Tuesday, January 22, 2013

20 January 2013

This Sunday last, the Torah portion was taken from Genesis 6:1-7:24, which is the story of the great flood.  For the moment we will pass by the sons of God and daughters of men.  Some people believe the sons of God refer to the descendents of Seth and daughters of men the descendents of Cain.  Others that the sons of God were spiritual beings like angels.  We shall leave this question for the scholars.  We are told there were giants, and archeology does up hold that in some areas were some pretty large people, we are not talking about giants like we think of from fairy tales, but people who were around seven plus feet tall.  But again, not important to the thrust of the story.

What is important is that first, God limits man's life to 120 years old.  Second, it is important to note that God regretted making man, because sin was multiplying on earth, and man could only conceive evil. In fact we are told, "all the earth had been corrupted, and was filled with iniquity.

And here we see the human condition, we always turn to sin.  St. Paul puts it eloquently, "14 For we know that the Torah is of the Spirit; but as for me, I am bound to the old nature, sold to sin as a slave. 15 I don’t understand my own behavior — I don’t do what I want to do; instead, I do the very thing I hate! 16 Now if I am doing what I don’t want to do, I am agreeing that the Torah is good. 17 But now it is no longer “the real me” doing it, but the sin housed inside me. 18 For I know that there is nothing good housed inside me — that is, inside my old nature. I can want what is good, but I can’t do it! 19 For I don’t do the good I want; instead, the evil that I don’t want is what I do! 20 But if I am doing what “the real me” doesn’t want, it is no longer “the real me” doing it but the sin housed inside me. 21 So I find it to be the rule, a kind of perverse “torah,” that although I want to do what is good, evil is right there with me! 22 For in my inner self I completely agree with God’s Torah; 23 but in my various parts, I see a different “torah,” one that battles with the Torah in my mind and makes me a prisoner of sin’s “torah,” which is operating in my various parts. 24 What a miserable creature I am! Who will rescue me from this body bound for death?(Romans 7:14-24)

In other words, sin takes on a life of its own.  We know what is write, but we do evil because the sin within us drives us to  it.  Sin corrupts all creation, not just man.  When we try and prove immorality through nature, we are merely relying on something that has already been corrupted by sin.  When Noah was 500 year old, sin had been reigning for close to 1600 years, multiplying, growing and twisting all nature.Yahweh despises sin, so he resolved to destroy all humans, animals and reptiles, and does so in the flood, saving only Noah and his family, for Noah had found grace with God. 

We must realise that sin corrupts nature and man.  Sin prevents us from having relationship with God.  In God's sight, sin must be destroyed, and so it was, perhaps a million people wiped out  in one fell swoop.  When will we realise how lethal sin is.  Adam and Havah were kicked out of the Garden for sin.  Animals were sacrificed to cover their nakedness for their sin.  For sin, animals and nature were corrupted.  All mankind was wiped out for sin.  For sin, the Canaanites had to be destroyed from the land.  For sin, only two adults out of 600,000 came to the promised land.  For sin, Jesus the Messiah was crucified on the cross for sins he did not commit in order to pay for our sins. 

For a Christian, it is of great importance that we realise how fatal sin is.  The Bible tells us the wages of sin is death.  The Bible tells us that many who think they are Christians will be told by the Lord, "

I don’t know where you’re from. Get away from me, all you workers of wickedness!’ 28 You will cry and grind your teeth when you see Avraham, Yitz’chak, Ya‘akov and all the prophets inside the Kingdom of God, but yourselves thrown outside. (Luke 13:27-8).

Sin is deadly, yet today Christians play around with sin.  Christians play with porn, we glorify sex, we destroy families by not giving them any time together.  We turn our stomachs, sports, homes, cars and children into our Gods.  We gripe if the preacher goes more than 10 minutes, yet we have no trouble when the football game goes into overtime.  We see people in need, yet ignore them.  Adultery abounds.  People forced to work without making a living wage.  All of this is either sin, or a result of sin, and it is time for us to worry. 

Will we be slaves of sin, or will we be slaves of Messiah.  If we play around with sin, we are likely to end up not following the Lord.  It is time to remember, Messiah died on the cross to set us free from sin and death.  When we allow him to be in charge, he will give us the power to conquer sin and death.  The decision is yours, slave of sin, or slave of Messiah.