Sin: 3 Circles Gospel Conversations

Sin has great consequences. For example, we learn in David's life the devastation and disastrous results of sin. More importantly, sin breaks our fellowship with God.
April 28, 2021

Sin: 3 Circles Gospel Conversations

There is a tendency in all of us to rebel against authority, rules, advice, and quite frankly, even wisdom. We are all advised on, “What to do” or “This way is better,” and at various times, we all struggle with that. “Even when those giving us instructions are people who generally love us- like family, friends, teachers, or pastors- there is something inside of us that thinks we know better” (Scroggins). In contrast, God has created humanity with the ability to make decisions, seek out wisdom, and exercise leadership, even though it is challenging. We are called to lead out, but doing things our own way, in our own time, without humility can be dangerous. In other words, “our capacity for doing things our own way can be very wrong. God has given us a design for our lives and when we choose to depart from God’s design the Bible says we are living in sin” (Scroggins).

Sin

Most of us can list a host of things we call “sin.” In fact, it is quite easy for us to call out another people’s sin while ignoring our own. “The Bible has a number of different words for sin- iniquity, transgression, rebellion. In its simplest form, sin is defined as missing the mark. It is missing the mark of God’s standard that is based on His character. It is failing to bring Him glory in the things we do” (Scroggins).

David’s sin was disastrous

The Bible gives several examples of sin. For example, one of the most famous is David’s sin in 2 Samuel 11. In this story, David had an affair with a woman named Bathsheba. He entertained his lust and gave in to temptation for Bathsheba and it led to sin. In essence, while David was on his roof he saw how beautiful Bathsheba was to him, fell to temptation, and sent for her. Instead of turning away from his fleshly desire, David gave in and sinned. David’s act of sin was “an intentional act of disobedience, rejecting God’s design in favor of pursuing his own selfish pleasure. In fact, one of the things about sin is that it tempts us to believe that God’s design is actually keeping something good from us. Sin would have us believe that if we do things our own way, we will be happier, we will have more fun, we will experience greater satisfaction” (Scroggins). Essentially, sin distorts our view of God’s design and His will for our lives.

Sin has consequences

Sin has consequences. There is a famous saying about sin-“Sin will take you further than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay.” This was the case in David’s life for sure. In 2 Samuel11:6-14 David took matters into his own hands to cover his sinful actions. David brought Uriah home from the battlefield so that he would be with his wife Bathsheba, whom David had an affair. His plan did not go as he wanted. “David tried to clean up the mess and instead he made it a lot worse” (Scroggins). Instead of confessing and owning up to his sin, David tried to fix it. Again, sin is destructive and disasterous. Most of all, sin is a separation and broken relationship between humanity and God. It keeps us from truly knowing God and His presence.

Repentance and Good News

2 Samuel 12 recounts how David was confronted by the prophet Nathan about his sin. “To David’s credit, he owned up to his sin and expressed genuine repentance (2 Samuel 12:13)” (Scroggins). David truly repented of his sin and God forgave him. The consequences of his sin were not taken away, but his relationship with God was restored. In Psalm 51:4-12 “David asked God to change him from the inside out” (Scroggins). He saw the error of his way and wanted to be made clean and right with God. “David confessed his sin and appealed to the mercy of God and his only hope.” God’s forgiveness through Jesus Christ is our only hope.

There is, however, good news. We can all come to God for repentance of our sins and He will be faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us (1 John 1:9). If we will turn to God, turn from our sin, acknowledge our sin, confess our sin, and seek His forgiveness, God will forgive us and cleanse us of our sin.

Discussion

Read Psalm 51:4-12. What part of David’s expressed desire can we identify with? Do we desire a clean heart?

Question

Do you feel that David’s sin could not be forgiven? Have you ever felt that your sins were too great for God’s forgiveness?

Resources

3 Circles: Gospel Conversations For Life by Jimmy Scroggins