Sin

 

Described

 

Sin can be described as a lack of conforming to the will of God, either in our nature, character, thoughts, words or actions. Sin is also described as anything in us which is contrary to the holy, perfectly right nature and character of God.

Sin occurs whenever the human will rejects, by whatever method suits the situation, the rightful place of God as Father, Creator, King and Absolute Master.

 

The importance of examining sin

 

Some immature Christians may say, “I do not want to know about sin. I am only interested in my inheritance in Christ, blessings, healings and miracles. Sin is negative. I want to be positive.” Such a childish attitude is an indirect criticism of Jesus Christ who taught much about sin and of the Holy Spirit who inspired the Apostles, Prophets and other Biblical authors to write so much about it. It is not negative learning about what God hates and wants us to avoid. It is only when we fully understand the Bible’s teaching on sin that we will understand the marvellous depths of the salvation Jesus Christ provided for us through His death.

 

A key point

 

When witnessing to the unsaved, it is better not to use words like “transgress”, “transgressions”, “trespass”, “iniquity” and any other Biblical word that unbelievers do not clearly understand. You must find simple common equivalent English words or phrases which mean the above words and which the unsaved will understand. Words and expressions such as rebellion against God, error, bad actions, evil thoughts, disobeying His commands, doing wrong, not thinking and doing what He says is right, wicked attitudes and being unfaithful to Him are more easily understood by the unsaved.

 

All sin is ultimately against God

 

God regards all sin as being ultimately directed against Him. Matthew 18:15 and Luke 17:13 speak of sinning against other humans. 1 Corinthians 6:18 refers to sinning against our own bodies. But we see in Psalm 51:4 all sin is primarily against God: “Against You, You only, have I sinned, and done this evil in Your sight…” In this verse and in 2 Samuel 12:13, David said his adultery with Bathsheba and his murder of her husband, Uriah the Hittite were really sins against God. Genesis 39:7-9 shows Joseph understood sexual immorality is a sin against God.

 

 

 

Unbelief – the foundational sin

 

The foundational sin is having no personal faith relationship to God and Jesus Christ. Romans 14:23 shows that anything which is not based on faith in God is sin: “…for whatever is not from faith is sin.” In John 16:8-9, Jesus said: “And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgement: of sin, because they do not believe in Me.”

 

Sin is anything contrary to God’s nature and character

 

The Bible describes sin as anything in a human which is contrary to the wonderfully holy and perfectly pure nature and character of God. Isaiah 6:1-6 reveals that after the godly prophet Isaiah had a revelation of God’s perfect holiness, he then realised his own great sinfulness by comparison. This was even though Isaiah had been very obedient to God’s laws up until this time.

 

One key Greek New Testament word

 

In the original Greek New Testament, the most common word translated as “sin” or “sins” is “hamartia”. Vine says “hamartia” means “literally missing of the mark”. [1] But Richards says: “sin is not only missing God’s mark; it is an inner reality, a warp in human nature and a malignant power that holds each individual in an unbreakable grip”. [2] The word “hamartia” is used in the original Greek New Testament to refer to:

 

·         sin as an element or principle within humans which produces corresponding sinful actions (see Romans 5:12, 5:20, 6:1 and 6:2). Romans 6:1-2 declares: “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?”

·         sin as a power or force within unbelievers which dominates, corrupts and distorts all aspects of their human nature and lives, including their inward heart attitudes and outward behaviour – even those parts which to other humans seem good (see John 8:34, Romans 3:9, 5:21, 6:6, 6:17, 6:20 and 8:2). Romans 6:20 says: “For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness.” John 8:34 states: “Jesus answered them, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin.’”

·         sin as being an expression of lawlessness in relation to God. 1 John 3:4 shows this: “Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness”.

·         sin as being intimately related to the state of spiritual death into which all human babies are born. Ephesians 2:1 and 2:5 use the word “hamartia” in relation to spiritual death. Spiritual death refers to being cut off and separated from the Presence and eternal life of God. People who are spiritually dead do not have God living within them. Ephesians 2:1-5 shows sin is such a serious inner flaw in the human nature of unbelievers that from birth, they are willing slaves to this nature’s evil cravings and to demonic spirits.

·         sin as including anything in our character, motives, thoughts, words, emotions and behaviour which is not right in God’s eyes. 1 John 5:17 reveals this: “All unrighteousness is sin…”

·         sin as an act (see Matthew 12:31, Acts 7:60, James 1:15 (first part), 2:9, 4:17, 5:15 and 5:20). The Bible records multitudes of specific acts which God regards as sin.

 

Sin involves turning to our way

 

Another key characteristic of sin is found in Isaiah 53:6: “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way…” Here we see sin is based on humans turning to their own way. Turning to our own way involves turning to:

 

·         self reliance.

·         self-centredness.

·         wanting our own will and goals instead of God’s.

 

Backsliding away from God into sin also involves turning to our own way (see Jeremiah 8:5-6).

 

Sin involves trusting in self or self-confidence

 

A major aspect of sin is trusting in ourselves or self-confidence. Proverbs 28:26 says: “He who trusts in his own heart is a fool…” In 2 Corinthians 1:8-9, we see God is teaching us to rely not on ourselves but on Him.

 

Sin mostly involves selfishness

 

Selfishness is a key feature of sin. Philippians 2:3 commands: “Let nothing be done through selfish ambition…” There is only one thing about which God wants us to be selfish to an extent. This is in the matter of our desiring to be saved from eternal suffering in Hell and to go to Heaven.

2 Corinthians 5:15 reveals the unselfish type of life believers should be living: “and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.”

But note it is wrong to have the simplistic view that acts of unselfishness can never involve serious sin. For example, many people have been willing unselfishly to give their time and money and to die for a political cause or a false religion. The Nazis in Germany and the Communists have done this. But their “unselfishness” involved much evil in the murdering and torturing of opponents and in their Christ-hating attitudes.

 

Sin is also not loving God, Jesus Christ and people

 

Sin can also be described in terms of a lack of love. In Matthew 22:37-40, Jesus reveals all of the commands of the Law of Moses and the teachings of the Old Testament prophets are summarised by the two love commands: “Jesus said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbour as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” So if we do not love God or the people we know, we are sinning.

In Matthew 10:37, Jesus commands us to love Him more than anyone else. If we disobey this command, we are sinning. 1 Corinthians 16:22 reveals how evil it is not to love Jesus Christ when it says people who do not love Him are under a curse of judgement: “If anyone does not love the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be accursed…”

The type of love the Bible commands us to have towards God and Jesus Christ is not a purely emotional or romantic type of love. Nor is it a humanistic let-us-be-tolerant-of sin type of love. Nor is it a purely mystical type of love. It is a love which involves the emotions and experiences of God’s Presence, but it is more than that. It also involves the will choosing to put God first and aiming to obey Him in our thoughts, words and actions. In John 14:21, Jesus said: “He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me…”

 

Sin is disobedience to God’s commands

 

The New Testament also describes one aspect of sin as being disobedience to God’s commands. Under their respective covenants, these commands can be the one God gave Adam (see Romans 5:9), those from the Law of Moses (see Hebrews 2:2) or from the New Testament itself (see Ephesians 5:6 and Titus 1:16). Disobedience can also occur in relation to God’s supernatural guidance (see Acts 26:19).

The words used in the original Greek New Testament for “disobedience” or “disobedient” are “apeitheia”, [3] “apeithes”, “apeitheo” and “parakoe” [4]. Examples of “apeithes” are in Titus 3:3: “For we ourselves were also once foolish, disobedient…” and Titus 1:16: “They profess to know God, but in works they deny Him, being abominable, disobedient…” “Apeitheia” is used in Ephesians 2:2 and 5:6 in the expression the “sons of disobedience”.

1 Peter 4:17 also refers to the great sin of disobeying the Gospel of God.

 

Sin is also religious hypocrisy

 

Three words related to sin in the New Testament are “hupokrisis”, “hupokrites” and “dilogos”. “Hupokrisis” means “play-acting, pretense, hypocrisy” [5] or “to give an impression of having certain purposes or motivations, while in reality having quite different ones”. [6] It refers to pretending to know, love, depend on and obey God, but really not doing this. [7] In Matthew 23:28, Jesus said to some very outwardly religious people: “Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.” In 1 Peter 2:1, God commands all Christians: “Therefore, laying aside all malice, all guile, hypocrisy…”

The associated word “hupokrites” [8] means “one who pretends to be other than he really is” [9] and “play actor, hypocrite, pretender”. [10] In Mark 7:6, Jesus spoke of something of which we all must be very wary: “He answered and said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘This people honours Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me’.” Here we see that a religious hypocrite is a person who masks or hides his real self, pretending to be someone who is devoted to God.

In Matthew 24:45-51, Jesus warns that people involved in serious continual religious hypocrisy will be eternally condemned. In seven verses of Matthew Chapter 23, Jesus uses the words “woe to you” in relation to religious hypocrites who will not turn from their hypocritic lifestyle. The phrase “woe to you” echoes a strong warning of judgement.

The Greek word “dilogos” relates to hypocrisy also. “Dilogos” means “contradictory behaviour based upon pretense or hypocrisy” [11] and is translated as “double-tongued” in 1 Timothy 3:8.

Two other New Testament expressions for being a hypocrite are “whitewashed wall” (see Acts 23:3) and “coming in sheep’s clothing while inwardly being greedy wolves” (see Matthew 7:15). A “whitewashed wall” was a wall “whose weakness or ugliness might be concealed but not changed by a veneer of whitewash”. [12] A person who is a whitewashed wall seems white and religiously clean on the outside, but inwardly is full of blackness and wickedness. Sadly, many false converts produced by the sinful gospel of easy believism are “whitewashed walls”.

 

Sin is error in major doctrine and in practical living

 

The New Testament also speaks of sin as error in major doctrine (see 1 John 4:6, Ephesians 4:14) and error through disobedience to various Biblical moral standards, for example about sex and money (see Romans 1:27, 2 Peter 2:18 and Jude 11). The Greek word “plane” is used for “error” in each of the verses listed in the above sentence. “Plane” means “a wandering, a forsaking of the right path”. [13]

 

Other Biblical descriptions of sin

 

In the original written Word of God, there are numerous Hebrew and Greek words and expressions used to describe sin. In some English versions of the Bible, a number of these words are translated as “transgressions”, “trespasses”, “iniquities” or “sins”. In the following, I am going to provide more easily understood descriptions of what the original Hebrew and Greek words mean. In the footnotes, I will list the relevant Hebrew and Greek words and give examples of verses in which they are used.

 

Words related to God’s commands and/or covenants

In the Bible, sin is described as:

 

·         passing beyond the absolute limits set by God’s covenant(s) and commandments. [14]

·         turning aside from a command of God. [15]

·         going over the absolute limits God stated in His commands. [16]

·         acting contrary to the will and commands of God. [17]

·         a false step in obeying the will or commands of God. [18]

 

Words related to God the Supreme Ruler or King

In the written Word of God, sin is also described as:

 

·         committing treason against God. [19]

·         rebellion or revolt against God’s rule. [20]

 

Sin is crime

The Word of God describes sin as:

 

·         being guilty of crime. [21]

 

Sin is absolute wrong

God’s Word describes sin as absolute wrong. [22] Sin is anything which is contrary to God’s standards as defined in relation to His perfect character and nature.

 

Sin is missing God’s absolute standards by even the smallest amount

Sin also relates to the Hebrew word “hata” which means “miss (a goal or way), go wrong”. [23] “Hata” is used in verses like Genesis 39:9, 1 Kings 8:46, 14:16, Psalm 39:1, Jeremiah 32:35, Hosea 8:11 (twice) and 13:2. “Hata” is used in Judges 20:16 in relation to men who could sling a stone at a hair’s breadth and not miss. Sin is not just missing God’s standard in relation to what some would regard as His major commands. Sin is also disobeying by even the seeming most insignificant amount one of God’s least commandments.

Other Hebrew words [24] which relate to sinning against God’s absolute standards are:

 

·         “pesha” which “signifies a revolt against the standard”. [25]

·         “awon” meaning “either to deviate from the standard or to twist the standard”. [26]

 

In Romans 2:25, 2:27, Galatians 2:18, James 2:9 and 2:11, Paul and James use the word “transgressor” or in Greek “parabates” to refer to someone who oversteps God’s predetermined absolute limits. God does not change His standards to fit in with changing human philosophies and moral standards.

 

Sin is also…

The Bible also describes sin as:

 

·         evil or badness. [27]

·         wickedness or wrongdoing. [28]

·         perversion of life, truth and/or purpose. [29]

·         unfaithfulness towards God. [30]

·         being a spiritual prostitute – selling ourselves to other lovers besides God. [31]

·         being ungodly or without the reverence or fear of God and acting contrary to His demands.[32]

·         stopping our ears so they cannot hear God’s Word (see Zechariah 7:11).

·         going astray. [33]

·         forsaking the Lord (see 2 Chronicles 15:2, Ezra 8:22 and Isaiah 1:4).

·         turning from the Lord (see Joshua 22:29 and 1 Kings 11:9).

·         hardening our hearts towards God (see 2 Chronicles 36:13 and Psalm 95:8).

·         being stubborn towards God (see Psalm 78:8).

·         being stiff-necked towards God (see Exodus 32:9, 33:3 and 2 Chronicles 30:8).

·         backsliding (see Jeremiah 2:19, 3:6, 3:8, 3:11, 3:14, 3:22, 31:22, 49:4 and Hosea 11:7).

·         forgetting the Lord (see Deuteronomy 8:11, 8:14, Psalm 9:17 and 50:22).

 

Temptation is not sin

 

All humans are tempted by Satan at various times (see 1 Peter 5:8). But many Christians confuse temptation with sin. In Matthew 4:1-10, we clearly see the difference between temptation and sin. Here we see Satan put numerous temptations into Jesus’ mind. For example, Jesus had the disgusting suggestion of bowing down to Satan put into his mind. But note Jesus rejected all these temptations. Hebrews 4:15 says Jesus: “…but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.”

 

Everyone is sinful

 

Despite the concerted efforts of many people to live good lives, God regards no human as being good. This is evident in Jesus’ Words in Matthew 19:17: “…Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God…” Only God is inherently good. Humans and angels can only be classified as good if they are in spiritual union with the Person Who alone is perfectly good – God Himself.

Romans 3:23 reveals that every human has sinned: “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” 1 John 1:10 says: “If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.” Other related verses are 1 Kings 8:46, Ecclesiastes 7:20, Jeremiah 17:9, James 3:2 and 1 John 1:8.

 

Personal sins

 

Not only have all humans inherited a sinful nature and had Adam’s sin debited or accounted to them. Every human also commits personal sins, as Romans 3:11-18 reveals: “There is none who understands, no, not one; there is none who seeks after God. They have all gone out of the way; they have together become unprofitable; there is none who does good, no, not one. Their throat is an open tomb; with their tongues they have practiced deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips; whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness. Their feet are swift to shed blood; destruction and misery are in their ways; and the way of peace they have not known. There is no fear of God before their eyes.” Personal sins manifest in the realm of actions (see Romans 3:12-18), thoughts (see Matthew 5:27-28), words (see Matthew 12:34-37) and feelings (see Acts 7:54-60).

 

Collective sins

 

The Bible does not only speak of personal sin. It also refers to collective sins against God and other people. Collective sins involve the sins of whole towns, cities or nations. Matthew 11:20-24 lists the collective sins of various cities. The collective sins of various nations are recorded in Amos 1:3-2:3 and Obadiah 1:1-16.

 

 

Sins of omission

 

Sin can involve failing to do something good that we know is God’s will. For example, God may tell me to give $500 to help send clothes and Bibles to Christians in persecuted countries and I omit to do it. This is called a sin of omission and is spoken of in James 4:17: “Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.”

 

Errors about sin

 

1.       One error about sin is the idea that it only ever involves actions or behaviour. This is wrong because unbelieving humans not only do sins. They are also sinners by nature.

2.       Another error is to believe sin is only a nature and does not also involve actions. This false view leads its followers to imagine foolishly that once they are regenerated in Christ, it does not matter what they do.

3.       Another wrong view says that the human body is the source of all sin. As a result of this false view, some Christians have foolishly tried to suppress all of the desires of their body as a supposed means of growing in Christ. An example of this can be seen in the life of Jerome (347-419 A.D.) who is one of the Doctors (highest recognised teachers) of the Roman Catholic Church. He wrote: “How often, when I was living in the desert, in the vast solitude which gives to hermits a savage dwelling place, parched by a burning sun, how often did I fancy myself among the pleasures of Rome! I used to sit alone because I was filled with bitterness. Sackcloth disfigured my unshapely limbs and my skin from long neglect had become as black as an Ethiopian’s. Tears and groans were every day my portion; and if drowsiness chanced to overcome my struggles against it, my bare bones, which hardly held together, were bruised against the ground. Of my food and drink I say nothing: for, even in sickness, the solitaries have nothing but cold water, and to eat one’s food cooked is looked upon as self-indulgence. Now, although in my fear of hell I had consigned myself to this prison, where I had no companions but scorpions and wild beasts, I often found myself amid bevies of girls. My face was pale with fasting, but though my limbs were chilled, yet my mind was burning with desire, and the fires of lust kept bubbling up before me when my flesh was as good as dead. Helpless, I cast myself at the feet of Jesus, I watered them with my tears, I wiped them with my hair: and then I subdued my rebellious body with weeks of abstinence.”[34]

Physical bodies were not originally created evil by God (see Genesis 1:31). But they have been corrupted by the Fall of Adam and Eve into sin. The human body is not totally evil, but has a leaning towards sin if not in total submission to the Holy Spirit and His written Word (see Romans 8:13).

4.       In recent decades, there has been an infiltration of various secular philosophies into numerous Evangelical, Charismatic and Pentecostal churches. These groups previously categorised these philosophies as unbiblical, highly deceptive and associated primarily with secular humanists and heretical liberal churches. The below is one of the teachings about sin of an American author who has become very popular among those particular Pentecostals and Charismatics who are becoming increasingly liberal and less Biblical.

This minister wrote: “Classical theology defines sin as ‘rebellion against God’. The answer is not incorrect as much as it is shallow and insulting to the human being.”

God is far less concerned about insulting human dignity and pride than what the above minister is. This is even though God loves humans infinitely more than does this minister, myself or anyone else.

Constantly throughout the Old Testament, God had His prophets use very strong words about the rebellion, treason, evil, wickedness and sin in the lives of their listeners. The Hebrew word marah” means “to rebel” [35] and “meri” means “rebellion”. [36] The Hebrew word “marad” means “be rebellious, rebel, revolt” [37] or “to revolt from the government of a lawful sovereign…to rebel against the light is to hate it and declare war against it”. [38] In Hebrew, “pasha” means “rebel, transgress, revolt”. [39] In secular relationships, “pasha” related to rebellion against rulers. In relation to God, “pasha” meant rebellion or revolt against Him as King. [40]

“Marah”, “meri” and “marad” refer to the refusal by limited created beings to surrender to their Creator, rightful Owner and Supreme Lord. 2 Kings 8:20 uses the word “pasha” to refer to complete independence and self-rule being obtained through rebellion. Rebellion against God and refusal to depend on Him go hand-in-hand.

In the Hebrew Old Testament, God often inspired His prophets to call sinful unbelievers by the word “zanah” [41] which means “to go a whoring…be a harlot…serve other gods”. [42] In Numbers 15:39, God told all the Israelites they had hearts that tended towards spiritual prostitution or harlotry: “…and that you may not follow the harlotry to which your own heart and your own eyes are inclined.” God told humans of their true nature without Him. He was not in the least concerned about lowering their human dignity if their dignity was preventing them from turning from their sins to Him.

The previous comment by the American minister that it is shallow and insulting to humans if we describe sin as rebellion against God, is really accusing God of being shallow and insulting.

Note Jesus called all His listeners including His disciples “evil” when He preached the Sermon on the Mount (see Matthew 7:11). Also, He told a rich young ruler that no human is good (see Mark 10:18). Christ was not being shallow or insulting when He said these things.

 

Bible Study Questions

 

1.       Describe what sin means.

2.       Why is it important to examine what sin is?

3.       Are sins against people also sins against God?

4.       What is foundational sin?

5.       What does the New Testament Greek word “hamartia” refer to?

6.       Explain what the Bible means when it refers to sin as turning to our own way, trusting in ourselves and selfishness.

7.       What verses reveal that sin is also:

a)           a lack of love towards God, Jesus Christ and other people.

b)           disobedience to God’s commands.

c)           religious hypocrisy.

d)           error in major doctrine and practical living.

e)           going over the absolute limits stated in His commands.

f)            treason against God.

g)           crime.

h)           rebellion or revolt against God’s rule.

i)             absolute wrong.

j)             missing God’s absolute standards by even the smallest amount.

k)           evil or badness.

l)             perversion of life, truth and/or purpose.

m)         being a spiritual prostitute.

n)           wickedness or wrongdoing.

o)           unfaithfulness towards God.

8.       Read at least one verse in every one of the 15 categories in Question 7.

9.       What is the difference between personal and collective sins?

10.   What verses show the error of the liberal humanistic view that sin is not rebellion against God?