Dear SCC & Friends,
…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…
~Romans 3:23
Reflection #103
The only Christian doctrine that needs no empirical evidence is original sin. ~G.K. Chesterton~ Let’s be honest with the fact that we are all sinners… I’ve actually been pretty good at it; that is sinning. Romans 3:23 was the text for the first sermon I ever gave. It impacted me then and impacts me now… All have sinned, meaning every single human being. Our entire planet has been and always will be inhabited by sinners. There is none righteous, not even one. ~Rom. 3:10 For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost. ~Lk. 19:10 Does that mean an “innocent newborn” is a sinner?… or even a sacrificial and sainted grandmother is a sinner? I’m afraid so… All have turned aside…there is none who does good, there is not even one. ~Rom. 3:12 Sin essentially means missing the mark…the standard is set by God Himself. We have left undone those things that ought be done; and we have done the things we ought not have done. ~Book of Common Prayer~ …through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned… ~Rom. 5:12 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all shall be made alive. ~1 Cor. 15:22 …Selah…
Sin can bring pleasure but never happiness. ~R.C. Sproul~ There was a time in my life when I chose not to believe in sin. If I believed sin existed, I would have to deal with the consequences. I became partial to secular philosophers and admired rugged individualists who agreed with my position. Conveniently, that allowed me to go my own way which ultimately led me into an abyss of emptiness. Sin is believing the lie that we are self-created, self-dependent and self-sustained. ~St. Augustine~ Thank God for God who alone opens blind eyes to His gift of salvation and grace. Sin would not be as attractive if the wages (price) were paid right away… For the wages (price) of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. ~Rom. 6:23 We can identify with the Apostle Paul who sums it up well… It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. ~1 Tim 1:15 Forgiven sinners are the recipients and unmerited beneficiaries of His divine exchange. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. ~2 Cor. 5:21 That’s you and me! Keep up the good work! We were made for these days.
Loved and redeemed,
Kevin