Lesson 8

A STUDY OF SIN

King James Version (KJV)

1. Introduction

Adam and Eve lived in the garden of Eden, God gave them a law. Positively, they were to cultivate and keep the garden (Gen. 2:15). Negatively, they were forbidden to eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, which grew in the middle of the garden (Gen. 2:9,17). When they ate of the fruit of the forbidden tree, they sinned (Gen. 3:1-7). If they had not been governed by a law, they could not have sinned (Rom. 7:7).

Societies are governed by criminal and civil law. If there were no criminal law there could be no crimes, and if there were no civil law there could be no torts. Murder would not be a crime if there were no law against it. Slander would not be a tort if there were no law against it.

Societies are also governed by divine law. Violations of God's law are called sin. If God had not given us law, we could not commit sin (Rom. 4:15). What if God had not given Adam and Eve a law about what fruit they could or could not eat? Then they could have eaten without sinning.

Laws usually specify the penalty to be applied to those who violate them. Crimes may require a fine, a prison sentence, or even execution. Torts may require that damages be paid to the victim. Similarly, God's law describes the punishment due those who violate it.

Many societies provide in their laws for an offender to be pardoned, usually by an official in the society's government. This may be done (1) because the official is following a custom (Matt. 27:15), or (2) because he believes the offender has been unjustly convicted (Dan. 6:1-24), or (3) because he believes that even though the offender is guilty, society would be better off if he were not convicted, or (4) because he believes that the good the offender has done compensates for his wrongdoing. As you will see, God's law also has provisions for pardon.

2. Ways of Committing Sin

There are a number of ways of classifying sin. One useful approach is to note the ways in which one can become guilty of sin.

a. DOING WHAT IS FORBIDDEN

We violate God's law by doing what the law prohibits. This is how Adam and Eve sinned. God's law forbade them to eat fruit from a certain tree. They ate the fruit in spite of the law and became guilty.

According to 2 John 9, Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son. We are not allowed to go beyond the limits that God has prescribed in the law He has given us. Doing what is forbidden is called a sin of commission.

b. FAILING TO DO WHAT IS REQUIRED

We also violate God's law by failing to do what He has commanded to done: Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin (Jas. 4:17).

Jesus told a parable to the chief priests and elders of the Jews about two sons whose father told them to go work in his vineyard (Matt. 21:28-31). One of the sons said that he would not go but later changed his mind and went. The other said that he would go, but he also changed his mind and did not go. The second son was guilty of not doing what was required. He knew what his father had told him to do, but he did not to do it. Failing to do what is required is a sin of omission.

c. ACTING IN SPITE OF DOUBT

The third way to commit sin is to do something we are not certain is right. Paul wrote: And he that doubteth is damned if he eat, because he eateth not of faith: for whatsoever is not of faith is sin (Rom. 14:23).

Paul began Rom. 14 with an illustration. One man eats both meat and vegetables because he knows there is nothing wrong with eating either. Another man is not sure whether eating meat is right; therefore, he eats only vegetables.

What if the second man, while in a state of doubt about whether to eat meat, eats meat anyway? Paul uses the general principle expressed in Rom. 14:23b to answer the question: for whatsoever is not of faith is sin. Here, " faith " does not refer to faith in God or Christ or the Bible. It refers to a person's conviction that what he is doing is lawful. A thing may be right according to law but you may not understand this. As long as you are in doubt about the issue, you commit sin when you do the thing.

d. CONSENTING BUT LACKING OPPORTUNITY

The fourth way we commit sin is to mentally consent to a sinful act even though the opportunity to do it has not yet arisen.

Jesus taught with respect to adultery: ...whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart (Matt. 5:28). John wrote: Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer (I John 3:15).

A group of Jews planned to ambush Paul as he was transferred from the Roman garrison in Jerusalem to the meeting place of the Jewish Council. They never had the chance because Paul was not taken to the Council but to the city of Caesarea the night before the Council was to meet (Acts 23:12-23). These Jews were fully committed to killing Paul. All they lacked was the opportunity.

3. Punishment for Sin

Just as human law provides for the punishment of offenders, so God's law provides for the punishment of sinners.

When Adam and Eve sinned, they forfeited their fellowship with God, but they also suffered other losses. God decreed that Eve would have pain during childbirth. God decreed that Adam would have to toil for a living, earning his bread by the sweat of his face. Furthermore, both eventually experienced physical death because they were denied access to the garden of Eden and therefore to the tree of life. Thus, they suffered some of the punishment for their sin immediately and some at a later time (Gen. 3:16-19).

Moses was one of the great leaders of the Israelites, yet he sinned. By disobeying God and taking credit for the miracle of causing water to gush from a rock, he failed to glorify God as he should. As punishment God denied Moses the privilege of entering the land of Canaan (Num. 20:1-12). He was not allowed to participate in the fulfillment of the land promise that God had made to Abraham (Gen. 17:8).

According to the New Testament, punishment for sin is not limited to suffering on earth. Sin has consequences that reach into eternity. For the wages of sin is death (Rom. 6:23). The context shows that the death referred to here is eternal--not physical.

Eternal death is not a state of not knowing and not feeling. Rather, it is a state in which a person is (a) denied the blessings and joy of living in the presence of God forever (which is eternal life) and (b) caused to suffer immeasurable and inescapable personal pain in the company of the devil and the unforgiven sinners of all the ages.

The place where everlasting punishment occurs is called hell fire (Matt. 5:22) and is described outer darkness (Matt. 8:12), as a furnace of fire and a place where there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth (Matt. 13:42), as everlasting punishment (Matt. 25:46), as place whose end is destruction (Phil. 3:19), as the blackness of darkness (Jude 13), as the second death (Rev. 2:11), and as a lake of fire burning with brimstone (Rev. 19:20).

4. Who Sinners Are

Who has broken God's law? Is it only the hardened criminal? Is it only the one who has utter disregard for law? The fact that disobeying one's parents is a sin (Rom. 1:30) should give a clue as to how widespread sin is. Who has never disobeyed one's parents?

In Rom. 1-3, Paul argues that everyone stands to be condemned for being a sinner. In Rom. 1, he shows that the Gentiles of his day were clearly sinners as he lists sin after sin of which they were guilty. In Rom. 2-3, he shows that the Jews, too, were sinners. In summing up his argument Paul states: "There is none righteous, no, not one (Rom. 3:10), For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23). If everyone is guilty of sin, then everyone is due the wages of sin--eternal death.

5. Forgiveness of Sin

If it were not for the grace of God, we all would be facing eternal punishment. We cannot offer God a perfect life, because we are all sinners. We cannot offer God a lifetime of being sorry for our sins because remorse alone does not remove sin. Gods means for pardon We cannot offer God more good works than sins because good works do not cancel sin. We cannot rely on the merits of the good works done by others because each person is accountable only for his own deeds (Eze. 18:1-13; 2 Cor. 5:10). Therefore, unless God Himself intervenes, our ultimate and eternal destiny is hell.

God despises sin and will punish those who are guilty of it, but He also loves us so much that through His Son, Jesus Christ, He provides a way for us to be forgiven: " For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life (John 3:16).

What is the connection between the coming to earth of the Son of God and the forgiveness of sins? God sent His Son to earth to pay the penalty of sin for us: But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him (Rom. 5:8-9)

Each sin we commit is, in its own way, a form of rejection of God. Each sin we commit drives a wedge between us and God (Isa. 59:1-2). Our ultimate rejection of God and our ultimate expression of ingratitude toward Him is to reject the Son He has sent to save us.

We show that we accept God and His gracious offer of salvation when we meet His terms of pardon. He requires that we believe that Jesus is His Son (John 3:16), that we repent of our sins (Acts 17:30), that we confess our faith in Christ (Rom. 10:10), and that we be baptized in water for the remission of our sins (Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; 8:36).

Perhaps you are thinking seriously about your spiritual condition. Perhaps you are concerned that you are separated from God because of your sin--afraid of experiencing the terrible agony of eternal death or of missing the undescribable joy of eternal life. When you finish your answers to the questions below, we invite you to share your thoughts about these matters with us, if you so choose. Although you are under no obligation to use it, the " Comments " box is provided for this purpose.

LESSON QUESTIONS

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PART 1--Fill in the blanks

Look up the following verses in the Bible, click on the blank and type your answer

1. James 1:14-15 But every man is , when he is drawn away of his own and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth : and , when it is finished, bringeth forth .

2. 1 John 3:4 Whosoever committeth transgresseth also the : for is the transgression of the .

3. 1 Pet. 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your the , as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may .

4. Matt. 15:18-19 But those things which proceed out of the come forth from the ; and they the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.

5. Heb. 4:14-15 Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be with the feeling of our ; but was in all points like as we are, yet without .

6. Rom. 6:19 I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to and to iniquity unto ; even so now yield your members servants to unto .

PART 2--True or False:

Select "True" if the statement is correct or "False" if incorrect.

True False 7. A person commits sin when he or she knows to do what is right but does not do it.

True False 8. A person who is looking for a good opportunity to rob a store is guilty of sin.

True False 9. Suffering while living on earth is the only punishment a sinner should expect.

True False 10. Considering how terrible sin is and what its consequences are, it is fortunate that so few people have sinned.

True False 11. One way God has shown that He loves us is by having His Son die for our sins.

True False 12. When we sin, we separate ourselves from God.

True False 13. Believing that Jesus is the Son of God is related to the forgiveness of sins (John 8:23-24).

True False 14. If you are not sure whether doing something is right or wrong, then, for you, doing it is wrong.

True False 15. It is possible to sin without breaking some law of God.

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