Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Psalm 51:5 Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
CONFESSING THE TRUTH: ABOUT SIN
"How bad is it, Doctor?" When it comes to knowing the extent of one's cancer or other serious illness, a patient wants to know. In fact, he gets upset if he does not hear the straight truth from the physician. However, when it comes to hearing about his sin-sick soul, a person often does not want to hear how bad it really is.
People do not like to face the fact that from birth they have inherited a sinful nature. The fruits of this nature are obvious: to abuse God's name, not to pray, not to call upon God, to be disobedient, to be unchaste, etc. "This hereditary sin is so deep ... that no reason can understand it, but it must be believed from revelation of Scriptures" (Smalcald Articles, III, 1). That means if God did not reveal this sinfulness to us, we would not believe we could really be so wicked.
The teachers of this age do not like to admit that humans have a sinful nature from birth. They teach instead that man is basically good; that man naturally has a right reason and a good will; that man by his natural powers can love God above all things and love his neighbor as himself. One won't find many present-day philosophers saying with King David, "Surely I was sinful at birth" (Ps 51:5).
If it were true that man was pure and holy in his own right, then there would be no need of Christ for there would be no sin for Him to take away. We do, however, understand that the natural heart of man is deceitful and desperately wicked. We see the need for our Savior both to fulfill God's law for us and to accept the punishment for our evil. This He has graciously done! Thanks be to God!
