Lawlessness (Sin) ... A Voice In The Wilderness

1. What Is Sin?

By way of definition, we may say, sin is a godless attitude of mind, which manifests itself in disobedience of the commandments of Yahweh, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel. The Bible says simply:

1 John 3: 4: Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.

In other words, when a person violates one or more of the Almighty's commandments, that person is sinning, whether he/she knows it or not.

2. Purpose of the Law

Why was the law given in the first place? Do we need moral laws?

Romans 3: 20: ... for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

Romans 7: 7: What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.

You will see from these texts, Yahweh’s law defines sin. It brings it to one's notice. It details the behavior, the Most High considers right and wrong. Humanity is incapable of defining sin. Only the Creator can do that. Were a society to totally set aside Yahweh's law, the law, which defines sin; within a single generation, people would become incapable of even recognizing error. Such a society would inevitably descend into a vortex of vice, violence and vandalism beyond our ability to imagine, let alone control.

3. Types of Lawlessness

Sin is lawlessness. Sin is breaking divine law. From the Biblical viewpoint, lawlessness, disobedience and sin, are three words meaning the same thing. The two words, sin and disobedience, are interchangeable. Broadly speaking, sin may be divided into two categories:

Obvious Sins:
These are the all too evident sins of blasphemy, deceit, theft, violence, rape, sodomy, adultery, murder etc.
Not So Obvious Sins:
We have socially acceptable sins, such as, unbelief, covetousness, ingratitude, envy, pride and Sabbath-breaking.

All these sins, are really expressions of rebellion against the Almighty's law. The spirit of rebellion was first manifest in the mind of Satan, the first sinner ever to exist.

4. All of Us Are Born with a Lawless Nature

Few people would admit to being lawless or sinful. Nevertheless, it is true to say, sinful tendencies are inherent in every human mind and make-up. The Bible says:

Romans 3: 23: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

Romans 5: 12: Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

Yes, it is a tragic truth. We have all sinned. We have all sinned repeatedly. What's more, the human mind is naturally antagonistic towards the Almighty's law and instinctively seeks to reject it. This is a far more serious problem than people realize. The inspired writer continues:

Romans 8: 7: Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.

Jeremiah 17: 9: The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?

The spiritual mirror, the Creator uses to show a sinner his/her sinful condition, is His law. But, the human heart (mind) is at war with the law of God. It is not naturally subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. By the divine standard, the human heart is sick! Such is the inspired assessment of the human mind. Before the reader can ever hope to make any spiritual progress in life, that ego-shattering divine diagnosis must be recognized for what it is, the truth! Are you willing to acknowledge that fact?

5. Effects of Lawlessness (Sin)

Individual lawlessness produces guilt, pain, mental disorders, family upheavals, disease and finally death. On the national and international scale, lawlessness repels the Spirit of God and results in all kinds of social, political and natural calamity: poverty, vandalism, revolution, war, freak weather conditions, famine, disease epidemics, earthquakes and disasters of all kinds; disasters, which most people believe happen ‘purely by chance.’ The truth is, few things happen ‘purely by chance.’ For everything there is a cause. That cause is, more often than not, linked to moral degeneracy. Read Deuteronomy chapter 28, where the amazing link between a nation's moral behavior and its welfare is explained in detail.

6. Jesus Christ, the Only Remedy for Sin

Lawlessness (sin) cannot be pampered, educated or somehow coaxed to quietly go away or even to change its nature. For, sin is an incurable spiritual malady; a moral form of AIDS with which Satan has infected mankind. Indeed, sin must needs be totally rooted out of the human mind, else it will destroy civilization. Sin is not just another social problem. Sin is a spiritual problem. Nothing short of a spiritual cure will get rid of it. Jehovah (Yahweh), for that is the name of the God of Israel, must either overcome and annihilate sin, or sin will overrun the universe.

Yahweh's agent, for the annihilation of sin and the salvation of mankind, is none other than His only begotten Son Yeshua (Jesus). Jesus conquers sin in the believer by creating in him/her a new mind, a new outlook, a new person. The old sinful mind is not somehow patched up and coaxed along. No, it is confronted, slain and buried. In its place is put a new mind, a new outlook, a new person, a new creation. This new creature or convert (which could be you!) is born to move in accordance with the requirements of the Father's law. Believe it or not, that is the reason why Jesus Christ (Yeshua the Messiah) came to this earth. He came to make his followers obedient to his Father's law. To be sure, he came to save mankind from the consequences of sin - which is eternal death. But, over and above that initial task, his main reason for coming to earth was to empower the repentant believer to be obedient to his Father's law. This objective is mentioned in the following verses.

Romans 8: 3: For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:
4: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

Matthew 1: 21: And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.

Hebrews 8: 10: For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:

In other words, the Savior came to save us from our sins, and to write his father's law on the tablets of our hearts and minds.

Note:
Yeshua (Yahshua, Y’shua) is the Savior's Hebrew name. Jesus is the Greek form. Both names mean salvation. Throughout AVITW pages you will notice, these names are used. We trust the reader will recognize, in every case, we mean Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of the Almighty God.

7. The Law Cannot Save the Sinner

You will have noticed at point 6, salvation comes through Jesus Christ. In other words, Yahweh’s law, perfect though it is, cannot save a single sinner. It cannot make a lawbreaker obedient. No law can. Like a sacred signpost on the highway of life, the law of the Most High can only point the way to life. It has no more power to change a sinner's character, than a traffic sign has to move a motorist to his destination. The law can only point the way to right and wrong. That is all it can and was designed to do.

The purpose of Yahweh's law, in short, is to define sin, to make the sinner aware of what is wrong and what is right; to point the way to salvation - to Christ!

Galatians 3: 24: Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.

Some well-meaning believers have completely misunderstood the role of Yahweh's law in the great Plan of Salvation. They have incorrectly assumed, after the death of Jesus, the law of God became obsolete. Nothing is further from the truth. Here are a few Scriptures concerning this vital matter of Yahweh's law and the results of obedience and disobedience (Psalm 19: 7; Proverbs 28: 4; Jeremiah 9: 13-16; Hosea 4: 6; Malachi 2: 4-10; Matthew 5: 17-18, 19: 16-17; Romans 2: 13; James 1: 22-25; Revelation 22: 14). The only time you do not need the law of the Almighty God is when you are obeying it to perfection.

8. Summary

Sin (lawlessness) is an inherent anti-God attitude, which manifests itself in disobedience of one or more of the commandments of God.
Sin results in guilt, disease, disorder and disasters of all kinds.
There is no man-made remedy for sin. It is fatal.
Yahweh's law, perfect and holy, is unable to save the sinner. Its primary purpose is, simply, to define sin and point the sinner to Jesus Christ, Yeshua the Messiah.
Sin can only be overcome by the power of Yahweh the Almighty God of Israel; administered through His Son, whose ultimate objective is, to write his Father's law on the mind of all true believers. That is why he came to earth in the first place; to save his people from their sins.
In short, salvation comes through Jesus Christ.

Do you think you have the courage to acknowledge and accept the truth of this lesson? If you do, then the AVITW-USA Bible Course is most certainly for you. Take time to study it!

In The Son's Name, For The Father's Glory

A Voice In The Wilderness - USA
www.avitw-usa.org