Sin

First Sunday/First Principles

Sunday Morning Sermon
September 3, 2017
John McKeel

Calvin Coolidge was the 30th president of the United States. He was known as a man of few words and one Sunday his wife Grace was ill and Calvin went to worship by himself. When he returned, Grace wanted to know all about the service.

“What was the topic of the preacher’s sermon?” she asked.

His answer was typically brief: “Sin.”

Not satisfied, Grace tried to pry more out of Calvin. “And what did he say about sin?” she asked.

“He was against it.”

What is Sin?

Obviously, the Scriptures have a great deal to say about sin and there are many different descriptive words for it:

  1. The most common term for sin, hamartia (αμαρτια), literally means “missing the mark,” and thus “failure, sin,” Romans 3:23.
  2. We might miss the mark because we are “ignorant” (agnoma αγνοημα) Hebrews 9:7.
  3. Or because we are “lawless” (anomia ανομια) Matthew 7:23; 13:41; 23:28; 24:12; Romans 6:19.
  4. Many people simply have no time for God or religion (asebia ασεβεια “Ungodliness, impiety”); Romans 1:18; 11:26…
  5. As a result, they are “defective,” something is missing from their life (attama ηττημα) Romans 11:12; 1 Corinthians 6:7.
  6. There are lines and boundaries but if you step over them, you have “transgressed” (parabasis παραβασις) Romans 4:15; 5:14; Galatians 3:19; Hebrews 2:2.
  7. If you break the law it is called paranomia (παρανομια) 2 Peter 2:16.
  8. Sin can also be described as a “misdeed, false step, blunder” (paraptoma παραπτωμα) Matthew 6:14, 15; Romans 5:15 ff.
  9. Some sin comes from not listening or paying attention (parakoa παρακοη) Romans 5:19; Hebrews 2:2

Omission/Commission

Then there are so many different ways to sin! Sometimes we actively sin – these are sins of commission, but sometimes we sin because we fail to act: sins of omission.

PEWSLAG

This can all be very confusing – even overwhelming so an early Christian teacher boiled it down to an acronym: PEWSLAG and called them the “Seven Deadly Sins,” not because they were particularly evil, but because they are “gateway sins” that lead on to worse.

  1. Pride
  2. Envy
  3. Wrath (Anger)
  4. Sloth
  5. Lust
  6. Avarice (Greed)
  7. Gluttony

What are the consequences of sin?

  1. Alienation from God (Mark 7:21-23)
  2. Bondage to Self

What is the solution for sin?

Some Things to Think About

Knowledge

A Google search for “sin” yields over 2,600,000,000 results! How do you describe sin?

John introduced several different definitions for sin and seven different kinds of sin. Which one seems to trip you up the most?

  1. Pride
  2. Envy
  3. Wrath (Anger)
  4. Sloth
  5. Lust
  6. Avarice (Greed)
  7. Gluttony 

Attitude

  1. A Google search for “sin” yields over 2,600,000,000 results!
  2. He also talked about the difference between sins of omission and commission. Think of an example of each.
  3. Which kind of sin is harder for you to overcome?
  4. Why is God so concerned about our behavior?
  5. Is there such a thing as “victimless sin”? Why or why not?
  6. How does sin harm the sinner?

Action

  • What is the solution for sin? (Explain why.)

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