People’s lives are at stake. Sin is a life-and-death issue. But the true biblical concept of sin is being blurred and therefore losing its grip on people’s consciences—both within churches and outside of them. In the African context, particularly, sin is usually spiritualised: when someone struggles with sins such as drunkenness, adultery, or murder, they are said to be bewitched. Who doesn’t remember the phenomenon of spirit husbands and wives? Similarly today, in African churches, sin is often attributed to demons instead of being recognised as a heart issue requiring repentance. Rather than insisting on transformation through the gospel of Jesus Christ—greater maturity and growing in godliness—the definition of sin is being changed.
Many prefer to describe sin as weakness, a blind spot, sickness, or perhaps a mental health struggle.
In addition to being overly spiritualised, the terminology around sin is also changing. Many today prefer to describe it as weakness, a blind spot, sickness, or perhaps a mental health struggle. Such language doesn’t only leave people with a victim mentality, it also offers no hope for a cure. A wrong diagnosis or description and vague terminology will always lead to the wrong treatment. But the damage done by this is far more severe than it appears. Defining sin biblically isn’t simply about clarity. It is a necessity for understanding salvation.
We might argue that the Bible is structured around three significant sections:
- Genesis 1-2, which represents the state before sin
- Genesis 3 through Revelation 20, which encompasses the period during sin
- Revelation 21-22, which depicts the state following sin.
To gain a comprehensive understanding of the foundation of sin, we must look to Genesis 2.
Both Law-Breaking and Lacking Righteousness
In Genesis 2 we meet Adam and Eve. And though they were living in a state of innocence, they also lacked positive righteousness. This concept is clearly expressed in Biblical Doctrine, edited by John MacArthur and Richard Mayhue.
The result of sin is death, both physical and spiritual, eternal separation from God.
“To be our Saviour” the relevant section goes, “Christ had to meet both necessities. By becoming obedient to death on a cross (Philippians 2:8), ‘Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us’ (Galatians 3:13; Deuteronomy 21:23)—that is, by bearing the fullness of divine wrath against himself. But if this was the end of our substitute’s work, we could never be saved. In that case, the penal sanctions of the law would be met, and our guilt would be removed, but we would still lack the positive righteousness that the law required of us. We would be left in the state Adam was in before the fall—innocent but without the positive righteousness God required for fellowship with him (Matthew 5:20, 48).”
The origin of sin, therefore, can be traced back to Adam’s failure to obey God’s command in Genesis 2:17. For God told them, “Of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat; for in the day that you eat of it, you shall surely die.” Genesis 3 then recounts how Adam and Eve ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, disobeying God’s command. Sin, in this context, is defined as eating from what God commanded them not to consume—doing what God prohibited. The result is death, both physical and spiritual, eternal separation from God (Romans 6:23; 5:12).
Missing the Mark
Another way to understand the meaning of the word “sin” is by examining the word in the original language of Hebrew and Greek. In the Old Testament, the first mention of the sin is found in Genesis 4:7, where the Hebrew term used is the noun chaṭṭâʾth, derived from the verb hata. William Mounce, in his Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words, explains that the verb hata carries the basic meaning “to miss the mark,” and by extension “to sin.”
Sin means failing to do what God says should be done as well as doing what God forbids.
Mounce illustrates this meaning with reference to Judges 20:16. “Among all these were 700 chosen men who were left-handed; everyone could sling a stone at a hair and not miss [sin].” That same verb is used elsewhere in the Old Testament with reference to God’s revealed will, commands and law. Sin, therefore, means failing to do what God says should be done as well as doing what God forbids.
In the New Testament, at least one Greek word has a similar meaning. We find its first appearance in Matthew 12:31. There we encounter hamartia, stemming from the Greek root verb hamartanō, which describes missing a mark and not sharing in the prize as as result (see A Concise Dictionary of the Words in the Greek Testament and The Hebrew Bible). But just as we saw with the Hebrew words, the meaning of sin extends to error, even a wrong state of the mind or one’s soul.
We Need a Biblical Definition of Sin
Though the above only scratches the surface, it does move us closer to biblically defining sin. Far from being a merely spiritual malaise, sin is moral failure. It encompasses our state of mind, motivations and attitudes and extends all the way to our actions or lack thereof. Sin is deep. It is serious. Ultimately sin is an issue of the heart or inner being, person. The problem runs much deeper than many modern definitions of sin manage. It is, in the end, something only Jesus Christ can resolve. A wise man once said that just as sickness points to the need for a physician, so sin points us to Jesus Christ. Sin properly defined highlights how great our need is and how great our Saviour is.
Jesus becomes more beautiful and alluring as we see sin for what it truly is.
If sin has complicated your life, you aren’t alone. If sin has left you feeling miserable or despondent, don’t give up. Jesus is calling you. He is saying, “Come to me, all who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:28-29). Until we reach the end of ourselves, we may not fully understand our need for Jesus Christ. He becomes more beautiful and alluring as we see sin for what it truly is. “Exhort one another every day, as long as it is called ‘today,’ that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin” (Hebrews 3:13).
DON’T HAVE PAYPAL TO SET UP A MONTHLY DONATION? If you would like to donate via Payfast – a secure payment gateway available to donors both inside and outside of Africa – please click here.
