The Effects of Sin

“What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life” – Romans 6:1-4

It only took three chapters into the Bible for man to fall into sin (Genesis 3:6-7). The first sin had eternal, universal consequences because when Adam sinned, we all fell with him (Romans 5:12) and as a result, we live in a state of rebellion against Him until God draws us to Himself (Romans 8:7-8). What about the sins we commit each day? They do not bring down the entire human race (Romans 5:14), but we should not take them lightly.

Our sin hurts the people closest to us – our family, friends, and co-workers. Sin should cause guilt in us as believers. If the sin is not confessed and repented of, guilt changes how we act and treat others. We become defensive and short-tempered and start making bad or irrational decisions because of the fear of being exposed. Inevitably, the sin will be exposed bringing a wave of damaging and traumatic effects on those who you sinned against. There is no such thing as personal sin – it always affects those around you.

Perhaps the most well-known example of this in the Bible is the account of David’s adulterous relationship with Bathsheba and the murder he committed to cover it up (2 Samuel 11:1-21). David tried to hide his first sin of adultery, but when he could not, he risked the safety of his country and disregarded the value of Bathsheba’s husband Uriah by having him purposely killed in battle. This kind of behavior was extremely out of character for David, but his irrational behavior was driven by trying to cover up his sin.

Of course, David could not hide from God and the consequences were immediate and never-ending. Uriah lost his life and David and Bathsheba’s baby died as judgement. Beyond that, God promised that David’s son would commit the same sexual sins with David’s wives and that there would be constant conflict in his family even after David’s death (2 Samuel 12:10), showing that it is foolish to think sin only affects ourselves.

While we will never be free of sin while we are alive, we can take comfort to know that we no longer are ruled by it (Romans 6:1-4, 1 John 3:9). We can live lives less tainted by sin through the sanctification of the Holy Spirit. And when we do sin, we know that “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9)."

Prayer of the day:

Dear heavenly Father,

Thank You for showing us the consequences of sin and for freeing us from bondage to it. Help us to grow in sanctification so that we will be more and more like Jesus until we are glorified with You in heaven. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen!