(Clip) What Is Sin — Zac Poonen

Sin as Falling Short of God's Glory

And he says in verse 23, All have sinned. He finally says. That's the conclusion. Everybody has sinned. Religious sinners, non-religious sinners, all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. What is the definition of sin?

Biblical Definitions of Sin

For many, many years I looked for a definition of sin which would be an ideal definition. There are different definitions. In 1 John 3 it says sin is transgression of the law. In James 4 it says that's sins of commission.

Sins of Omission and the Definition of Sin

In James 4 it says sins of omission. The one who knows what to do which is right and does not do it, that is sin. Yeah, it's all good. But I finally came to see the finest definition of sin is here in Romans 3 .23.

Sin Is Not Merely Particular Wrongdoing

What is sin? Sin is to come short of the glory of God. That's it. It's in that verse. I read it for so many years and it never struck me that this is a definition of sin. Sin is not murder, adultery, theft, gambling, drinking, drug addiction.

No. Sin is coming short of the glory of God. You want to know what sin is in your life? Wherever you fall short of the glory of God, you're a sinner. What is the glory of God? Let's define that first.

Christ as the Revelation of God's Glory

The glory of God was seen in Jesus Christ full of grace and truth. John 1 .14. That is the glory of God. So put those two verses together. John 1 .14 and Romans 3 .23 and you get this definition of sin.

Anything Unlike Christ Is Sin

Anything unlike Christ in your personality is sin. Anything unlike Christ in your personality is sin. Who can say I'm free from sin? Anybody? Who can say I'll be free from sin on any day of his life on this earth?

The Standard of Complete Christlikeness

If you lower your definition of sin so low, then you may say. You know you can lower pass marks and say I passed. That's what a lot of people do when they say I'm free from sin. They lower the pass marks to less than 1 and they say I passed.

But pass marks is 100%. And most of us are not even getting 1%. Pass marks is 100 in God's kingdom. Anything less than the glory of Christ, anything less than Christ likeness is sin. All have sinned.

Why Comparing Sinners Misses the Point

But you say I'm not such a bad sinner as the other person. Do you feel like that? There are lots of born again believers say I'm not such a bad sinner as that person. This is like if pass marks in a class is 40 average and one student got 32 another got 20 another got 10 another got 5 another got 0.

Are they all sitting in the same class next year? Absolutely. The fellow who got 32 can go to the teacher and say I'm 32 better than that fellow who got 0. Sorry, you also failed. You are in the same class as that other person even though you may be 32 times better than him.

Makes no difference. You have failed, he has failed. You know we understand this in classrooms but we don't understand that in our life. I've met multitudes of Christians. I believe as I diagnose them like a doctor I believe their fundamental problem is they have never seen themselves as filthy, good for nothing sinners in God's eyes.

They are sinners but they say I'm not so bad as the other person. As long as you say that you'll never experience the full power of the Holy Spirit or a full salvation. Let me encourage you to recognize you know what sin is.

Sin Means Missing Glory, Not Merely Punishment

When we think of sin, please listen to this carefully. When man thinks of sin, he's always thinking of the punishment he'll get. When God thinks of sin, he's not thinking of the punishment you'll get.

He's thinking of the glory that you'll miss. You know there's a lot of difference between thinking of the punishment you'll get and the glory that you'll miss. Don't think of the punishment that you'll get.

That's not the most serious part about sin. There is a glory that you're going to miss if you tolerate sin in your life. It's not a question of convincing other people that you're holy. If there's the measure of sin that you tolerate in your life, that is the measure of glory you're going to miss.

Because sin is falling short.