This is a very long devotional, so I am going to break it up into two parts, one today and one for Wednesday ....please take the time to read it....
"All sin is sin." "God treats all sin the same." "No sin is any worse than other sins." "All sin is the same in God's eyes." Most people have heard some version of this popular view that God is so forgiving, evenhanded, and merciful that He views no sin as being worse than any other sin. In church circles, these statements were once restricted to the conclusion of evangelistic meetings to encourage those who were not right with God to come forward.
Are there different degrees of sin? In the eyes of God sin is sin, separating mankind from Himself. This is a true statement. And the bridge that filled the gap between mankind and God was Christ. So God takes sin seriously. But am I as guilty as a murderer, when I tell a lie? James 4:17 - Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth [it] not, to him it is sin. I have to emphasize that in order for us to know if we sinned we must refer to the Bible on what sin is. The "original sin" was committed by Adam in the Garden of Eden, some also call this the inherited sin. This refers to an act of disobedience. This is why all man is born into sin. Or should I say sinful world? Our heart of hearts may tell us to live righteously, but our carnal minds tell us the world has so much to offer us if we don't.
So, the consequences of sin, or as some put it, the wages of sin, is death. Again we refer back to Genesis, because before Adam sinned, he and Eve were going to live forever in Paradise. After Adam's act of disobedience, God had to banish them from Eden and their life span, even though it was very long, did come to an end through death. Romans 5: 12...Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: Romans 5: 19...For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.
So, we see that the original sin resulted in the now appointed life ending moment in the time of a man. But what about sin's results as an eternal debt? Let us set aside the fact that physical death, being God's judgement for the original act, and look at the eternal circumstances of sin. There is an old saying, Hell hath no fury like that of a scorned woman.... truth is, that isn't true, as Hell is the epitome of God's wrath against sin! Jesus taught about the sins of man, the Apostles taught about it and today's ministers and Evangelist preach about it. There are Spiritual consequences to pay, Romans chapter 6 verse 23... For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. is not referring to the physical death that accompanied Adam and the rest of mankind since the fall in Eden. It is speaking of an eternal separation between the man and his unforgiven sin and God. I started out by saying in the opening, that sin is sin, in God's eyes, it all has to be that way, as His act of forgiveness covers all sin, for Saving Grace, the salvation of a man, concerning his eternal state. This was the Gift of Grace and Mercy God gave us through His Son Jesus. And if a man dies in his sins, in an unforgiven state, he will then have to come up with a sin payment, an offering for services rendered, which cannot replace that which was given by Christ on the cross. And that offering will be a man's soul, payment to be made through the gates of hell. Humanity is corrupted by sin, and that sin is always directly against God. we do not sin against each other, we sin against God! God is an eternal and infinite Being Psalm 90:2.Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God. As a result, all sin requires an eternal punishment. God's Holy, perfect, and infinite character has been offended by our sin. Although to our finite minds our sin is limited in time, to God—who is outside of time—the sin He hates goes on and on. Our sin is eternally before Him and must be eternally punished in order to satisfy His Holy justice. So this coming Wednesday I will complete this devotional, and reveal to you all, the effectual results of a sin is a sin is a sin....
