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Chapter Two SIN Why do we have to work so hard? Gen 3:19 “By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food.” BECAUSE OF SIN! Why do women have pain in childbirth? Gen 3:16 “To the woman He said, ‘I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children.’” BECAUSE OF SIN! WHY DO WE ALL SUFFER PAIN AND DEATH? Gen 3:17 “To Adam He said, ‘Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, `You must not eat of it. Cursed is the ground because of you.’” Gen 3:19 “...for dust you are and to dust you will return.” BECAUSE OF SIN! DEFINITION OF SIN: To miss the mark. Sinning is like shooting at a target and missing it. 1. We can miss the target by going too far. Illustration: breaking the speed limit. John 3:4 “Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness.” (Sin is breaking the law.) 2. We can miss the target by not going far enough. Illustration: not paying taxes. James 4:17 “Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins.” (Sin is not fulfilling what the law demands.) Rom 4:15 “And where there is no law there is no transgression.” (The law is the target.) Where there is no target to hit there is no missing of the target. Where there is no law there is no sin. Sin is either falling short or going beyond the target. (Note: Sin by definition cannot be inherited.) DEFINITIONS OF TERMS: Enticement: Showing or offering something with the hope of creating a desire to have it. Temptation: The consideration of the personal benefits of having something. Lust: A strong desire for something. PROCEDURE OF SIN: James 1:14 “...but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.” (1. Enticement (2. Temptation (3. Lust (4. The act (5. Death (Note: The procedure of sin shows that it cannot be inherited.) Is enticement a sin? No. It is not a sin to be enticed. James 1:14 “...by his own evil desire...” The devil knows our weak spots and entices us in those areas. Is temptation a sin? No. Heb 4:15 “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have One who has been tempted in every way, just as we are-yet was without sin.” Is lust a sin? Lust is a sin only when we lust for bad things. Luke 22:15 “And he said to them, ‘I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.” (Jesus used the same word “lust” which means to set the heart upon, i.e. to long for). Is it a sin to see a naked person? No. Think about doctors’ examinations. Is it a sin to be sexually stimulated? No. Mt 5:28 “But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” At what point do we sin? In the Bible the word “heart” generally refers to the mind. To commit adultery in one’s heart the person must fantasize committing a sex act with a person who is not their mate. MOTIVATION OF SIN: Selfishness. All sin is selfishness. WHO SINS? John 9:41 “Jesus said, ‘If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains.’” THE MENTALLY BLIND DO NOT SIN. Before eating of the forbidden fruit, were Adam and eve mentally blind? No. Gen 3:6-7 “When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, (knowledge of good and evil) she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.” Did Adam and Eve sin by being naked before they ate of the forbidden tree? No. Did Adam and Eve sin by being naked afterward they ate the forbidden fruit? No. The only place I could find a reference to nakedness being a sin was in Lev 18:6 (KJV). “None of you shall approach to any that is near of kin to him, to uncover their nakedness: I am the LORD.” This term “nakedness” means “do not have sexual relations with...” Notice how the NIV puts it. Lev 18:6 “`No one is to approach any close relative to have sexual relations. I am the LORD.” In our day we use the phrase “sleeping with”, yet we readily acknowledge that it is not literally wrong to sleep with someone that is of the opposite sex. Nakedness is not forbidden in the scriptures. Fornication, adultery and homosexuality are forbidden. Gal 5:19 “The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery” (Extreme indulgence of one’s appetites - Webster). A strong desire to have sexual relations with someone other than our husband or wife is sin. Under some conditions enticement is a sin but it not the sin of the one being enticed. Temptation is not a sin but it can lead to sin. Lust is a sin only if the person is lusting for something forbidden to him by the Scriptures. Nakedness in itself is not a sin but it can entice or stimulate toward unlawful sexual activity. Sexual stimulation is not a sin unless it leads to unlawful thoughts or actions. We need to remember Paul’s words recorded in Rom 4:15 “...where there is no law there is no transgression.” We cannot break a law that does not exist. Where there is no law we have freedom. Where God has legislated we must obey. Why were Adam and Eve ashamed? They did what God had told them not to do. Why did Adam and Eve make leaf clothing? To hide from God. If Adam and Eve didn’t know the difference between good and evil why were they punished? They knew what was good. They were not mentally blind; they just had no first hand knowledge of evil. A baby knows the good taste of milk but does not know the difference between it and a Coke. They were punished because they did not continue to hit the mark of perfect obedience. WHO SINS? Matt 18:3 “And he said: ‘I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.’” LITTLE CHILDREN DO NOT SIN. John 9:41 “Jesus said, ‘If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains.’” THE MENTALLY BLIND DO NOT SIN. Rom 3:23 “...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God...” ALL OTHERS SIN. WHEN DO WE SIN? 1 John 1:10 “If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.” WE HAVE ALL SINNED IN THE PAST. 1 John 1:8 “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” WE ALL SIN IN THE PRESENT. This does not mean that we are constantly sinning but it means that sin is always just one step away. HOW DO WE SIN? Rev 20:11-12 “Then I saw a great white throne and Him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from His presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.” WE SIN BY THE DEEDS OR THE WORKS THAT WE DO. Every deed will be judged; therefore every deed is a potential sin. How many things does a person do in a 24 hour day? 500?? Matt 12:36-37 “But I tell you that men will have to give account on the Day of Judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.” WE SIN BY THE WORDS THAT WE SAY. Every word will be judged; therefore every word is a potential sin. How many words does a person say in a 24 hour day? 2,500?? Eccl 12:14 “For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.” What is the most hidden thing we do? Think. Heb 4:12-13 “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.” Some experts suggest that we think 3,500,000 thoughts each year. This would equal nearly 10,000 thoughts each day. WE SIN BY THE THOUGHTS THAT WE THINK. Every thought that we think will be judged, therefore every thought is a potential sin. OPPORTUNITIES TO SIN EACH DAY 10,000 thoughts + 2,500 words + 500 deeds = 13,000 opportunities to sin every day We forget 99% of our sins. It has been suggested that we must forget or we will have a nervous breakdown. Bad people probably commit 100’s of sins each day. Good people probably commit 50 sins each day. But lets say you are very good. If you will let me in the basket with you we will say that we only commit six sins each day. 6 X 365 days = 2,190 sins /year. 2,190 X 30 years = 65,700 sins. 2,190 sins/year X 60 years =131,400 sins in 60 years._ __________________ James 4:17 “Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins.” Here James opens up a whole new field of sin. We previously considered only the sins of commission. That is, sins where we go beyond the target. Here James mentions the sins of Omission. That is, sins where we don’t fulfill the requirements of the law. How many opportunities to do good do we neglect each day? WHAT IS THE PASSING GRADE? Does God grade on a curve? Place Hitler and Abraham on an imaginary curve. Now place yourself on this curve. You are not as good as Abraham but not as bad as Hitler. Where will your name go? Probably somewhere near the middle. Interesting, isn’t it, that we always draw the dividing line just below our name. We say, “I think I’ll make it if only by the skin of my teeth.” James 2:10 “For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking ALL of it.” Matt 5:48 “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” ANY THING LESS THAN PERFECTION IS COMPLETE FAILURE. THE PENALTY FOR SIN: Gen 3:16-19 Physical work, suffering and death. Rom 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death...” Eternal suffering and death. APPLICATION: Everyone is equal. Everyone should be humble. We all need help! Now please click on "The Roman Road."
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Twenty Four Parts To Salvation
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