The Nature of Sin

¹⁴ But each person is tempted when he is drawn away and enticed by his own evil desires. ¹⁵ Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is fully grown, it gives birth to death. James 1:14-15

The bible uses many words to describe sin so that we have some idea of what it’s like through the lens of our Lord. As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his foolishness. Proverbs 26:11.

All of us have become like something unclean,
and all our righteous acts are like a polluted^[a] garment;
all of us wither like a leaf,
and our iniquities carry us away like the wind. Isaiah 64:6

The nature of sin regardless of how it is described is simply to throw a rope around your neck and drag you into an eternal damnation. The nature of sin is inescapable by our own strength! It’s ruthless towards God it hates the very things that are holy, righteous and good. Oh how it APPEARS to enjoy life, within the fine print of sins contract is a condition for an unquenchable fire…and we’ve all signed the dotted line, yes we will follow gladly!

And there’s not a thing we can do, not an ounce of strength we could muster, why? Because we signed it with approval says in Romans 3:10-18, we bounded ourselves to the path that carries us to hell and approved of others doing so! What Christ has done interrupted the nature of sin and destroyed the desire for more. His strength alone covers a multitude of believers who trust in Christ for the strength to break the bonds of sins captivity.

Now we as Christians stand on the edge of a cliff, overlooking sins destructive nature and eternal consequence. All the more reason why every Christian should be sharing the gospel, all the more reason why every Christian should be fighting sin! (Romans 8:13) Sin is a deadly force and like all things military it camouflages itself as being enticing to the eye, pleasing to the ear, bewildering to our senses that call us back for more.

If we’re not fighting sin, then we’re losing the battle. But to fight is to call on Christ! We need Christ to fight these battles like we truly need the cross in our lives daily! It’s not a matter of life and death, it’s a matter of ETERNAL life and death! The nature of sin cares NOTHING for your friends and family and it’s all the more reason why we need to pray continually for them in a hope that God Himself would open their eyes to the nature of sin.

The True Church

“Let all the skilled craftsmen^[b] among you come and make everything that the Lord has commanded: ¹¹ the tabernacle—its tent and covering, its clasps and planks, its crossbars, its posts and bases; ¹² the ark with its poles, the mercy seat, and the veil for the screen; ¹³ the table with its poles, all its utensils, and the bread of the Presence; ¹⁴ the lampstand for light with its utensils and lamps as well as the oil for the light; Exodus 35:10-24

This is the very first establishment of the physical tabernacle, Israel’s tent of meeting. Its design is particularly breath taking when you examine it in detail among the scriptures but here I want to look at the people. It was God who called the people to part take in constructing the tabernacle. It was the people who gave their heart in the establishment of the tent of meeting.

In the New Testament we see a similar contrast to how the church should be; For as the body is one and has many parts, and all the parts of that body, though many, are one body—so also is Christ. 1 Corinthians 12:12. In this chapter alone, Paul is raising a point that all members of the church have their role within the church, roles that have distinguishing responsibilities. But Paul is quick to address that each member of the church is important TO the church! So the eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” Or again, the head can’t say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” ²² But even more, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are necessary. 1 Corinthians 12:21-22

So as the tabernacle was made with craftsmanship and a heart to serve the Lord, so now the church has been established by what Christ has done, we have each been given gifts to serve the Lord, so that we may use these gifts for the purpose of building up the church! So the true church looks like a body that serves Christ with all its members giving glory by virtue of using their gifts and talents, each to their own as God Himself has provided for. Church is not just a ‘tent of meeting’, it’s a place of building each other up, encouraging one another in the faith! The Lord requires every brother and sister in Christ to be obedient, praying for the church, seeking to serve the church in every way with a contented and joyful attitude founded in all that Christ has done.

Praying for the Will of The Lord

Then He withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, knelt down, and began to pray, ⁴² “Father, if You are willing, take this cup away from Me—nevertheless, not My will, but Yours, be done.” Luke 22:41-42

This note is not a note of instruction but more of a reflection. This is something that I have been wrestling lately in understanding what it truly means to pray for the will of the Lord. When I reflect on the moment of Christ in the garden of Gethsemane, I consider greatly that He prayed for the will of the Lord. I can tell by Christ’ experience that praying for the will of the Lord goes beyond praying for our own desires, but more so praying for the desire of the Lord to be revealed.

If Paul himself says “Imitate me, as I also imitate Christ.” (1 Corinthians 11:1). Then it would be fair to say that one would do better in praying for the will of God, rather than own desires. But in the moment of being conformed to the likeness of Christ, requires a transformation.

 Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God. (Romans 12:2)

So one would do better not simply to pray for the will of God, BUT that the will of God is marked as their desire as well! To please God within the sovereignty of His will (as prayed for) and being content, filled with joy and abound with hope regardless of the situation one is in! If the will of God is a far greater thing to be praying for (and once again, we can see that by Christ’ example), then we ought to be praying for the will of God.

In doing so, we should consider surrendering our desires, our fleshly passions and consider Christ to be our very first thought of the morning! For He has given us as great example, that to consider the will of God greater than our desires may even mean we should face sufferings of various kinds, perhaps to the point of death.

But the will of God is greater, greater than that of the cup being removed from Christ! We should be a people who are passionately seeking the will of the Lord, even if it grinds against our own desires! Pray that God would make your desires parallel with His, pray for the will of the Lord, but consider Christ who prayed that very prayer and gave His all in honour of the Will of the Father.

Holiness Granted: The Foundation

“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord!’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of My Father in heaven. ²² On that day many will say to Me, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in Your name, drive out demons in Your name, and do many miracles in Your name?’ ²³ Then I will announce to them, ‘I never knew you! Depart from Me, you lawbreakers!’ Matthew 7:21-23

There is a terrifying reality with this passage, a truth that is mostly unwelcomed within many churches today. That it is possible to die with the confidence of knowing Christ but being rejected by Him for all eternity. This is the type of passage that should stop every Christian in their tracks and listen with great intent because of the sheer weight of what Christ is saying.

Why do I say that it should stop only the Christians? Because this passage isn’t directed at non-Christians, look closely at their defence. “We did this in your name!...we did that in your name!” So given that Christ has provided the premise of the glory of salvation, the question should be asked “what is the Lord talking about here?” If you want to understand what Christ is saying in Matthew 7:21-23, you need to understand the meaning behind what Christ is saying that is found in Matthew 7:24-27.

“Therefore, everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them will be like a sensible man who built his house on the rock. ²⁵ The rain fell, the rivers rose, and the winds blew and pounded that house. Yet it didn’t collapse, because its foundation was on the rock. ²⁶ But everyone who hears these words of Mine and doesn’t act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. ²⁷ The rain fell, the rivers rose, the winds blew and pounded that house, and it collapsed. And its collapse was great!” Matthew 7:24-27

You can always tell of a good house by one principle, the foundation by which it is built on. It doesn’t matter how grand the design is or how small the house is, if it is not built on solid foundation, then it will be recognisable to you. So what does it mean to build on the solid rock? A good house compliments the foundation, each home built has load bearing walls, and a roof but all the weight falls on the foundation.

Christ is the rock, and to build a house (or your life in other words) on Christ means that everything you do in your life is for Him in recognition of what He has done! True Christianity recognises the very thing Christ has accomplished on a daily level. Christ must be your everything in order to obtain everything in Him. Now before anyone starts yelling ‘legalist!’ here let me explain what I mean. It is Christ who sets the ground work for salvation, that’s true that doesn’t change at all. But are you surrendering to Christ in recognition of the eternal salvation He has provided for so that your life maybe known by Him?

In other words, does your life compliment the Lord daily for the salvation He’s given you? These are the sort of questions we should be asking ourselves and by checking the foundation. All things point to Christ, His holiness, His sovereignty, His gloriousness, His majestic being, His eternal salvation, His divine nature but does your life point to Christ as well?