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The Wages of Sin
By George Stroh
November 29, 2021
For the wages of sin is death... (Romans 6:23a)
Why do people lie, steal, murder and commit other evil acts against others? And why do we get old, sick, and die? For thousands of years, philosophers, scientists, psychologists and others have searched for the root causes of the physical and spiritual degenerating human condition. The Bible says that the root cause is sin.
What is sin? Any word, deed or thought that is contrary to God's will or His word is sin and we are guilty; For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. (Romans 3:23) There are both sins of omission, as well as, sins of commission; Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin. (James 4:17) Certainly some sins have greater immediate consequences than others, but the Bible says that even one sin is enough to condemn us to eternal death and hell; For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all. (James 2:10)
What is death? As our old friend and Bible teacher Larry Wright said, "Death isn't something, death is the absence of something." Physical death is a consequence of sin; For the body without the spirit is dead... (James 2:26a) Spiritual death is also a consequence of sin and is the spirit separated from God. Adam and Eve were warned by God that if they sinned by eating fruit from the forbidden tree, they would die; God has said, "You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die." (Genesis 3:3b) They didn't die physically that day, although I believe that was the beginning of the physical dying process. But they did die spiritually that day.
The vast majority of people who are physically alive today don't know that, because of sin, they are spiritually dead; And you were dead in your trespasses and sins... (Ephesians 2:1) And the Bible also says, that because of sin, there is a promised final death which is eternal separation from God in a literal hell; Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. (Revelation 20:14)
The wages of sin is death. Not just physical death, but spiritual and eternal death. The good news (the gospel) is that we can have eternal life, rather than eternal death, by faith alone in Christ Jesus alone, our Lord and Savior who alone paid for our sins; But the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord! (Romans 6:23b)
Maranatha!
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