Fallen

So far we have talked about creation and the fall…

Last week we talked about the origin of sin, tonight we’re going to talk about sinfulness, or what it means that humans are sinners, and the result of sin.

I got an English bull dog when I was in college. His name was TAD… One of my room mates had a black lab named Chase. Well one rainy Tuscaloosa evening we had put them out in the back yard of the house we were living in for a little while. When we went to let them in we had a surprise waiting for us… Absolutely covered in mud! Head to toe. And man they were as happy as they could be! They had been wrestling in it and rolling around in it and having the time of their lives! There was no way we could let them in the house without having a huge mess because they were so muddy. They needed to be hosed off outside because the mud had covered every part of them! But how could I be mad at this face…

This is how vastly sin affects us, more so really. It’s not just external, it’s internal! That’s what we will see tonight.

Humans are sinful in our nature, but God is gracious and merciful in his!

pray

A history of sinners

Just look at the Old Testament. And the new testament. And everything! But let’s focus on the OT.

We can start where we left off last week, Genesis four with Cain and Abel…

Then Genesis six is Noah. We make that out to be this happy picture of an old man and a bunch of animals going on a boat ride, but a closer look reveals it’s a little more dark than that!

read 6:5, 9, review the ark and flood, read 9:1-2, talk about reset, read 9:20-21

And it’s pretty much like that in the OT! Who is your favorite Old Testament person?

Let them say some people from the OT. Likely they’ll be key figures from the OT and point out how even these key figures are sinners.

The reason that this happens is that…

Humanity is sinful

We are sinners in a state of sinfulness. We sin because we received a sinful nature from Adam and Eve. Every part of us is sinful, every aspect affected by sin…

We must admit it and confess it.

So I’m a basketball player. I’m a basketball player because I play basketball. Before I started playing basketball, I wasn’t a basketball player. That’s not how sin works.

In 2013 I became a father. As soon as I became a father, before even, I knew something was going to happen. Dad jokes. Dads tell dad jokes because we are dads. It’s in our nature. We had staff meeting this morning with the church staff, but pastor Mike was out of the office so he had to phone in. We were talking about upcoming events we have and Mike asked when Halloween is. I couldn’t stop myself. I tried, but I couldn’t stop myself because it’s in my nature. “October 31st!” It’s unavoidable that a dad will tell dad jokes. You can try, but you can’t stop it. This is how it is with sin.

Even to the point that, without Jesus, even the things people do that seem good to the world are still unrighteous before God.

Isaiah 64:6 ESV

We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.

It is because they aren’t done in faith, they aren’t done for God’s Kingdom but for our own. Paul quotes this verse in Romans. He also says this…

Romans 8:8 ESV

Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

Hopefully we are getting an understanding of how serious sin is, how vast it’s effects on us are. It’s hard to underestimate it.

And not just humanity, all of creation is affected by sin.

Romans 8:22 ESV

For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.

This is how far reaching the effects of sin are. Sin is evil, it is wrong, it make us guilty. And the guilty must be punished.

The wages of sin

Romans 6:23 ESV

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

God must punish sin. His righteous character requires it. He would be unjust if He didn’t…

He would be like the NCAA. I don’t know how many of you follow college football closely, but if you do then you know that everyone is laughing at the NCAA. They are supposed to be the organization that governs college athletics, but they have no actual power in football. The review the case when schools break the rules, but when they give out penalties they are often bogus and when they actually hand out real penalties, they usually get sued and back down. For instance, they just penalized coach Jim Harbaugh for violations he committed while coaching at Michigan, but he doesn’t even coach there anymore! The NCAA is not just or really even respectable. Our holy, righteous, just, true God is not like the NCAA!

God judges sin. He is right to punish sin. He is good for punishing sin!

The severity of the penalty is given in relation to the one wronged.

If you slap me, someone might give you a high five. If you somehow get to the president and get past the secret service and you slap him, something much different will happen to you!

So the just and fair punishment for sin is Hell. In addition to the natural penalties it brings in this life…

Revelation 20:15 ESV

And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

It’s a place of physical torment and punishment, and it never ends.

2 Thessalonians 1:9 ESV

They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might,

So what do we do? Well we have good news! We can’t help but sin, but God’s Son was sinless…

Romans 5:18–19 ESV

Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.

Believe in Jesus with every part of who you are and call on his name and you will be forgiven of your sins and saved…

If you have already put your faith in Jesus and you belong to him, what do you do? You have received the gift of the Holy Spirit. With his help, work hard to get sin out of your life!

Matthew 5:29 ESV

If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell.

This is not literal, I don’t believe. Jesus is saying take serious steps to get away from sin!

Be killing sin, or sin will be killing you.

Sin affects every part of who we are, but Jesus saves every part of who we are! Satan’s power to trap us in sin is big, but Jesus is greater!

So turn from your sin, from where ever you are…