Sinners Sin

I have never met a human that didn’t sin. However, I have met a few who think they don’t, or at least give you that impression. They are usually condemning sinners for sinning, and worse, are saying God will condemn them – for eternity – unless they do this or that.

So, for THEIR sake, let’s take a stroll through the Bible they are usually thumping, remembering that God is LOVE, but humanity, all of us, are NOT. All humans are equally subject to the penalty for sin - which is death. There are no self-righteous acts that can avoid it.

“All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the LORD laid on him the sins of us all.” (Isaiah 53:6 NLT)

“For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when He freed us from the penalty for our sins.” (Romans 3:23-24 NLT)

“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23 NLT)

“God is Love…” (1 John 4:8 NLT)

“Love does not keep a record of wrongs…” (1 Corinthians 13:5 NLT)

“God showed His great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, He will certainly save us from God’s condemnation.” (Romans 5:8-9 NLT)

ONE MORE THING…

“Yes, each of us will give a personal account to God.” (Romans 14:12 NLT)

Each and every human - regardless of church affiliation!

And personally I would not like to be the one who is suggesting that God, Who is LOVE, and who sent His Son to SAVE sinners, FAILED; and not only failed, but then decided to torture most sinners forever – good luck with that teaching not fueling the fire on "judgment day".

“Because of God’s grace to me, I have laid the foundation like an expert builder. Now others are building on it. But whoever is building on this foundation must be very careful. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have—Jesus Christ. Anyone who builds on that foundation may use a variety of materials—gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. But on the judgment day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value. If the work survives, that builder will receive a reward. But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builder will be saved, but like someone barely escaping through a wall of flames.” (1 Corinthians 3:10-15)

ONE LAST THING – I PROMISE…

The book we call the Bible is not what condemns us or justifies us – it is Jesus Christ who will judge us...

"For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in this earthly body." (2 Corinthians 5:10)

And He now sits at the right hand of God interceding for humanity.

“My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous. He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world.” (1 John 2:1-2 NLT)

I Never Knew You

“Many will say to me on that day, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles? Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!" (Matthew 7:22-23)

Jesus is talking to the Jewish religious leaders who went to Synagogue every Sabbath and revered the Law of Moses. They did not think much of the "sinners" who Jesus spent most of his time with.

"When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?" (Matthew 9:11)

The Church should be slow to condemn sinners for whom Jesus ate with and died for. 

"For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him." (John 3:17)

The bible speaks of a time in the future where Jesus returns to establish once again the Kingdom of Israel on this earth to last 1,000 years.

"And they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not come back to life until the thousand years were complete. This is the first resurrection." (Revelation 20:4-5)

When Jesus said "I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers" he was referring to the Jewish religious leaders who had rejected him as their Messiah and the Savior of the world.  Those unbelievers will not be among the "first resurrection" who reign with him for 1000 years.  

No one gets to heaven by following those who "drive out demons" and "perform many miracles" in the name of the Lord. Nor do we get there by joining a church, being baptized, tithing, praying or dancing in the spirit. We all get saved the same way - by the Love, Grace and Mercy of God!

"But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ— by grace you have been saved." (Ephesians 2:4-5)

Jesus is the "Savior of the World". The outcast Samaritans recognized this and rejoiced. 

"Jesus said to her, You are correct to say that you have no husband. In fact, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband...Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in Jesus because of the woman’s testimony...when the Samaritans came to Him, they asked Him to stay with them, and He stayed two days. And many more believed because of His message. They said to the woman, We now believe not only because of your words; we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man truly is the Savior of the world.” (John 4:25-42)

Outside the Synagogue a promiscuous women met Jesus and introduced her Savior to her friends.  Those inside the Synagogue did not believe Jesus was the  "Savior of the World" and got mad at anyone who said he was. 

Some things never change.

To Hell With Them

“For sin shall not have power over you, for you are not under law but under grace.” (Romans 6:14)

What does Paul mean when he says sin shall not have power over us?

Well, the wages for sin is death, and all of us sin and die, so he means that death, the power sin has over us is temporary, for by the GRACE of God we sinners will be raised to eternal life. It really is that simple. ..

“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life…” (Romans 6:23)

Christianity has managed to complicate the gospel of salvation, making it a matter of choice, not grace. I suppose we have done so because we have a hard time giving stuff to those we consider to be far worse sinners than ourselves.  To hell with them.  

But the biblical GRACE of God has to do with “unmerited favor”. The salvation of the most egregious sinner magnifies the grace of God, and distinguishes Him from us. Paul understood this and wanted us to understand…

“Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life...” (1 Timothy 1:15-17)

I admit, as a self-righteous human being, I do not like the idea of the worst sinners getting saved for free. But then I am not God…and neither are you. We may not like it, but it is what we are commanded to teach, not the hell of "godless myths" taught by "demons"....

“The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons…Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales…we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all people, and especially of those who believe. Command and teach these things.” (1 Timothy 4:1, 7, 9-11)

Only a very few people believe the gospel of free salvation in this present age, and even we could not believe except for God giving us the faith to believe...

"For by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is a gift from God..." (Ephesians 2:8)

All will believe when they are resurrected to see the Lord who has raised them. Then...

"As surely as I live says the Lord, every knee will bend to me, and every tongue will confess and give praise to God" (Romans 14:11)

Saddle Up

“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law? 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 neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets." (Matthew 22:36-40)

Let me make an observation. You, I nor anyone else who has ever lived, with the exception of Jesus Christ, love like this. Ergo, you, I and everyone else, with the exception of Jesus Christ, have broken the “Law and the Prophets” which makes us all SINNERS.

“…there is none righteous, no not one…all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:10, 23)

Furthermore, you, I nor anyone else who has ever lived, will ever love as set forth above in this life, even after we become believers of the “gospel of God” (the gospel which few seem to comprehend), even though some come much closer than others.

But we have HOPE. One day, after our resurrection, ALL of us sinners will be changed and will love God and our neighbors, for we will ALL be like Jesus…worth loving.

“…I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart” (Ezekiel 36:26)

And when will this happen? At our resurrection

“But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead.…just as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive….Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust (Adam), we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven (Jesus)” (1 Corinthians 15:20-22, 49)

A final personal observation on living in this present evil age. It is OK to reject the philosophy of pious, self-righteous, politically correct liberal hypocrites who claim we must love and be tolerant of all people and cultures (you know who they are). And it is OK to reject any radical form of religion whose aim is to make others slaves or tolerant to their particular dogma in this life. These are folks who should NOT be loved in this life, but rejected just as Jesus rejected them...

“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces...You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when you have succeeded, you make them twice as much a child of hell as you are...Woe to you, blind guides!...You blind fools! " (Matthew 23:13-23)

Jesus was addressing the radical Jewish leaders of his day, but the same could be said to the radical clerics of Islam today, or radical Christians for that matter.  

So for the rest of us, and to quote Data in Star Trek: Insurrection (1998), “Saddle up, lock and load”…try to love folks, but when it becomes necessary to protect our families and freedom..."aim and fire."  

The purpose of evil in this world is to humble us, and it does.  But becoming humble does not mean we should become weak and do nothing to defend ourselves. On the contrary, it should make us resolved to protect the weak and fight to set them free.

Saved By GRACE

Bad News - Sinners Condemned:

"All have sinned and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23)

"The wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23a)

Good News - Sinners Saved by GRACE:

"...where sin abounded, GRACE did much more abound" (Romans 5:20)

"For by GRACE are you saved..." (Ephesians 2:8)

"God demonstrated His love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8)

"For the GRACE of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men..." (Titus 2:11)

"And the GRACE of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus." (1 Timothy 1:14)

"We have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men." (1 Timothy 4:10)

“...the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 6:23b)

"God, I thank you that I am not like other men…” (Luke 18:11)

This pretty much is the attitude that professional Athletes, Politicians, Philosophers, and Religious people should strive NOT to have, at least in a public forum like news interviews, books they write, or church services.

When we truly come to understand who we are it HUMBLES us. Why? Because we learn to admit our flaws and imperfections.

It is most important for Christians, in my opinion, to understand that a person’s salvation is not the result of deciding to accept an OFFER from God, but a decision BY GOD HIMSELF to save UNRIGHTEOUS sinners. A salvation (from staying dead) based solely on a Father’s Love and Grace…to be done for all mankind. In the moment I came to understand and believe this, any pride left was gone as I realized I was not loved more than any other sinner…we will all be saved by the GRACE of our SAVIOR GOD. Paul expressed this best when he said under inspiration from God….

“The GRACE of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, ALONG with the FAITH and LOVE that are in Christ Jesus. Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to SAVE SINNERS (not offer to save them)—of whom I AM THE WORST. But for that very reason I was shown MERCY so that in me, the WORST of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an EXAMPLE for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life. Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, THE ONLY GOD, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.” (1 Timothy 1:14-17)

So what about the phrase “who would believe in him and receive eternal life”? Remember, Paul had already said God saved the WORST sinner as an example to all sinners that Christ Jesus came to SAVE them. So it is obvious to me that what he meant by the phrase “who would believe in him and receive eternal life” was that only those who believe that they have been saved as SINNERS can embrace the JOY and KNOWLEDGE that they will have eternal life. It is NOT because they BELIEVE, as if salvation is their choice, but because GOD SAVES SINNERS…His choice. Paul expressed this when he said in his first letter to Timothy….

“It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance. For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers. Prescribe and teach these things.” (1 Timothy 4:9-11)

Being proud we are not like other sinners because of our wise choice, or our faith, or our concern and love for others, etc. is the problem I see with popular Christian apologists like Joel and Victoria Osteen. Their enthusiasm and positive message and appearance is infectious. However, it is boasting and subtle way of saying “we are not like other men”. That said, however, I do prefer their positive attitude toward life than the opposite extreme…the “turn or burn” negative attitude of some notable Christian fundamentalists.

“…everyone who exalts himself will be abased, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. (Luke 18:14)

Love Your Enemy

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:43-44)

“Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you” (Colossians 3:16)

Well, well, well....how does your religious doctrine measure up to these words of Jesus and Paul?

What about God, how is His attitude toward His enemies?

“God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by His blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through Him! For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to Him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through His life! Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we (sinners) have now received reconciliation.” (Romans 5:8-11)

Unfortunately, for the time being, it is a rare thing when humanity is found to follow His example.

"Yet now, apart from law, a righteousness of God is manifest, being attested by the law and the prophets, yet a righteousness of God through Jesus Christ's faith, for all, and on all who are believing, for there is no distinction, for all sinned and are wanting of the glory of God. Being justified gratuitously in His grace, through the deliverance which is in Christ Jesus" (Romans 3:21-24 CLNT)

At this point in Paul's Roman letter he has clearly set forth that all mankind...the good, the bad and the religious... ALL are sinners. Mankind's only hope is the unmerited favor of God for sinners...His GRACE. Paul then relates the good news:

1. "A righteousness of God" has now been brought to light which is for all sinners.

2. This righteousness is through "Jesus Christ's faith"...as opposed to the sinner’s lack of faith.

3. Jesus Christ's righteousness is "for all" mankind.

4. "There is no distinction" made between the believer and the unbeliever.

5. It is "on all" when they believe God.

6. Both believers and unbelievers have "all sinned and are wanting of glory of God".

7. All are "justified gratuitously (freely) in His GRACE through the deliverance which is in Jesus Christ"

It is simple but few seem to believe God.