A Survey of Sin

This article appeared in the November 1972 edition of the "Christian Courier", published by the Church of Christ in Stockton, California.

The Reality of Sin- One would hardly think that it is necessary to establish the existence and reality of sin. There are, however, those who claim that "sin" is but an illusion of the mind. the atheist for example, denies the reality of sin by claiming that such is a concoction of insecure, emotionally disturbed religious fanatics. He would explain man's behavior in terms of an evolutionary development; a savagery derived from an alleged jungle existence. The defense by Clarence Darrow in the famed Leopold and Loeb trial (Chicago, 1924) was based upon this very premise. Some psychiatrists would rationalize the wickedness of humanity by characterizing it all as "sickness." Now it is unquestionably true that some who commit horrible crimes are sick but the bulk of such incidents can only be regarded as sin. Even some religionists refuse to acknowledge much of sin's dreadful presence. Mary Baker Eddy (founder of "Christian Science") declared: "Sin, disease and earth have no foundations in Truth." and religious modernism, with its situation ethics and its corresponding rejection of objective truth (the Bible) has likewise promoted the "no sin" theory.

The grim and overwhelming reality of man's atrocious conduct however, is an eloquent rebuttal of the puny philosophical and psychological rationalizations of sin-perverted minds. The facts are staggering. The annual crime bill of the United States is $22 billion and the crime rate is mounting five times as fast as the population rate. In this alleged "sinless land" there is a robbery committed every two and one half minutes; a forcible rape every nineteen minutes and a murder every forty three minutes. In fact, in one seven year span of the Vietnam War, while 25,000 Americans were being killed in that foreign conflict, 67,000 were being murdered right here at home in our own safe U.S.A. No, these facts can't be explained away with pat little theories. SIN is the answer and man is the culprit. In the first chapter of the book of Romans, Paul indicted the ancient Gentile world as sinful; in the second chapter, he brought the Jews under the same condemnation. He thus concluded: "There is none righteous, no, not one;" and again, "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (3:10,23). The Bible is plain, "If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us" (I John 1:10). And, "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us" (I John 1:8).

What Is Sin?- How vague and distorted are our concepts of sin when divorced from the teaching of the Bible. Rousseau, the prominent French socialist of the 18th century said, "All that I feel to be right, is right. Whatever I feel to be wrong is wrong. All the morality of our actions lies in the judgment we ourselves form of them." More recently, American writer Ernest Hemingway declared, "What is moral is what you feel good after, and what is immoral is what you feel bad after." One supposes then, if Hitler felt "good" about murdering several million Jews, it was a "moral" act! It is patently obvious that man, being the fallen creature that he is, is in no position to define sin. But God has defined it in his written revelation to man, the Bible.

    1. Sin is violation of God's law.  "Every one that doeth sin doeth also lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness" (I John 3:4). The word "sin" is from the Greek term hamartia, literally, "to miss the mark." In the above passage, sin is shown to be downright lawlessness. It is an ignoring of and opposition to divine law. It is the opposite of righteousness; yes, "all unrighteousness is sin" (I John 5:17).

    2. Unbelief is sin. When Jesus spoke to His disciples of the coming Comforter, he affirmed, "And he, when he is come, will convict the world in respect of sin..." And then he said, "...of sin, because they believe not on Me..." (John 16:8,9). There are those who scoff at the Savior's virgin birth, who utterly deny His miraculous deeds and sneer at His wonderful words. They suggest that He was but an ordinary man, if, say some, He indeed ever lived at all. Jesus said, "He that believeth not shall be damned" (Mark 16:16).

    3. Sin is refusing to listen to the truth. Jeremiah described his contemporaries by charging, "They are turned back to the iniquities of their forefathers, who refused to hear my words" (Jer. 11:10). Again, God declared through the prophet, "I will bring upon Judah and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the evil that I have pronounced against them; because I have spoken unto them, but they have not heard; and I have called unto them, but they have not answered" (Jer. 35:17). So many today are like this. They are totally disinterested in spiritual truth. Like those ancients who murdered Stephen, they have "stopped their ears" to religious instruction.

    4. Presumption is sin. David exclaimed, "Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me; then shall I be upright, and I shall be clear from great transgression" (Psalm 19:13). Presumption is not merely a slip of weakness, it is a deliberate disregard of divine truth. When King Saul, who was not a priest of God, offered burnt offerings in the absence of Samuel, he acted presumptuously and foolishly. He had "not kept the commandment of Jehovah" and he paid the price (I Sam. 13:12-14). To act in religion in the absence of divine authority is sinful. Christians are admonished to "learn not to go beyond the things which are written" (I Cor. 4:6). Let us be sobered by these words: "Whosoever transgresseth and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God; he that abideth in the teaching, the same hath both the Father and the Son" (II John 9).

    5. Neglect is sin. "To him therefore that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin" (James 4:17). Many people, who would never think of stealing or committing adultery, sin flagrantly by their neglect and indolence. They may not do too much wrong, but they never get around to doing much right either. Jesus described a certain servant as being beaten with many stripes because he "knew his lord's will, and made not ready, nor did according to his will" (Luke 12:47). the man who neglected to use his talent was characterized by Christ as "wicked and slothful" (Matthew 25:26). And those on the left hand in that judgment scene of Matthew 25 are sentenced to Hell because of their failure to act (42,43).

The Consequences of Sin- The tragic consequences of sin surround us. Suffering and sorrow, disease and death are results of man's rebellion to God's law. Even innocent children, who have committed no personal sins, are heir to effects of unrighteousness. Through Adam's sin, death entered the world and passed unto all men (Romans 5:12). The whole creation seems to groan under the "bondage of corruption" brought about by sin (Romans 8:21-22). And more dreadful still is the eternal damnation that awaits those who die out of Christ and thus in their sins (John 8:24).

The Remedy for Sin- Thanks be to God, there is a remedy for sin. Christ came to give His life a ransom in exchange for ours (Matthew 20:28). He loved us and loosed us from our sins by His own blood (Revelation 1:5). When man through faith, turns from his sinful way of living (repentance) and identifies with the death and resurrection of Christ by being immersed in water for forgiveness of sins (Romans 6:3-4; Acts 2:38) he is freed from the guilt of his past conduct. As long as he continues to walk in the light, Christ's blood will keep him clean (I John 1:7). Let us strive to so live, and teach others accordingly.