The Painful Truth
It’s not easy accepting the painful truth of sin. No, I want to overlook this ugly side of reality. But, I can’t escape sin and its devastating consequences. In fact, without acknowledging my transgressions, my relationship with Christ stays elusive. And the truth about sin remains hidden.
The world rejects sin. Unsaved people discount inequities and rename sin as defects of character or shortcomings. They use these terms to prevent the reality of God’s opposition to sin. These human definitions of sin don’t describe the nature of sin and how disastrous it is to our relationship with God.
The Ramification of Sin
Our first reference to sin’s ramifications appears in Genesis’s third chapter. Yes, it’s an original sin committed by Adam and Eve. When they disobeyed God, their relationship with Him fractured, causing a separation from them and His grace. They went from a perfect existence to one filled with shame (Genesis 3:1–11).
It’s hard to comprehend that we are born with their disobedience (Romans 5:12). Yes, this painful truth shows us the reason why evilness controls the world.
The most detrimental results from sin’s destruction came in Noah’s generation. In this era of humanity’s transgressions, God took drastic action and flooded the earth, killing off all living things, including humans. He spared Noah, his family, and a pair of every other living creature (Genesis 7).
A recent event where sin played havoc on earth occurred during World War Two. The entire planet became engulfed in this war with sin’s mighty wrath. Three evil alliances (Germany, Italy, and Japan) aligned themselves with wickedness. These countries caused the death of millions. This terror lasted a few years (1939–1945). But God intervened, putting an end to this incomprehensible act of sin.
Besides global experience with sin, as individuals, sin affects our relationship with God and those around us. It’s a sin that keeps me away from God and forces me to spread the devil’s wickedness. My transgressions cause me to mistreat others and reject Christ. This truthful evidence of sin’s reality shows me my powerlessness over its paralyzing bondage.
The good news is God gives humanity a way out of inequities. Indeed, He loves us and wants everyone to enter His kingdom (2 Peter 3:), But the gate to heaven is narrow, and only a few are willing to travel its difficult road (Matthew 7:13–14).
However, we don’t choose God. No, He desires us by gracing us with His presence and activating faith in Christ (Ephesians 2:8–9). This gift from Him redeems our hearts and sanctifies our spirit.
The Truth of Repentance
As shown above, sin makes life troubling and disturbing. Nothing good comes from disobeying God.
The first reality of salvation is repentance. Once the Holy Spirit enters our souls, the truth of sin emerges, and the need to receive God’s forgiveness develops. And part of God’s forgiveness is for us to repent from our sinful natures. This action is crucial to our relationship with our Father.
When Christ walked on earth, He and John the Baptist spoke on repentance (Mark 1:15 Matthew 3:2). They both brought to attention God’s commandment of penance.
In Acts of the Apostles, it says:
So having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now proclaiming to mankind that all people everywhere are to repent, because He has set a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness Trough a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all people by raising Him from the dead.”
Acts 17:30–31
These two verses highlight God’s last call to repent. In this passage, God tells us He will no longer overlook the refusal of repentance and picked a day when Christ returns and unleashes His final wrath.
Repentance knows sin offends God, followed by a change in thought and behavior. This transformation from sin into His kingdom isn’t possible without Christ and the Holy Spirit.
No, I cannot change how I think and behave without the intervention of Jesus and the Spirit of Truth. In my devotion to Christ, God’s Spirit removes the bondage of sin and replaces it with the fruit of the Spirit. My mind, heart, and spirit change from sinfulness into God’s holiness through prayer and meditating on God’s word.
The truth about salvation is repentance isn’t a one-time occurrence. Just because God saved me doesn’t mean I won’t sin. Remember, we live in a world where Satan uses temptations and our weakened flesh sins. And when I find myself sinning, the only way back into God’s grace is repentance. But the exciting part of trusting God is the longer distance between sinning. In other words, the closer we are to Jesus, the less we sin.
As has been noted, the painful truth of sin and the road of repentance are realities of Christianity. They are reminders of how God responds to humanity’s outlook on His existence. Please make no mistake about these facts because failure to accept them signs my eternal death warrant.
