The Sinfulness Of Sin - Preach The Word

The Sinfulness Of SinRalph Venningman does many things amiss which escape his own notice as well as that of others,and a good man would be cleansed even of these. They create no trouble to hisconscience and are only against God, but he would therefore be rid of them thatthey might not lodge in his heart. although strangers and unknown.(d) They are against all inclinations to sin, against the very conception of sin. Theydo all that they can, not only that sin may not bring forth, or breed, but that itmight not even conceive (James 1.14,15).(e) They cannot content themselves not to do evil, unless they also do good. This isthe final proof that they oppose sin as sin. They do not think it enough that they donot displease God, unless they please God. It is not enough for them to benegatively good, unless they are positively good. They will not only not commitevil, but they will not omit good. Many men will do no hurt, but neither will they doany good; the charge against some is not that they defrauded or oppressed or werecruel to the members of Christ but that they did not actually do them good byclothing, feeding and visiting them. Good men, however, are for being good and fordoing good. Not only do they say, Cleanse me from secret sins, or Keep me frompresumption, but O that the thought of my heart, the words of my mouth, andconsequently the works of my life, may be acceptable to thee, O Lord (Psalm19.14). In the name of all the household of faith the apostle speaks thus:'Wherefore we labour (the word is, we are ambitious or we affect this honour likeheavenly courtiers), that whether present or absent (that is living or dying) we maybe accepted of him (2 Corinthians 5.9). The end of this verse may be read (and theGreek will well bear it), 'that we may be acceptable to him', even to all wellpleasing.The second objection we mentioned is as follows: It is matter of fact that godlymen have sinned. Now if sin was as odious to them as you said, would they sin?But before I answer this objection, let me first make one or two things clear.(a) I concede and confess that they do sin.(b) There is this to be said, that the sins of good men are more usually sins ofcaptivity than sins of activity. Thus the apostle says that they are rather led into sinby temptation than that they go into it by choice and inclination. It is indeedpossible that a good man may plot and contrive a sin, as David did the death ofUriah. We may notice, however, that this is the only thing of which God himselfsays that David sinned (1 Kings 15.5).God covers all his other sins as being those of the man overtaken by temptationrather than as sins committed of deliberate purpose. So for the most part, goodmen are captivated rather than active as to sin. And David himself could say thathe had not wickedly departed from God (Psalm 18.21) that is, he had not departedafter the manner of the wicked (Jude 15).(c) God may sometimes lead a good man to this saddest of trials, to know all thatis in his heart, as he left the good King Hezekiah (2 Chronicles 32.31). We are notover-forward or over-willing to believe ourselves to be so bad as we really are inour hearts. We do not know what seeds of evil are sown there. 'Is thy servant a66