Sin Is A Good Thing - But Don't Tell My Grandkids

“Then Paul said to him, God is going to strike you, you whitewashed wall…as for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves!” (Acts 23:3; Galatians 5:12)

Ouch! Paul had a temper and sometimes it just could not be contained. It was probably this “thorn in the flesh” that he pleaded with God to remove (as opposed to an eye problem that theologians like to speculate). Paul was tormented by his temper...

“…there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:7-9 KJV)

Humans have to sin in order to need Grace and Mercy. Sooo - is it better to sin and be forgiven, than never to have sinned at all?

"But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." (Romans 5:20-21)

Remember the Garden of Eden?  It was God who planted the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Again - IT WAS GOD, not Satan! Note it was the tree of the knowledge of GOOD, as well as EVIL. God knew what He was doing when he created both the tree of knowledge and Satan the tempter.  

“I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create EVIL: I the LORD do all these things….All have sinned and come short of the glory of God...the wages of sin is death. But the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Isaiah 45:7; Romans 3:23; 6:23 KJV)

God knew what Adam and Eve would do - sin. But he also knew they would have to experience the evil of sin in order to have knowledge of and appreciate GOOD...including the Love and Grace of God in redeeming them and forgiving their sin. So it seems to me that God created evil in order for people to learn that good is better than evil. People learn by experience so it was God's plan for people in this "present evil age" to experience both.

"Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father." (Galatians 1:3-4)

So it just might be “better to sin and be forgiven, than to never have sinned at all” - but don't tell my grandkids!

Rescued!

"The Lord will rescue me from EVERY evil deed, and will bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom; to Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.” (2 Timothy 4:18)

We will be rescued from every evil deed when the Lord has brought us "safely to His heavenly Kingdom."  But for now we live in what Paul calls "this present EVIL age," (Galatians 1:4) and it is His will for us to suffer at least some while we are here.
And why not? Just think about it for a minute. If you have never been ill, could you truly appreciate your health and give genuine thanks for it?  If you had never been hated and rejected, could you truly appreciate being loved and accepted?

EVIL serves as the contrast to GOOD. Adam and Eve would have never known how good they had it, except for experiencing the evil that came when they disobeyed. What we learn from experiencing evil is simple.  Good is better than evil.   God and Jesus are good.  Hitler, Idi Amin, Nero, Satan, and many others are not.

"Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners--of whom I am the worst." (1 Timothy 1:15)

Paul says that Jesus came into the world to "save sinners" and that he has already saved the "worst."  Tell me, who has a greater need to be saved - the Mother Teresas of the world or the Hitlers of the world?  If he saves the "worst" then it seems logical to me he will save us all.  And he will!