The Nature Of Sin

One of the most important concepts in all of Christian theology is the subject of sin.  It is a central issue to Christianity, for without sin there could be no need for redemption.  Without an accurate understanding of sin it is impossible to understand many other theological matters like God's nature and the gospel.  I find, very frustratingly, that many Christians I know of would likely agree with the foundational truths I will point out, both Biblically and philosophically, but refuse to confront what follows from them--especially when it comes to moral epistemology and the veracity of particular moral claims.

To discover the nature of sin one must answer several questions at a minimum.  What is sin?  Did it exist before the Bible was gradually revealed?  How can someone know what is sinful and what isn't?  In order to answer that first question, I will provide the Biblical definition of sin.  Sin is whatever violates the laws of God:


1 John 3:4--"Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness."


Sin, in the Christian worldview, is solely what contradicts and violates moral laws that conform to God's nature, nothing less.  It does not change depending on culture or time.  Non-theonomists may believe this but their worldview truly does not allow for it, unsurprisingly.  Despite this, disagreement over what makes something sinful or over what specific things are sinful does not prove anything except that disagreement exists and that left to ourselves we merely have subjective perceptions of morality.  If something is right or wrong it is so totally irrespective of anyone's feelings, preferences, cultural upbringing, social agreement, or assumptions.  Only a fallacious mind appeals to these things in an effort to verify or defend a moral claim.  No amount of willpower or desire makes something sinful not sinful or something not sinful sinful.

God ultimately revealed his moral laws to humans through his revelation provided in Old Testament Law.  1 John 3:4 does not mean that before Mosaic Law was revealed there was no such thing as sin, however, for the moral laws and obligations that Mosaic Law describes still existed as a part of God's nature, although humans had no way to actually know them at that point.  Moral truths still existed because God's nature still existed.  Although there was no Mosaic Law before the events in described in Exodus, sin was still sin--kidnapping (Exodus 21:16), adultery (Deuteronomy 22:22), murder (Exodus 21:12-14), rape (Deuteronomy 22:25-27), theft (Exodus 22:1-4), arson (Exodus 22:6), racism (Exodus 23:9), sexism (Exodus 21:26-27), perjury (Deuteronomy 19:16-21), lust/coveting (Exodus 20:17), blasphemy (Leviticus 24:16), sorcery (Exodus 22:18), bestiality (Exodus 22:19), and other sins were still objectively wrong.  Mosaic Law merely reflects moral laws that would exist even if the written Bible did not.

Multiple verses (Revelation 15:3, for instance) describe Yahweh as being righteous, just, and good.  In the Christian worldview there is no external moral standard that God conforms to sometimes and doesn't at other times; his very character IS good.  It is not that God can sometimes be good and sometimes evil.  There is no other moral authority in the universe.

This realization leads to the issue of moral epistemology (how moral truths can be known).  In fact, it is impossible for values to exist apart from a deity, and it is impossible for humans, who are not God, to know morality unless God reveals it to them [1].  One can prove this from deductive reasoning alone, with nothing but logic grasped by the mind.  The Bible itself affirms this--as it would if it is true, since it and logic would not deviate from one another--saying that Mosaic Law is necessary to know moral obligations:


Romans 7:7--"What shall we say then?  Is the law sin?  Certainly not!  Indeed I would not have known what sin was except through the law.  For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said 'Do not covet.'"


Adding to God's laws by claiming that things which do not contradict his nature--profanity, nudity, masturbation, alcohol, opposite-gender friendships, metal music, etc. (to use some examples I've addressed on my blog)--are wrong is strictly condemned by God's law itself (Deuteronomy 4:2) [2].  In my experience it is largely common to find people who drastically misunderstand which actions and attitudes are sinful and which aren't, with many condemning things the Bible does not and rejecting the very things the Bible prescribes.  Even so, human error does not affect the veracity of truth.

Sin, ultimately, is something quite familiar to humanity.  All throughout human history one can find recorded instances of the gravest of moral atrocities.  Acts of extreme selfishness and cruelty have existed almost as long as humans themselves have.  Whether these accounts are discovered in the Bible or elsewhere, one can learn a multitude of stories that present a history marred by sin.  And no one can adequately understand the solution to the problem of sin if that person does not understand the problem itself, nor can anyone understand the problem unless he or she knows the standard of morality and just how he or she has deviated from it.  Comprehension of sin--what its nature is, what its nature is not, what specific  behaviors or attitudes are sinful--is inseparable from a correct understanding of Scripture and Christianity.


[1].  https://thechristianrationalist.blogspot.com/2017/03/the-nature-of-conscience.html

[2].  https://thechristianrationalist.blogspot.com/2017/05/the-delusion-of-inverse-morality.html