SIN AND FORGIVENESS “When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, ‘Son, your sins are forgiven.’” (Mark 2:5)

Introduction The gospel is the good news of salvation. The Bible says that all human beings are under sin without an exception. What is sin and how can we be saved from sin?

I. What is sin? Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Sin is an action as well as a state.

 First, sin is an action that should not be done. Sin can be committed not only by physical actions, but also by words, by thoughts, by motivations and even by feelings. The Bible says, “All have sinned.” “There is no one righteous, not even one.” No one is without sin.

Second, sin also refers to the state of those who have committed sins. We are fall short of the glory of God. We are spiritually degraded and morally corrupt. We have guilt in our hearts. Psalm 38:4 “My guilt has overwhelmed me like a burden too heavy to bear.”

Why is sin such a serious matter? First, it’s because sin is the breaking of God’s law. 1 John 3:4 “Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness.” There are physical laws in the universe. There are laws and rules in human societies. If one of these laws is broken, there will be a serious consequence.  

Sin is the breaking of God’s law Sin destroys our soul and makes it ugly. Sin paralyzes our soul, making it totally powerless. Sin robs us of joy. Sin brings negative emotions into our hearts. Sin breaks our relationships with others. Sin makes our soul very sick. Sin makes us spiritually dead.

Other problems We will be punished by God. God punishes those who break his law. The wages of sin is death (Ro 6:23). After death, we will have to face God’s judgment. Revelation 21:8 says, “But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.” (Rev 21:8) No one can escape God’s judgment.

II. Salvation through forgiveness People cannot save themselves from sin. God himself gave us the way of salvation. John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” – Salvation comes through faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Luke 1:77 “to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins.” -- Salvation comes through the forgiveness of sins. In order to be saved, we must receive forgiveness of our sins through faith in Jesus.

Jesus forgave a paralyzed man’s sins “Son, your sins are forgiven.” First, Jesus called him, “Son!” Second, Jesus gave him forgiveness of sins. Jesus knew that it was his sins that made him really unhappy and miserable.

How did Jesus save him from his sins? “Son! Your sins are forgiven.” Jesus gave him forgiveness of sins. Jesus knows what makes us really unhappy and miserable. Jesus knows that sin is the fundamental problem of our souls. Jesus gives forgiveness of sins to anyone who comes to him. Jesus forgives any sin we have committed before.

How can Jesus give us forgiveness of sins? Jesus himself paid fully the penalty for our sins. “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities.” Isaiah 53:5 1 Peter 2:24 “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness.” Ephesians 1:7 “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace.”