Welcome to the first in a series that was randomly prompted buy a shampoo advert of all things. You can refer back to the post “Shampoo ad includes sin, hell and salvation” to see why I started this series.
Mostly people get their idea of sin from the TV and so it becomes warped. But it’s through the law of the Bible (the 10 commandments) that we become conscious of sin in the world. Sin can be so ghastly and depressing that it makes us want to switch off the broadcast or fold up the paper, it’s easy to think other people are in it but really it hasn’t gone away… It’s still sitting in the armchair!
I’m not a bad person!
Many people when asked if they they are a bad person will answer “No, I don’t kill or steal… so no I’m not!” Actions are however started by our thoughts which are determined by a person’s inner self. Jesus referring to Israel’s law explains…
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery. But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” (Matthew 5:27-28)
Martin Lloyd-Jones, a late super uber Bible Teacher reinforces this.
“The fatal mistake is to think of sin always in terms of acts and of actions rather than in terms of nature, and of disposition.” (1972)
So sin begins in a person’s heart, the inner being. A sinful action is the expression of what exists there. To use my self as an example I know that in my heart I am a sinner and that my sin is expressed as a result. In my sinful inner self I have coveted friend’s possessions and been bitter towards my family. In my sinful expression I have stolen and had explosions of twisted anger. That’s just the tip of the ice burg!
So who has sinned?
The Bible is pretty clear about this. Everyone apart from Jesus has sinned mostly in their thought life, pretty much every day, even every hour. As of November 2008, the world’s population is estimated to be about 6.7 billion. That’s a lot of sin.
“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23)
Where did sin come from?
Well you may have heard of two people named Adam and Eve, the first man and women to live on earth, the first ever celebrity couple. In his love God made them with free will, they could do what they wanted. God also gave them just one rule and stated the consequences of disobeying. Death.
And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.” (Genesis 2:16-17)
Then Satan deceives Adam and Eve and they ate from the tree. He is a fowl rebel against God and he loves to amplify rebellion against God in any way he can. He was also the creation of God made with free will and was once in charge of all the angels but he decided to disobey God and tried to nick his glory. Because God is immeasurably bigger it didn’t work and Satan, then called Lucifer, was kicked out of heaven with all his followers.
What is the punishment for sin?
Unfortunately Adam and Eve both ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they had rebelled against God. God found out and the stated consequences of death where brought upon them. Adam lived for 930 years after that then died. His children were born into sin and so were subject to death also. As we are descendants of the first people and so too are children who are born into sin we also die. The penalty of sin is death.
“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23)
More Bible Bites
Hopefully that helps you better understand sin, what it is, where it comes from, how it all started. We are going to look at these following topics as they are very connected. Keep tuned in the following weeks!
What is Hell? – The place where all sinners go when they die, we look at what Hell really is!
What is Salvation? – Find out God’s amazing plan to remove sin totally and to save you!
Bad is the new Good? – The mix up between right and wrong and why we should strive to please God!
Lloyd-Jones, D. M. God’s Way of Reconciliation – An Exposition of Ephesians 2. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1972, p. 33.
You can read a chunk on Adrian Warnock’s Blog.
Am I the only one that thinks Bible commentaries can take the joy out of reading the Bible? I have only recently been introduced to using them and I’m starting to click that there is a right way and a wrong way to read them. I don’t wish to offend, I know others take great joy from reading commentaries and they certainly can be insightful when you just don’t get that little scripture.
Watching TV this month you may have come across a new Head & Shoulder ad. I couldn’t find a video so here is snapshots of blurb from their campaign: