Why is sin still our fault?

Question:

Hello,

I have something to ask that's been a big question for me. I don't understand things the way I ought to. All have sinned. Can you help me reconcile the fact that it's impossible to never sin, but sin is still our fault? I know factually that God is not to blame, but can you really help me understand that? How do I really feel guilty about my sins if at some point sin was going to happen? Can we ever get to a point where we don't sin? I guess I really need help seeing how sin is our fault. Yes, there are many many times I could resist and not commit certain sins. But why is it the case that it's unavoidable to sin at some point? I want to understand this and truly appreciate Christ's sacrifice.

I really hope to hear back from you, though I understand you must stay busy.

Thank you!

Answer:

Sin is the breaking of God's law. "Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness" (I John 3:4). Sin does not exist with a law to break. "But where there is no law, there also is no violation" (Romans 4:15).

God is the source of our law. "So then, the Law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good" (Romans 7:12). He gave the law for man's benefit. As Moses told Israel, "Now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require from you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and love Him, and to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the LORD'S commandments and His statutes which I am commanding you today for your good?" (Deuteronomy 10:12-13).

Therefore, the problem is not in the law or the law-giver but in those who should be following the law. God desires people who want to follow Him; thus, from His love, He made us with the ability to choose between right and wrong. The fact that people do at times choose the wrong is not God's fault. He didn't make the choice, the person made it.

Thousands of years of history have shown that people will at times make the wrong choice. "If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us" (I John 1:8). This is not to say that every person sins daily. It is saying that no one in their life can claim that he has never sinned, which makes Jesus stand out as an exception. "You know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin" (I John 3:5). The goal is to not sin but practicality tells us that everyone slips from time to time. "My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous" (I John 2:1). In fact, it is when we think that we've conquered sin that we are more vulnerable. "Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall" (I Corinthians 10:12). It is because we drop our guard when we are convinced we no longer need to protect ourselves.

I don't know if any can claim that they have reached a point where they will no longer make the wrong choices in life. Hopefully the times we fall become rare. Christians don't make sin a lifestyle. "Little children, make sure no one deceives you; the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous; the one who practices sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning. The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil. No one who is born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother" (I John 3:7-10). While sin may happen in my life, I don't have to accept it.

But it is because we all fall at times to sin, whether frequently or rarely -- depending on our growth in Christ, that we are not able to deal with the matter of sin. If I never made a mistake, I would have no need for God to rescue me. But the fact is that my sins have built such a huge debt that I can never overcome it. If it wasn't for Jesus' perfect and sinless sacrifice on the world's behalf, I would be stuck in the pit that I dug for myself. This is why we know that none of us can earn our salvation. It must of necessity remain a gift that was freely given to us by God, so when we fall, we swallow our pride and take our sins to God. "But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin" (I John 1:7).

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