Sin in Popular Culture
One of the biggest challenges that 21st-century Christian face in their discipleship to Jesus is reconciling what sin means in a post-Christian culture. Western culture is saturated with sin, yet the word sin either has no meaning to a post-modern American, or the suggestion of sin is seen as oppressive. I will admit that in my early years as a Christian, I thought of sin exclusively as an act of hurting someone else.[1]
The problem with my earliest understanding of sin is that it was far too lenient on me. It wasn’t until I started examining my motives for sin that I understood I was in far worse shape than I initially thought. I did not understand the depths of my sin, and consequently, I did not understand the depth of God’s love for me.
“What comes out of a person is what defiles him.”
Jesus
Jesus tells us that our thoughts and motives are sinful, saying, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.” (Mark 7:20-23). If these things are true, then all humans are doomed. How could we ever expect to reconcile a relationship with God when we have spent our lives sinning against him in these ways? This is a complex concept to take in. Still, if we think about it in terms of our closest human relationships, the definition of sin Jesus gives is easier to understand.
A Practical Definition of Sin
My wife Charlotte is my best friend and closest companion. She is delightful. If I’m honest with myself, most of our friends probably choose to hang out with us because of her.[2] What if every day of our relationship, I willingly acted out the things Jesus lists in Mark 7? If I spent decades slandering her every day, would she want anything to do with me when we reached retirement age? What would decades of infidelity do to her view of me? How unbearable would I be if my pride drove every decision and interaction we ever had?
This scenario might seem extreme on the surface but walk it out a little further. If the person you loved the most-watched a film of actors playing out all the sinful thoughts you have ever had, how would they react? I shudder at that thought.
“Why wouldn’t God just forgive us? Why did Jesus need to die so brutally for our sins?”
The question that we have all asked concerning our sin is, “Why wouldn’t God just forgive us? Why did Jesus need to die so brutally for our sins?” The answer to these questions is that it would be unjust to do so.
God sees every thought we have ever and will ever have. All of our actions are known to Him. Fortunately for my family, I am not a horrible husband, but I have committed all of those thought crimes against God for 41 years. I cannot ask for forgiveness enough or do enough good deeds to cover over a lifetime of sin. Jesus has every right to pass eternal judgment on me.
The Beauty of the Cross
The crucifixion of Jesus is the only way we could be reconciled back to God. God requires justice for all transgressions because of his love for His people. This might sound like a weird concept; how can eternal judgment be loving? The oneness of God’s righteousness and love can be seen in basic terms with (hypothetically speaking) Charlotte’s appropriate response to evil Matt.
Charlotte has listened to me ask for forgiveness far more than I would like, but I dare say she would not endure decades of the nightmare I described earlier. In fact, because we have kids, she would be sinning if she did not take steps to install some hard boundaries with firm consequences. She would be forced to protect herself and the kids. To do otherwise would be unjust and unloving for everyone.
“We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”
Isaiah 53:6
We cannot know the depths of God’s love for us until we understand how horribly sinful we are. Jesus was the only man who could have taken the fullness of the justice we are owed. The Prophet Isaiah tells us exactly how justice for us was administered on the cross, writing, “But he [Jesus] was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:5-6). Jesus took the full wrath of God to cover every sin you, and I have ever and will ever commit against Him and His people. We need only to repent of our sins and make Jesus the Lord of our life to receive this free gift.
The cross is not a sign of punishment but of redemption and new life for those who repent and follow Jesus. The crucifixion of Jesus was like a presidential pardon for an inmate on death row. Except in the case of Jesus’s followers, the President pardoned the inmate by finishing his sentence. Good Friday is good because Jesus, who was both God and man, paid for all of our sins. He turned what was wretched into something brand new. Our primary response on Good Friday is to do as Jesus told those he physically healed during his ministry, saying, “repent and sin no more.”
Happy Easter!
[1] I fully recognize that some church cultures have a legalistic, fundamentalist view of sin. While I realize this is a problem and distortion of scripture, it is a minority position. The post-modern view of sin is prevalent in society, and this is why I am focusing exclusively on it in this article.
[2] Charlotte would like me to explain that she thinks this statement is untrue, so to be fair to her request, it is probably 70% Charlotte and 30% me.
Good stuff Matt! I am so happy that you started this website!
Thanks for checking it out Mike!