I wasn’t to sure how to start this one….the definitions of sin, which is pretty dry judgmental stuff, why we shouldn’t, the effects or why it matters. I guess it’s a pretty big subject…so big that God allowed His own son to die on the cross in our place (Jesus did this willingly by the way, fully knowing what He was doing) so that we could be restored to real connection with God who made us. That’s pretty big.
Allright, well, I guess I’ll just start talking about it and let Holy spirit take care of this. I guess firstly, what’s so bad about it?
Sin has a spiritual effect in the unseen world. It causes us to make us feel less and less worthy of God the worse it is… and even “smaller” sins will snowball into big guilt. It creates a spiritual fence if you will, that keeps God out. God is holy. He is pure perfect love. If we even look at him , the bible says….um in a nutshell, we wouldn’t survive the trip.
We weren’t created originally to have any sin at all. How do I know that? Take a look at the Garden of Eden in the first book of the bible…that’s where the first sin took place and where we can see it’s immediate effects. There was a tree of the knowledge of good and evil….in a sinless state, there is NO EVIL AT ALL. They had NO KNOWLEDGE of evil…pretty nice way to be. It was when Satan, in the form of a serpent (the snake by the way apparently had arms and legs, or maybe wings, was suddenly cursed to crawl on it’s belly for ever and pretty much everyone would hate it…talk about a comeuppance!) tempted Eve to EAT THE FRUIT of the the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. It’s important to note that when the bible refers to the fruit of an action….the fruits of your lips, of labor or whatever…it means the end result. So Eve went for the end result of the knowledge of good and evil…and took a bite of it…internalizing it. Then Adam did too. I believe it was so overwhelming to them that suddenly their eyes were opened (they were not aware of evil before) and were so inundated with evil/sin that they bounced right out of their holy state of grace which was given to them by God. What happened next?
They lost their covering of grace and saw they were naked. Some experts believe the original pair were clothed in light (http://www.jtsa.edu/the-garments-of-adam-and-eve) or another form of it, glory. The Glory of God is often seen as a cloud of light. So God, in effect, made the very first sacrifice when he clothed them with animal skins when they were no longer able to stay in the garden. An animal had to die to make that happen. Keep it in mind for a moment.
Here are three passages from the scriptures that spell out the consequence of sin.
Psalm 66 verse 18: If I regard wickedness in my heart, The Lord will not hear;…in other words, if I keep focusing intently on what sins I’d prefer to be up to, God can not hear me.
Isaiah Chapter 59 verse 2 the great prophet says that God says “But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, And your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hear.” This suggests an actual barrier between a person who is not right before God.
in Jeremiah Chapter 14 verse 10 this prophet says, “Thus says the LORD to this people, “Even so they have loved to wander; they have not kept their feet in check Therefore the LORD does not accept them; now He will remember their iniquity and call their sins to account.”” Fair warning.
There are more passages from where I got these: https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/Unanswered-Prayer.
Conversely, Proverbs chapter 15 verse 29 says, “The LORD is far from the wicked, But He hears the prayer of the righteous.” and Psalm 34 verse 15 also says “The eyes of the LORD are toward the righteous And His ears are open to their cry.”
James, the brother of Jesus also says in James chapter 5 verse 16 says, “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
Okay so what’s the point here? And as I said, I’m letting the Holy Spirit guide me, as there are so many things to be said about sin. I must admit, rarely do I stay so on target when writing, so I know for sure the Holy Spirit, who is the essence of God Himself, is working here. The point is that God LOVES you. I’m saying it again…God LOVES you. One more time…God LOVES you. Wow, doesn’t that feel good to hear? And he wants close relationship with YOU. Yes, YOU! This is what He wants YOU to know.
So if we’ve been sinning, and we can’t get anywhere near Him, what’s the remedy? God went way out of His way on this one. He allowed Jesus to be born and show us what God is really like. And then, allowed this perfect, holy man, the Son of God, without any sin to die in our place to “cover us” with His own blood. Remember the covering that Adam and Eve received? Well this is the sacrifice that can cover the whole world if we let Him.
Here’s the scripture to back it up. Ephesians 2:13 says, “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.” So the blood of Jesus brings us NEAR to God. And then in the book of John chapter 1 verse 7really sums it up: “but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.”
So how does one get hold of this? Say out loud….it’s important to say this out loud….if for some reason you’re physically unable to speak then write it down and hold it up to God to see. Dear Lord Jesus, I’m asking you into my heart and my life. I know I am a sinner. I ask your forgiveness for every sin I’ve ever committed. I believe you died on the cross for my sins, that you stood in my place and took all the punishment that was due to me when you were there. I believe that you rose from the dead and are alive. I thank you for forgiving me and cleansing me of sin with your blood. Thank you for making me right with our heavenly Father. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen!
Now you’re on your way! Get ready to draw near to God like we read earlier! Read the bible…online is okay if you don’t own one. Start with the new testament! That’s the part that tells all about Jesus and His followers and the people who were close to Him. If you have some trouble understanding, then ask God to help you understand….He’s so good.
God Bless You! Catherine
blessedartthou 