Originally posted by Didaskomenos
You all obviously missed her point. No one will ever get away from sin, even after being a Christian. Being a Christian is the only way to deal with the problem of sinning. It gives us a way out of the cycle of sinning and a way for redemption from the consequences of sinning. While I don't particularly like the term "sinner" used for Christians, her point stands - all sin, but God provided Jesus as our help and Redeemer. She's right - homosexuality is no worse than other sins.
Well said Didaskomenos.
If we study the scriptures we will see that God not only holds us responsible for what we do, but also for what we are. Sin is not just an individual act but it is also the human condition apart from Christ. The bible makes some very powerful statements concerning sins grasp on the lost. It says that we are helpless against it (Rom. 5:6), enslaved to it (Rom. 6:17), and held captive by it (Rom 7:23). Such strong words give little doubt of the desperate condition of humanity. We are born "sinners," those with a tendency to sin. God holds us responsible for the condition we are born into. If that upsets you, sorry, you are not God.
The Bible teaches that apart from Christ we as human beings have a nature to sin. What does this say about us? It tells us that sin is at the core of our being. It comes as naturally and effortlessly to us as bearing oranges to an orange tree. Some say that it is our environment that makes us sin. However, this is neither scripturally nor historically true. If we put a human being in a perfect environment, he will still sin. (We dont want to carry our tree analogy too far, but there are certain environments where an orange tree will bear less fruit than in others. Nevertheless, it remains an orange tree no matter where it is.) We may tell him not to sin and explain why it is wrong and harmful, but he will still sin. It is his nature to do so. Exhorting a man not to sin is like telling an orange tree not to bear fruit.
Therefore, when the bible says that we are helpless against the power of sin, it means it. There are those today that say that they cannot help their behavior. They tell us that they were born that way. While their claim is never an excuse for sin, there is a measure of truth to it. For example, when a homosexual or alcoholic says that he is powerless against his condition, and that he has tried to change but cannot, he is merely acknowledging the human condition. Apart from the Lord, we are all sold into bondage to sin. We are all powerless to change what we are. That is why we need a Savior. We need a salvation so great that it will not just exhort us toward holiness but one that will make us an entirely new creation with a new nature.
"For we know that the Law is spiritual; but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin. For that which I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate. But if I do the very thing I do not wish to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that it is good. So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin which indwells me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the wishing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. For the good that I wish, I do not do; but I practice the very evil that I do not wish.... Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death (Romans 7:14-19,24)?"
Therefore, a sinner is one who does bad things naturally. Right? Surprisingly, this conclusion does not fully define what a sinner is. Sin goes much deeper than just doing bad things. If our definition of righteousness is doing good things, and our definition of sin is doing bad things, we fall short.
Jesus told a parable that destroys the above definition of sin and righteousness:
"And He also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt: Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get. But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, God, be merciful to me, the sinner! I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted (Luke 18:9-18:14)."
This Pharisee did some pretty impressive deeds. What pastor would not want a church member who did such things. He paid tithes on all that he got, and he fasted not one day a week but two. Yet, Jesus condemned him.
Why? A further examination of sin will yield the answer. Sin is an old King James English word. It was actually an archery term. If an archers arrow fell short of the target, it was called sinning. This insight gives new depth to Pauls statement
"
all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God
(Rom. 6:23)." Sinning is falling short of the glory of Who God is. Only the glory of God pleases God. God pointed to what pleases Him at Jesus baptism. When the Lord came up from the water, the people heard a voice from heaven.
"This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased (Matt. 3:17)." Therefore, it comes down to this: when God sees His Son it is righteousness. When He does not, it is sin (missing the mark).
Consider the Pharisee. Whose righteousness did God see in this man? He saw only the Pharisees own righteousness. This proud mans righteousness was self-righteousness. As Jesus said, "He trusted in himself that he was righteous." There is only one righteousness that pleases God. That is the righteousness of Christ which is the gift of God. Therefore, as implausible as it may seem, it is possible to be doing human good and still be sinning. Only the good of Christ hits the mark. Therefore, we see that the sin nature is the nature to be separate from God whether in doing good or evil.
Consequently, we can see that there is only one cure for being a sinner or for sin itself. It is not trying harder. It is not beating ourselves up for our failures. (Look where such behavior got the man in Romans Seven.) It is union with Christ. Such union is wonderfully provided in God's Son.
"He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Cor 5:21)."
Even when we Christians struggle with areas of our lives that are not yet consecrated to the Lord, this only serves to drive us into the experience of our union with Christ. We wonder why the Lord lets us fall again and again in certain areas. Homosexuality is only one possibility. Guys, Jesus said that if we even look a woman with lust in our hearts, it is the same as committing adultery. When we fail, we make new promises to changes our ways, but we rarely keep them. And to make matters worse, it seems that God doesn't even want to help us keep such promises. Then we get mad at Him! If we are living this cycle of promises and failures, we are living in Romans seven. God wants us to move on the glory of Romans eight. Union with Christ is our dwelling place, when we begin to accept this by faith, we begin to overcome.
We must realize that we must walk with God in God's way. God's way is Christ. It is not through guilt and renewed effort that we overcome. That is the Law. It is through a bold proclamation that Christ has become our life and our nature that we see victory, for indeed our victory is the Person of Jesus Christ who is richly given to us. Taking the gift through faith is the way we walk with God. Our failures only serve to lead us to this understanding.