its consequences. Job said, “Man that is born of a woman is of few days and full of
trouble” (14.1). Indeed, whether you acknowledge God or not, the effect or
“trouble” of sin is everywhere apparent.
THE RESULTS OF SIN – Sin affects everything and everyone. It affects 1.
Our Societies. It caused a man to murder his brother for no cause whatsoever
(Gen. 4.8). It brought the antediluvian people to “imagine only evil continually”
(Gen. 6.5; cf. Ps. 36.1-4). It caused a man to slice up his “concubine” into twelve
pieces, limb by limb, sending them throughout all the territory of Israel (Judges
19.29-30). Sin gave birth to imperial despotism (e.g., Alexander, Caesar &
Napoleon) as well as to papal repressions (e.g., dark ages, Spanish inquisition). It
murdered millions of Jews and killed many more under Hitler’s fascist, allegedly
“superior Arian Race.” Today, it is building jails, prisons, courthouses, separating
families, hardening hearts, and killing infants. Indeed sin affects our societies. But
it also affects: 2. Our Souls. Sin will: 1) Defile Our Heavenly Record (Ps. 51.2, 7;
Jer. 2.21-22; 2 Pet. 1.4; 2.10, 20-22). 2) Deaden Our Conscience (1 Tim. 4.1-2; 2
Pet. 2.10-14). 3) Deceive Our Mind (Tit. 3.3; Heb. 3.13). 4) Destroy Our Spirituality
(Heb. 6.4-6). And, 5) Damn Our Soul (Mt. 7.23; 25.41, 46).
THE REASONS FOR SIN – Why, in view of the horrible “trouble” sin
causes, would anyone engage in such? The Bible offers a few explanations. 1.
Satan Is Crafty (II Cor. 11.3). He will cause us to think that sin is somehow
productive. He will also remind us that sin can be pleasurable, forgetting, of
course, its “passing” nature (Heb. 11.25). He may even convince us that God’s laws
are unreasonable or unfair. 2. Man Is Gullible and Self-Ambitious. Remember:
Satan may be “resisted” (Jms 4.7), proving that man has a choice in the matter (cf.
Jms. 1.13-15). Hence, man and man alone is culpable for sin.
THE REMEDIES FOR SIN – God’s remedy for sin is two-fold. 1. God’s
Part. God has provided at least three things to remove sin. 1) Mercy: It is by the
grace of God that we are saved (Mt. 18.23ff). 2) Blood: Without the shedding of
blood there is no remission (Heb. 9.22; Rom. 5.6-11). 3) Revelation: God tells us
how we are saved and what we must do to “access” (cf. Rom. 5.2) or “receive” (II
Cor. 6.1) His grace (Tit. 2.11-12). 2. Man’s Part. The process of sin and the
process of forgiveness on the part of man are both three-fold. 1. Man heard a lie.
2. Man believed a lie. 3. Man obeyed a lie. To obtain forgiveness: 1. Man must
hear the truth (Rom. 10.17). 2. Man must believe the truth (Heb. 11.6). 3. Man
must obey the truth (Rom. 6.17-18). To appropriate the saving blood of Christ, one
must be baptized (Col. 2.12ff; Rom. 6.1-6). As Christians, we must “repent” and
“pray” (Acts 8.19-22).
