By Kathy L McFarland
Sin is the disobedience to the LORD God’s Laws and is unrighteous, unjust, immoral, and wrong. The five types of sin, 1) transgression, 2) unrighteousness, 3) omission of known duty, 4) faithlessness, and 5) foolish acts, constitute sins against the LORD God.
As a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit will convict you of your sins, dissuade you from looking for new sins, or focusing on the old ones. You will learn to focus on what the LORD God is placing in your heart concerning sin and want to change what you can as fast as you can. Have confidence that those deeper sins that seem impossible to remove at this point, will become easier to overcome as your walk with Jesus becomes steady.
Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. (John 3:4, KJV)
Sin is the disobedience to the LORD God ‘s Laws.
All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death. (1 John 5:17, KJV)
Sin is unrighteous. It is unjust, immoral, and wrong. There are different degrees of sin. Not all sin is unforgivable and punished by death.
Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin. (James 4:17, KJV)
A person that knows to do good works and does not do them is sinning. A sin for one person may not be a sin for another person.
Hast thou faith? have it to thyself before God. Happy is he that condemneth not himself in that thing which he alloweth. And he that doubteth is damned if he eat, because he eateth not of faith: for whatsoever is not of faith is sin. (Romans 14:22-23, KJV)
Faith is between each individual and God. The LORD God decides how much faith you will have, and he will transform you by the renewing of your mind so that you know what is good, acceptable and the perfect will of God. Conversely, the LORD God will reveal to each individual what their sins are. A sin is committed if a person believes a certain truth, then doubts that truth and acts on his doubt. If it is not done in faith, it is a sin.
The thought of foolishness is sin: and the scorner is an abomination to men. (Proverbs 24:9, KJV)
It is a sin to plan or think wickedly or recklessly.
Review
There are five types of sin. These types of sin are:
1. Transgression (22) Disobedience to the LORD God’s Law
2. Unrighteousness (23, 24) Unjust, immoral, and wrong
3. Omission of known duty (25, 26) Failing to do good works
4. Faithless (27-31) Failing to act on faithful conviction
5. Foolish acts (32) Wicked or reckless planning
When we first started Becker Bible Studies, we passed out a list of sins assembled and classified from the Ten Commandments. Similar lists of sin are popular with many of the major religions in teaching their students the definition of sin. Through the years, we discovered that this list of classified sins created many problems that failed to address the LORD God’s complete and true Will regarding sin.
No man or church can conclusively construct a list of sins. Man’s relationship with God develops new requirements, thus, new possibilities for deeper interpretations of God’s laws. Furthermore, because of the all-encompassing nature of the LORD God, man might be unaware of sins that are truly sins to the LORD God. Just because a sin has not yet been convicted by the LORD God on a person’s heart, does not make it any less of a sin.
Another problem with attempting to list sin is the “actual” vs. “intent” interpretation. As we walk with Jesus, we learn how to understand the laws of the LORD God through His Will rather than man’s rigid, confusing, or self-serving interpretations. For example, theft may be classified as a sin on a list as a violation of the Eighth Commandment that says “Thou shalt not steal”. (Exodus 20:15 KJV) While the letter of the law states that theft is a sin, the intent of the law by the LORD God is so much different.
We all know deep inside ourselves that there is a difference between a person who would take possessions of others for self-gain vs. a person who takes a loaf of bread to feed a hungry family. That knowledge of difference in this example is placed in the hearts of His people by the LORD God. This is called spiritual “discernment.”
The LORD God gives His people the ability to seek justice, interpret grayness and recognize sin and to discern right from wrong. He gives us this knowledge through Jesus Christ and the presence of the Holy Spirit. Jesus spoke of the intent of the LORD God many times as the Pharisee and Sadducees tried to trap Him with the letter of the law. He taught His disciples to choose the LORD God’s Will over man’s interpretation, and to have faith in their convictions.
The LORD God’s people must be obedient to His law and avoid anything that is unjust, immoral, or wrong. They should know that when the LORD God expects a good work from them, they should do it. God’s people should never fail to act on a faithful conviction of the heart. Lastly, sinful thoughts are just as bad as sinful actions, and people of God should avoid them.
Have faith that the LORD God has convicted you of your sins and you know what they are. Don’t go looking for new sins, and don’t go looking for old sins. Focus on what the LORD God is placing in your heart concerning sin and change what you can as fast as you can. Those deeper sins that seem impossible to remove at this point, will become easier to overcome as your walk with Jesus becomes steady.