Chapter Four - Sin
WHAT IS SIN?
Read Genesis 3:1-24. As you read the Bible, you will realize that it gives very much attention to the subject of sin, what caused it and what can cure it. We often think of sin in connection with crime and murder. But in the Bible sin is anything that comes short of God's perfection (Romans 3:23). The Bible speaks of sin in the following ways:
Breaking the law of God, or lawlessness, is sin (1 John 3:4).
Fighting or rebellion against God is sin (Ezekiel 2:3).
Doing wrong is sin (1 John 5:17).
Moral uncleanness or impurity is sin (2 Samuel 12:9,13).
Lack of faith is sin (Romans 14:23).
Neglecting to do good is sin (James 4:17).
Evil thoughts are sinful as well as evil deeds (Matthew 5:28).
WHERE DID SIN COME FROM?
Our first written record of sin tells us it took place in heaven. The angel Lucifer became proud and wanted to be equal with God (Isaiah 14:12-14). Because of this sin of pride, God cast Lucifer out of heaven. He became the one the Bible calls the Devil or Satan.
The first sin on earth is described in Genesis chapter 3. It happened in the Garden of Eden. God told Adam and Eve that they should not eat the fruit from the tree called the "tree of the knowledge of good and evil" (Genesis 2:16-17). They disobeyed God and ate the forbidden fruit. And so they became sinners.
WHAT ARE THE RESULTS OF SIN?
As soon as Adam and Eve had sinned, they know that they were naked, and they tried to hide from God (Genesis 3:7-10).
They became spiritually dead the moment they sinned. This means that they were separated from God -- they were not able to enjoy God's presence. They also started to die physically. They did not die at once but their bodies were surely going to die later.
Every human being has received Adam's sinful nature. We are all separated from God. We are all dead spiritually, and we will die physically some day. Read Romans 5:12-18 carefully now.
God cursed all of creation because of Adam's sin. This is the reason why there are thorns and weeds in the world. Genesis 3:14-19 gives us other evidences of sin. We do not need any other proofs that sin is in the world as long as we have prisons, hospitals and cemeteries. Tears, sickness, sorrow, pain and death are some of the results of sin.
WHAT IS THE PUNISHMENT FOR SIN?
God has said that the punishment for sin is death. "The wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23). We have already seen that this means spiritual death and physical death. This penalty must be paid. God must punish sin.
As long as we live in our sin, we are dead in spirit and our bodies will die some day. If we are still in our sins when we die, we will enter eternal death. This means that we will be separated from God's presence forever and will suffer in the lake of fire. This is called the second death in Revelation 20:14.
WHAT IS THE CURE FOR SIN?
God has given us a cure so that we do not need to suffer everlasting punishment for our sin. God sent His Son into the world to make a way so that we can escape. The Lord Jesus Christ was born of the Virgin Mary (Matthew 1:18-23; Luke 1:26-38). He had no human father and so He did not inherit Adam's sinful nature. He was the only man who never sinned. He was willing to suffer the punishment for our sin when He died for us on the cross. He satisfied what a holy God demanded. Because the penalty of sin has been met, God will now give eternal life to anyone who confesses that he is a sinner and receives Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior (John 3:16-18).
When we trust in Christ, we are saved from the penalty and from the power of sin. This means that all our sins (past, present and future sins) have been forgiven. God will never judge us for them. We now have power to live for God instead of living for the pleasure of sin.
There are two types of forgiveness of sins. The first kind is called judicial forgiveness (when we see God as a Judge). This has to do with the punishment for sin. The other kind is called parental forgiveness (when we see God as a Father). This has to do with restoring the fellowship (happy relationship with God) that was broken by sin.
When we say that all our sins have been forgiven -- past, present and future -- we mean the judicial forgiveness of sins. This means that the one who believes in Christ will never have to pay the penalty for his sins. This is because Christ paid the penalty for the sinner when He died on the cross. When the Lord Jesus died, all of our sins were in the future. Therefore He died for all of our sins. The moment we trust Christ as our Savior we receive complete forgiveness of sins as far as the penalty is concerned.
What happens when a believer sins? Sin breaks the fellowship between God and the believeer. There is no longer a happy spirit of sharing or communication between the Father and His child. This fellowship will remain broken until the believer confesses that sin and stops doing it. The Bible tells us that when we do confess these sins God is faithful and just, and He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). Here we are thinking about parental forgiveness. This is not a judge forgiving a criminal. It is a Father forgiving His child.