The Wages of Sin

Take a look around you. The sins of the world are evident in the lying, stealing, rape, murders going on today. The news is full of mass killings, war, and the plight of millions affected by them. Only a fool would deny the fact of sin. Through our personal experiences we know sin exists. The curse that is placed on man and nature we can attest our sinful state. Through God’s law sin is made evident. Sin is powerful, and controls the lives of many. It stains our soul with deception convincing us that its okay to do it just this one time. But one time is never enough when it comes to sin. Now we come to sin’s greatest enemy, guilt. If we feel bad after we do something wrong then why do we do it? Guilt is the complex that God placed in every one of us to fight temptation, but guilt alone will not stop us from sinning.

When you are out to sea and you fall off the ship they throw you a lifeline. The sea is sin, the ship is our heavenly Father, and the lifeline is Jesus Christ. Sin pollutes the soul. There is nothing you can do on your own to escape the pollution, or take away the guilt. The only thing that can rescue us from the grip of sin is the blood of Jesus Christ. He is the character of God. Through His sacrificial death, Jesus Christ made it possible for us to receive the Holy Spirit. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. Titus 3:4-7 NIV

God pardons our sins, and He forgives our transgressions. He does not stay angry with us forever, but shows mercy and compassion towards us. He tramples our sins under His feet, and throws our immoral behavior into the depths of the sea.  For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear Him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. Psalm 103:11-12 NIV  “I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you.”  Isaiah 44:22 NIV  None of the offences that we have committed will be remembered against us. This is not true if we break one of man’s laws. It will be on our record our whole life, but God is not man. He forgives and forgets. He erases our sins from His memory.

When we are saved by the grace of God, and redeemed through the price Jesus Christ paid on the cross so nothing can be brought against us. What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all – how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died – more than that, who was raised to life – is at the right hand of God and is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:31-39 NIV

God said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” The Lord is our Helper, and we need not fear man, because He has made His Son sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made right with God. These promises are accurate and true because God cannot lie. We turn the war against our sinful desires over to God, and we are to take what He promises us by faith which is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. God could have chosen to save us against our will, but He is not looking for slaves. He is looking for sons and daughters. He is a loving Father who gave you free will to choose for yourself. His invitation has always been, “Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the Lord, “Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool. Isaiah 1:18 NKJV  Now the choice is up to you. Will you walk in the darkness of sin all your life, or will you walk in the light of day?