Sin is man’s universal problem. “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) Simply put, we are not fit for God’s presence as sinners. God is perfect in holiness which means He is absolutely separated from any sin or evil. God’s perfect holiness makes Him immune to temptation to sin. (James 1:13) That is why, as sinners we are not fit nor deserving of God’s presence or favor. We are told in Isaiah 59:1-2, “Behold, the LORD’S hand is not so short that it cannot save; nor is His ear so dull that it cannot hear. 2 But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hear.” Clearly, sin is a problem. The gravity of the problem is better seen in these verses. “The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6:23) Also, the apostle Paul in relating the spiritual condition of the Gentile brethren in the church at Ephesus before they obeyed the gospel said, “Remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.” (Ephesians 2:12)
That which is under consideration in this article is, “what can we do about sin?” First, one must recognize and admit he is a sinner. Luke 18:9-17 is a parable Jesus taught His disciples to impress upon them that the only way one can be forgiven of sin is to recognize they are a sinner and seek God’s terms of forgiveness. Secondly, one must realize they have created a debt to God that they cannot pay themselves and are totally at the mercy of God for forgiveness. In Matthew 18:21-35 Jesus taught another parable in which two very important facts are established: (1) as a sinner we are in debt to God and cannot repay that debt so as to be saved. No matter how many good works we do, we are still sinners unfit for God. (2) God expects us to be forgiving of others as He is forgiving towards us.
Isaiah 53 is a prophetic passage of Scripture that tells us that Jesus took our sins upon Himself while on the cross and suffered the judgment of God for the sin of the world. (Also see John 1:29) We are told in Isaiah 53:11 that God saw the anguish of Christ’s soul brought onto Him by the wrath of God being poured on Him for judgment of the sin of the world and was “satisfied”. Therefore, God is now able to extend forgiveness to those who meet His terms of pardon.
Our next article shows what God’s plan of salvation is, so please study it carefully.
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