The one major consequence of sin is this: It blinds!
Whenever the issue of sin comes up, many people think about what they had done in the past and they secretly say to themselves: “Yes, I am that sinner who committed those heinous sins.”
But according to the teaching of the Scripture, there is only one sin every man is inflected with, and that sin makes one a sinner.
Think about it: What does a cow say? Moo! What does a sheep say? Baa! Right?
What does a man who is inflected with a sickness called sin does?
No brainer! He sins!
So, a sinner sins as a cat meows or a cow moos.
What does the Bible say about all of us?
““There is none righteous, not even one;
There is none who understands,
There is none who seeks for God;
All have turned aside, together they have become useless;
There is none who does good,
There is not even one.”
“Their throat is an open grave,
With their tongues they keep deceiving,”
“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 paths,
And the path of peace they have not known.”
“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”” Romans 3:10-18NASB
I don’t know about you but for me personally, whenever I read this passage, I squirm, and get tempted to say, “I don’t know if I am that bad! I mean, I am a sinner, sure, but ‘the poison of asps, their feet are swift to shed blood’ kind of sinner, they have become useless?
Nah! I am not that bad!”
But the truth says to me, “Yes, you are the worst sinner!”
Hmm!
As Christians, saved by the grace of God, through faith in Christ Jesus, the truth slowly becomes obvious to us as we grow in Christ. That sounds so paradoxical, doesn’t it? I know! This is not only true, it is the “T” truth about all of us who came from the first Adam.
Listen how Paul beautifully puts this truth:
“Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned” Romans 5:12 NIV
So, my friends, this is why we all are destined to die! Whether we like it or not, one day will be our turn to die and if we die a normal death in a normal day (must be our lucky day), we will be packed in a 2-meter long box and will be put in the ground.
God said to the sinless Adam: “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” Genesis 2:16-17ESV
And – – – Adam ate the fruit and we all died with him! This was how death entered our world. After Adam sinned against God, everything’s started to get old and turned into dirt. No exception! Everything!
Then, – – – is there any hope for this life? We come to this life to die? Yes!
But there is more to the story?
Since the day Adam sinned against God, God promised to Adam by saying this to the serpent who deceived Eve to eat the fruit,
“I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her offspring;
he shall bruise your head,
and you shall bruise his heel.” Genesis 3:5ESV
God promised to send “her offspring” to do away with Satan, sin and death once and for all!
“But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.” Galatians 4:4-5ESV
My! My! My! Did you see that?
This Son of God revealed Himself to John and John recounts the incident this way:
“When I saw Him[Christ Jesus], I fell at His feet like a dead man. And He placed His right hand on me, saying, “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.” Revelation 1:17-18NASB
Notice: Most people think that verse 18 reads this way: “I have the keys of death and life.” No, it does not say that. It says, “I have the keys of death and of Hades[hell].”
Why? Jesus Christ does not need a key for life because He said,
“I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies” John 11:25NASB
He Himself is the Life! Jesus also said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” John 14:6NASB
So, in short, I am a Christian means: “Christ in me, the hope of glory.” (Col 1:27)
What is the hope of a Christian?
Nothing or no one but Christ Himself!
We Christians walk by faith today hoping that one day we receive a glorified body from God to live with Jesus Christ forever!
“And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” Revelation 21:3-4ESV
What about the sin we Christians deal with on a daily basis?
We fight against sin until we take our last breath because we are born again and the one who is born of God cannot live with sin (1 John 3:9). But we live in a sin-stricken body and in a fallen world. So, fighting against sin is always the one mark of a Christian, a follower of Jesus Christ.
Those who follow “another Jesus,” not Jesus of the Bible, swim in the sea of their sin while they sing “a love song” to Jesus, a song that has absolutely nothing to do with the Gospel. They think they see but they are blind. They think they hear but they are deaf as Ezekiel prophesized:
They “have eyes to see but do not see, ears to hear but do not hear” Ezekiel 12:2NASB
The word of God says,
“Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves!”
Do you know how to examine and test yourself?
See if Christ lives in you.
“Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test?” 2 Corinthians 13:5NASB
Christ is the Healer of our sickness called SIN! If Christ lives in us, we don’t build a nest to live with sin. We always fight against it.
So, my friend, see if you fight against sin, not once, not twice, not 100 times but every time. If not, maybe today is the day for you to call on your Savior, the only Savior given to all mankind, Jesus Christ. He is the only Healer of sin and death:
“For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.” 1 Peter 2:21-24NASB ///