How Does Jesus View Sin — Edgar Reich

Thank you for joining me. My name is Edgar Reich, and I am called by the will of God for revival. The message today starts with a question, and the question is, how does Jesus Christ view sin? We love, of course, the Son of God because he has died for us, he has given his life for us that we might live.

He has overcome sin, and then we have some wonderful examples in Scripture of his love for sinners. And we are reminded in John 8, verses 10 -11, where Jesus was with a woman caught in adultery. Then she was condemned by the citizens there, and when Jesus had raised himself up, he saw no one but the woman.

And he said to her, woman, where are your accusers? Has no one condemned you? She said, no one, Lord. And Jesus said to her, neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more. What a wonderful, wonderful encouragement by the Lord Jesus not to follow through on the condemnation for her adultery.

But he did say to her, go and sin no more. Many say he's our loving Savior, he died for us after all, and therefore Jesus overlooks sin. And we disregard what he said to the woman, go and sin no more.

You see, we don't want to consider Scripture that point us to the seriousness of sin. It makes us uncomfortable, and our mind is often made up. We are under grace, and everything is automatically covered.

Yes, Jesus is a great Savior. He is a great God. Yes, he is love. But like his Father, he is also full of justice and truth, and he will bring judgment. John 5 .22 says, for the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son.

So what does Jesus think about sinning? What did he say in his word? Remember, he had to die for sin. Sin is a very, very serious thing. And now in the book of Matthew in the Bible, Jesus helps us to understand more about this subject.

And let us turn to Matthew 5 .17 -20. Matthew 5 .17 -20, and I'm reading from a New Living Translation because it is easier for young people to understand. And there in verse 17 it says, don't misunderstand why I have come.

This is Jesus speaking. He said, I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God's law will disappear until its purpose is achieved.

So if you ignore the least commandment and teach others to do the same, you will be called the least in the kingdom of heaven. But anyone who obeys God's laws and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

But I warn you, unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religion, of the Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. And this verse is a reminder that we cannot be saved by works.

It must be Jesus Christ. But once we are saved, we in love comply with the commandments of God. So here Jesus refers to the truth that without him and his righteousness, we cannot make it to heaven. Because we cannot live better than the Pharisees did.

We need Jesus. Then in Matthew chapter 5 verse 19, Jesus said, Obey God's laws and teach others. Obey God's laws? Yes, we are under grace. But Jesus said, Obey, obey the laws of my Father. And then in Matthew chapter 7 verse 21, Jesus underlined the statement and he became even more serious.

And he said something that is very hard for us to understand because there are so many doctrines now that are given to us that nothing, nothing will keep us out of heaven. But listen to Matthew chapter 7 verse 21 and there it says, Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the heaven, into the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father in heaven.

Jesus explains that unless you also do the will of the Father, he won't know you. The law cannot save us. Only Jesus can. But after we are born again and become Christians, we do the will of the Father in love, including the commandments.

Now, Jesus repeated this in Matthew chapter 12 verses, verse 50, where he said, For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother. Now let us go to Matthew chapter 5, 27 to 30, where Jesus speaks about the seriousness of sin and he makes a comparison that is very hard for us to accept.

And there in Matthew chapter 5, verse 27, he says, You have heard the commandment that says you must not commit adultery. But I say anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

So the question is, how serious is this sin or other sins? And Jesus answers it in the same text, Matthew chapter 5, verse 29. And there he proposes something actually quite terrible. But he also says it in love because the alternative is even more terrible.

And so here he says in Matthew chapter 5, verse 29. So if your eye, even your good eye, causes you to lust, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.

And if your hand, even your stronger hand, causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. Now beloved, Jesus talks about mutilation here.

Is he really serious? Yes, he is. Because the alternative is hell. And some of you don't believe in hell, but if you say you believe in the Son of God, that is what he said. That is what the Son of God reminds you of.

Beloved, believe him. Believe him. He's telling you the truth. You see, Jesus is really serious about what he's saying. I have a difficult time with this passage. And yes, I am concerned. But he is giving this passage in love.

He gives us a reason that hell is so much worse and terrible. He actually says it in love for us. He says, I love you. I don't want you to sin. But your body doesn't want to stop sinning. Here's an alternative.

Can this be true? Am I not just automatically forgiven? The alternative, Jesus says, if we don't stop sinning, is hell. Is Jesus serious? Now, Jesus is love, even as the Father is love. Jesus proved his first love for us because he gave his life that these sins might be covered.

But now he says to us also, stop sinning. Go and sin no more, he said to the woman caught in adultery. He says the same to us today. Go and sin no more. We become deceived in our thinking. The devil covers our mind and our brain not to understand what Jesus is talking about.

Jesus is serious when he says what he said. He means it, beloved. Oh, Lord, help me. Lord, forgive me. If it is sin, stop it. Don't continue sinning and habitual sinning. Consider mutilating yourself, said Jesus, which is better than going to hell.

Now, the Lord and the Bible also teach us ways that are a lot easier than mutilation, praise God. The Bible teaches us separation. The Bible says separate from all things that tempt you. For me, separation is far better than mutilation.

The Bible says, be ye separate and come out from among them. And what is meant by this, being separate? You see, I should not have time for things in the world that tempt me. If I look at highlights of the news for five minutes, that's enough.

I don't need to start surfing the Internet. In general, television, YouTube, the Internet, sports functions, many of the entertainment functions, many of the movies, Facebook, and many other media present us with great temptations.

I use media also to get out the gospel. But, beloved, we must be true to Christ and separate ourselves from the world and from temptation. Now, Romans chapter 13, verse 14 says, Put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh to fulfill its lusts.

Jesus repeated what he said in Matthew chapter 5. Concerning, sorry, what he said in Matthew chapter 5, he repeated in Matthew chapter 18. And so let us now read in Matthew chapter 18 from verse 1 to 9.

The context here is a child. But nevertheless, at the end of this passage, Jesus again talks about separating limbs if you don't stop sinning. Matthew chapter 18, verse 1. About that time, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?

Jesus called a little child to him and put the child among them. Then he said, I tell you the truth. Unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the kingdom of heaven.

This is what Jesus said. This is not what I said. He said, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children in your faith, you won't make it to heaven. You will never get into the kingdom of heaven, he said.

And now in verse 4 of Matthew chapter 18, it says,. So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. In verse 5, anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf is welcoming me.

But if you cause one of these little ones to sin who trusts in me, it would be better for you to have a large millstone tied around your neck and be drowned in the depth of the sea. Here Jesus warns us and says, If you mislead people that all sins are automatically covered and people don't have to worry about it, what sorrows will await you?

Some terrible sorrows will await you. And then in verse 7 of this passage in Matthew 18, Jesus goes on to tell us what sorrow awaits the world because it tempts people to sin. Temptations are inevitable, but what sorrow awaits the person who does the tempting.

Now Jesus continues and he relates what he said in Matthew 5. However, here in Matthew chapter 18, verse 8, Jesus refers to all sin, not just the sin of adultery. And so now we are reading verse 8 in this passage.

So if your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It's better to enter eternal life with only one hand or one foot than to be thrown into eternal fires with both of your hands and feet.

And if your eye causes you to sin, count it out and throw it away. It's better to enter eternal life with only one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell. Oh, beloved, how serious is sin?

How great is this salvation that Jesus gave you? Yes, yes, we are on his grace when we are born again. But beloved, don't sin. You don't have to anymore. And so the question is now, will it be mutilation or will it be separation from sin?

Now, there might be those of you that are watching that have not yet made peace with God through his son, Jesus Christ. And if you're watching, you have no higher help to oppose the sin in your life. And sin resides in you.

And so often you get to the point where you say, no, I don't want to do this. And then you go on doing it. But you can have higher help through the son of God. You can be born again. You can start a new life.

But you must repent of your sins and then ask the Lord Jesus Christ to save you. Ask him to have mercy on you. Ask him and he will answer you if you are sincere. So have you asked Jesus to have mercy on you and forgive you your sins?

Have you told him that he is your savior and that you believe in him? Has your belief in Jesus shown the evidence of true repentance? Were there fruits of repentance? Are you following Jesus and are you reading his word and are you praying?

We need to be born again. We must be born again, says the word. And Jesus not only set us free from the penalty of sin, but Jesus will also set you free from the power of sin. For whom he has set free is free indeed.

Praise God. So John 8 .36 tells us that and confirms, Therefore, if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. If you take the step today, you can become a new person through the help of the Lord Jesus Christ.

And I counsel you, I beg you, make your salvation right with God through his Son Jesus. Jesus says, I am the way, the truth and the life. No man comes to the Father except by me. Don't believe lies of the world.

Don't believe lies of Satan. Don't believe lies of your own flesh. Don't believe what you think is right to make it to heaven. But go by the word of God and find a Bible and find out yourself. Read John chapter 3 and confirm it.

Make sure of your salvation. And now there are many Christians that are watching this video. And in 2 Corinthians chapter 5, verse 17, it says, Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.

All things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new. Perhaps you are born again and you have the proof of many new things in your life. Praise God. However, there might be a besetting sin.

There might be something that claws to you and won't let go. Are you willing to be set free through the Lord Jesus Christ? He is so willing. You can experience the freedom that Jesus promises. But you need to surrender fully to Him.

Pray and surrender and ask Jesus and say to Him, Come Lord Jesus, live your life in me and through me. If you pray that, He will do that. He will help you. So start with prayer. Start with confession.

Then start separating from everything that tempts you. Take anything out of the house that tempts you. Destroy it. Separate from wrong relationships. If you now have friends that bring you into temptation, I'm sorry, it's going to be hard.

You're going to have to say no. I'm going to follow you, Lord. And then seek out churches, fellowships, house fellowships, and find new friends that truly follow the Bible. God will help you even as you pray and you ask Him.

Now separation is a better alternative than mutilation. And the Bible reminds us in 2 Corinthians 6, verses 16 and 17,. And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God.

As God has said, I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God and they shall be my people. Therefore, come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch that which is unclean and I will receive you.

And there in verse 17 it says, Come out from among them. Come out from among the world, beloved. In the church of Corinth in the Bible, in 1 Corinthians, it tells us about immorality in the church of Corinth and a man who was practicing sexual immorality and he was accepted by the church in the middle of them.

And the Apostle Paul had written to the church in 1 Corinthians reprimanding all of the church attendees for allowing this. The people in the church repented and they asked this man to leave for a period of time until he would be willing to follow God and His commands.

In 2 Corinthians, the Apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthian church and he was very glad and he congratulated them on their godly sorrow and their repentance. And so in 2 Corinthians chapter 7 verse 11 it says,.

For behold, the selfsame thing that he sorrowed after, a godly sort, was carefulness, it brought in you, yea, what clearing of yourself, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge.

In all of these things ye have approved yourself to be clear in this matter. And here the Apostle Paul gave us what godly repentance is all about. Beloved, if there are besetting sins in your life, there is godly repentance needed.

And there are seven things here that the Apostle Paul mentions in this one verse and we will cover those. But the most important part is that you ask Christ to indwell you, to surrender to him fully for Jesus to live his life through you.

Rather than mutilation, let us practice separation and let us examine the seven fruits of repentance that the Apostle Paul mentioned here. The first one he said, what carefulness it brought in you. And so godly sorrow and repentance included carefulness in avoiding sin.

Here Paul states, you have become careful of sin and carefulness include alertness, care, cautiousness, guardedness, prudence, and wariness. Careful about what? They wanted to follow the word of God, praise God.

They wanted to avoid sin. They wanted to watch and pray lest they fall into temptation. And so carefulness is close to attentiveness in avoiding danger. Now as an example, I won't put my computer next to my bedside nor my phone on which I also have internet.

I will replace my portable computer with the Bible at night or a book that the Lord wants me to read. That is carefulness. Our natural carefulness keeps us from having car accidents and we obey a red signal on the road.

So if the Holy Spirit gives you a red signal in your conduct to avoid sin, please, please follow it. I propose that separation from your old habits is better than mutilation and Jesus had only meant it in love because he doesn't want anyone to go to hell.

Number two, what clearing of yourselves? He mentioned the clearing of yourselves. Now godly sorrow and repentance includes clearing or cleaning your name and your house. Clear your house and your name of anything that includes sin.

Are there horoscopes in your house? Are there evil sexual movies in your house? Cleaning and clearing is the act or the process of becoming clear of things that taint you and obstruct your life, living rightly with God.

It is the act of clearing a house from wrong things and wrong behaviors. Don't allow them to fester. Separate yourself and that is a better alternative than mutilation and Jesus meant it in love. Then the third word that the Apostle Paul mentions in this text in 2 Corinthians, what indignation there was against sin.

Godly sorrow and repentance includes indignation against sin. Indignation is a strong displeasure with something considered offensive. The Christians were condemned by the Apostle Paul because they had permitted sin in their congregation.

It was righteous anger with sin. And so indignation includes resentment, displeasure, annoyance, irritation and exasperation with sin. Ask the Lord to give you all of that plus hate against sin. Don't allow sin in your own life.

I know when we meet a person that has needs and their sins, we love the person. We don't agree with their sins but we spend time and help that person in love and in gentleness and in kindness. Of course, separation is better.

It's a better alternative than mutilation and Jesus meant it in love. What fear? What fear? Yea, the Apostle Paul talked about in verse 11. Godly sorrow and repentance includes fearing God. If we sin, the Apostle Paul speaks about the fear of God.

They understood that going against God's commandments has consequences. They had heard from the Apostle Paul lightly about Sapphira and Ananias who lied against God and before the Apostle Peter. Both fell dead to the ground.

If you read in the Bible Deuteronomy chapter 27 and 28, you can read about God's curses and blessings. God's curses against sin and God's blessings when we walk righteously before him. Now, in Luke chapter 12 verses 4 and 5, it says, When we have become Christians, our fear of God is said to be a reverential fear.

However, since my love is not yet perfect, I fear God, beloved. I fear God. Anyone who reads and understands the book of Revelation, you will fear God, beloved. Yes, I love him too for saving me. I love God, even so I also fear him.

But he is holy. I cannot mix my humanity with divinity and use human understanding and human reasoning to justify myself. God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Yet he is not Santa Claus. He does not say with a friendly smile, do whatever you want to. It's okay. God does not say it's okay to sin. If you want to curse God and do all kinds of evil, if you want to live common law, if you want to commit adultery, if you want to kill the little babies, if you do, the Bible says God is a consuming fire.

Vengeance is mine, says the Lord. I will repay. Beloved, that is the seriousness of sin. Sin is not to be taken lightly. Yes, God is a loving God, but he cannot permit sin to go to heaven. Because then he has to start all over again.

He will create a new heaven and a new earth without sin. Praise God. And that is his ultimate love, that he will prepare such an environment. And he said, if you want to have peace with me, then you must be washed in the blood of the Lamb, which is the Lord Jesus Christ.

You must repent. You must believe in him. You must turn to him. You must follow my son. That is the way to heaven. So, beloved, separation from sin is a better alternative than mutilation. And Jesus meant it in love.

And then in the passage in Corinthians, the Apostle Paul gave us as part of godly sorrow, there ought to be a vehement desire. And vehement traces back to the Latin word meaning impetuous, violent. If you do something vehemently, then you do it forcefully and with emotion.

And no one will doubt how you really feel. Vehement is marked by great energy or exertion and strenuous action. You will move forcefully and with emotion against the sin that so easily besets you. Yes, you have a part in it.

You have and you need Christ with you to accomplish that. But Jesus also says that you have a part in it. So don't give place to sin anymore. Will you ask Christ to help you? Will you ask the Holy Spirit to help you?

Jesus may require that forceful exertion from you to see that you truly mean business. Separation is a better alternative than mutilation. And Jesus meant it all in love. Because hell is far worse than that terrible word that I used.

And then the sixth word that is used in verse 11 is zeal. Godly sorrow and repentance includes zeal. Zeal is a passion and love for God and his work. Zeal is energy or enthusiasm in pursuit of a cause or an objective.

It means devotion to God. It means devotion to holiness. It is devotion and passion, order, love, fervor, fire, devotion, enthusiasm, eagerness, and intensity. God says have zeal to turn against sin. Now you might say I want to do God's will for my life, but I don't know how to achieve this.

And beloved, it does start with a full surrender to the Lord Jesus Christ. With asking him to not only live in you, but also to live his life through you. It starts with prayer. It starts with repentance.

And then it starts also with doing God's will as expressed in scripture. You see scripture also says put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh. And in 2 Thessalonians chapter 4 verse 3 it says,.

For this is the will of God, your sanctification, that you should abstain from sexual immorality. And then Matthew chapter 5 verses 43 to 48 says, Love your enemies. Love your sister and brother and church even if they disagree with you.

Love your sister and brother and your house fellowship even if you don't always see eye to eye on scripture. And Acts 1 .8 says when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, Yes, you will be testifying. You will be sharing this great salvation that you have, that you and I have.

Now, once you confess and once God has cleansed you, it is very important that you do God's will and that in your spare time you take up this time for the Lord and do what God is asking you to do. And Jesus gave us a reminder in Matthew chapter 12 verses 43 to 45 and there it says, When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places seeking rest and finds none.

Then he says, I will return to my house from which I came. And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept and put in order. Then he goes out and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself.

And they enter and dwell there. And the last date of that man is worse than the first. So shall it also be with this wicked generation. So if you say, I'm going to try and clean up, but I don't want the Son of God, you will be left helpless because those wicked spirits that made you do things you don't want to do anymore, they will come back.

And you need Christ, the Son of God. You need to go to him. You need to repent. You need to ask him, Lord, have mercy on me. Lord, save me in your mercy and give me this eternal life. Lord Jesus, I believe in you.

I need you. And now the seventh word in verse 11 is godly sorrow includes revenge. And revenge against whom? Well, we take revenge against sin and the devil by completely turning the other way. What does revenge mean?

The action is one of inflicting hurt or harm on someone for an injury or wrong suffered at their hands. Who had they suffered by? They had suffered from sin, from Satan. And they had suffered from being deceived by their own flesh, the world and the devil.

And so when we turn, when we turn and we start this new life, let us no longer be deceived. We take even revenge. We say we will have nothing to do with these things anymore. We will turn from them. Before you said, I can't help myself.

But Jesus told you, if you are right with him, if he resides in you, whom the son sets free is free indeed. And you must believe this. And so separation, beloved, is a better alternative than mutilation.

We must believe that Jesus is a rewarder of those that diligently seek him. And in John 8 .36 he said, therefore, if the son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. There were seven things that I just went through in the passage in 2 Corinthians 7 .11.

And I had discussed godly sorrow and repentance. And so here were the seven things. Number one, carefulness to avoid sin. Number two, cleaning and clearing every room in your house of sin. That's cleaning house physically in your surroundings and internally in your own house.

Then number three, having indignation, having righteous anger against sin. Number four, having fear that God tells us about and having fear of cursing God when we sin. Because you see, when we sin and unbelievers see us sin, they curse God.

And they say, these Christians say that they have God, but they can't even stop sinning. And their God is not big enough to help them to stop sin. So God is cursed, beloved. But we have a great, incredible God.

Indeed, everything is possible with my Savior and my God, who is yours. Number five, having a vehement desire to do right with Jesus' help. Number six, having zeal, love, and passion for Jesus and doing what he has called us to do.

And number seven, taking revenge against sin and the devil by turning fully against sin. Separation is better. It's a better alternative than mutilation. And the latter was only mentioned by Jesus because he loves you so much.

And the alternative is hell. And we do not want to go there. So Jesus came as the Lamb of God, gentle and kind and forgiving. But if you don't want to give in, then in Revelation 6, verse 16, it tells us about times that are coming.

When the Lord Jesus comes back as the Lion of Judah, he comes as a judge. He comes now to repay that which was done against Christians. He comes to repay and judge. Yes, he's a loving Savior. Yes, he is a gentle Lamb.

He is so now. But, beloved, don't let this time pass by because in Revelation 6, verse 16, it says,. And they cried out to the mountains and the rocks,. Fall on us and hide us from the one who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb.

The person sitting on the throne here is God the Father and the wrath of the Lamb is the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, in Revelation chapter 14, verse 11, it reminds us. And there, let us read Revelation chapter 14, verse 9 to 11.

There is a time coming, beloved. And that time is getting very near to us where there will be world leadership at some time point. And that world leadership will require for you to have a mark on your hand and on your forehead.

And you cannot accept that. And here in Revelation chapter 14, verses 9 to 11, it says,. Then a third angel followed them, shouting,. Anyone who worships the beast and his statute or who accepts his mark on the forehead or on his hand must drink the wine of God's anger.

It has been poured out full strength into God's cup of wrath, and they will be tormented with fire and burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and the Lamb. The smoke of their torment will rise forever and ever, and they will have no relief day or night, for they have worshipped the beast and his statute and have accepted the mark of his name.

This means that God's holy people must endure persecution patiently, obeying his commands and maintaining their faith in Jesus. Beloved, separation is better than mutilation. And so separate yourself from the things that are sin.

Don't let sin overtake you. And now let us close in a personal word of prayer. Let us close and pray and ask God to help us reflect on the message that we have heard and that it would go deep into our hearts that God is love and Jesus is love, but they will not tolerate sin.

And yes, there is a hell. So let us pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you so much for your incredible word. We thank you so much for the truth that you have conveyed to us. We thank you so much for your holy son Jesus who died that we might live.

If he died to cover the sins that are in our lives, to cover them with his own precious blood. And we thank you so much for that great salvation that is available to all of us. If we repent and turn to you and you said that you're not willing that any should perish, but that all come to repentance.

And so I thank you so much, Lord God, for your mercy, for your love expressed through the Lord Jesus Christ. And now, Father, I pray that those people that are watching, perhaps some have not yet made peace with you, Father, through the Lord Jesus Christ.

I pray that they would kneel themselves right now, that they would ask for forgiveness from your son, the Lord Jesus Christ, that they would repent, that they would turn around, that they would ask Jesus to save them.

And I know that your son will answer them affirmatively if they are truly repentant. And I thank you so much, Lord God and the Lord Jesus Christ, that you will do these things. And then, Father, there are many Christians who are watching this.

And, Lord, I pray that you would help all of us to walk in the freedom of the Lord Jesus Christ. For you said in your verse, Him whom the Son has set free is free indeed. Lord, we won't believe the lies of Satan anymore.

Before we had no choice to follow sin. Now we don't have to. But, Lord Jesus, I pray that my sisters and brothers and myself would again surrender to you, Lord Jesus, anew today and say, Lord Jesus, please inhabit all of my life.

I surrender all of it to you. Please come and live your life through me. Do that which is right. Help me to follow you every day, every minute, every hour, every day in obedience, in love, in independence upon you.

And also help everyone who has prayed this prayer. And I pray this in Jesus' name. Amen and amen. Thank you so much for joining me. And the Lord bless you. Goodbye for now. Bye-bye.