The Truth of Sin

Romans 1:28 - 32   - Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.

Wow….what a comprehensive list of sins! Paul just laid it all out there huh? He sure wasn’t worried about stepping on any toes.  And I dare anyone who reads this to not find at least one of these sins they are guilty of….I know I am! Paul gives us all a warning here…did you read that first verse carefully… “Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done.” It kind of sums up for us what is still wrong with our world too.  We have let our minds justify many of these behaviors as okay…even though deep down in our hearts we know they are wrong. 

 God created us to love him…to serve him…to share in his glory.  But we listened to our selfish hearts…and sinned. Even if we have asked God to come into our hearts and forgive us of these sins we retain some of the sinful habits from our old lives.  We have to ask God to remove these sinful habits from us so we can be more effective witnesses for him.  Peter says it best in 1Peter 2:16…. “Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God.”  And I would ask you to readjust your definition of ‘evil’ this morning.  Evil is anything….anything that prevents you from knowing God in his fullness.

 There is no level of sin in Gods eyes….gossip and lying are just as evil to God as murder….both separate you from the love of God.  Both require forgiveness and both can be forgiven and washed clean from our lives. The murderer may have to deal with a few more life consequences than the gossiper…but both these behaviors are evil…they twist the truth of God to fit our own needs instead of melding the image of God into our hearts and lives. Paul said,  “we suppress the truth with our wickedness” …that could easily be paraphrased ….we justify our sins by refusing to see the truth.    

 God…I thank you for the forgiveness of my sin and the mercy you show to me every day as I continue to sin.  I also thank you for bringing me to a season of life where I can be more honest with you about my sins…sins that I harbor just because they are habit…or sins I may not have realized were sins. Please sweet father never stop revealing these sins to me until every last sin that I have hidden by twisting your truth is revealed and removed…so I can be a mighty witness like Paul. Fill the new spaces these sins occupied with an abundance of your love that will help me do what you have planned or me each day!  Amen.