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TAKING SIN SERIOUSLY Introduction: Jesus, here in the Sermon on the Mount, has been pointing out that not only is the sinful deed wrong but also the sinful desire. So it should be clear that we have all failed to meet the standard. Sin, however, is largely ignored as moral evil in our day. We do not like to use the term. We water-down sin. Instead we say that we have faults, short-comings, hang-ups, problems, mistakes, or that we are dysfunctional or sick. We simply do not like to use the word sin. We do not want to be called a sinner. Why? There are probably many reasons. One that springs to my mind is that sin has religious overtones. Normally, when we think of sin, we also think of God. After all, isn't sin breaking the law of God? And if we break the law of God, do we not have to answer to God for breaking His law? Many people do not like to think of that possibility. It is simply easier to talk about a failure than a sin. Another reason is that our culture sees truth as relative. The contemporary view of truth is that truth depends upon the situation. What is true today may not have been true yesterday and may not be true tomorrow. You see, if you do away with God, truth becomes a cultural thing. Morality becomes what the culture currently says it is, since there is no absolute standard by which things should be judged. Therefore, to call a thing a sin is taking matters a little too far. There is one problem with this kind of thinking. It is wrong. There is a God and He takes sin quite seriously. The Bible is clear when it calls sin a violation of God's law. It is also clear when it declares that we have all committed sin. In the text before us, Jesus gives us a powerful and radical evaluation of sin. From even a casual reading of this passage, there can be no doubt that Jesus took sin seriously. There should be no doubt in your mind that He still takes sin seriously. For Him to advocate the tearing out of eyes and the cutting off of hands should not only get our attention but should also cause us to be alarmed at how casually we take sin. Do you take sin seriously? Jesus' message should be clear. We must deal seriously with sin because sin is serious business. How you deal with sin should be extremely important to you because it can destroy you. In fact, you may be being destroyed right now. So, how do you view sin? How do you deal with sin in your life? As we examine this text we will find Jesus’ prescription for dealing with sin. I. THE DEFINITION OF SIN If you would take sin seriously, you must know the Biblical definition of sin. Sin is: A. A Violation Of The Commandments Of God Many Christians probably associate sin with the commission of various wrong deeds. And there is no doubt that these are sins. Sins are violations of the law of God. But sin is more than that. Sin is that which is contrary to God. Sin is that which stands against God. B. A Violation Of The Character Of God · Sins are symptoms of the disease of sin. It is the disease of sin that causes us to commit acts of sin. Jesus made it clear that adultery starts with a desire of the heart. (adultery is committed in the heart long before it is committed in the flesh). Jesus said in Matthew 15:19, "For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders." It is because our hearts have become corrupt through the disease of sin that we commit sins. The Bible teaches that this disease entered the human race through Adam and Eve. When they disobeyed God, the entire human race became corrupted by sin. We come into the world already corrupted and we act out this corruption by committing acts to violate the law of God. · We commit acts of sin because we are sinful by nature. The Bible speaks of people who have not come to Christ as slaves to sin. Only Christ can free people of that slavery. But even after being freed, we still have the capacity to sin. We can still willfully violate the law of God. Whether as an unbeliever or a believer we violate the law of God, sin is still sin and it is taken very seriously by God. · Do you take sin seriously, or do you seriously sin? Do you understand that to violate the law of God is to sin against His holiness? Do you understand that it is not simply a mistake; it is a violation of divine righteousness? Do you understand that God calls it evil? Since sin is contrary to His very nature, do you understand that God hates sin? II. THE DANGER OF SIN God hates sin because sin is hateful. Sin corrupts. Sin destroys. If you would take sin seriously, you must comprehend the true danger of sin. A. God’s Righteous Consequence How dangerous is sin? Well, according to Jesus, it is dangerous enough to cause a person to be thrown into hell. If that is the consequence of sin, then sin is very dangerous indeed. · Sin not only produces guilt but also pollutes us. It causes us to be morally unrighteous and liable before God. We will have to account for our violation of God's moral law. And the Bible teaches that "the wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23). This death is an eternal death. It is an eternal condemnation referred to as hell. · Sin perverts our very nature. Sin is deceptive. It is subtle. Why would our hand cause us to stumble, or our eye cause us to sin, if sin had not corrupted what should be a good thing to us? Sin, left unchecked, will destroy you from the inside out. God hates sin because sin destroys the people He loves (Illus: Jesus wept at the tomb of Lazarus). This is one reason why God takes sin seriously. How about you? Do you take sin seriously, or do you seriously sin? If you do not see the danger of sin, you will never take sin seriously. B. God’s Radical Cure If you would take sin seriously, you must be committed to the destruction of sin within your life. · Destroy sin before it destroys you. Jesus gave a radical solution to the problem of sin. He said to tear your eye out and cut your hand off rather than allow them to cause you to stumble. It sounds extreme doesn't it? Well, it is extreme! Like a cancer, sin is so vile and dangerous that we must go after it with a vengeance. We must commit our efforts and resources to destroying it. We must, like a cancer, cut it out, poison it, or bombard it with lethal radiation in order to destroy it. It should be obvious that Jesus was not simply prescribing the amputation of body parts in order to deal with sin. In that day the right eye and right hand were considered to be extremely valuable. It should be obvious that if you pulled out your right eye you would still have your left eye. What the right eye saw, the left eye would also see. If you cut off your right hand, you would still have your left hand. What the right hand did, the left hand could do. Jesus was simply saying that sin is such serious business that if the most precious thing you have causes you to sin, get rid of it. · Deal radically with what causes you to sin. Do not make excuses for your sin. The Scripture is clear in how to deal with sin. In (Rom 13:14) "But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof." Again, He says in (Rom 8:13) "For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live." We must take whatever steps are necessary in order to avoid sin. That does not mean that we will be perfect, no one is. But imperfection is not our standard. · Our standard is to be like Christ. (Illus: Lowering the standards today) Let me ask you again: Do you take sin seriously, or do you seriously sin? What are your pet sins? What are the sins that you find yourself committing over and over again? Anger, selfishness, greed, lying, stealing, lusting, gossiping, back-biting, or cheating all could be on the list. Some of you today need to deal with those sins before you do anything else. · The Scriptural method for dealing with our sins is to repent. That means that we must confess our sins to God and commit ourselves to turn away from those sins. If you would take sin seriously, you must repent before God. Are you willing today, right now, to humble yourself before God and turn away from your sin? If you are, God will give you the power to forsake it. He will give you the power to avoid sin. He will give you the strength to restrain your desires and to avoid feeding the flesh. Only He can empower you to live this way. But you must be willing to come to Him. · If you are seriously struggling with sin today, you may be in one of two conditions. You may be a Christian who has made the choice to disobey God to the extent that it has become a habit. If that is your situation, you need to humble yourself and repent. The other condition which may describe you is that you have never cast your life at Jesus' feet. You are not a Christian. You have never been born again by the power of the Spirit. You may have prayed before. You may have even joined a church. But you have never accepted Christ and committed yourself completely to Him. If that describes you, then your only hope for deliverance from the power and penalty of sin is to cast yourself completely on the mercy of God and beg for His forgiveness. He owes you nothing. You deserve hell. Every person does. Your only hope is to come to Him. He is the only one who can save you. He is the only one who can deliver you from the power of sin. You are guilty. Only Jesus can free you of guilt because only He can forgive your sin. Conclusion:
We must take sin seriously, because sin is serious business. We
must take sin seriously, because God takes sin seriously. Psalm 97:10 says
it well: "Ye that love the
LORD, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them
out of the hand of the wicked." |