In order to grasp the good news from God, we must first understand the bad news about sin—our sin.
Q: What exactly is sin?
A: Sin is breaking the law of God in thought, word or deed, not doing what God commands or doing what he forbids. Jesus explained that lusting in our hearts was a violation of God’s command not to commit adultery, or hating another person breaks God’s command not to murder.
Q: But am I a sinner?
A: The Bible says that everyone is a sinner. We sin because we are born as sinners. Sin involves not only our acts of disobedience, but includes our hearts that are full of sin and in rebellion against God.
Q: But I know plenty of people worse than I am.
A: God’s standard is not other people. His standard is his own perfect holiness. God gives us his moral law to compare ourselves to, not other sinners. Jesus’ point in saying that even our thought life breaks God’s law makes it clear that every one of us is a sinner and that we cannot be good enough to measure up to God’s standard of perfection.
Q: Won’t God give me a break if I try to be good and to obey his commandments?
A: Often we think of sin as those big crimes like murder, but the Bible says if we do any wrong, we fall short of God’s standard of perfection necessary for salvation and so are guilty before him. And God must (and will) punish eternally all who are guilty.
Q: Isn’t that awfully severe? It doesn’t seem fair.
A: We don’t grasp just how serious sin is because we don’t understand just how holy God is. God’s judgment on sin is fair and just. Not to punish sin would be to make God unjust.
Q: Can’t I just try harder to obey God’s commandments?
A: The Bible says even our very best efforts are contaminated by our sinful hearts. Also, God must exact the justice his holiness demands for the sins we have committed. If it were just a matter of trying harder, Jesus would not have had to die.
Q: But won’t God forgive my sins if I confess them?
A: Yes, but not just because you confess them. God forgives sins only through his provision for sin that meets the demands of his justice and provides what is necessary to be right with him. Forgiveness of sin comes only from the saving work of Jesus and our resting in that work by faith. (see 1 John 1:8-2:2)