John 5: Sin (part 2)

John 5: The Sabbath
John 5: 1-17  The Savior
John 5: Suffering

John 5: Society

John 5: Sin

John 5: Sin pt.2

John 5: The Scriptures

John 5: The Son


Ever untangle a jewelry box or a fish box (not a tackle box, but the box of fishing gear, old lures, string, and pieces of who knows what)?  Is there a good method?  Do you have tricks?

Sometimes untangling all the issues in our hearts that seem focused on a particular subject end up being a lot of different things when you start pulling it apart.  It's certainly true of looking at a passage of scripture.  You might come at it with one thing in mind, uncover some part of an answer only to realize it has all kinds of other issues tangled in there together.

Like the story of the man at the pool of Bethesda in John 5.  You might think about this story relating to the Sabbath, and then maybe start looking at the Jesus as the Savior healing on the sabbath, and then it's about suffering or society.  Next thing you know you're looking sin in the face.  And sin all by itself is such a tangle of thoughts, truths, emotions, preconceived notions, cultural perspectives, history both personal and human, and all kinds of other things.

We started to look at sin last week and went toward the simple question of "what is the definition of sin" and realized two syllables into that one syllable word to find that is a loaded question and an even more loaded answer!

So let's come at the tangle from a slightly different angle.  Let's look at sin from two other perspectives  1) being forgiven, and 2) being pure...or not needing forgiveness.  From those two cross-fires, perhaps we can draw the profile of sin.

Read Psalms 119:1-3 and compare to Psalms 119:9 and Psalms 119:11.  The first is a statement, the second is a question and answer. Having understood the first two, the third is a responsive decision for the future.  Write them out on one piece of paper.

 Read 1 John 1:5-10.  What is the relationship between light, dark, sin, cleansing, truth, and lie?


Read v4.  Why is John writing about all this in the first place?  How does that change the tone in which you read the other verses?

Read Mark 4:9-14.  This is just after teaching a great multitude the parable of the sower (or soils).  When they asked Him what it meant, what did He say?  Why did He speak in parables? What was He trying to prevent?  Why would He want to prevent that?

Read verse 14.  What was the sower sowing?  Why does that matter?

Jump to Romans 7:12-14.  This whole chapter can be confusing, but start with verse 14.  The Law is __________ but I am ________________.  So this spiritual law exposes sin in my mortal body.  It makes sin appear for what it is, exceedingly sinful.  Not just a slip or mistake or oops. And I am wrought with peril.  So what is good (the Law) exposes what is not good (sin in me).

Take a few minutes and see if you can piece these verses together  from Psalms 119, Mark 4,  and Romans 7 to find your way to Psalms 119:11 for yourself and 1 John 1:9 from God.

Look at the two word trees below (click to enlarge):

Let's go back to last week and revisit the second half of the questions.

Read John 3:16.  Why did Jesus come into the world?  Read John 3:17 why didn't Jesus come into the world?

Is sin doing something wrong against God's commandments?  If God's commandments are a description of His character, (God is truth, therefore thou shalt not bear false witness), how else would you describe sin in context of the commandments?

Do I lie and therefore become a liar, or am I a liar and therefore I lie? If someone tells you a lie, what do you call them? If someone steals what do you call them?  If someone cheats on their spouse, what do you call them?  If someone takes someone else's life maliciously, what do you call them?  If someone takes God's name as a curse word or uses it in a way that doesn't give Him the glory He deserves, what do you call them? If someone worships a created thing and not the Creator, what do you call them?

If the man in John 5 (and the other passages) was healed (something he is) by being forgiven (something he did that caused infirmity), is sin about something I do or something I am that merely presents itself by what I do as a symptom of what I am?

Should we merely ask forgiveness for what I did or also ask forgiveness for what I am (a liar, thief, adulterer at heart, idolator, blasphemer...)?  Is sin more than doing wrong things? Is forgiveness more than getting relieved of the punishment of doing wrong things?

Read Romans 3:23, 5:8, 6:23, and 10:9-10.  Describe the relationship of sin, our character, God's character, and the cross.