It's Not Sin

It's Not Sin
June 25, 2012
Romans 3:20  "Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin."

The Bible states very clearly that when we have rules we will know when we break them.  If your parents ever set a bed time for you as a child, the clock was a good indicator if you were breaking the rules or not.  It made you aware of your short-comings if you were not in bed on time and you might suffer the consequences.  If you ever had a teacher who set in place assignments but you did not complete the assignments, you were aware of the grade you should expect.  If you ever had a boss that wrote down your job expectations, you knew you could lose your employment if you did not reach those expectations.  Somehow, though, with the Lord, we are not afraid of the consequences of our sin because of the ever extending forgiveness that flows from His love and a seemingly weak definition for our sin.

We are not afraid of the consequences of our sin, sometimes, because we aren't even really willing to define it as sin.  We try not to label things; we aren't willing to call things as they really are, in an effort to not offend anyone.  And if we don't know what to call it, then it certainly isn't a sin and we won't be afraid of the consequences.  In the Old Testament, it was pretty cut and dry as to your success in following the laws.  You either did what it said or you didn't, there was no in-between.  Since we don't want to be legalistic anymore, we stop putting rules in place.  This way, we don't have to worry about following them and certainly don't have to worry about falling short of them.  We enter our own reasoning and think that if it is not hurting anyone else then it is not a sin.  The Lord calls this a lie and therefore it is a sin.

No one would doubt that murdering someone is a sin.  The law (both man's and God's) says not to murder because it is a sin.  But very few of us are guilty of this.  We are however, guilty of so much more yet there isn't anything to declare it a sin since we have removed all labels, laws, rules, and restrictions.  But in the Lord's eyes, sin is still sin, regardless of what you want to believe and regardless of the stance that a church is willing to take on a certain topic.  In light of the ever relaxing state of the church, I will take a stance.  You may disagree if you'd like, but you'd be wrong (according to the Bible).

Having sex outside of a marriage relationship is a sin.  Homosexuality is a sin.  Getting drunk is a sin.  Divorce is a sin.  Lying is a sin, however small or even if labeled as a "white-lie."  Taking something that is not yours is a sin, even if it has no value to anyone else.  This would include sitting at work and accepting a paycheck when you are on facebook or socializing and not actually getting work done.  Talking about someone behind their back in a negative manner is a sin.  Taking the Lord's name in vain is a sin, especially when used as an expletive.  Acting out in your anger is a sin (this would include calling someone names or yelling at them).  Physically harming someone is a sin, which would include spanking your children too hard.  Being critical of someone else and judging them because they are different than you is a sin.  Being jealous of what someone else has is a sin.  Never being content with what the Lord has given you is a sin.

This list could go on and we are ALL guilty of a few of these items.  It is time to call sin a sin and get if out of your life.  In the Old Testament, the law was clear on what was right and wrong.  But for some reason we have let grace and forgiveness re-define what we are willing to call a sin.  I wish today's church leaders would take a stronger stance on calling things as they are, but it is up to us to implement it in our lives.  The more you tip-toe around calling things a sin, the more likely you are to fall into its trap.  No, I don't want you to live a guilt-ridden life because you are always falling short, but I don't want you to be deceived about your actions, either.  Sin is a sin and we all have more of it in our lives than we are willing to admit.  You can rationalize it all you want, but it is still sin.

Don't take my word for it; look it up: Lev 18:22, Lev 20:13, Matthew 5:32, Rom 1:24, Rom 13:13, Eph 4:26, 1 Cor 5:1-11, 1 Cor 6:18, Col 3:8, 1 Tim 1:9-11, Heb 13:4, James 1:20, 1 John 3:15