The Problem With Sin
Our own WitnessLA’s reader goes in depth on a problem we all face on a daily basis: sin and how to live victoriously despite life’s challenges. Our reader shares the importance of relying on God to be our guide in everyday activities, and to ask God today for the grace and wisdom to make the right choices tomorrow.
Why is sin such a bad thing? Ask ten people and you’ll get ten different answers. What does it even mean to sin? Religious people may define sin as rebellion against God’s Commandments. Others may say sin is anything you do that hurts yourself or others. A child might simply know sin as “doing bad stuff.”
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Regardless of our background, I believe we all have an internal moral compass that guides our decision-making; an innate sense of right and wrong that may or may not agree with another person’s. This compass can change with time and experience. We may even distinguish between big sins and small sins. And perhaps a particular thought or behavior will be considered sinful in some settings, but not others. We can turn the process of deciding between right and wrong into a complicated decision tree.
For many people, the concept of right and wrong is ultimately tied to a belief in a higher power. This higher power sets a standard for moral behavior that we try to follow. But what if your higher power isn’t the same as mine? We will almost certainly have different ideas then about what moral code to live by.
No matter what higher power you believe in, I believe there is a common practical answer to why sin (aka any wrongful act) is a bad thing and should be avoided to the greatest extent possible. As a Christian, I look to Biblical teachings for my own moral standard, and I hope my thoughts will resonate even if you don’t share my particular faith. My reason is not that sin offends God or hurts other people, but rather that sin is ruinous because it opens the door to confusion and confusion is what leads to a person’s downfall. When I marinate in thoughts and engage in behaviors that I know are wrong, I lose clarity of mind. My thoughts no longer make sense. I can’t trust my own decisions. Right and wrong, left and right, up and down—they all seem interchangeable. Why? Because I have convinced myself to live according to one way, and yet find myself making decisions in the opposite direction. What I once held as absolute has now become relative. The standard is no longer. Structure is lost.
When I sin, I’m proving to myself that my ability to perceive reality and makes good decisions is unreliable. Imagine teaching a child what is right and wrong, and then exhibiting and enabling behavior that points to the complete inverse. This causes total chaos in a child’s mind. And so goes with my mind when I do the same. My actions are marked with indecisiveness.
The resulting confusion keeps me from effectively dealing with problems. And herein lies the downfall. I don’t care who you are, what pedigree you have, or how much money you make—life will throw you an endless series of curveballs. We must resolve these situations appropriately to move forward. But with active sin in my life, I can no longer tell how to best navigate through adversity. Situations regarding my career, relationships, finances, you name it—all appear muddled and without clear solution.
Then I begin to ask myself a question, to which I have no idea how to answer.
Am I going through hardship as a consequence of my previous sin? Or is this a situation where God wants me to press on so He can show Himself powerful and victorious? Knowing how to categorize my situation determines how I will come out the other end.
The former requires me to accept my circumstance, rather than fight against it. These consequences are mine to bear and must be taken on as my lot for what I’ve done. Like a loving parent, God is teaching me a lesson and I need to embrace punishment as much as any reward. This is pleasing to Him. This is how I will learn.
The latter requires a very different approach. As an ambassador and warrior for Christ, I’m called to face problems head on. God wants me to push through challenges in faith and stay the course. This is a fighting attitude.
When facing adversity, you and I had better know which approach to take. Fighting against God’s consequences is not a smart thing to do. We will not learn important lessons and God will continue to hound us until we face up to what He wants to teach us. And yet, to stay back when God is actually calling us to fight is equally bad. It is an abdication of our responsibility to be problem-solvers in this life.
So how can you deal effectively with the hardship you will face tomorrow? It begins by asking God today for wisdom and grace to help you make the right decisions the first time around. Don’t just rely on God to clean up your mess from poor choices.
As you make the right decisions that please Him, you will begin to cut out the sin in your life. You’ll have confidence in knowing the challenges you face ahead are no longer the consequence of a heaping pile of sin. Rather, they are opportunities for success and fulfillment when you push ahead in faith. I believe this is God’s answer for those genuinely wanting clarity in overcoming life’s many problems. And it will separate those who move forward in strength from those who remain trapped in weakness.
