For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.   Romans 3:23 HCSB

We are all sinners. When we fail to acknowledge that, we can have a problem with pride. I used to wonder why God didn’t just make us so that we wouldn’t sin. But come to think about it even though we sin we still have a problem with pride. Sin is a lot like weight gain. If you gain ten pounds, it doesn’t look so bad if someone else you know gained 30-40 pounds, right? We like to compare our failures to those of others, especially those who have failed worse than we have. As human beings we like to do things like justify our sin and sometimes we do that by comparing it to the sins of others. When you think about that it’s ridiculous though because sin is sin. There is no big sin and no little sin.

There was a time in my life when I considered myself to be a “good” Christian, while I put down on others and gossiped about the sin they had committed. How ironic is that considering my doing that was sinful? I said things like, “Well, I don’t see how they could do that.”  Or, “I would never.”  Well, guess what? I did. I found myself committing the same sin several years later when I had walked away from the Lord. I tried to rationalize and justify it but I had no excuse. I had sinned.

Without God’s grace and mercy, we are all in the same boat. We are just miserable sinners. But because God’s grace and mercy abound, I must ask, what kind of sinner are you?  Are you a deliberate sinner? Do you have those one or two “little” sins that you just hold on to? Do you have that one big sin that you hope no one finds out about? Hebrews 10:26 tells us that if we continue sinning deliberately and willfully after receiving the knowledge of Truth there no longer remains a sacrifice for our sins but a terrifying expectation of judgement and the fury of a fire about to consume the adversaries. Our pastor calls these pet sins because we like to hold them and pet them and not let them go. Do you have pet sins in your life? God is not going to give us a pass. You need to let it go.

When we sin in the things we do, these are considered sins of commission. We commit these sins just like a criminal commits a crime. But there are also sins of omission. This is when we fail to do as we should. James 4:17 says it is a sin for the person who knows to do what is good and doesn’t do it. You know to be kind to others, but you fail to do so. You know you should put yourself last, but you put yourself first. You know you should spend time in worship, Bible study and prayer, but you fail to do it. My friend these things are sins plain and simple. Are you a sinner that commits sins of omission?

Are you a redeemed sinner? Have you fallen down on your knees and asked for God to forgive you for your sins. 1 John 1:9 says that if we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. We can be redeemed. Ephesians 1:7 says we have redemption in Him through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.

The bottom line is there are really only two kinds of sinners. The humble, repentant forgiven sinner or the prideful sinner that has failed to ask for forgiveness. Prideful sinners are hypocrites. They sin but look down on other sinners. If you are living and breathing, you are a sinner. It’s just a matter of determining what kind of sinner you are. No matter what kind of sinner you are, God will save you. He will forgive you if you only ask.

As a Christian, you are called to lead others to Christ. You can’t do this if you yourself have not been saved. A drowning man can’t save a drowning man. I encourage you to deal with the sin in your life. Let it go and give it all over to God. He can clean you up and make you a new person. Trust in Him today.

Then you can be the best kind of sinner, a repentant sinner redeemed by Christ’s blood.

Have a great day!