Sin. Violation of God's Will

Because God made a man with free will, and with that freedom to choose, we can do both what pleases Him and displeases. The latter calls God sin. But what is sin exactly and how does it come about? The Bible teaches that who knows what God asks but does not do, sins against God. He transgresses His will. As in the world, in violation of the law, an investigation follows, on which a punishment is determined, there must also, in this case, be a test on which God bases His judgment. For Israel, that test was the law, which every member of the people was supposed to know:

"... sin is not imputed when there is no law." (Romans 5:13, 3:20)

"... you will be sinning and you will be convinced by the law of transgression" (James 2: 9).

"Yes, I would not have known sin unless by the law; for I would not have known of covetousness if the law did not say, "You shall not covet" (Romans 7: 7).

Commandments and prohibitions stimulate us, irrespective of the consequences, to challenge the legislator by surpassing the limits set by us in giving in to our desires and passions:

"But out of the commandment, sin aroused in me all manner of lust; for without the law, sin is dead. "(Romans 7: 8)

"For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions that were provoked by the law worked in our members" (Romans 7: 5).

The first man also violated a command. God had said that he could eat from all trees, but had to stay away from one tree. This was the test of his obedience. This command, however, excites the man, and instead of conquering his desire he conceded:

"And the woman saw that the tree was good to eat off and that he was a delight to the eyes, yea, that the tree was desirable to thereby become wise, and she took of his fruit and ate, and she gave also to her husband who was with her, and he ate. "(Genesis 3: 6)

Here the process is proposed that takes place in the human mind, whereby we try to imagine our sins as not very bad:

"How long will your sinful deliberations dwell in your interior?" "The heart is deceitful above all, and indeed it is corruptible; Who can know it? "(Jeremiah 4:14 and 17: 9)

"For out of the heart come evil thoughts ..." (Matthew 15:19)

"But as often as someone is tempted, this stems from the suction and enticement of his own desire. Then, if that desire is impregnated, she bears sin ... "(James 1:14)

Man is basically free, but we are so naturally focused on satisfying our desires that we are, without seeing it, slaves; caught in the bow of our selfishness. God wants to protect us from ourselves and asks us to control ourselves to be truly free:

"But if you do not act well, sin is like a stranger at the door, whose desire is toward you, but over whom you must rule." (Genesis 4: 7)

"Let sin no longer reign as king in your mortal body, so that you should obey his desires ... For sin shall not have dominion over you ..." (Romans 6: 12-14)

"Do you not know that you, in whose service you present yourself as slaves for obedience, should also obey you as slaves, whether from sin to death or from obedience to righteousness?" (Romans 6: 16; John 8:34)

"... does not, however, use that freedom as a reason for the flesh ..." (Galatians 5:13)

God shows us that there is a way that leads to freedom: the way that his Son Christ Jesus went. His example is, therefore, the test for our lives. He only did good and did not sin against God. And God asks us to follow Jesus in it. By his crucifixion, He showed how radically He wanted to deal with sin so that he would not have the chance to take possession of and control Him:

"... that Christ also ... left you an example, that you might follow in his footsteps; who did no sin ... "(1 Peter 2: 21-22, compare Hebrews 4:15).

"... be reconciled to God. Him (Christ), who knew no sin, He (God) has made sin for us ... "(2 Corinthians 5: 20-21)

"For as for his death, he once died for sin once and for all." (Romans 6:10)

No man can say that he did not sin at any time, because all followed Adam:

"... as by one man sin entered the world ... because all have sinned ... For all have sinned ..." (Romans 5:12, 3:23).

"If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us ... If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us." (1 John 1: 8-10, compare John 8: 7).

By baptism, we announce that from now on we will no longer follow Adam, but Christ:

"For those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires" (Galatians 5:24, compare Matthew 5: 43-48).

Whoever kills the flesh in this way is henceforth no longer concerned with satisfying it but has the mind of Christ. He is focused on the permanent, rather than on the temporary:

"Everyone who remains in Him (Christ) does not sin; everyone who sins has not seen Him and has not known Him ... Everyone who is born of God does not sin; for the seed (of God) abides in him, and he can not sin, for he is born of God. "(1 John 3: 6 and 9, 5:18)

"For all that is in the world, the lusts of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and a proud life is not from the Father, but from the world. And the world passes by and covets it, but whoever does the will of God abides forever "(1 John 2: 16-17).

This does not mean that we can no longer sin, but that we do not consciously, intentionally do more. We must always remain vigilant because we are still living in a world full of temptations:

"If a man then knows how to do good and does not do it, it is a sin to him." (James 4:17)

"For if we sin deliberately after we have come to the knowledge of the truth, there is no sacrifice left for sin, but a terrible view of judgment ..." (Hebrews 10: 26-27).

Question for consideration:

What do you undertake yourself, to give the sin in your life no chance?

Forgiveness of Sin

Because God does not need the death of sinners, but wants them to live (Ezekiel 18:23), He presents himself as the forgiving God (Exodus 34: 7), Who overlooks the sins of those in faith, and repentance to go to Him (Luke 24:47, Acts 2:38, 3:19, 13: 38-39, Romans 4: 7-8, Hebrews 8:12, 1 John 1: 7 and 9; Matthew 18: 21-35)

Thanks for reading.
Stay blessed.
Shalom.