Why The Concept of Sin in the Bible is Misunderstood.
Sin is often understood as the equivalent of evil doing or doing bad things. This is a misconception that redirects a spiritual journey into a logical fallacy: in order to be saved by God and become perfect, you must first become perfect on earth. But if it were possible to become perfect, why would we need to be saved? And, if no one can be perfect, then no one can be saved. But, the truth is God does not require us to be perfect in order to be saved.
To understand what Sin really is, first let's examine the original Sin. In Genesis 4, we see the serpent makes a proposition to Eve. In this scenario, the serpent is properly identified by the wife as a deceiver. The method of deception was to convince Adam and Even to become arbiters of good and evil by consuming the apple. This act symbolizes an attempt to take the place of God, who had already determined what was good and blessed them.
Genesis 4
4 “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. 5 “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” (Genesis 3:4-5 NIV)
The first action that Adam and Eve took after consuming the apple was to create an 'ism. This is revealed through the concept of nakedness. Prior to consuming the apple, Adam and Eve where naked, but felt no shame. After consuming the apple, a transformation occurs: Adam and Eve went from no shame to suddenly realizing that they needed to wear clothes or they would feel ashamed.
6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. (Genesis 3:6-7 NIV)
This story highlights the same flaws that we exhibit today. We create 'isms to clothe ourselves in false truths. In our deception, we use our 'isms to trade union and harmony for judgement and condemnation. The purpose of understanding the existence of Sin, is to Acknowledge that we are not perfect judges and we often condemn while excusing our own flaws. Accepting that there is a higher authority than us allows us to discard our false truths. This act of humility changes our perspective and our language. By doing this, we open the door to forgiveness and we are preserving our channel for intellectual and spiritual communion with one another. This is why Jesus condemns the Pharisees and law makers for promoting false truths and practicing false religion in Mathew 23.
13 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.
15 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when you have succeeded, you make them twice as much a child of hell as you are. (Matthew 23:13-15 NIV)
The process of understanding Sin, realizing our deception, and choosing God's truth in love and grace instead of our false truths, is essential for building lasting relationships, families, and communities.
24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” (Matthew 7:24 NIV)
Knowing that we all have the inclination to create false truths that are self serving, we are told by Jesus to deny ourselves and take up our cross daily. Here, Jesus uses the cross as a symbol of humility.
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save their life[f] will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. 26 What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? (Mathew 16:24-26 NIV)