“Well, you know what the Bible says, ‘all have sinned.’” Have you ever had that cited to you from someone caught in a sin? Perhaps one admitting his/her own shortcoming and seeking refuge in part of Romans 3:23.
All have sinned from the Garden to today—fact. It doesn’t mean one has to sin or should be satisfied in sin. The fact is that sin entered the world in the Garden of Eden through Eve and Adam and has continued bringing suffering, death, and the need for redemption (Rom. 5:8). Christ brought a remedy to the “law of sin and death” (Rom. 8:2).
All are required to have obedient faith to be accepted by God (Acts 10:34-35). The faith God requires is a faith that does something. Abraham, father of the faithful, had to get up and get out of his homeland to the land God would show him. He did what God said and it was accounted unto him for righteousness (Gen. 11:31-12:1). He did what God told him to do; a notable example when he “offered” his son Isaac for sacrifice (Gen. 22; Jer.11:17). Abraham honored God and not himself (Gen. 14:23). He accepted less in this world looking for “a city built above” (Heb. 11:10) as the old gospel song says. He believed God and he lived like it.
All are saved by the grace of God (Eph. 2:8-9). The old law couldn’t do it though it played an important role in bringing salvation. Your works cannot save you no matter if you worked 24/7 every day of your life, you cannot earn salvation. Christ came to pay that price for all mankind—the grace of God (Rom. 3:25).
So what should my attitude be regarding sin? Should I approach it as though “everyone does it, so it’s alright if I do a little? That seems to be the way many approach this matter. It kind of reminds you of children, doesn’t it? When one gets caught by mom or dad, they say “everyone’s doing it.” Children in faith tend to do the same thing. The inspired Apostle Paul asked the question: “Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?” He answered it “God forbid” (Rom. 6:1-2). Isn’t the attitude of continuing in sin because God’s grace will cover, a license to sin? That is the error of the Calvinistic derivative of faith only. No, God clearly stated through the devoted apostle, a Christian is to be dead to sin. Dead doesn’t mean a Christian never sins, but that he/she does not live to practice such things (James 2:10).
There is not a justification for sin, nor an excuse to sin. A Christian should never reach the state of acceptance of sin in their life, but should constantly be at war with it (II Cor. 10:3-6). Do not let sin reign in your mortal body (Rom. 6:12). No excuses!
-David Hill, President of Tennessee Bible College
