December 29

At least a portion of 1st John is written so people won’t sin.

1 John 2:1 (NIV84) — 1 My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.

My question to you as you read this book is; What in this book motivates us not to sin?
Search this out.

Sin has become this word that is associated with those things we think are REALLY wrong. It has evolved over the years, and I fear it has become something that it wasn’t intended to be. Words paint pictures right? I am not so sure that “sin” paints the proper picture in the mind of the west.

By many in and out of the church, it is almost dismissed (the word sin) and glossed over. Its consequences have been long forgotten - which is the point! So many acquaint sin with bad but stop there. May I suggest that sin = death, so sin is death. One may saying, “hey, stop killing yourself” and it would be accurate. To the one slamming drugs into the veins we would easily say that, but how about to the one who is complaining to you about someone else? The one who hears “you are killing yourself”, may awaken to the fact that “missing the mark of God” or not doing what God wants is really costly and not merely “bad”. God doesn’t want us not to “sin” because He wants morally upright people, He doesn’t want us to sin because we were made to contain His glory and not death! Yes we all physically die, but there is so much more than the physical! God wants you to do His will because it is the BEST for YOU! It is what He created you for. It will get you to the destiny that He has for you which will bring you the highest satisfaction possible. Not only that, but you will make the mark, an eternal mark that you long for because you were created for that! Our significance is tied into being eternally fruitful. God’s problem with sin surrounds the fact that it hurts the ones He loves. Not only does it hurt us when we do it, but it often hurts others around us. It causes death! No wonder God hates sin – He LOVES US!