Mark 1:5 And there went out unto him all the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins.
Whether we like it or not, sin is a major topic in the Bible. It is what causes us to be separated from God (Isaiah 59:1-2). It is what causes us to be lost (Romans 6:23). And sin is the sole reason that Jesus left heaven and died on the cross (1 Peter 2:21-25). Therefore, any preacher that wants to be true to the purpose of Jesus’ mission, MUST talk about sin!
As John went through the country side of Israel, he taught the message of repentance as we saw in yesterday’s RTS. But in today’s installment, we see a new gem about sin. As John taught and the people responded to his teaching by being baptized, the text says that they did so “confessing their sins”.
The concept of confessing our sins comes down to acknowledgement. We have to come to a point that we recognize that behaviors and actions are indeed wrong and sinful. Let me give you an example. Let’s say that your sin of choice is stealing. One day you steal so much money that you have all you will ever need so that you do not need to steal any longer. Giving up that life of sin may appear to be that of repentance, but is it really? Sure the sin has been ceased...that is certainly an aspect of repentance, but only because they do not need to do that sin any longer. What is missing is the concept of recognition! For us to have the proper reaction to sin, we must have the understanding that sin is wrong in all circumstances and for all times.
Reflecting His SON,
Dennis Hogan
Minister, North Hardin Church of Christ
1804 Sam Stewart Dr.
Radcliff, KY 40160
Questions, comments or further explanation? Contact me at: dennis.hogan@icloud.com
If you have friends, family, or acquaintances that you feel could benefit from RTS, please forward
their e-mail address to me and I will add them to my mail list.
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