When Sin Does Not Feel Like Sin

I felt ashamed.

Our five year old grandson asked one of those probing questions that the adults in his life didn't want to answer. No, it's not what you might be thinking....it's worse.

It was asked on the periphery of my attention.  When I heard the dreaded, "Why don't you ask Steve?" I felt an overwhelming urge to run from the room, but I was trapped. I had to formulate an answer to a difficult question that a five year old could understand. 

I bailed. 

I fell back on a stock, simplistic, unsatisfying, albeit correct catch phrase.


What was the question, you ask? Well, anybody that has watched Mel Gibson's movie, "The Passion of Christ" or heard/read the gospel message describing the death and resurrection of Christ Jesus has probably asked it...you have probably asked it with as much guilelessness as our grandson.

"Why did Jesus die?"

My answer was perfectly scriptural: "He died for our sins"

So what is wrong with that answer? Well it doesn't really answer anything, especially when sin is poorly understood. The problem is that sin doesn't really feel like sin.

Hebrews 3:13 (ESV) But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called "today," that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

The problem is that sin is deceitful. It doesn't feel like sin because sin's deceit is that sin puts us in the company of people that make us feel loved and accepted. It doesn't matter how disastrous our lives become as long as we feel a sense of belonging and comfort in a chosen lifestyle. 

Often sin makes our lives manageable, comfortable and acceptable.  We resent our lifestyle being called sinful. This leads to bitterness and we become hardened and spiteful to those who dare to challenge our lifestyle choices by what the Bible calls sinful. 

It is especially irksome when those who dare to do so have not been as zealous of condemning the same in themselves as they do in others. This is also part of sin's deceit.

Sin deceives us into thinking that our chosen lifestyle is more moral than others. This is why the homosexual community can make a case for its morality. Those who oppose homosexuality are therefore declared immoral.

It doesn't matter whether we are conservative, biblical moralists or liberal and politically correct moralists - all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. We each have to ask ourselves what is the basis of our morality. If the truth of God's Word is not rightly understood or accepted, then we are living in sin.

What does God say to we sinners in this day of grace? 
"Do you think that these...were greater sinners than others...except you repent you will all likewise perish" (Luke 13:5)
and "Neither do I condemn thee, go and sin no more" (John 8:11)

smc