Saturday Sermonette - What's in a Word?

"Sin."

There. Did that word make you cringe?

The word has become somewhat of a bugaboo, hasn't it?

The Bible says everyone has sinned. I've heard gasps sometimes from people who hear that phrase. Indignation. Especially if someone says YOU have sinned. Wait a minute!

I'm not all that bad! I don't kick the dog, I seldom kill anyone, and I go to church.

Um, wait a minute, folks. That's not what sin means. Sins don't have to be gargantuan to be sin. Lying is a sin--even teensy ones. Gossip is a sin--yes, it is. Even not doing the good we know we should do is a sin.

Sin is missing the target God puts in front of us. Not just doing things we shouldn't do, but also not doing the things we should.

But--I don't know about you, but I have to ask forgiveness a lot. I have to say this for it--it keeps me humble. God pokes holes in my puffy ego sometimes, and that's a good thing.

Sin should make us cringe. No amount of self-defense changes the sin to a minor mistake. No self-justification (but it FEELS right) alters the facts.

Face it--we are all sinners. But rejoice--He is faithful and just to forgive when we repent.

Repent doesn't mean saying "I'm sorry" and walking right back into the same ol' stuff. Repentance means to turn away from the sin. Or if you prefer, the mess-up. The mistake. The goof. Call it what you will, but treat it with God's remedy, not a band aid.

This means me. And you.