So what is sin? The word itself means “missing the mark“, but what does that mean? Sin is terrible, yes, but it’s more than just “I missed the mark.” Sin started with man deciding for himself what is right and wrong. Deciding on his own terms. It’s interesting, because we often look at God as the great punisher instead of the great lover and Father. We would not even have life if it weren’t for God deciding to create us. We are in fact, His highest creation. So where did sin enter?

“Then the LORD God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.” And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?” Then the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.” And the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” So the LORD God said to the serpent: “Because you have done this, You are cursed more than all cattle, And more than every beast of the field; On your belly you shall go, And you shall eat dust All the days of your life. And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.”” Genesis‬ ‭3:9-15‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Selfishness, fear, blame shifting. Sin focuses on the glorification of self.

Self-reliance, self-preservation, self-esteem, self-gratification. Do you know why no one enjoys living for themselves? We weren’t made to do so! We weren’t made to live for ourselves! We chose to live for ourselves, by obeying the serpent, who also rebelled against God. But look! Right here in this scripture, God speaks of the Messiah to come. The one who would take away sin and create people who love, instead of people who take.

“He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth.” Isaiah‬ ‭53:3-7‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

The doorway to freedom for all mankind was the surrender of the life of the Messiah. Do you see, that although He was God, He willingly laid down His life for us. The precious blood of Jesus was shed so that we might believe in Him and have eternal life. Eternal life that starts now, and continues in Heaven. Now listen to me, this part is very important. Jesus didn’t just save us in our sins. He saved us from our sins. And now, if you believe, you become a totally new person. Not just that you switched ideas, but that you become “born again.” You get a new Father, with new blood, and a new family. How do you get this amazing gift?

“Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.” ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭16:24‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Why did Jesus say that we needed to deny ourselves to follow Him? Because Jesus was the perfect image of God. He perfectly represents God to us in every way. That’s just the thing. He is what we were made to be. A son in the image of God. So when He said, “deny yourself, pick up your cross and follow me.” What He is really saying is, “let Me show you who you really are.”

So much of the “struggle” that we have with sin fades away when we lay down our life in order to follow Jesus. Trust me though, there is nothing more fun than living life with Jesus. The Holy Spirit will guide you through every area of your life. Down to the smallest detail.

I’ve experienced this myself! God totally changed my life through surrender and the power of the blood of Jesus! And I am inviting you into the same thing. If you haven’t surrendered your life to Jesus, do it today. Don’t wait until tomorrow. You have no idea what tomorrow holds. Fire insurance isn’t good enough. God wants all of you. In total.

I urge you to give it all to Jesus.