sin separates us from God

Leviticus 5:1-13 – Sin

Why is it some preachers today don’t want to talk about sin? In our current culture, there is fear of offending or being “judgmental,” or simply wanting to be “welcoming.” To talk about sin is to point out behaviors people want to cling to rather than avoid. I’m sure Moses was experiencing similar struggles with his wayward crowd. The loving thing is to try to help people find their way out of sin.

Just as I was wondering what sins would necessitate the sin offering from our last reading, God reveals some of them in this passage. One common thread to these sins is recognition. “When you realize what you have done,” it says. Do you agree that sometimes we sin but don’t know we’re sinning? It’s because we don’t recognize that our actions or behaviors are driving a wedge between us and God. We aren’t familiar enough with what pleases and displeases God, only focused on pleasing our own selfish desires. Continue reading “Leviticus 5:1-13 – Sin”

Ezra 4:6-24 – More Opposition

Read Ezra 4:6-24

It’s not often we read a letter exchange like this in Scripture. Sure, the apostle Paul wrote letters in the New Testament, but they comprised whole books of their own. These letters are nothing like those because they are full of nonsense and devoid of facts. The purpose of these letters is to upset the King and drive a wedge between him and the people rebuilding the temple.

These attempts to sabotage God’s kingdom purposes in rebuilding the temple are blatant and mean. I find myself getting a bit defensive on behalf of God’s people. Did you? Will such an exaggeration go unpunished?

Mark 9:42-50 – It’s Better

Read Mark 9:42-50

I can only imagine a world filled with handless, foot-less, or eye-less people waiting to get into heaven. But if that’s what it takes to keep us blameless and free from sin, are you willing to cut off your sinful extremity? It seems a little extreme, doesn’t it?

I’m sure Jesus doesn’t want us to take this instruction literally. But it is a fantastic way to demonstrate how our sin separates us from God. We’d have a permanent solution to avoid making the same mistake twice. How often do we fall into the trap of sinfulness only to repeat our evil ways again and again? There must be a way to escape the cycle.

James 4:17 – Sinning

Read James 4:17

This will be your shortest reading ever! But it was a verse that packed a powerful punch, and it didn’t seem to fit with what came before or after. I chose to reflect on this single verse on its own. Here it is again from the NLT translation:

“Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do
and then not do it.”

James’ audience would know about sin. Those Jewish believers would even have flashbacks to following the law of Moses and all the sacrifices they now didn’t make. But what James is talking about here is not being sinful by breaking a law you should know better than to break, but to not do good when doing good is the right answer. Does that make sense?