Sin

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*I'd like to note that this post & it's contents, as well as all of my posts, are simply my own deductions based upon my study of scripture...I'm in no way a theologian or biblical scholar*

SIN...perhaps the most commonly used word in Christianese. SIN...the very reason we need our own 'language' in the first place. SIN...a small word with massive consequence. SIN...the word we use to convince people that they need Jesus, but how can that term be effective if it is void of meaning or understanding? SIN...What is it?! Where did it come from? Why do I do it? Why is it such a big deal?

**for clarity's sake, I will also briefly define the word "unrighteous" as it is pivotal to defining Sin.

'Unrighteous'- morally bad or unpleasant, wrong according to religious law (God's standard)**

SIN: What is it?

        Sin is anything & everything that contradicts who God is (His Character)

          (1 John 5:17) 

          Sin is doing what we shouldn't do & not doing what we ought to do. 

          (1 John 3:4) (James 4:17) 

           Sin is rejection and rebellion of God's will.

           (Isaiah 30:1)

          Sin is not limited to physical action but extends to words & thoughts...a heart matter

          (Matthew 15:18-19)

          

SIN: Where did it come from?

'Let's start at the very beginning...a very good place to start...'

For real. Let's start at the beginning...the very beginning. 'In the beginning God created the Heavens and the earth'...and water, and land, and dark, and light, and plants, and animals, and man, and woman...and it was good. He said so. It was more than good...it was perfect. God created the perfect paradise, & into it He plunked down the perfect man & the perfect woman. It was so good that God even walked among them...as I said, it was perfect...for a while.  The perfect man & the perfect woman had free reign of the perfect garden, & were given just one rule...one simple rule: eat from whatever tree you want, but steer clear of the one in the middle. Easy peasy, right? Wrong. That selfish, gullible, ignorant woman (albeit with aide from a conspiring serpent) ate that fruit & so did her selfish, gullible ignorant husband. This was the first Sin. One might read the story & conclude that eating a forbidden fruit was not such a big deal in the grand scheme of things. So what?!  Well...that act, in & of itself, is a reflection of Adam & Eve's heart. The wily & conniving serpent knew their weakness, & he enticed them with it. The prospect of being 'like God'...stirred within Eve a desire, & she yielded to it. Yielding to that unrighteous desire, by way of eating the fruit, revealed the nature of her heart (and Adam's). This is why we cannot define sin by degrees of 'evil'. A vile heart is a vile heart, just as soured milk is entirely sour. That first sin began a domino effect of Sin that carries on to this day. (For the full Creation story, check out Genesis 1-3)

SIN: Why do I do it? 

Let's skip ahead in the story a bit, about 6,000 years....to the year 1985 when a beautiful, precious, sweet, smiling baby girl was born...her name was Brianne. 😉  She was marvelous & darling...and she was fatally flawed. Tragic is it not?! What was her flaw? It was a genetic condition passed on by her bazillionth times great grandmother. From the moment of birth, poor Brianne was doomed. Her condition plagued her. The condition is called, 'Sin'. Remember I mentioned its domino effect? The moment that sin pervaded the hearts of Adam & Eve, it became a genetic condition of sorts. Each & every descendent henceforth was born with the malady of 'Sin'. In Christianese it's referred to as the 'Sinful Nature'...meaning quite literally that it is in our very nature to sin. I sin, you sin, we all sin because deep within us is rooted evil desire. We might look at ourselves & think..."hmmm I don't feel 'evil'." (If it were possible I'd say this in a Dr. Nefario voice)....and compared to a serial killer we might look darn good, but the truth is that his heart and mine look quite the same because, as we said before, there is no scale of evil & eviler...wrong or wronger...bad or badder. ALL sin stems from unrighteousness within. I sin because it's in my nature to do so...it's in yours to do the same. As I mentioned before soured milk is entirely sour...don't believe me? Take a swig next time your milk goes bad...you won't find a sweet drop in the carton! We are born with unrighteousness rooted deep...our hearts are vile through & through. 

Think of it this way:

Remember that perfect garden with the perfect people plunked down in it? This bowl of clear water represents that time. 

There was just one rule: Stay away from the tree of the knowledge of good & evil. Adam & Eve had a choice...obey the rule or don't. They didn't. My drop of food coloring in the bowl represents that disobedience (Sin).

Sin didn't/couldn't just begin & end with that first one...it snowballed & infiltrated every single life from that moment onward...see the yellow bleeding into the clear?

One has only to glance at our culture to see how deeply sin has pervaded...so much so that it has become 'normal'...just as all that clear water is now entirely yellow. 

Remember that sweet baby girl, Brianne? She was born a sinner because it was in her DNA, in her nature, to sin. It's in your nature too. Every single person from the first bite of that fruit has been doomed. We sin because they (Adam & Eve) sinned. Romans 5:12

SIN: Why is it a big deal? 

Call to mind someone that you love dearly: spouse, parent, sibling, friend. Think of how very intimate that relationship is. You know this person as well as you know yourself. The love between you is immense...indescribable. Now think of a time when you have argued or disagreed. Think of the anguish you feel in those moments. As close as you are, during times of conflict the chasm between you is immense. It's hard to communicate...hard to be on the same page. A barrier divides you & makes it impossible to feel united. This is what happened between God & man when sin entered the picture. Adam & Eve's relationship with their creator was one of bond. HE made THEM. From dust & rib, He formed every facet of their being. Their betrayal created an abyss between them. Isaiah 59:1-2 speaks of this gulf. God is perfect. He is wholly good & righteous (pure, ethical, honorable, upright, moral). Our sinful nature results in our being quite the opposite...and the truth is that good & bad just don't go together. Forgive me, my intellectual friends, for this simplistic explanation...but I truly want to be as simplistic as possible so that it will be understandable for those of whom this is new information. Righteousness & unrighteousness, good & bad, virtue & evil, God & Sin are like oil & water...they don't mix...they can't.

Summary:

SIN: What is it? unrighteousness within our nature that expresses itself via our thoughts, words, & actions. Anything contradictory to God's nature.

SIN: Where did it come from? It began in the Garden of Eden when Adam & Eve yielded to their desire to be 'like God' via eating the forbidden fruit.

SIN: Why do I do it? I sin, you sin, we all sin because Adam & Eve sinned. Their disobedience became a genetic disease that ALL descendents are born with. The first sin caused a snowball effect that still impacts you & I some 6,000 years later. Romans 3:23

SIN: Why is it a big deal? Like oil & water are sin & God...they cannot mix. We cannot be in relationship with God while we operate under our sinful nature. It's a big deal because it separates us from God, our Abba (Daddy) & Creator, who loves us. As long as we live as slaves to our sin, this will always be so. Also, Sin = Death & Eternal Damnation. Romans 6:23, Matthew. 25:41...and who really wants that sort of 'Unhappily Ever After'?

Believers, it's important that we are able to define sin, to explain its origins & repercussions. We cannot afford to present unbelievers with vocabulary that is misunderstood. Vague ambiguous concepts are not only ineffective but harmful. Expecting Nonbelievers to speak & understand Christianese is like expecting a Duck to "oink". We must SCRIPTURALLY define our language & accurately convey it...both in the midst of the Body & in the evangelizing of converts. There are various responses  upon understanding the definition of SIN and acknowledging that YOU and I are SINNERS...some will become emotional, others  are piqued intellectually...some will be pragmatic, yet others will be indifferent. However you process this information, the important thing is what you do with the knowledge...but that is another post entirely.

Christianese, Please!

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For quite some time I have been troubled by Christianese or more specifically the ambiguity surrounding it's terminology. Christians have key phrases & choice words that we use...A LOT. There is an underlying assumption that the definition of these terms is apparent...and that assumption, in my opinion, creates 2 issues:

1. Christianese creates a feeling of being 'in' or 'out'. Believers' frequent use of terms, vocabulary that other believers understand but non believers do not, breeds an image (hopefully an inaccurate one) that Christians are haughty & unapproachable. We have become a clique...As If! I vividly remember my middle school days & that terrible awareness that I'd never quite fit in with the cool kids...so I didn't even try. Imagine the humility required for one to inquire as to the definition of "sin", "grace", "repentance", "born again", & etc. Many feel far too intimidated & embarrassed to do so. Making one feel 'out' is seldom a good tact for getting them 'in'. There is far more at stake here than a spot at the cool kid's lunch table or a prime seat in a pew...eternity is in jeopardy for those who feel as though they'll never quite fit in with the "Christians". 

2. Believers speak Christianese without fully understanding it...this not only hinders personal spiritual growth, but inaccurate usage & understanding in communication with others impacts their maturity as well. It's nice to be able to talk shop with those who believe as we do. It's amusing, encouraging & motivating to engage in theological discussion...it's also confusing when terms are used that we 'ought' to know but do not. It's embarrassing to be a long time believer but not know precisely what one means when they say 'quiet time'.  It's hard to mature in faith when the basics are lacking. We need to know & make scriptural connections to the terms we use. We need to be able to explain & biblically vouch for this terminology in our communications with others. How can one 'abide' if he/she has no idea what that looks like? How can we 'repent' if we do to understand that the word means more than 'I'm sorry'? How can a nonbeliever see their need for Jesus if they do not understand 'sin'? 

I want to be clear that I am not advocating that we abolish Christianese...I'm merely stressing the dangers of inaccurate & inappropriate use of Christian jargon. There is an absolute necessity for the Church to have a universal vocabulary that describes the depth & import of who God is & who we are because of Him...it's just equally as important that we clearly define that vocabulary as well as know how & when to use it. Words have incredible power...particularly when they are poignantly used & well understood. 

Auntie Anne's Samples: Discipleship

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I'll never forget that moment (actually 3 separate moments), when I first laid eyes on my daughter...then another daughter...and then another daughter. After hours of pain & agony, instantaneous peace overcame me. Time stood still. I looked into tiny eyes, & something supernatural happened within. A transformation came over me, & suddenly in an instant I became something entirely new...something that only a moment before I had not previously been. I was a mother. All the months of travail, all the hours of labor...gone & forgotten. I was a mother. From that moment on life has been inexplicably different...as it should be.

I cannot help but compare it to the infamous Salvation Moment...that instant in which we transition from death to life...from sinner to saved. After months or years of being mired in pain, hurt, dissatisfaction, & disillusionment, instantaneous peace occurs. Time stands still. We look into the heart of Abba (God, our Heavenly Father), & something supernatural happens within. A transformation comes over us, & suddenly in an instant we are something entirely new...something that only a moment before we had not previously been. We are a new creation. (2 Corinthians 5:17) All the years of mistakes (sin), all the months of hopelessness...gone. We are a new creation. From that moment on life is inexplicably different...or it should be.

This Salvation Moment is monumental. Prior to this moment we are despicable, we are hopeless, & we are doomed. After that moment we are transformed, we are redeemed, & we are saved. (Romans 10:9) It's epic...and from that moment on life should be entirely different. Should Be. There seems to be (and I openly admit I am no biblical intellectual), but there certainly appears to be a massive amount of people who experience this grandiose Salvation Moment, but never quite make it to the inexplicably different life that should follow. And it Should follow...that it does not is an indicator of a great problem. Perhaps more simply, there are people who experience salvation, but never live out discipleship. A Disciple, according to Webster's Dictionary, is 'one who accepts & assists in expressing the doctrines of another.' In Christian terms, a disciple is one who accepts the gift of grace through the blood of Jesus Christ, & who thereafter devotes his/her life to following Jesus & to further advancing His gospel. You'll notice that I italicized two words in the Webster's definition: Accept & Assist. As I mentioned a moment ago, there seems to be many who experience salvation...they Accept that they are sinners in need of saving. Logic demands that they would then also experience the second part of the definition which is Assist...but as is often the case Logic is defied. I believe there are a couple of reasons for this phenomena (Acceptance without Assistance). 

1. As a culture we love, Love the idea of receiving something for nothing.

    Let me clearly state that I am in no way saying that we have the ability to earn our salvation...we are wholly inadequate to in any way do so. I am saying that we like the idea of receiving the gift of eternal life, no strings attached. Here's an analogy: In the mall as you walk by Auntie Anne's Pretzels you quite often get a sample of pure deliciousness. Why? Is their agenda that you have that one bite & then walk away fully satisfied? That's dumb. It's simply Step 1 in a process. They hope that by experiencing just one taste of what they have to offer that you'll be drawn to want the whole thing (a whole pretzel), meaning that we would purchase their product...and after you've had a whole pretzel that you'll crave more & more. The problem is that it's almost as if as we walk by Auntie Anne's, we get the sample, & are somehow satisfied with only that. We don't want to purchase the product...we just want to walk by the sample guy again & again for taste after taste (while hoping the sample guy doesn't realize what we're up to). Receiving the sample requires nothing of us...we just get to enjoy the taste...but the truth is while they do not require us to buy a pretzel, we also do not fully experience it's goodness. One bite isn't enough. Salvation is much like that. It's the first step in a process. It's the step that reconnects us with our Creator...it gives us a taste of who He is. That taste of who He is should draw us to want more...more relationship with Him...and by deepening our relationship, we will experience involvement in what He's doing. The problem is we are content with the taste...and every now & then we walk by for another sample of His goodness, & another, & another (shamefacedly hoping He doesn't realize what we're doing). We don't finish out the process.We don't buy in to the opportunity to fully experience His goodness...and He doesn't make us. 

2. As a church (the entire body of believers), we have failed first to be disciples & secondly to make them.

    I'll jump straight to the analogy. This time we're the sample guy. We stand by the edge of the Auntie Ann's, handing out samples. We dutifully offer them to all passersby, but when one happens to stop & ask where they can get more, we blankly stare. Rather than say, "follow me" or even merely point them in the right direction, we've no guidance to give...the sample was all we had to offer. Heaven forbid someone ask about the ingredients or baking process! The sample guy ought to be an expert on those pretzels. He ought to know all there is to know about them...and he ought to have eaten a ton of them. When someone asks him about the pretzels...about getting more, the sample guy, he ought to jump on that opportunity! He ought to be ripe with information...and take them right to the checkout counter. He's there not just for samples, but to sell whole pretzels! Friends, it's not enough to merely hand out samples. To think that this is our sole duty is a colossal failure on our part. It's not enough to lead people to their Salvation Moment & then have nothing else to offer. More is required. We ought to be disciples...we ought to be experts on our Father & His ways...and we ought to be able to lead people to more. (1 Corinthians 11:1) We've (the church) become content to merely tally up the samples (saved souls) we've handed out, & have failed to offer more. 

Many of us are familiar with the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20). Jesus called His disciples to go make more disciples & to pass on all that He had taught them. As His modern day disciples this commission applies to us as well. We are called to Accept & Assist. I digressed a bit from the scenario in which I began this post, but I want to return to it now. To jog your memory, I related my experience in first seeing my daughter's faces...my first Mommy Moments. As epic as that first encounter was, my Mommy Moments were only just beginning. I told you that it forever changed my life. From the instantI became Mommy, I have spent every single day with my children. I have cared for them, loved them, disciplined them, & begun training them.  To correlate it to the topic at hand, I didn't just become a Mommy in the moment that I met my daughters & cease to be one the moment after that. I've been one each and every day, hour, minute, & second since. That moment of meeting my daughters was just a sample of all the goodness & love I would experience for the rest of my life. Truly as I look back over nearly 5 years jam packed with those Mommy Moments, I can honestly say that I've had many that rivaled that very first. I didn't deserve my daughters...I did nothing to earn them...I could not in any good work do so, but I was given them nonetheless. Even though I did nothing to earn them, I have a responsibility to them & to the relationship we share. Can you imagine how much...both they & I would have missed out on if we stopped our interaction at that first encounter? Friends, we cannot encounter the one true living God in our Salvation Moment, & cease to be forever impacted by it. That moment is just a glimpse...a sample...of all that He has in store for us. As epic as it is, there are many more of that caliber waiting to be had...if only we don't stop with the sample.  My job as a disciple is to to the same as in my role as Mommy.  There are those who look up to me, who watch me, & who imitate me. My job is to Assist them in becoming disciples for themselves. The ultimate goal is to train them to deepen their faith for themselves....to equip them to begin Assisting others. Can you imagine all that I am robbing them of if I stop at their Salvation Moment? Can you fathom all that they are missing out on if I cease to have answers & guidance?

I'm to be the sample guy with loads of expertise & direction. (1 Peter 3:15) Yes, I am to offer them the sample (to lead them to Acceptance), but my agenda is also to be that they would want more of the product (that they would become Assistants). In order to achieve this goal, I myself must first be a disciple. I cannot offer answers or wisdom if I possess none. After I Accept God's Grace, I must Assist others in Accepting it & then Assist them in beginning to Assist for themselves. I'm being intentionally redundant. This is important. There is a mass of people who are paralyzed by their inability to move beyond Acceptance & into the role of Assisting...perhaps we ourselves are in this predicament. We've got to do something about that...starting with our own discipleship.

I believe that there is much much more to this concept of discipleship...I want to dig deeper into it with you, but for now I'll close with this...

Ephesians 4:11-17 

Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. 12 Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. 13 This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.

14 Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth. 15 Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. 16 He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.

I am challenged, & in turn I challenge you, to be certain that I am not content with Acceptance, but that I am Assisting. I am challenged, & in turn I challenge you, to be a true disciple so that I am prepared & equipped to aide Abba in making more disciples. 

Be Blessed!