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Now let's jump in. If you're a Christian, you probably do have a genuine desire to worship and obey God. But there's one three-letter word that keeps you from doing it every single time. Talking about sin today coming up right now on the Clear Ve Today Show. You're listening to Clear View Today with Dr.
Abadan Shah, the daily show that engages mind and heart for the gospel of Jesus Christ. I'm Ryan Hill. I'm John Galantis. Welcome to the Clearview Today Show. We're here in the studio with our host, Dr.
Abadan Shah. And if today's your first time ever tuning into the show, whether it's on a podcast or whether it's on the radio or the internet, somewhere, we want to say welcome. We're glad you're here and we want to hear from you. You can text 252-429-6069, any time of the day. That number is always open.
And we want you to know that if it's your very, very first time ever texting the show, text today, T-O-D-A-Y, to get started. Dr. Shah, we got a problem. And the name of that problem is sin. It's a three-letter word that has caused havoc.
In this world, since the beginning of time, it makes us really uncomfortable. I would really prefer to rebrand the terminology. It's not really, I mean, yes, it's soon, okay, but it's really my struggle. This is something that personally I struggle with. Yes, which makes me feel like a hero, like I'm a champion, like I'm valorous for having this struggle.
Well, sinful people sin, bad people sin, but heroes, righteous people struggle, right? Because ultimately, ultimately, I'm going to overcome the struggle, right? And we all have our. Shortcomings. Sure, sure.
Sure.
Well, we call them character flaws, but I even prefer to call them character opportunities. Areas upon which we can improve. We don't like talking about sin.
Well, I guess we like talking about other people's sin. That's right. But we don't. That's true. We could talk about that for days.
But, Dr. Shell, why do we not like talking about our own sin?
Well, all of us are self-righteous. That includes me, that includes you, that includes every single human being other than Jesus Christ, who was also fully God. We all like to think of ourselves as, yeah, I do those things, but let me explain to you why. We like to live off of our motives, not the actions.
So we feel like Yeah, I know what I did was wrong technically, but in reality, if you understood why I did that, you would sympathize with me. You would give me. The benefit of the doubt.
So I'm not as bad as that person over there because, yes, I'm talking bad about this person here, but I have a reason to. Or yes, I stole this, but you don't understand my situation.
So we always find reasons to justify our own sins. I've done that many times. I'm sure you all have. And that's why we do what we do: self-righteousness. That's right.
Yeah. God's given us a sharp mind and a keen intellect. And sometimes those are the very things that we employ to justify sin and to reason our way out of conviction and to logic our way into, you know, kind of placating our own sinful nature. Yeah, there's a deep desire in us to be understood. Yeah.
If I did something wrong, sure, I'll acknowledge it was wrong, but it's imperative to me that you understand why. Because if you understand, if you can really see it from my perspective, you're going to excuse or justify. what it is that I did. Or conviction. Look at what media has done with the villain.
I mean, find the villain in any story. And in modern stories, they're going to be way more sympathetic. You're going to have at least some explanation as to why they've done what you're doing. You'll get your own Broadway musical. Yeah, absolutely.
You'll get a whole Disney spin-off about why you're just, you're not bad. You're just misunderstood. That's right. That's right. Because we don't want to.
Address the elephant in the room, which is there are really wicked, evil people out there. And the thought that maybe I'm one of them, you know what I mean? Yeah. It's a really weird idea where it's like, if I, if I acknowledge that that person is capable of that kind of evil, I have to also acknowledge that it, it's, I'm one ball away from it being me. That's right.
And, or I am it. Yeah. So what is sin? Because that's where we need to begin. Why does any sin, whether big, small, white lie or any other kind of lies, why do all of them fall under the category of sin because sin is any Failure.
any failure to conform to the moral law of God, Whether it is an act, or attitude or nature.
So any failure to conform to the moral law of God.
So ultimately sin is not just against you or you or someone else. It's ultimately against God. It's breaking. The law of God. What did you mean when you say an action or attitude or a nature?
Like, do you mean like just by just by existing? Yes. Yes. We're referring here more to our sinful nature, which in itself is at enmity with God. That's what the Bible says.
Again, the Bible, Bible, Bible is our guide. Scripture is our authority. If we get away from scripture, then there's a lot of ideas, opinions, philosophies. But Scripture tells us We are enemies of God because Of sin. Yeah.
There's a lot of. Go ahead. We are. I was just going to say we are both sinful and we choose to sin. Those two things are true.
And this is the part where you will get defensive. You'll start trying to use logic to outmaneuver God.
Well, hold on, if it's my nature, I mean, I can't help it. I'm not held accountable for my nature, right? I can't be, I can't be. Punished or held accountable. That's just me being me.
But for something that I didn't choose. Right. That's what people say, right? That's just me being me. Well, you being a whole lot what you shouldn't be.
Right. That's right. Yeah. Well, I like what you said, Dr. Sha, like the Bible.
Is that authority? You start coming at this with logic or really emotion, which is what this is. And that's what human beings have been doing. For a very, very long time. That's right.
I mean, when. God confronted Adam, What have ye done? His response was not I have sinned against the most righteous and holy God of the universe. I have just disobeyed My heavenly father, right? I mean, and of course, God was his heavenly father.
You know, Adam is one of those people that, you know, God was his heavenly father.
So he could have admitted that, but instead, what did he say? She did it. She did. And then when you gave it. And to be honest.
You did it. You made her. And if you hadn't made her, I'm just. I mean, you gave her to me. She did this.
Now you're looking at me. How come it's my fault? Stop, dude. Stop. Stop while you're behind.
And then the woman did the same thing. She couldn't blame Adam, but she could have. Like, this man, you told me. Would be the leader in this relationship. He could have warned me, he could have stood up for me.
Mm-hmm. But he didn't. Yeah. He just mindlessly is like, okay.
Sounds good. He ate that fruit. She's like, wait a minute. It wasn't me. It was a talking snake.
Did you ever see that meme? That you made, God, by the way. There's a meme online. I can't remember what movie it's from, but it's this dude talking to this girl. This girl's crying.
And he's like, hey, it's not your fault. And she's like, you're right. It's not my fault. It's your fault. It's your fault.
I need to find out what it is. It was a really popular meme.
So ultimately every sin. Act, attitude, and nature. Is a breaking of the law of God.
Now, where do we get that? From the Bible, 1 John 3, verse 4, whoever commits sin, all right? Whoever commits sin, is there anyone who doesn't? No. Other than Jesus, no one.
Whoever commits sin Also commits lawlessness and sin is lawlessness. By the way, the reason I said, Other than Jesus is because Jesus was fully God, but also fully man.
So we always want to say that because he was. fully manned, he is our representative. He is our man. In heaven. That's right.
You know, like we have. I'm going to talk to my man in Washington. He is our man in heaven. He's our man in heaven. That's a good thing to have.
Yeah. I mean, he's our spokesman. He's our mediator. He is our intercessor. I mean, he is right there with our Heavenly Father.
But the point I'm making here is Sim Is lawlessness. Breaking God's law. I know that we all know that sin originated in the garden. But did sin really start there? You know what I mean?
Like we say that that's where it entered into creation, but sin was created really. Outside of the garden, right? Right, it was with Adam. Yeah, I mean, with Satan. Yeah, this, he was the one who disobeyed God, he's the one who.
Even influence those Cordon of angels to to leave Their heavenly domain, and follow him. And so they all sinned. Yeah. Sin came in because of Satan. That always astonishes me.
Talking about Satan's rebellion against God. And then, of course, you know, Adam and Eve, you ever read a story or you watch a movie and you know how it's going to end and you know it's going to end poorly, but you hope. You hope against hope that it's going to be different. I feel that every time I read Genesis 3, I know how it ends. I know how this story plays out.
But every time I'm rooting for Adam and Eve, I'm like, come on, guys. Just don't. You know, that's the whole purpose of the story is to tell how they felt. But Adam and Eve, I mean, they spent time every day with God, walking with God in the cool of the day. Satan was in, I mean, in God's presence as one of the chief angels, and yet they rebelled against God after being in his presence.
That's right. That's such a heartbreaking truth to me. I mean, right when we pick up with the story of the world, we have rebellion in the face of God. I think there are Christians out there who are like, they've grown up with this. They know how this works.
But then there's newer Christians or there's people who maybe never reconcile with this. They're like, so I'm in trouble. for what he did. I'm like God literally will hold me accountable. For Adam's sin.
How do you answer people like that?
Well, that's the whole question of inherited sin or original sin. You know, the Bible tells us in Romans chapter 5, verse 12, therefore. just as through one man's sin Through one man, sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men because all sin. For until the law of sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law, Nevertheless, Death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned According to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of him who was to come. Verse 18.
Therefore, As through one man's offence judgment came to all men. Resulting in condemnation, even so through one man's righteous act, the free gift. Came to all men, resulting in justification. of life. For as by one man's disobedient, Disobedience, many were made sinners, so also by one man's obedience, many will be made righteous.
So, the whole idea of inherited sin, original sin. is in the Bible. That's what Romans chapter five is all about. Original sin entered the human race. Through Adam.
Through Eve. and has come down through us. And We're paying the penalty for that. Yeah. But I also like how he gives you the way out.
You know, I think for every person who complains that, you know, it's not right. that for ever for Adam's sin, I've got to pay the price. It's like, well. Yeah, fair enough. You can always say that, but have you sinned?
Have you ever committed an act against God? It's like, well, yes, I have. All right.
Well, then by your logic, it's only fair that there's no redemption through Christ. You should die for it, right? Yeah. By that logic. Yeah, if we're talking about what's right and what's just, we ought to be punished for the sins that we commit.
Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. It's not enough just to say, well, Adam messed up, so I shouldn't. But you've messed up. I've messed up.
Every human being has sinned. And now that germ of sin. Has been passed down. This is called original inheritance, in a sense, or inherited corruption. Where Romans I'm sorry, fif Psalm fifty one verse five says Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity.
And in sin, my mother conceived me. Yeah, I mean, that's what David is saying here. I mean, he's calling the coming together of his mother and father to now lead to his conception as the point where sin entered into him. Right, it is. It's just like right from the beginning.
Yeah, that act of coming together is not a sin. But now, when they did that, sin has entered this new human being. He never existed apart from a sin nature. Exactly. He never existed.
Even that baby. Is sinful. And then people launch into the question of if babies die, do they go to heaven and all that? I don't know if this is the best time to discuss that because it is quite a. A deep subject, and people are divided on that.
You know, where do we stand? I believe, you know, that, yes, babies are covered under God's grace. And then people say, well, how about lost people's babies? I don't have the answer to that. I do know that.
babies of Righteous people. When I say righteous, I'm not talking about perfect. I'm talking about just righteous as in believers, as Christians. They are Under God's grace, and their descendants are under God's grace.
So I can say that for surety as to lost people, children. I don't know. I just have to wait for God's mercy. Yeah. To be shown to us in due time.
Yeah. Yeah. That's a big subject. I mean, that opens a lot of other pathways to consider. But this idea of inherited corruption, you know, it leads to the realization that we are sinful and we choose sin.
Yeah. And it's understanding that if you think of sin as a disease, it's a disease that you're born with. Yeah. You know, if you live out your life, if you're a little baby, you have a sinful nature. But that sinful nature is going to cause you at some point in your life, somewhat pretty early, to sin.
And as soon as you, and once you sin, you have committed that act that Jesus died for. Sin is described in many, many ways, many different metaphors. To help us understand the gravity, the significance. The the depravity of sin. One such metaphor is that sin is a burden.
It's a burden. It's a heavy burden that we carry. Because in Leviticus 20, verse 20, it says, you know, it talks about bearing your iniquities, bearing your sin. Imagine somebody putting a massive You know huge sack. of stones on your back.
You think that imagery of Jesus carrying the cross, like they could have just led him to the cross, but he had to he had to carry it definitely, is very intentional. And Jesus himself said, Come to me, all you who are weary, and heavy laden. It's not just the stresses and the pressures of life, but it's more than that.
Well, that's exactly what I was going to say. We tend to think of that as like, man, you know what? I am weary. I'm heavy laden. The world has not been kind to me.
I'm a survivor. I'm a hero. But I think it's what you're saying is much more like your sin has made you weary. You're being crushed under the weight of your own sin. That's right.
Yeah. Sometimes sin is described as a stain. We find that in Isaiah chapter 1, verse 18, it's like sin. It's like Scarlet. but it'll be white as snow.
God is going to wash away that sin. It is a stain. I mean, like scarlet seems like surface very beautiful regal color, But It's a stain in this situation. It's like a blood stain. And then the blood of Christ washes away that sin.
As Ephesians 5:26 tells us, you know, we go to a lot of formal events, and I remember one of the things you told me early on is like, hey, just know anytime we go to a formal event and you wear a white shirt, someone's going to serve something red. Yeah. They're going to serve some pasta. They're going to serve some ketchup. If you wear a white shirt to a meal, there will be something red.
There's going to be some red on it. And I didn't really have a. Theological point to make, but it does seem like anytime you try to do good, you try to put on a white shirt and do this and look nice.
Something's well, that feeds the point. I mean, scarlet on its own, you think of a beautiful color, but a scarlet stain on a white surface-that's not beautiful. That's not the intended application of scarlet. Yeah, I mean, I guess you can make the metaphor work, but it's like anytime that I'm trying to do good, anytime I'm trying to put my best foot forward, it's gonna, it's gonna reveal some sin somewhere in my life. It's a distraction.
It's um. It's uh it you know, a beautiful white shirt. signifies purity. It signifies If you want to just talk about wearing clean white shirts today, it would be professionalism. It signifies somebody who is.
Dressing up. It's a very dressy occasion. But then you have this big splosh. or splotch of red on your shirt, like, Oh, what happened there? Is it like an ink that spilled?
And then we deny it. Spaghetti. Like how we deny our sin. We're like, there's nothing about. It's like there's a huge red stain on your shirt.
No, I don't think so. Oh, that? You're worried about that? I'd worry about the stain on your shirt. You know what I mean?
Like, we just deny it. Imagine denying that big red spaghetti stain that's there. Yeah. Yeah. There's another metaphor which is sin is slavery.
Egypt was known as the house of bondage. And Romans 6.18 talks about us being set free.
So burden? Yeah, you can feel that pressure. You're carrying this heavy You know, bag almost like made out of jute, so it's very prickly. You're carrying a bunch of rocks in it. Imagine that.
But Heavy rocks and you're carrying it up a mountain. Or down into a valley. I don't know. It's painful. Or stain.
it just completely distracts and it it it just offends. in a sense. And then slavery. As sin as slavery, Has to be set free. Means you are under someone else's command.
You don't have any Free will. You have to do what you're told to do. I think that's something that a lot of Christians do here once they become Christians. You no longer have to sin, implying that before Christ, you have no choice. You are a slave to sin.
You know, what are the implications of that? What does it mean that someone who is lost? they have to sin. You know what I mean? What do you what do you think is like What do you think goes through someone's mind when you tell them that?
I mean There's there's a hopelessness. There's there's a no matter how hard they might try to be a good person No matter how hard they might try to do good things and they might do those good things, you know But ultimately, there's gonna be that sinful nature There's gonna be that self-serving there's gonna be that that sense of pride that comes in because People are gonna serve a master. Yeah, they're going to they're going to be indentured to someone or something Ideally, the way that we were created, that should be God. We should be serving him. He should be our master.
But sin makes anything and everything else our master. Yeah. Yeah. And that's why people do what they do.
Now, don't Forget. Oh, don't misunderstand. It does not mean that if you are a slave to sin that you will sin the worst possible sin to the maximum extent of sinfulness. Not necessarily. It's just the fact that you will sin.
Big small That's I don't think that's very pertinent to whether or not sin is banned. You're going to Sin, yeah, yeah, okay, so slavery, and then there's one more which is sin is described as a debt, yeah. In Leviticus 5:1, if a person sins in hearing the utterance of an oath, And he is a witness whether he has seen or known of the matter if he does not tell it. He bears guild. It's a debt because you did not clear this.
Now you have to carry this debt. You have to pay this off. Yeah. I think, I think a lot of Christians misunderstand God's forgiveness is that he just erases the debt. Like, hey, you were in debt to me because of sin, but now because of my mercy, I've just decided that the debt never really mattered.
It didn't matter. But it's not that at all. It's that the debt was paid. And I think that's what makes the cross so impactful and so beautiful is that, no, that debt had to be paid. Yeah.
But the cross says it was paid. And it changes the way that we talk about the language of the cross. Yeah. You know, what Jesus did for us on the cross. He didn't just wipe away God's wrath or the punishment for our sin.
No, he paid. He paid that debt. He paid the debt. Yeah. That matters.
Yeah. We use that. I think there's even, there's even like worship songs that talk about like he took away my debt. And like, yeah, I guess you could say that. But really, I think that's, to me, is that, no, the debt was paid in full.
You know?
Well, which is, I mean, there's plenty of stories like this in the Bible, but which is more impactful. Knowing that you had a debt and the person you owe the debt to is like, I'll just forgive it. All it is. It's just numbers on a page. Or knowing that someone came in on your behalf and said, hey, this is not my debt.
I don't owe this, but I'm going to pay this on behalf of someone else. That's right. That's way more impactful. Yeah, and that's. That's something that our world does not understand.
It seems cheap just because Jesus paid it all. It's free. But it did cost Jesus his life. The Son of God became. Man.
And then he died, he gave his life on the cross. For our sins. Yes, it is free, but don't think for a moment that it is cheap. Yeah, we've talked about that on the show, and that's something that you've made me think about is that you're quick to take mercy when it costs you nothing. You know, when it's someone else's mercy, yeah, we're very liberal with it.
Absolutely, yeah, go for it. But when it costs you something, now gladly, or luckily I should say, this one, you know, didn't cost us. And yet, Dr. Shawn, maybe we could talk about how our sin does cost us, how just because we've been set free from sin, Doesn't mean that we're set free from the repercussions of sin. This was something that in Romans we really, really hit hard.
You know, it was something that I think a lot of people didn't really think about. Like, once I'm free from sin, now that's it. I'm in Christ. I'm new. I'm pure.
I'm holy. Good. Get into heaven-free card. But uh-oh, I just actually sinned right before I came in here. What happens there?
Yeah. You know what I mean? Yeah. Yeah. I mean, yes, every sin is costly.
Some, of course, may not be as costly in the moment, but in the long term They they you always have to reap what you have sown. And so I I have had to experience that in my life. I've seen it happen in the lives of others. And I also warn other people: it's like, just be careful. If you do that, there will be repercussions.
And on that day, you will realize, or maybe a day or two after that, you'll realize, oh, I'm paying for what I did back here. And it's a grave realization because you can see that. happening And Thank goodness The times that God has put his finger in my chest, I was not belligerent. I was not stubborn or rationalized and justified my sin. I was like, yeah, you're right.
Yeah, if you had told me that twenty years ago, I would have justified myself, but today. Mm. Yeah. What do you think about the person who's justifying something in their life right now? Maybe the person who's listening to this, who's doing everything they can to avoid connecting the dots and think that we're talking about them?
What would you, how would you, how would you, I don't even want to say encourage, how would you talk to that person? I would say go and read the story of Joseph. In the in the Old Testament. you know, Joseph's brothers sold him into slavery. They did a heinous thing against their own brother.
went and lied to their father. Imagine what Jacob had to to to deal with for all those years. And then They didn't know for sure if their brother was still alive. I mean, as far as they were concerned, he was enslaved somewhere, gone, out of sight, out of mind. Let's not talk about him.
Let's not talk about him. No one talks about him. We're done. We're done. He did this to himself.
They justified their sins. And then you know the famine happens, and then Jacob sends them to Egypt because Egypt is the only place where there is food. And the reason Egypt is the only place where there is food is because Joseph through the Spirit of God revealed to the Pharaoh what was going to happen in the land seven days of plenty, seven days of famine. And so he became the second in command in Egypt. And saved The nation and the world.
People had to go. And so also J Joseph's brothers had to come and stand before Joseph. But if you notice, Joseph did not immediately say, okay, guys, it's me, it's me, it's me. Don't want to scare you guys, but it's me. But don't be worried.
All good. I've already forgiven you. Werf Werg were straight. No, he doesn't do that. It almost looks like he is toying with them.
He plays this game with them about just just completely throws them off. And then, you know, he even tricks them. Hides his silver cup inside there Grain sacks. And before you know it, he's sending soldiers after them, Egyptian soldiers on chariots, coming and arresting you and saying, L we we need to see your your grain bags. Oh yeah, sure.
You can look whatever. We we paid square fair and square. It's all What is that? What is that?
Well, why did Joseph do that? Was he just harassing his brother? Was he just getting even with them? No. He was leading them through a process where one day he could reveal to them.
This is what you did to me. And so there would be real repentance, a real recognition of. their sins. And then a real experience of the grace and the forgiveness in the family and with God. That's right.
So, also, God. leads us down that path. When you send, he will take you down that path where you will really realize How terrible your sin is. I think that's exactly right. And maybe the reason that Christianity doesn't hit us as hard as it should is because we don't we haven't been through that process that Joseph's brothers were.
We got the what they would have We we get through Christ what they would have liked, which is, hey, Slate is clean, you're all good. That's what we think we have without really seeing that God is trying to, through our own sin, lead us to repentance, real, genuine repentance, where we do understand how much the cross acts. Yeah, and don't forget, when you receive Christ as your Savior, past, present, future is all covered. Under the blood of Christ. But in this life there are consequences.
This is what we're referring to: what you sow is what you reap. This is what we're talking about. Our consequences in this life are costly. That's right. And we need to understand the magnitude of our sin, the weight of the cross, and what Christ has done for us.
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