What Is Sin? Where It Comes From and How Jesus Sets Us Free
Sin is, at its essence, a mistrust of God that leads to disobedience of His commands. It starts in the heart as a doubt about whether God is really good and really trustworthy, and it grows into choices that break His law and break our relationship with Him. The Bible says all of us have sinned. It also says God has made a way, through Jesus, for us to be forgiven, cleansed and made new.
for all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God;
Romans 3:23, World English Bible
Where Sin Began
Sin did not start with humanity. It started with pride in the heart of Lucifer, a created being of great beauty who wanted to take the place of God.
How you have fallen from heaven, morning star, son of the dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, who laid the nations low! You said in your heart, “I will ascend into heaven! I will exalt my throne above the stars of God! I will sit on the mountain of assembly, in the far north! I will ascend above the heights of the clouds! I will make myself like the Most High!”
Isaiah 14:12-14, World English Bible
Ezekiel describes a guardian cherub who was perfect from the day he was created "until unrighteousness was found in you," and whose heart was lifted up because of his beauty (Ezekiel 28:15-17). Many have understood these passages to describe the fall of Satan. The one created to worship God began to worship himself. And it was his temptation that led humanity astray.
"Has God Really Said?"
Look at how the first temptation worked.
Now the serpent was more subtle than any animal of the field which Yahweh God had made. He said to the woman, “Has God really said, ‘You shall not eat of any tree of the garden?’”
Genesis 3:1, World English Bible
The serpent didn't start with a command to rebel. He started with a question: Has God really said? In that question, a seed of doubt about God's trustworthiness entered in. Then came the lie: you won't really die, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil (Genesis 3:4-5).
Here is what makes it so tragic. Adam and Eve were already made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27). The serpent offered them something God intended for them to grow into with Him, and tempted them to grab it in their own strength, apart from Him. That is the pattern of sin in our lives too. It often begins with a quiet mistrust of God's goodness: maybe He is holding out on me, maybe I know better.
How Sin Grows
But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own lust, and enticed. Then the lust, when it has conceived, bears sin; and the sin, when it is full grown, produces death.
James 1:14-15, World English Bible
Sin entices us and draws us away. It conceives in desire, is born in action, and when it is full grown it produces death. Sin is deceptive. It takes place in the heart first. And it always grows when it is hidden.
What the Ten Commandments Show Us
The law helps us see sin clearly. Paul told Timothy that the law is good, and that it is "not made for a righteous person, but for the lawless and insubordinate" (1 Timothy 1:8-9). It shows people who are in the wrong that they are in the wrong.
The first four of the Ten Commandments deal with how we relate to God: no other gods before Him, no idols, not taking His name in vain, and keeping the Sabbath holy. The last six deal with how we relate to one another:
“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land which Yahweh your God gives you. “You shall not murder. “You shall not commit adultery. “You shall not steal. “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor. “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.”
Exodus 20:12-17, World English Bible
Notice that these cover both sins of the heart and sins of the hands. Coveting is a sin of the heart that leads to stealing. Lying and bearing false witness can ultimately lead to murder.
Jesus Goes to the Heart
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus shows that sin is not only murder or adultery. The anger and lust that come before them reveal our sinful condition too.
“You have heard that it was said to the ancient ones, ‘You shall not murder;’ and ‘Whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’ But I tell you, that everyone who is angry with his brother without a cause will be in danger of the judgment; and whoever says to his brother, ‘Raca!’ will be in danger of the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of Gehenna.
Matthew 5:21-22, World English Bible
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery;’ but I tell you that everyone who gazes at a woman to lust after her has committed adultery with her already in his heart.
Matthew 5:27-28, World English Bible
By that standard, none of us can claim to be good enough on our own. And that is exactly the point. Seeing sin clearly isn't meant to crush us. It is meant to free us to stop trying to save ourselves.
The Gap No Effort Can Bridge
Bill Bright, founder of Campus Crusade for Christ, summarized it in his Four Spiritual Laws: sin has broken our fellowship with God, and no philosophy, moral effort or religious system can bridge that gap. It is bridged only through a relationship with a Person, received by faith.
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 6:23, World English Bible
How Jesus Sets Us Free From Sin
Jesus came without sin and died as our substitute, so that a spiritual exchange could take place in our lives.
For him who knew no sin he made to be sin on our behalf; so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
2 Corinthians 5:21, World English Bible
But God commends his own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 5:8, World English Bible
When we believe and receive what Jesus did for us, two things happen. First, we are forgiven and cleansed:
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us the sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:9, World English Bible
Second, we receive His Spirit. By the Spirit, a power greater than this fallen world and greater than our own flesh, we are able by faith to walk in a growing righteousness instead of continuing to stumble and give in to temptation.
But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you won’t fulfill the lust of the flesh.
Galatians 5:16, World English Bible
We don't overcome sin by trying harder. We overcome it by living by the Spirit, in intimacy with God. That is the only way.
Not Just Forgiven, Made New
Forgiveness frees us from the penalty of sin, and it also brings us into newness of life. Jesus' resurrection is a picture of the spiritual rebirth offered to everyone who puts their faith in Him.
We were buried therefore with him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in newness of life.
Romans 6:4, World English Bible
Our spirit is reborn, and we receive what Paul calls "the life that is truly life" (1 Timothy 6:19, NIV). Jesus said it this way:
The thief only comes to steal, kill, and destroy. I came that they may have life, and may have it abundantly.
John 10:10, World English Bible
Understanding what sin truly is, and that all of us have fallen short, is not bad news in the end. It frees us to stop pretending and receive the free gift of salvation. We cannot free ourselves from the effects of sin, or from its final condemnation, apart from what Jesus did on the cross. But in Him, we can be forgiven today and live a new life starting now.
If you have never trusted Jesus, you can begin today. Read how to be saved, and if you take that step, we would love to hear from you.
Go deeper. Read What Is the Gospel? and What Is Grace?, learn what forgiveness really is, or get Transformed by Hazen Stevens on how encountering Jesus leads to new birth and freedom from old cycles, and watch the Transformed series free. For a holy and healthy life, start the free Detox Bible plan.
Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible (public domain) unless noted.
