It's Only A Symptom - Not the Real Problem

 

     This morning I had a short but heavy reading from my Bible, which focused on sin.  As I read, this thought lingered, 'It's an ugly truth; even though we know better, we seldom do better.'  In his letter, Paul states that sin accompanies not acknowledging God (see Romans 1:28). I've never spent four days on one chapter like I have this week, but my New Year resolution was to look more deeply into the book of Romans.  In these short nine verses (Romans 1:24-32), we see the phrase, "God gave them up," three times (see verses 24,26 and 28).  First, God gave them up in the lust of their hearts to impurity.  Second, God gave them up to dishonorable passions, and last, God gave them up to a debased mind.  Who is the 'them' in these verses?  Yes, that is an awkward sentence, yet we must know that 'them' refers to sinful humanity.

     Each time God releases man, it is traced to a cause; it is not unforeseeable.  In verse 21, it says, "although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to Him." In verse 25, we see, "because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature (humanity) rather than the Creator." Then in verse 28, we read, "Since they did not see fit to acknowledge God," He gave them up to do what ought not be done."

     Let's look more closely at a term I'm sure we rarely use.  What is a debased mind?  Another word for this is adulterated, which means something of depleted quality, reduced in value, or cheapened. I'm afraid that not many of us would find this state very appealing as our society highly values intellect. 

     It is not hard to argue that our sinful natures cause us to harm other people, and it is detestable to God. So I find it most ironic as I review this article that my editing software refuses to associate a sinful nature with the adjective 'our,' but insists that I replace it with the word 'the.'   No one wants to own sin, do we?  Below I will highlight the sins referenced in these Roman verses, giving them definitions.  I believe this list will make it evident that it is nearly impossible to participate in sin without affecting another person.  Sin is not something we do in isolation. Wouldn't we prefer to think that the only one who suffers from the consequences of sin is ourselves?  Might we even like to excuse ourselves with comparative thoughts believing that we are no worse than the next guy?   Possibly even deceiving ourselves into rationalizing that no one needs to know while forgetting that God is all-seeing and all-knowing.  To God, sin is sin, and our judgment of how good or bad it is is irrelevant.

    

     Rereading this list two or three times, I was convicted by my past and present sins.   Conviction is a good thing.  Unless we can acknowledge that we are sinners, it is impossible to repent.  Repenting is turning away from sin with the desire not to repeat it in the future.  For the most part, people want to believe that they are righteous and good.  Romans 3:10 (ESV) says, "There are none righteous, not even one."   Being unrighteous while believing we are good is a prevalent misconception.

     According to R. Kent Hughes in his book called "Preaching the Word, Romans:  Righteousness from Heaven," he organizes the list of sins into three categories. Whether the apostle Paul organized his writing in this way is a matter of opinion. The first type of sin described in verses 24-27, Mr. Hughes calls sensual sins. The second type has a mental dimension, and the third he calls the Ultimate sin.  Might I suggest that mental (cognitive) sins are most universally practiced?  They are highly relatable.  According to verse 32, we read, "Though they knew God's righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them."  It is the "everybody's-doin’-it" kind of sin, the granddaddy of all sins, thus typecast as the Ultimate sin. 

     So here's the list of sin's having a mental dimension summarized by the phrase 'All manner of unrighteousness (see Romans 1:24).

1.     Evil – meaning something profoundly immoral or wicked,

2.     Covetousness – showing a strong desire to possess something that belongs to someone else,

3.     Malice – a form of hostility or animosity toward another,

4.     Envy – a form of jealousy, or resentment toward someone's good fortune,

5.     Murder – the purposeful killing of another human being,

6.     Strife – a conflict created over a difference of opinion,

7.     Deceit – concealing or misrepresenting the truth,

8.     Maliciousness – an act with intent to harm,

9.     Gossip – spreading stories about someone else

10.  Slanderers – damaging words to discredit another person

11.  Haters of God – a person who holds intense feelings of dislike toward God

12.  Insolent – acting rudely or disrespectful toward another person

13.  Haughty- acting superior to others

14.  Boastful – showing excessive self-satisfaction in one's own achievements

15.  Inventors of evil – coming up with new or different ways to do wrong

16.  Disobedient to parents – a disrespect for authority by not following established rules of conduct, especially with one's own parents

17.  Foolish – acting mindlessly, without thought, and lacking common sense,

18.  Faithless – disloyal and untrustworthy

19.  Heartless – lacking remorse or consideration for the needs of others

20.  Ruthless – showing no pity or compassion, refusing to show mercy

 

     Don't these definitions of sin pretty much sum up the world we live in today? But, let's not forget that they were written over 2,000 years ago and summed up the society that the apostle Paul was speaking to as well. Doesn't this reveal that time or manufactured solutions don't solve the problem of sin that is deeply entrenched in our society?

     The timing of my reading couldn't have come at a more appropriate time as I came across a post on social media talking about The Chalkboard Project that has been implemented in our local high school. I love the hearts of our high school administrators who recognize that there is a problem and are trying to address it within the constraints of their employment. But, unfortunately, their hands may be tied that does not allow them to talk about the real root of the problem, sin, so we deal with the symptoms instead.  How does this happen?  It happens when we agree with allowing boundaries that require suppression of truth (see Romans 1:18).  That sentence alone can cause a stir in a society that no longer believes that there is an ultimate source of truth. 

     From what I can gather, The Chalkboard Project was  implemented in our local school district in 2016. According to an article published in the Grand Haven Tribune (click to read the article), the focus of this project is to dismantle the power of words that have harmed individuals. Dismantling words with different words may offer some relief, but if it isn't accompanied with forgiveness on the participant's part, will the sting from words be erased permanently or only when awareness is heightened? Over five hundred students and staff were involved in this project, and there is a component of recognizing how a person can find themselves caught on both sides of this equation. My heart was saddened to read the Chalkboard inscriptions shared by our local student body. It is sobering to see how much pain we inflict on one another. However, the underlying theme spoken loud and clear as I scanned what felt like hundreds of pictures was where we place our Identity. If we want to believe the lies spoken into our ears, we will continue to suffer for it. The underlying root of all pain is sin, and in this world, sin will never end. When we allow the opinions of others to create the foundational beliefs of who we are, the scars build, and over time it can alter the person we are intended to be.

     Projects like this have a way of uniting people through shared experiences, but we will never 'word our way' out of this dilemma. When we place our Identity in the hands of a Savior, Scriptures tell us we no longer need to rely on positive or negative influencers. I do not intend to discredit any program aimed at healing hurts; I am proud of the teacher who has recognized that kids need solutions for issues involving their identities.  We all do; unfortunately, public education does not allow us to talk about Biblical answers to world issues.     

     In the first chapter of Romans, verse 1, Paul identifies himself to the readers of this epistle to believers in Rome. He said, (I am) "Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God." His introduction was not arrogant, boastful, haughty, or proud when he defined his role as a servant of Christ Jesus. Paul recognized that his life was purposefully designed even before he was born, which the Bible states is part of our origin also. He lists his profession, 'called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God.' Because Paul allowed his self-definition to come from God, he wasn't so much telling his readers who he was but to whom he belonged. In our society, who focuses this way? It's not about me, but it's about who I serve. We have devalued our thinking by believing that our personal identities define us. The Bible tells us that there are only two identities we need to be concerned with, (1)  Am I a child of God, or (2) am I a child of wrath?  When we don't know whose we are, we have to depend on whatever Identity we assign ourselves based on who we choose to listen to.  Dealing only with the symptom does not address the real problem.  We are all sinners in need of redemption.  God offers us a solution, and He gives us a new identity.  We no longer need to depend on humanity to tell us who we are.