It’s just a small, three-lettered word, but what havoc it has brought upon earth and all its inhabitants, especially man. Definitions for this little word are:

• To be without a share in
• To miss the mark
• To err, be mistaken
• To miss or wander from the path of uprightness and honour, to do or go wrong
• To wander from the law of God, violate God’s law, sin
• That which is done wrong, sin, an offence, a violation of the divine law in thought or in act and
• Collectively, the complex or aggregate of sins committed either by a single person or by many.

It isn’t a very popular subject among the nation’s pulpits anymore, so it’s coated over with warm, fuzzy, feel-good messages so as not to offend anyone. It’s often practiced, but re-defined, or just simply ignored.

There was once a saying, “Give him an inch and he’ll take a mile.” You can’t get any more accurate than that when considering its supersonic growth rate. One little sin by Adam and Eve committed from heeding the father of lies, and look at us now. It got so bad by the time of Noah God destroyed everyone with a world-wide flood except for Noah and his family, along with designated animals. However, the germ was still there, and in no time at all, it spread like a silent killer … again.

Sin is like yeast with its effects upon flour, or one lonely rotten apple among a barrel of fresh ones. It spreads and destroys until all is rotten. Sin cannot be reversed by anyone or anything that has already been contaminated by it, and we all have.

Scripture says, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; (Romans 3:23) and “For the wages of sin is death; …” ((Romans 6:23) Because of sin, everyone and everything dies. There are no exceptions. As soon as we are born, we begin the process of dying. Think about that.

One unique thing about man though is that he is an eternal being. Eventually our body will die, but our soul will live on eternally. The question is “Where?”

“But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.” (Luke 12:5)

“But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,” (Philippians 3:20)

There are two destinations after the body dies; one is hell, the other is Heaven. Those without Jesus Christ will go to hell. Those who have Jesus Christ will go to Heaven. No one, I would hope, wants to go to hell, so how do we go to Heaven instead after we die?

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)

“This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.” (1 John 4:10)

“For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die.But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:6-8)

“…Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.” Acts 16:31)

“Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.” (Romans 5:9-11)

Obviously God has provided the best of Heaven, Jesus Christ, so we can be saved from sin and its ultimate end. To rid us from sin, thereby paving the way for us to live eternally with Him, Jesus took our sins upon Himself at the cross. Those who know Him as their Savior and Lord, grieve when sin is in their lives, because we know He paid a heavy price to rid us of those very sins.

Am I saying Christians still sin? Oh yes, unfortunately, it is so. Romans chapter seven reminds us of the struggle. When a Christian sins, we do not lose our salvation, but we sure do harm our fellowship with God. When we sin He tells us to come to Him and confess our sins and He will forgive us and restore that fellowship (John 1:9). Now that is grace.

Even though we still sin as Christians because we remain in these mortal bodies, we don’t like it. The whole thing just makes us miserable, and I’ve been miserable many times. How about you?

Sin takes on many shapes, but today its most vile forms are being practiced publicly and proudly. There’s no point in my rehashing specifics. I’ve done that several times before, so let’s just say that today nothing is hidden. There is no shame. There is no guilt. There is nothing but sinful man calling down judgment upon their own head, because they refuse to repent and forsake their sins.

“If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.” (James 4:17)

“Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.” (Isaiah 5:20)

“This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed.” (John 3:19-20)

Notice those last two verses, John 3:19-20, have you ever wondered why people today get so upset, even vicious, when sin is pointed out? Well, there it is. They don’t want their behavior exposed as sin. They don’t care to expose their sins. Just don’t condemn them.

Let’s go back to a saying I quoted earlier, “Give him an inch and he’ll take a mile.” Have you noticed that public sins are getting more and more disgusting as the days pass?

God said of Noah’s day, “The LORD saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.” (Genesis 6:5)

And then He said here, “In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes.” (Judges 17:6)

Isn’t this describing us in the 21st century to a tee? We have reverted to the days of Noah, and the times of Israel when there was no leader. Folks, we have no leader, except in name only, and our days are drawing short. Those who call for repentance may be ridiculed, but judgment is coming.

Much could be said about sin, and none of it is good, except for the Good News of Jesus Christ. We may not want to talk about sin, but our barrel of apples is rotten. The yeast has consumed us, and the reaper is on his way. We can be sure our sins will find us out (Numbers 32:23).

Anytime now Jesus will be coming to remove His bride, the Church, from this earth. Soon afterward His judgment will commence. “From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 4:17)

He closes the Book by saying, “I come quickly.” (Revelation 22:7, 12, 20)

Grant Phillips

Some in our society think that rules were not meant for them. They’re for the other guy, and of course these dear folks usually wind up in trouble if they don’t wise up.

There are always rules that everyone needs to adhere to, from early childhood (brush your teeth), to the teenage years (be home by 10:00), to the young adult (you must pay this), to the old geezers (no passing gas in public).

There are rules at home, at school, at work, in public, and when you get married there are rules at home again, just different ones.

Can you imagine the Super Bowl game without rules? Why, there would be nothing but chaos. Maybe the NCAA will cancel all rules for collegiate sports this year. Nope, ain’t gonna happen.

Should there be any rules in the military? Would you like to have your head blown off? There must be rules, stringently followed rules, because they save lives.

Did you know that speed limits are rules that were made into laws? Are they really necessary? Are you kidding? Speedsters are bad enough on the road with the rules.

God has rules too. If the planets didn’t obey His rules, we would all crash and burn.

Okay, let’s cut to the chase. How about where we will spend eternity? Every human being since Adam and Eve is going to spend eternity in one of two places, Heaven or hell. God has but one rule about this if we desire Heaven. That’s all He needs, but He’s dead serious about it.

To make a long story short, God’s one rule to be with Him is very simple, “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved.” (Acts 16:31 NIV)

For a little background, but still keeping it simple, here’s what the Bible says.

Everyone has sinned. (Romans 3:23)
Therefore, everyone will die. (Romans 6:23a)
God offers the gift of eternal life. (Romans 6:23b)
We can’t earn it. (Ephesians 2:8-9)
So how do we get it? (Romans 10:11-13)
It is by faith (Ephesians 2:8-9)
Once we receive the gift, we cannot lose it. (John 10:27-30)
What if I don’t believe? (John 3:18)
Is there any other way to be saved other than through Jesus? (John 14:6)

Isn’t it strange that regardless of our age, or where we live, we all have rules that we must follow? Often there are consequences if we violate the rules, and sometimes the consequences can be very serious. But that isn’t the strange part. The strange part is that so many people think that when it comes to God, there are no rules. Actually, the same people think they can make the rules themselves on God’s behalf, and He will graciously concede.

Look friends that kind of thinking has sent millions of people to hell and is still doing so today. You might think you can do it your way (as the song goes), but it won’t work. Your way will get you in a place called hell of which you will reside for all eternity. Once you breathe your last breath and you’re in hell, there is no turning back. There is no second chance. It is permanent. So think about it real hard.

We obey thousands of rules everyday of our lives. Think about it. We really do. God has but one for us to be saved. He made it real simple and very easy. He did all the hard stuff, like die as our sacrifice to provide this free gift. We can be with Him forever, in a place of happiness we can’t even fathom, but we must come to Him His way, and that is through His Son, Jesus Christ.

Probably about now one of Satan’s little demons is gauging you with something called “pride.”

“In his pride the wicked man does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God.” (Psalms 10:4 NIV)

“Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.” (Proverbs 16:18 NIV)

If you would like to read something very interesting, read these two passages, Isaiah 14:12-20; Ezekiel 28:1-19. It is God prophesying to Satan about his pride and his downfall. Now read this passage from Revelation 20:7-10. It tells what happens to Satan on judgment day. I’ll show verse ten below.

“And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.”

Rejecting God’s one rule of coming to Him by faith through His Son Jesus will bring down the same judgment that will be Satan’s. Revelation 20:11-15 is the judgment of all mankind that have rejected Jesus Christ.

So in the end, Satan and all his fallen angels will be cast into the “lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.” (Revelation 20:10)

All who follow Satan by rejecting Jesus will be “thrown into the lake of fire,” (Revelation 20:15b) the same place that Satan and all his fallen angels will be.

Those who follow Jesus as their Savior and Lord will reap the rewards of Revelation 21 and 22.

It’s just one rule. Are you going to follow it or ignore it? It’s up to you.

Grant Phillips