Why do I choose not to follow God? Why do I sin? Paul the Apostle said, "I do the things I don't want to do. The things I know I should do I don't do and I do the thing I shouldn't do." But why? I think part of the answer lies in our rationalizing sin.
There is always a good reason to not follow God. Because sex feels good. Because having a lot of stuff makes me better than others. Because lying keeps me out of trouble. Because gossip gives me power. Because disrespecting others lets me vent frustration. Because jealousy calms my fears of losing what I have. Because stealing takes things from those who have too much (and they probably came by it dishonestly). Because lust means I can dwell on what I can't have. Because pride lets me feel better about myself and protects me from being vulnerable. Because drinking alcohol and doing drugs makes me feel euphoric. Because the leader of our country doesn't deserve respect. Because overeating makes us feels full and complete.
And so we justify our sin and rationalize good reasons for what we do. We want to blame others for our actions, as if that makes it OK. Ultimately, sin puts us in the drivers seat. But when we get caught, we want to blame it others. It certainly can't be my fault.
There is always an excuse for why we sinned. She tempted me. Because they made me feel bad about myself. They made me mad. Because she might be unfaithful. Because they have too much stuff and they flaunt it. Because no one else will look out for me. I was born that way. Because my friends were doing it. Because elected leaders are criminals. Because my mother taught me unhealthy eating habits. Because he hit me first (how many times did I say that as a kid, and how many times my sons use that one).
But we have to take responsibility for our sin before we can turn it over to God. I have to say. "It's me," "It's my problem," "It's my actions" so I can repent and turn it over to God. I have to acknowledge my sin so God can deal with it. I have to confess it. I have to ask for forgiveness. I have to turn back to God and acknowledge that His ways are right and true.
What do you think?
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I think your explanation for the problem of sin is an accurate one, however I have a couple comments.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, I cannot read Romans 6 and 8, and reconcile them at all with the sinful state which Paul APPEARS to confess to in chapter 7. I should probably do a post on this, but the short of it is that the only way that 7 makes sense, in light of 6 and 8 is that Paul is actually speaking of his state BEFORE he met Jesus on the road to Damascus. The use of present tense is an unfortunate choice, most likely used to identify with his Jewish audience.
The point is that the don't HAVE to sin (see 1 Cor. 10:13).
As to WHY we may still sin, my studies of the Scriptures have led me to the conclusion that it's because we fundamentally fail to follow Jesus' two simple commandments: love God above all else, and love others as ourselves. Think about EVERy sin you've ever done, and you'll probably see that it always originated from loving yourself more than God and others. The examples you give are right on the money!
Greg wrote: “As to WHY we may still sin, my studies of the Scriptures have led me to the conclusion that it's because we fundamentally fail to follow Jesus' two simple commandments: love God above all else, and love others as ourselves. “
ReplyDeleteI agree that the reason that we sin is that we don’t love the Creator enough.
So, what is the definition of “sin”? What is the definition held by Ribi Yehoshua from Nazareth (the Mashiakh; the Messiah)? He had the same notion of the term as we can learn in Torah (different words in Hebrew that are all translated to the English word “sin”). He also taught about how to live in order to enable the Creator in His loving kindness to provide His kipur –atonement – for shortcomings; and thereby enabling connection with the Creator. This way is found both in the Torah and in Ribi Yehoshuas teachings found in our website – www.netzarim.co.il
I highly recommend you to extensively research our website!
Anders Branderud