What Do You Mean — SIN?
We started by quoting the Scripture "ALL have sinned." We said that included you!
But what is SIN? Why, when men preach, don't you hear that explained, defined, made clear and understandable? WHY are these religious terms used most of the time loosely, vaguely, meaninglessly?
Once, in Springfield, Oregon, a young man with a Bible in his hand accosted me on the street. An evangelist had come to town and pitched a tent. He brought with him a "gospel team" including some eight young men of college age, who roamed the streets carrying Bibles, stopping people and inviting them to attend the services. One stopped me.
"Well now," I said, "Does your evangelists teach that Christ saves us from SIN? He assured me he did.
"Well, what I want to know," I persisted, is what I have to quit DOING — or what I have DONE that you call SIN. Just what is SIN?
"Well," he answered, "Christ died for our sis.
"But that doesn't tell me exactly what I've done that Christ had to die for," I insisted. "What is 'SIN'?"
"Christ DIED for our sins," came the reply.
"Yes, I know — you said that before. But what is this thing, 'SIN,' that He died for? What do I have to quit doing? Can you open that Bible you have, and show me the BIBLE DEFINITION of the word 'SIN'? Is there a place in the Bible where it gives a plain definition — where it says 'sin is — ' and then in plain words tells what it is?"
He called to a second of the young men — then a third, and a fourth. Finally, with a large crowd gathering, they called the evangelist himself. But even he could not — or would not — turn to the Bible answer! One by one, they slunk away!
Then I took a Bible out of my briefcase, turned to 1 John 3:4, and read to the crowd:
"Sin is the transgression of the Law.
But what law? This is explained in Romans 7. So next I read:
"What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay I had not known sin but by the law" — or, in the plainer English of the Moffatt translation: "Why, had it not been for the Law, I would never have known what sin meant!" In other words, the Law defines sin. sin is breaking the Law. But what Law? Continuing, same verse: "for I had not known lust, except the Law had said, Thou shalt not covet" (Rom. 7:7).
There we are told plainly what Law it is SIN to transgress. It is the Law that says: "Thou shalt not covet." That Law IS the Ten Commandments. It is SIN to break the Ten Commandments.
In verses 12 and 14 of this same 7th chapter of Romans you will read that the Law is holy, just and good, and that it is a SPIRITUAL LAW — a law of spiritual principles of living!
Of course the whole spiritual Law may be summed up in the word LOVE. This may be divided into the two Great Commandments, love toward GOD, and love toward neighbor. The first four of the Ten Commandments tell us how to love GOD; the last six how to love neighbor. The WHOLE BIBLE elaborates, showing the principles involved, until it includes the entire RIGHT way OF LIFE!
Now notice Romans 3:20. "Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin."
Of course! False accusers to the contrary notwithstanding, THAT IS PRECISELY WHAT WE TEACH. Keeping the law will not justify anyone. We have all sinned. We cannot justify this guilt we have incurred — we cannot avoid the wages we have earned — DEATH — by obedience, goodness, works, or anything we can do.
Let s make that REAL PLAIN! Most women carry a mirror in their purses. A woman takes out her mirror, steals a glance at her face, discovers dirt on it. Does she try to wash off the dirt with the mirror? Ridiculous? Yes, of course. Looking into the mirror won't cleanse the dirt already there. WHY? Because by the mirror comes the KNOWLEDGE that the dirt is there! Now God's Law is His spiritual mirror. Your Bible says so — plainly (James 1:22-25). You look into GOD'S LAW. It shows you the spiritual dirt on your heart. To HEAR God's Word, which corrects, reproves and rebukes (2 Tim. 3:16) and then DO NOTHING about the spiritual dirt it reveals is like a man beholding his face in a mirror, seeing the dirt — gaining knowledge of it — then forgetting how dirty he is — doing nothing about it.
God's LAW is His spiritual mirror. But keeping yourself from becoming more dirty today does not wash off the dirt already there. So, "By the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight" — WHY? Because "by the law is the KNOWLEDGE of sin. OF COURSE!
Sin IS "the transgression of the law." Paul would not have known it was sin to lust, except the Law had said, "Thou shalt not covet." The function of the Law is to tell us what sin is! Not to cleanse us of yesterday's sin or erase the penalty of last year's sin.
There can never be a LAW, unless there is a penalty for its violation. And, where "no law is, there is no transgression" (Rom. 4:15) and could be no penalty — no punishment. If the wages — the punishment — of sin is death, and death is the penalty, then there is a Law. And if there is no law being broken, there is no transgression and no penalty — and then we need no Savior — no salvation FROM the punishment.
Now where did the Law come from? Again, through James, God says There is ONE LAWGIVER (James 4:12). That is GOD. God set in motion many laws — laws of physics and chemistry among them. The great law of LOVE is a spiritual law. It is THE WAY of peace, of happiness — of right relationship with God and with human neighbor. It is inexorable — a living law as much fixed and in motion as laws of gravity and inertia. To break it is to turn in the opposite direction from peace, happiness, security, abundance, and toward strife, fear, worry, unhappiness, suffering, death. The final wages you earn traveling that way is DEATH!
Yes, the wages of sin is DEATH! But we have HOPE! The GIFT of GOD is Eternal LIFE.
So now, where are we? Eternal life can be had only from GOD. So, as stated above, you seek GOD. But you find a tremendous, impenetrable barrier — your sins you have committed. Until they are JUSTIFIED you have no access to God.
Isaiah 55:6-8, already quoted, says that IF you would seek God the sinner must forsake HIS WAY, and turn to GOD'S WAY. God's Law is God's WAY — and sin, the transgression of His Law — rebellion and disobedience — is YOUR way.
So now you forsake YOUR WAY — you forsake SIN or breaking His Law. You forsake breaking it by keeping it — obeying it. At least you try — you do it the very best you can.
LAW-KEEPING Won't Justify!
But what do you find? You ARE STILL CUT OFF FROM GOD!
Actually, as we shall see in a moment, you can't keep a spiritual law with carnal mind. But, even if you could, your OBEDIENCE now is only what is required of you now! It does not make up for PAST law-breaking. That penalty still hangs over you. As we have seen, by being law-abiding now, no flesh shall be JUSTIFIED of past law-breaking! A man convicted of committing murder last month does not erase his sentence by being law-abiding this month.
THAT IS WHAT YOUR BIBLE TEACHES! And that is what The PLAIN TRUTH teaches! That is what Herbert W. Armstrong and Garner Ted Armstrong and The WORLD TOMORROW program proclaim to the whole world! GET THAT STRAIGHT! All the good WORKS in the world — all the LAW-keeping — cannot JUSTIFY you of your past guilt.
Now where do you find yourself? You are now submissive — obedient to God's Law. IS this necessary? MOST ASSUREDLY IT IS! Does it JUSTIFY you? A THOUSAND TIMES NO! NO!! NO!!!
Where are you now? You have forsaken your WAY — sin; you have turned to GOD'S WAY — His Law.
AND YOU ARE STILL CUT OFF FROM GOD! Your works — your Law-keeping, while certainly REQUIRED, still has not JUSTIFIED past guilt — has not RECONCILED you to GOD. You still have No ACCESS WHATEVER to God.
And you have to gain access to HIM in order to obtain His GIFT of eternal LIFE! I am trying to make this PLAIN. I want all to UNDERSTAND it, once for all!
After all this — after forsaking SIN — turning to God's WAY, as He commands — keeping His Law — that DEATH penalty for part sins still hangs over you — the PUNISHMENT is still DEATH — and it is ETERNAL punishment — death for all ETERNITY ! So your Bible teaches! Won't let anyone tell you we do not teach ETERNAL PUNISHMENT. The BIBLE teaches eternal punishment. We teach eternal punishment. That punishment, YOUR Bible says, is not eternal LIFE in a hellfire of endless torture — not eternal punishing — eternal punishment — it is DEATH for eternity — and God s GIFT is LIFE for eternity! I want to make it PLAIN. Don't ever be confused about what we proclaim to the whole world. The BIBLE is the truth, and we make it PLAIN — mighty plain!
The Bible says the punishment is the second death — for eternity. It is appointed to men once to die — but after that, the judgment (Heb. 9:27). How? As in Adam ALL die (sinners and saints alike), so in Christ shall ALL be made alive — the same ALL, sinners and saints both — who die the first death (1 Cor. 15:22-23). How? By a resurrection (John 5:28-29) — there is to be a resurrection of the just and the unjust — they that have done good, and they that have done evil. Read it and believe what your Bible says! The unjust end up in a hellfire that shall burn them up (2 Pet. 3:10; Rev. 20:14-15; Mal. 4:1, 3), until they become ashes under the feet of the saved! Read it. Believe what you read in your BIBLE!
So, where are you? Even with your Commandment keeping which — make no mistake God requires of you — still you are pretty helpless. You can't give yourself eternal life. You are doomed to die — and you are still cut off by sins of the past from GOD, who, only, has eternal life to Give.
You are pretty helpless, aren't you?
Well you have made a right start, even if you are still helpless.
HOW You Gain Contact
And now you have made this right start, there is a way you may gain contact with God who has ETERNAL LIFE to impart. God so loved this world of sinners, cut off from Him, that He GAVE His only begotten Son! Remember, God GIVES eternal life through CHRIST!
Notice Romans 5:6-10: "For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly."
Jesus Christ never transgressed God's Law. He said, "I have KEPT my Father's Commandments" (John 15:10). He also said He set us an example that we should do as He did. He never incurred the death penalty. He never cut Himself off from God. When He voluntarily PAID the death penalty, He did not pay it for any sins of His own — for there were none. He gave His LIFE instead of yours! He paid your penalty FOR YOU!
The life HE gave was that of the MAKER of us all! God created all things BY JESUS CHRIST (Eph. 3:9). All things — including all humans — were MADE BY HIM (John 1:1-3). Therefore the life He gave on the cross was greater than the sum-total of ALL other human lives! THAT is the life that died FOR YOU — that paid YOUR penalty FOR YOU!
Now, continue in Romans 5:8-10: "But God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more, then, being now justified by His blood. . ."
NOTICE! "Being NOW justified." How? By your works — by your required obedience to God's Law? No! By the blood of CHRIST! If you have repented, and accepted Jesus Christ as personal Savior you are already NOW justified!
But right here is where so many go off into error. They simply do not understand Biblical terms. JUSTIFIED does not refer to the FUTURE — it has to do only with your guilty Past! This term "justified" does not mean "saved" as we shall now see. It does not mean the GIFT of LIFE. It means the GIFT of ACQUITTAL of PAST GUILT! It means the penalty of PAST sins has been paid in full, by Christ, for you!
The law stood over you. It claimed your life — you were under it. Christ's life in payment instead of yours. The PENALTY STANDS PAID!
You are no longer UNDER the law. It no longer has claim over your life! You are now under Grace — undeserved PARDON. You are PARDONED from paying the penalty, since Jesus Christ paid it FOR you! This is hot YOUR WORKS. It is Christ s Sacrifice. You ARE NOW ACQUITTED — Justified — the slate is wiped clean of a guilty past!
IN OTHER WORDS — the BARRIER between you and God has now been removed! You are now, by CHRIST'S SACRIFICE, given contact with GOD — reconciled to HIM!
SAVED By His DEATH?
So, continue: "Much more then, being now justified by His blood, we SHALL be SAVED by Him.
NOTICE IT! You are already JUSTIFIED. Not by works, but by Christ's blood! The PAST is squared up — the penalty paid — the contact with God made. BUT are you already SAVED?
LOOK AT IT! It says we shall BE saved." Not that we already are saved. It says "being now justified" but it does NOT say being now SAVED. It says we SHALL BE — yes, in the FUTURE — saved. That is still FUTURE! SEE IT with your own eyes. Don't believe ME. Don't believe preachers who say you are already, now, saved! JUST BELIEVE THESE PLAIN WORDS IN YOUR BIBLE!
It IS real plain, isn't it?
Now here comes a surprise. Notice verse 10:
"For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son. . ." Here, again, we WERE RECONCILED — past tense. Not by your works — by Christ s DEATH. When you have truly repented, forsaken your WAY, sought God, accepted Christ as Savior and His death as payment for your past sins, you HAVE BEEN, ALREADY, reconciled. So the wording here is we were reconciled — past tense — to God by the DEATH of His Son.
What was accomplished by Jesus' death? It paid the PENALTY — it wiped out your guilty PAST — justified you of your guilt — reconciled you to GOD. But did it SAVE you? DID IT? Wait — don't just glibly say YES — see with your own eyes what YOUR BIBLE says!
It says, continuing, same sentence: "much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life."
CAN YOU BELIEVE YOUR OWN EYES? There it is, in your own Bible!
Already reconciled, by Christ's death; but — "we SHALL BE SAVED" — that is FUTURE tense. Not yet saved — but we SHALL be — in the future — saved. Now are you going to be SAVED by Christ s DEATH? Can DEATH impart LIFE?
There is no stronger law in science than the law of biogenesis which says LIFE COMES ONLY FROM LIFE. Death cannot impart LIFE.
Now HOW shall we — in FUTURE — be SAVED? By Christ's death? No! Notice! READ IT! "We shall be saved by His LIFE"!
After Christ died, God RAISED HIM BACK TO LIFE. We are saved by His resurrection — by His LIFE — by a LIVING SAVIOR! Read 1 Corinthians 15:14-23.