WHEN SIN IS NO LONGER A SIN : PART ONE

Copyright 1994 - 2009 Endtime Prophecy Net

Published On : June 14, 2001

Last Updated : April 22, 2009

Nine Sexual Sins, Defining Sin And Transgression, What Law?
Law And The Prophets, Law Points To Our Guilt As Sinners,
Voice Of Conscience, All Have Sinned, Our Sins Are Not Hid,
Homosexuality And Lesbianism Condemned By The Law, Modern
Laws Based Upon Mosaic Law, Neutralizing God's Laws Through
Man's Laws, Corrupt Elders Of Ancient Israel, Partners In
Sin, Modern False Prophets And Teachers, Corrupt Gay And
Lesbian Priesthood, Blessing What God Has Cursed, Calling
Evil Good, Love Means Keeping His Commandments, Repentance
And Mercy, Jesus' Merciful Response To The Adulteress Woman



From my careful study of the Scriptures, I have identified
nine major sexual sins which are prohibited by God, many of
which were punishable by death in the Old Testament. These
nine sins are as follows:

Adultery       - sexual infidelity while married

Bestiality     - human sex acts with animals

Fornication    - all sex outside of heterosexual marriage

Homosexuality  - men having sex with other men

Incest         - sex with another close family member

Lesbianism     - woman having sex with other women

Prostitution   - having sex for profit

Rape           - forced sex without the other's consent

Transvestitism - cross-dressing, men as women, women as men

This is not to say that these are the only sexual sins that
are found in the Bible; there may be others that are yet to
be discovered; but they are definitely the most serious ones.
The topic of this article concerns the sin of homosexuality,
and a dire situation which has been developing in the United
States of America for some time now, and elsewhere as well.
However, before we delve into the main subject matter of our
discussion, we need to first ask ourselves: Exactly what is
the Biblical definition of sin? As I point out in some of my
other articles, the Apostle John defines sin for us when he
states the following in one of his Epistles:

"Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for
sin is the transgression of the law."
1 John 3:4, KJV

Thus we see that, according to the Holy Scriptures, sin is a
transgression of the law. But exactly what does this word
"transgression" mean? The Greek lexicon states that it is
derived from the Greek "anomia", pronounced an-om-ee'-ah,
which it defines as follows:

----- Begin Quote -----

1) the condition of without law
1a) because ignorant of it
1b) because of violating it
2) contempt and violation of law, iniquity, wickedness

----- End Of Quote -----

In other words, sin is any act which causes us to break, or
to violate, the law. It is to live outside of, or without,
the law; either due to ignorance of the law, or because of
willful contempt for it, or disobedience to it. This word is
also translated as iniquity and wickedness in the New
Testament.

Perhaps some of you might be asking yourselves: "Well, what
law are we talking about here? Laws vary from country to
country, depending upon the culture of each nation, as well
as upon the type of government in power in each country." In
reality, being as this discussion revolves around the Bible,
obviously, we are not talking about the laws of worldly men
and governments, but rather the Law of the Bible. To be more
precise, upon studying the New Testament more thoroughly, we
discover that the writers are referring to the Torah; that
is to say, the Levitical and Mosaic Law contained in the Old
Testament. As I point out in other articles, such as in part
two of "The Two Sackcloth Witnesses Of Revelation 11", the
Lord and the Apostles repeatedly talked about the importance
of the Law and the Prophets; which not only prophesied of
our Lord's coming, but which also set the moral standard for
the Israelites, just as it does for we Christians today. The
following verses verify this point:

"Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the
prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil."
Matthew 5:17, KJV

"Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do
to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the
prophets."
Matthew 7:12, KJV

"Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus
said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy
heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is
the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto
it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two
commandments hang all the law and the prophets."
Matthew 22:36-40, KJV

"The law and the prophets were until John: since that time
the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into
it."
Luke 16:16, KJV

"And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake
unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be
fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in
the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me."
Luke 24:44, KJV

"Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found
him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write,
Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."
John 1:45, KJV

"And after the reading of the law and the prophets the
rulers of the synagogue sent unto them, saying, Ye men and
brethren, if ye have any word of exhortation for the people,
say on."
Acts 13:15, KJV

"Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that
through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of
sins: And by him all that believe are justified from all
things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of
Moses. Beware therefore, lest that come upon you, which is
spoken of in the prophets; Behold, ye despisers, and wonder,
and perish: for I work a work in your days, a work which ye
shall in no wise believe, though a man declare it unto you."
Acts 13:38-41, KJV

"But now the righteousness of God without the law is
manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;"
Romans 3:21, KJV

It should be clear then, that if we truly want to understand
what sin is in God's sight, we must know His Law. It should
also come as no surprise to us, that when the authors of the
New Testament wrote about sin, their understanding was based
entirely upon their knowledge of the Mosaic Law, which at
that time was a very central part of life in Israel. Thus it
is that John informs us that sin is a transgression, or a
violation, of God's Law. Similar to John, the Apostle Paul
also made it very clear that sin is defined by the Law, when
he wrote the following lines:

". . . for by the law is the knowledge of sin."
Romans 3:20b, KJV

". . . Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had
not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not
covet. But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought
in me all manner of concupiscence. For without the law sin
was dead."
Romans 7:7b, 8, KJV

So again, we see that we define what is sin, and in fact are
forced to recognize that we are sinners, by what is written
in the Law. Without God's Law, defining sin, defining what
is right and what is wrong, would be a much more murky issue
subject to personal interpretation. What is considered sin
by one person, might not be considered sin by another, but
God's Law makes it perfectly clear. It plainly states "This
is a sin, and this is a sin, but that is not." It gives us a
definite understanding and knowledge of sin. That's why Paul
tells us in the previous verses that without the knowledge
of the Law, sin becomes dead.


Jeff Snyder, SysOp - Armageddon BBS  Visit us at endtimeprophecy.org port 23
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