or a lapse. It is not committed merely because we lack knowledge or guidance. The Bible tells the unpleasant truth about our real state before the Holy Creator: our sin is like a cancer that has invaded every part of our lives; a plague that has spread throughout our being. We are totally corrupted in the sight of the Holy God of Heaven. We are unclean. We are rebellious. We are deserving of everlasting punishment. Our sinful nature means that we are dead here and now and will die spiritually in the hell where the devil and his angels will be, in eternity. BUT God's free grace has made it possible for us to live! Here and now and eventually in God's Paradise. "The wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 6:23). This is the Good News that God reveals in the Gospel. Hell-deserving sinners can be freely forgiven through the obedience and sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Christ has paid our infinite debt. We accept or neglect this free offer of mercy. Originally, we were not spoilt by sin. God made us pure, holy and happy. Our father Adam and Eve his wife had the ability to NOT sin. We have lost that. Indeed, we are constantly sinning in our words and actions and our thoughts. Sin is not just external wrongdoing (murder, theft, adultery, etc.) it also includes our inner thoughts and desires and motives (pride, lust, hatred, selfishness, self-righteousness, etc.). The Scriptures make it very clear that ALL have sinned and fallen short of God's standard of perfection. The Bible says: " All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one." (Romans 3:12). There has only ever been One man who has lived perfectly without sin. Every other human being has been a sinner in the sight of God and has failed to please God fully. As the proverb says: "To err is human, to forgive is divine". The Scriptures tell us that this sinless One was Jesus Christ, who was holy and free from any deficiency and blemish. Even His fiercest enemies failed to find any fault with Him because He is the Eternal Word of God, who, by His power and holiness, overcame the devil. So what of the Prophets and their character and actions? God's Word tells us that His Holy Spirit inspired the words and actions of the prophets so that when communicating the messages of God they were infallible and did not convey imperfections or discrepancies; yet it does not deny their humanity or the fact that they were themselves subject to errors, negligence, and forgetfulness and committed sin in their ordinary daily affairs. Deficiency resides in man, whatever his rank, status or measure of piety. God alone is unique in His perfection. I find it interesting that even the Qur'an (I am quoting from Mohd. M. Pickthall's Translation) agrees with the Holy Bible on this issue: Adam: Sura Ta Ha 20:121: "And Adam disobeyed his Lord, so went astray." Al-Baidawi, the Muslim commentator says of this verse, "He strayed from the path of duty and despaired, or wandered away from what he was commanded to do, or deviated from the right direction because he was deceived by the enemy." Muslim scholars have agreed that disobedience is one of the major sins, on the evidence of S. The Jinn 72:23: "whoso disobeyeth Allah and his messenger, lo! his is fire of hell, wherein such dwell for ever." The Arabic word for disobedience in both passages is the same- "asa". Jonah: S. Who Set Ranks 37:139-142: "And lo! Jonah verily was of those sent. When he fled unto the laden ship, and then drew lots and was of those rejected; And the fish swallowed him while he was blameworthy." Abraham: S. The Poets 26:82: "And who, I ardently hope will forgive me my sin on The Day of Judgement." S. Abraham 14:41: "Our Lord! Forgive me and my parents and believers on the day when the account is cast." Moses: S. The Story 28:16: "He said: My Lord! Lo! I have wronged my soul, so forgive me. Then He forgave him." S. The Heights 7:151 "He said; My Lord! Have mercy on me and on my brother; bring us into Thy mercy." Noah: S. Noah 71:28: "My Lord forgive me and my parents..." David: S. Sad 38:24: "And David guessed that we had tried him and he sought forgiveness of His Lord, and he bowed himself and fell down prostrate and repented." Solomon: S. Sad 38:34-5: "Then did he repent. He said : My Lord! Forgive me." These men, however pious they were, were still just men. They failed and sinned and therefore needed God's forgiveness. Sin has infected all mankind. Only Christ was pure and free from sin. Therefore only He can be our Saviour. |