The Impact of Sin​

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by David G. Rose

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     Recently, a man reached out to me with a question. He had been reading the Old Testament book of Jeremiah and had come across a verse of scripture that arrested his attention. Written by the prophet Jeremiah about 600 years before Christ, the book warns Judah of oncoming destruction if they do not repent of their sins. Judah was complicit under a corrupt religious system and had fully embraced immorality and idolatry.    

     The verse in question was Jeremiah 5:25 KJV, “Your iniquities have turned away these things, and your sins have withholden good things from you.” That same verse in the New Living Translation (NLT) reads, “Your wickedness has deprived you of these wonderful blessings. Your sin has robbed you of all these good things.”

     His question was: “How does sin rob us from getting good things?” This is an excellent question that needs to be addressed by everyone who walks on this earth. Committing sin always reaps a whirlwind (Hosea 8:7). 

     Before we proceed, what is sin? The late evangelist Billy Graham defined sin as “any thought or action that falls short of God's will. God is perfect and anything we do that falls short of his perfection is sin.” And sin is common to each of us. So, the following thoughts are for everyone. 

     Here are six ways that sin robs us:

1. Sin cuts us off from the fountain of blessing - Consider Micah 3:4 NLT, “Then you beg the LORD for help in times of trouble! Do you really expect him to answer? After all the evil you have done, he won’t even look at you!”
2. Sin perverts our taste for good things - Consider Ephesians 4:18 NLT, “Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him.”
3. Sin makes us unfit for God’s blessings - Consider Romans 1:24-25 NLT, “So God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other’s bodies. They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen.”
4. Sin blocks blessings - Consider Isaiah 61:5 NLT, “This is what the LORD says: “Do not go to funerals to mourn and show sympathy for these people, for I have removed my protection and peace from them. I have taken away my unfailing love and my mercy.”
5. Sin causes us to abuse those blessings that we already have - Romans 1:23 NLT, “And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles.”
6. Sin rejects life and chooses death - Romans 5:12 NLT, “When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned.”

     Romans 3:23 says, “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” However, as long as there is life there is hope. There is still time for you to choose to have Christ as your Lord and Savior, and thereby defeat the power of sin that robs you of God’s best in your life. 

     Next week: The Love of Christ
 

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