What is sin according to the Bible?

[phipps]

The Bible teaches that human nature is basically corrupt.

Are people as bad as the Bible claims? What about the good people and the good things they do? How can anyone deny this?

There’s no question that human beings are very capable of good deeds, kindness, extreme selflessness, and generosity. Some people are truly considerate, compassionate, and caring.

But that’s not what the doctrine of human sinfulness is about.

Instead, it deals with the basic nature of all people—and that nature is corrupt.

It is corrupted by sin—which is the breaking of God’s law that calls us to love Him and others (1 John 3:4; Mark 12:30-31). Because of sin, we are naturally selfish, the opposite of love.

Even the worst people can have good traits and, at times, do good things. Yet no matter who they are or how good they appear, their nature is corrupt. Every person is a victim of the disease of sin and has been since the Garden of Eden.

The bible says:

- "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).

- “Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned” (Romans 5:12).

- “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?” (Jeremiah 17:9).

- “For there is not a just man on earth who does good and does not sin” (Ecclesiastes 7:20).

These are a few of the many Bible texts that address the sinful nature of humanity. The Bible also contains many examples of this tendency. In fact, you can find just as many (if not more) examples of people being sinful in the Bible as of people being righteous.

Also, when we take a look at world history or just the news today, what do we find? Over and over, we encounter examples of just how bad humanity can be.

No, not everyone is committing horrific, tragic crimes that affect thousands of people at a time. And that’s not what the Bible teaches.

What it does teach is that everyone has sinful tendencies. Tendencies toward selfishness in the forms of greed, anger, lust, hatred, prejudice, gluttony, and so on.

People might not always act on those tendencies, but even if they don’t, the tendencies are still there. They are in all of fallen humanity—with no exceptions (Isaiah 64:6).

However, it’s important to note that we are not sinful because we have these tendencies. Rather, sin is the result of acting on those tendencies. On our own, we are powerless to resist those tendencies, but Jesus gives us the power to choose and overcome them.

 

[phipps]

If this is our nature, what hope do we have?

The good news is that God loves us, despite our sinful nature and our choices to sin. And He had a plan in place—even before humans chose to sin—to save us from sin’s power and consequences.

He loves us so much that Jesus came to this world and died, taking the penalty of sin we deserved. He did the most selfless thing He could do: give His life for those He loves.

This text can’t be quoted enough:

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

That text could also be read as, “For God so loved sinful, fallen humanity that He sent His own Son…”

And that’s what the gospel is all about. It’s what God has done to save us, despite us being who we are:

“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).

Notice, it didn’t say that Christ waited until we were good people or until we stopped sinning, and then He died for us. No, when we were still sinners, Christ died for us because that makes it possible for Him to eventually destroy sin without destroying us in the process.

The Bible also says that Jesus Christ was “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 13:8).

Before the foundation of the world? How far back that goes, we don’t know. But one thing is certain—it goes back long before we existed, which means that, long before we existed, God had a plan in place to meet the crisis of sin when it came. And that plan was centred around Jesus, the second person of the Godhead, dying for us.

The death and resurrection of Jesus, which is central to the plan of salvation, is God’s way of remedying sin sickness forever.

 

[Zakat]

but Jesus gives us the power to choose and overcome them.

I would have liked your post but for this part above.

Jesus has no power on his own. He didn't even exist before taking birth from Mary.

He came into existence by God's Will. He grew by His Power and performed miracles save By God Alone.

Bottom line, Jesus is not the Almighty Who Always Existed, without equal, whereas Jesus is as Adam who is as Eve who is as Mary, all His Beloved handiworks whose companionship I personally beseech in the coming life after death.

 

[Zakat]

He loves us so much that Jesus came to this world and died, taking the penalty of sin we deserved. He did the most selfless thing He could do: give His life for those He loves.

No, he did not even die yet to begin with nor was he ever responsible for anybody's sinfulness.

We are all accountable to God for each and every one of our sins, for which we are expected to at least seventy times a day beg God for forgiveness by reciting pleadingly 'forgive me God'.

 

[Zakat]

The death and resurrection of Jesus, which is central to the plan of salvation, is God’s way of remedying sin sickness forever.

Please stop using this as an excuse for your daily recurring sins, duh!

 

[Zakat]

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[phipps]

Please stop using this as an excuse for your daily recurring sins, duh!

If you'd read and understood what I posted you'd know that I haven't made excuses for recurring sins.

 

[phipps]

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In the Bible Jesus prohibits immorality and sinning. When we pray we communicate with God about our everything. We also ask for our daily needs, protections, to stop us from giving into temptation and sinning, comfort, guidance, healing, thanksgiving etc etc.

 

[elsbet's cat ^. .^]

I would have liked your post but for this part above.
Jesus has no power on his own. He didn't even exist before taking birth from Mary.
He came into existence by God's Will. He grew by His Power and performed miracles save By God Alone.
Bottom line, Jesus is not the Almighty Who Always Existed, without equal, whereas Jesus is as Adam who is as Eve who is as Mary, all His Beloved handiworks whose companionship I personally beseech in the coming life after death.

I think Adventism believes Jesus was created before Mary. Other than that, based on your post-- you two agree.

Interesting, isn't it.

 

[phipps]

How can we live in that hope and overcome sin today?

Jesus set us an example of victory over sin. By following His example and depending on the power of God, human beings no longer have to be slaves to their sinful tendencies. The Bible assures of this numerous times, including in the following passage:

“Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4).

In the New Covenant, God promises to put His “laws in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people” (Hebrews 8:10).

In other words, God promises us a new nature with the power we need to obey His law. He will even write that law in our hearts, which is why some Christians believe in victory over sin now. They believe that through the power of Christ in us, we can overcome every selfish tendency and temptation (2 Corinthians 5:17; Colossians 3:1-8).

It doesn’t mean we’ll never sin again, but it means we’re allowing the Holy Spirit to work within us, gradually breaking the hold sin has over us (Ephesians 2:1-6; 4:22-32; Galatians 5:16).

While we are aware that we are sinners, we rest in the fact that Jesus’ sinless life stands in place of ours. We know we are loved and accepted by God because of Jesus, which is why we can claim this promise by faith:

“There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit” (Romans 8).

 

[phipps]

We understand we can never “cure” our sin on our own, so we seek out Christ, the one and only answer to our broken nature. He is ready and waiting to repair our damaged relationship and lead us back to Him.

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10).

 

[phipps]

 

[phipps]

 

[Zakat]

I think Adventism believes Jesus was created before Mary. Other than that, based on your post-- you two agree.

Interesting, isn't it.

Whatever their beliefs are, they are clearly faulty and ambiguous when it is much simpler and clearer to believe that the parent was Created before the child and is greater than the child, if not pretty much an equal since both are creatures of God.

And according to down below, the similar souls of Mary and Jesus could be said to have met before being Sent to their respective bodies here.

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[Zakat]

In the Bible Jesus prohibits immorality and sinning. When we pray we communicate with God about our everything. We also ask for our daily needs, protections, to stop us from giving into temptation and sinning, comfort, guidance, healing, thanksgiving etc etc.

Yes but you have also been Commanded to do as Jesus was said to have done in the Bible and who does this more than Muslims today?







So the question is, when will you start to accept that the Muslims who are sincere in their beliefs are much better and truer Christians than so-called "Christians" will ever be?

Except unless they submit too of course!

Just how blind are those that refuse to see!

 

[phipps]

Yes but you have also been Commanded to do as Jesus was said to have done in the Bible and who does this more than Muslims today?

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So the question is, when will you start to accept that the Muslims who are sincere in their beliefs are much better and truer Christians than so-called "Christians" will ever be?

Except unless they submit too of course!

Just how blind are those that refuse to see!

Muhammed is more important to Muslims than Jesus is. They emulate him more than they do Christ.

Islam teaches that the way to God is through the Quran and the prophet Muhammad whereas the Bible teaches that Jesus is the “way the truth and the life” (John 14:6).

The Bible makes it clear that Jesus should be the most important Person in our lives because He is our Messiah and God who sacrificed everything for us because He loves us so much. He is God who dwelt in human flesh and lived among human beings.

He is kind, loving, compassionate, gentle, patient etc etc. He obeyed the ten commandments fully and got baptised and we are emulate that.

He changes people's lives by freeing them from their sins. He does this by lifting guilt and condemnation and showing that victory over sins is possible through Him. No human being including Muhammed can do this.

Jesus changes lives by showing people what love looks like and how it can completely change us from the inside out.

Are there sincere Muslims? Of course. But their doctrine is not Christian at all.

There are also sincere Christians who want to obey and do obey Jesus and His Word fully according to what they know.

For me, this is not a contest at whose beliefs are better. Its about true or false doctrine and I'm afraid Muslim doctrine is false. The whole Bible is testament to this but especially with prophecy. Biblical prophecy is true and always comes true. We've seen it be fulfilled and it will continue to be fulfilled until Jesus returns.

 

[elsbet's cat ^. .^]

Whatever their beliefs are, they are clearly faulty and ambiguous when it is much simpler and clearer to believe that the parent was Created before the child and is greater than the child, if not pretty much an equal since both are creatures of God.

And according to down below, the similar souls of Mary and Jesus could be said to have met before being Sent to their respective bodies here.

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I don't disagree ➛ I also find it faulty + ambiguous.

I think some (sects of) Judaism share a similar belief concerning the pre-existence of souls: they are held in the guff, prior to birth, iirc. It's found in commentary, though-- not the Torah. It isn't in the New Testament, either, so I can't really expound much further-- Gen. 2:7 covers it. If you're interested, there's a breakdown here.

Thanks for posting your source, Zakat.

Is it hadith (authoritative) or just commentary for study? Just curious-- we have commentary, but none is considered authoritative. Studying the original language alongside was recommended, and it's a good idea next level, imho-- but I think you do, anyway.