May 8, 2023

Galatians 5: 19-21 The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you . . . that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. (NIV)

Sin sees the world with no God in it.*

The Apostle Paul has the knack for stirring up mixed emotions in me. This passage, while containing a list of the worst offenses against God, makes me feel kind of good about myself: my signature sins are not included here. So, I must not be so bad. But then I recall Romans 3: 23, where Paul proclaims that all of us have sinned and fall short of God’s glory. All. That would be me. And you.

My guilty feelings are relieved somewhat by the realization that the behaviors listed here are sinful lifestyles – as opposed to occasional sin. But then there’s that troubling truth: I sin every day. So what separates my daily sins from these heinous lifestyles? Why am I not excluded from the kingdom of God like those whose “acts of the sinful nature are obvious”?

Repentance. That’s what sets me apart. That’s the difference between a sinner who sins and a sinner who leads a sinful lifestyle. Martin Luther reminds us about David, who committed adultery and murder, and Peter, who denied Christ. He says that, as bad as the sins of these men were, “they were not committed to spite God, but from weakness.”* When their sins were brought to their attention, they repented. They weren’t just sorry they got caught – they were sorry because they had sinned against God. And they weren’t just sorry; they turned away from their sin.

My purpose is not to make you feel good about your sin. Not ever. My purpose is to remind you that sin is bad but God is good. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us and purify us (I John 1: 9). We are liberated from a sinful lifestyle so that we can inherit the kingdom of God.

There is nothing worse than to continue in sin.*