THANK GOD FOR THE WAY OUT!

In last week's blog, we talked about the NEED and NECESSITY of Spiritual Renewal and Revival! Followers of Jesus must recognize their sin, humbly repent, pray, seek God and trust Him to hear their sincere prayer and bring healing "to their land". (II Chronicles 7:14) Those who do not have a personal relationship with God must confess their sin, genuinely repent and turn to God in saving faith, receiving Jesus as Savior and Lord! It is SIN that we ALL must confess, repent of and seek forgiveness for. SIN is our problem and dilemma.

SIN is extremely difficult for many people to talk about, admit to and to constructively do what is necessary to remedy it! Thankfully, the New Testament declares truth about sin, identifying it, condemning it and showing us the remedy for it. The Greek (the original language of the New Testament) word for sin is "harmartia". It simply means MISSING THE MARK! It is a term used by an archer to describe when he missed his target with the arrow. While there is truth to missing the mark being an adequate meaning for sin, it is more than missing the mark. Sin is a transgression against the law of God, rebellion against God, iniquity, a violation of God's commandments. Sin is not basically an act performed; rather it is a condition that produces that act. In other words, WE ARE NOT SINNERS BECAUSE WE SIN; RATHER WE SIN BECAUSE WE ARE SINNERS! As we will discover later in this blog, we are sinners because our heart, our spiritual core is deeply infected by sin.

This SIN PROBLEM is complicated by the fact that it is very powerful; we dare not underestimate that! We do not know or have a clue how serious it is to toss the word sin around and talk about it in a frivolous or joking manner. I believe we have underestimated its power, its grip, its hold on people. We have been betrayed, fooled, deceived, brain washed, and led astray by satan, our culture, the entertainment world, and sometimes even by the company we keep. We have bought into the ungodly philosophy that sin is not all that serious!

In a previous blog, we discusssed how Eve was deceived and led to accept the lies of satan (the serpent) in the Garden of Eden. (See the blog on Exploding Myths) Sin is serious and we are all guilty of committing it! "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23) "For the wages of sin is death." (Spiritual death-eternal separation from God and eternal residence in hell) This is the BAD NEWS! The GOOD NEWS is "but the free gift of God is eternal LIFE in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 6:23)

A look at an Old Testament passage can help us clarify the nature and characteristics of sin and how we can avoid and resist it. It is the account of Joseph, living in Potifar's house in Egypt, who repeatedly refused to submit to the enticements of the sinful wife of Potifar. (Genesis, chapter 39)

• Sin begins with temptation. Temptation is NOT sin, but it can lead us to commit sin. "But she kept pressing him, day after day. . . ." (verse 10) Temptations are relentless; sin pursuing us is always relentless. Satan's work to move us away from God is relentless. We must constantly resist ungodly pressure and satan's temptations.

• Sin involves accusations and blame. When Joseph fled from her presence and pressure, "she called to the men of our house. . . ." (verse 14) And she said to her husband, "This Hebrew slave you brought us came in to make a fool of me. But when I yelled out, he left his robe with me and fled outside. . . ." (verse 17)

• Sin often involves lies. "He (Joseph) came in and wanted to . . .(sin with me), but I yelled out loudly." (verse 14) You know, when we succumb to sin and lying, we usually lie again to cover up for the first lie. Sin and lying bring us great trouble, heartache, and definite consequences. Sin can be forgiven, but the consequences of our sin can linger on for a long time and perhaps never end in this life. Only eternity in heaven can abolish these long term consequences. Such results of sin may be broken homes, dissolving of marriages, addictions, damaged relationships, broken trust, and others.

• Sin involves deceit. "Here is what your slave did to me." (verse 19) Potifar's wife totally distorted the event and deceived her husband, so he believed her lie. Sin can harm and even destroy relationships. Potifar had Joseph placed in prison. The price we pay for sinning is huge!

As noted above, we are ALL guilty of sin. It is Universal. No one can escape sin! It is not a disease that only affects some people. It is a condition, referred to as ORIGINAL SIN, that affects every person in the human race. What is Original Sin? It is the Sin Nature we inherited from our first parents - Adam and Eve. When they chose to sin, by disobeying God's ONE command, their nature was corrupted and then they passed their corrupted sin nature to all their offspring, now including you and me. You see, we are sinners by birth, by choice and by practice!

• Sinners by Birth. "The sinful (evil) go astray from the womb; they err from their birth, speaking lies." (Psalm 58:3) We don't have to teach a child to do bad things, it just comes naturally; we have to teach them to do good things! We are all born with the proclivity (bent toward) to sin. This verse tells us we are inclined toward lying and thus sinning from the moment we are born. Other Scriptures say, "Lie not. . . ." (Colossians 3:9) "Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord. . . ." (Proverbs 12:22) Among the six things that God hates is "a tongue that lies." (Proverbs 6:16-19) "But the cowards, and unbelieving (in Jesus) and those who are devoid of character and personal integrity, practice or tolerate immorality, murderers, and sorcerers with intoxicating drugs and idolaters and those who practice and teach false religions and all the liars (quite a list!), will be in the lake that blazes with fire and brimstone, which is the second (spiritual and eternal) death." (separation from God for eternity) (Revelation 21:8 - The Amplified Version) B.B. King sings a song, that "Everybody Lies A Little." He even includes this in his song, "Lucille lies a little" and Lucille is his guitar!

• Sinners by Choice. We are all free moral beings, meaning we have the freedom to choose whatever we want. This means we can personally choose to act contrary to God, His Word and to His revealed will, and we all do. It also means we can choose not to sin. "I am writing these things to you so that you do not sin. . . ." (I John 2:1) As believers, when we commit a sin we have a "lawyer" to plead our case. "But if anyone (a follower of Jesus) does sin, we have an advocate ("lawyer") with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous." (I John 2:1)

• Sinners by Practice. Practicing sin is living a sin-filled lifestyle. It is an everyday lifestyle; when our life is constructed around sin. "Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil. . . ." (I John 3:8)

"Now before faith came, we were held captive under sin . . . ." (Galatians 3:23) Now, the Greek word

"hupo" (under) ("hupo harmartia") under sin means that sin has dominion over us; it exercises

authority over us. It is like this: a child under the authority of its parents; an army private under the

authority of the commanding officer, the prisoner held captive by the prison guards, etc. Sin is so

powerful we are under its dominance, control and authority. The Apostle Paul said, "But I see another

law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin

which is in my members." (Romans 7:23) Paul said that sin took us captive; that is we are Prisoners Of

War. If we talk to any prisoner of war, they will tell us that the enemy captors could do whatever they

wanted to do to the prisoners and they couldn't do anything about it. Any survivor of the Holocaust

would say the very same thing.

Unforgiven sin not only exercises authority over us, it literally dwells within us. The word "dwell" is the word "oikos" (house) in the Greek language. It means to live in, to set up residence, as a house guest would. Sin is not some external power; rather, it penetrates the fabric of our being; it lives; its home is within us. It infects our heart, our inner core. "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?" (Jeremiah 17:9) The heart is the Command Center of the Soul; the Mind, Will and Affections. It is a high-risk, very vulnerable place because of sin. So, Scripture tells us, "Keep (guard) your heart with all vigilance, for all you do flows from it." (Proverbs 4:23) If the human heart, that vital organ in our body, has clogged arteries, it causes problems for our whole body that will eventually lead to death if not corrected. In the same way, sin dwelling within us has messed up our spiritual heart. If it is clogged up spiritually because of sin, it will lead us into many problems. It affects my eyes so I don't see what is right; it messes up my mind so I don't think what is right; it damages my hands so I don't do what is right; it affects my feet so I don't walk in the right way; it contaminates the whole person and leads to spiritual death. "All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, no not one. Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive. . . . In their paths are ruin and misery, and the way of peace they have not known. There is no fear of God before their eyes." (Romans 3:12-18) Instead, "Put away from you crooked speech, and put devious talk far from you. Let your eye look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you. Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. Do not swerve to the right or to the left; turn your foot away from evil." (Proverbs 4:24-27)

So, how do we do this? What is the remedy for our serious sin problem? How do we get free from this captivity of sin? How do we get out of this mess we are in? Good question, but the answer is much better! THANK GOD! THERE IS SOMETHING WE CAN DO TO BE SET FREE FROM THIS CAPTIVITY!!

THERE IS ONLY ONE WAY OUT! His Name is Jesus Christ! "And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12) "For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him." (John 3:17) "Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God." (John 3:18) "And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life." (I John 5:11-12) "I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life." (I John 5:13) It is so clearly taught in Scripture that as we come to saving faith in Jesus Christ, we are free from the curse and the eternal consequences of sin! Jesus said, "I am the way, and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me!" (John 14:6) God wants us to have eternal life rather than eternal damnation in hell and He gave us His Son to prove it, though we are very undeserving of His salvation. "For since while we were enemies (of God) we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by His life." (Romans 5:10) "For while we were still weak (without strength to save ourselves), at the right time Christ died for the ungodly." (Romans 5:6) "But God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8) So, Jesus sacrificed Himself in a brutal death on the cross when we were still sinners, too weak to save ourselves and the enemies of God, to give us eternal life. There is no better news than that!

The way out of the bondage and control of sin, and the mess we are in is to confess our sin, repent and seek forgiveness in Jesus and live for Him daily! James M. Gray wrote this beloved gospel song,

"Naught have I gotten, but what I received; Grace that bestowed it since I believed;

Boasting excluded, Pride I abase; I'm only a sinner, saved by grace.

Once I was foolish, and sin ruled my heart, Causing my footsteps from God to depart;

Jesus hath found me, happy my case, I now am a sinner, saved by grace.

Tears unavailing, no merit had I; Mercy hath saved me, or else I must die;

Sin had alarmed me, fearing God's face; But now I'm a sinner, saved by grace!

CHORUS:

Only a sinner saved by grace! Only a sinner saved by grace!

This is my story, to God be the glory, I'm only a sinner, saved by grace!

Another well known hymn was written by Charles Wesley in 1739 on the first anniversary of becoming a Christian. A significant part of the lyrics says,

"He breaks the power of canceled sin, He sets the prisoner free; His blood can make the foulest clean; His blood availed for me."

Are we singing?