"It says something about our times that we rarely use the word sinful, except to describe a really good dessert." - Willard D. Ferrell
How do you view sin? Most believers would respond to that question with the standard Sunday School answer. "It is bad"; "I stay away from it all I can"; or maybe "Mine is forgiven...". We cannot answer the question accurately unless we understand the definition of sin, and can define sin. Let's consider some personal questions: Is obesity sin? Is racism sin? Is swearing sin? What about sporadic church attendance? Coarse joking? Complaining? Not tithing? Are these big sins or little sins?
How did you answer these questions? What makes a sin a sin? Are there big sins and little sins? Sins that God will punish and sins what God will overlook? Many believers certainly act that way, as if God will excuse our sins because they are 'small' and 'unimportant'. Would you drink a quart of water if it had only a drop of strychnine in it? A church member said to me once, "Pastor Mike, you know that sin in the life of a believer is different than sin in the life of an unbeliever." I said to them, "Yes it is; its WORSE!"
In 1 Corinthians 5 & 6 the Apostle Paul talks about sexual sin. But his instructions and warnings are applicable to all sin; and there is one central truth we MUST embrace: There is no such thing as a little sin! We fail to be grieved by sin when we view it as insignificant or not as bad as something else. We tend to categorize sin according to what seems bad to us. What I habitually overlook in my own life isn't as bad as what I tend to see in the lives of others. This attitude reflects a skewed and thoroughly unbiblical view of sin.
We read of the sexual sin being tolerated in the Corinthian church in 1 Corinthians 5:1-2 and are shocked. But our abhorrence of sin should be parallel to God's; He is shocked and sickened by ALL sin. Any sin left to grow will lead to suffering, destruction, and death. It is the nature of sin to produce these things. This is what Jesus came to rescue us from, to provide deliverance from the power of sin, the punishment of sin, and one day from the very presence of sin. When we who are redeemed from sin choose to return and wallow in it, or passively allow it to remain in our midst, God is grieved and Kingdom work is stifled.
As disciples of Jesus Christ we are to emulate Him in all we do and say. He, the Sinless One, is our role model. Do not let sin gain a foothold! Wage war by the power of the Spirit in your mind. Flee from every hint of sexual immorality. Exercise the spiritual man by practicing the spiritual disciplines of bible study, prayer, meditation, worship, and witnessing. The believer should view sin as a serious allergy: even a hint of it is harmful! It must not be allowed to remain in our lives, or in our local faith community.
In 1 Corinthians 5:9-13 the Apostle Paul gives instructions the forbid fellowshipping with a fellow-believer that openly practices sin. The best-known process for dealing with sinful brethren is Jesus' own words in Matthew 18:15-17. Revulsion over sin and remorse over our brother should motivate us to rebuke their sin and seek to restore them to right fellowship with God and the church. Their own good, and the work of the Kingdom demands it.
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