“But what if you die when you’re sinning?” he asks. “I mean what if you live a full life of service and being human and imperfect and all, what if you’re breaking the speed limit and loose control of your car and die. What then?”
“Then you go to Hell I guess!”
The nature of the sin one commits should be at the root of God’s response however, many argue sin is sin. More than habitual weakness, sin when repeated can become a clear defiance of God’s word and consequently, lead to a eventful day of judgment.
I believe committing the same sin over and over again is a choice driven by poor Faith in the Lord and, a compulsive behavior issue requiring immediate attention or intervention. If you suffer from ‘perma-sin’, please get help before it’s too late. It is likely God knows your heart and won’t answer a dishonest call made in desperation.
The actuality is that sinning is the result of conscious decisions. Continuing to commit the same sin is pure disrespect for all that God stands for and most importantly, an insult to Christ who died so that we could live.
When asked how I felt about the severity of a specific sin I found myself divided between ‘sin is sin’ and ‘it depends on the sin’.
I then read James 2:10 “For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.”
I suppose size doesn’t matter to God. Defiance is not only contradictory to obedience, it is contagious! Ignore the Lord’s ways and soon those around you will succumb to temptation as well unless each person chooses to live in God’s light and distance themselves from you.
But what exactly is sin? “Sin is not breaking the speed limit. Sin is breaking a commandment!” exclaims a critic during a recent conversation. Being concerned with my friend’s safety, I used his speeding habit as an example in hope I would get him to ease-up on the throttle a bit.
He laid out a challenge asking me to quote scripture testifying that breaking the speed limit was a sin. He even giggled that “his conscience was clear” even though he had been “driving 98 miles an hour” earlier in the day.
I was glad to text message his phone the following passage from my New Living Translation bible:
Obey the government, for God is the one who put it there. All governments have been placed in power by God. So those who refuse to obey the laws of the land are refusing to obey God, and punishment will follow. (Romans 13:1-2)
I pray my friend and all other disrespectful drivers out there get to fully enjoy the thrill of driving through God all mighty. I invite you to read “Driving Pleasures” for more on this topic…
To me, all sin is not the same. But since it’s not up to any of us to decide who goes to Heaven or Hell, I suggest we all continue to live according to Jesus’ ways and strive for perfection. This way you don’t have to worry about what happens if you die sinning.
If you think about it, living today as Christ would if He were among us is a win-win situation. One I wish on all of you!
Let’s pray.
Father God;
We thank you for your unconditional love
For your forgiveness, your strength
And for your never ending grace.
Lord we pray you will continue to lead our footsteps
And inspire us to be the best we can be
In this life so we can rejoice with you in the next.
Father God we ask you to cleans our hearts
And empower our minds with your Word,
So that we may witness to all those around us
And shine your light bright to those who walk in darkness.
God we love you and thank you for all that surrounds us!
Praise God,
Amen!
This message was written by Daniel St.Pierre
Email: DanielStPierre@ThriveThroughChrist.com
