Missing the Mark, Meeting the Master - Heresies

By Pastor Alex Ruelo

There are wrong beliefs about sin even inside the church. But thank God that inspite of our sins, Jesus came to save us. Romans 1:21-32 says, “Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools. And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles. So God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other’s bodies. They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen. That is why God abandoned them to their shameful desires. Even the women turned against the natural way to have sex and instead indulged in sex with each other. And the men, instead of having normal sexual relations with women, burned with lust for each other. Men did shameful things with other men, and as a result of this sin, they suffered within themselves the penalty they deserved. Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that should never be done. Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, and gossip. They are backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, and boastful. They invent new ways of sinning, and they disobey their parents. They refuse to understand, break their promises, are heartless, and have no mercy. They know God’s justice requires that those who do these things deserve to die, yet they do them anyway. Worse yet, they encourage others to do them, too.”

In the verses, you can see how vile man is. In this world, you have been taught about different sins. And one of the most influential things are songs. People have a tendency to feel too much. Luke Bryan is an American singer who composed a song entitled, “Most People are Good.” It talks about neighborly kindness, virtues and says that human nature is fundamentally decent. And in truth, people love that sentiment, they want to believe that people are really good. But as followers of God, you need to think about it because there is a danger in that. If you believe that truth, then you do not need Jesus as your Savior. What you need is a life coach - someone who will teach you how to be a better person, because you are already good. If you do not believe that you are sinners, the death of Jesus in the cross is not needed. Some people believe that sins have varying degrees, and the “small” sin should not be punished the same way as the “big” sin.

Pelagianism is the belief that people are born morally neutral and can save themselves by doing enough good. One of the most difficult people to share the gospel to are Filipinos because they know Jesus. They reject the gospel because they believe that they are basically good. That is the church heresy. Good works is enough to get to heaven, they say. But when you open scriptures, God does not give you a pep talk. He gives you an autopsy of your sins - who you really are and what you have been doing.

Before you see the solution, you have to know what sin is first. The word “sin” came from the Greek word “Hamartia,” which means to miss the mark.  When you shoot an arrow you’re supposed to hit the bull’s eye. If you shoot it even a millimeter off of it, you miss the mark - no matter how close it gets. If the mark is the standard of God, you miss it even with the smallest sin or wrongdoing. There is no such thing as almost. In the church, sins have categories. Murder and homosexuality are up there in the tier while lying and stealing are very minor sins. But a sis is a sin, no matter how big or small. James 2:10 says “For the person who keeps all the laws except one is as guilty as the person who has broken all of God’s laws.” In a list, if you make 100 mistakes, it is the same as the one who made 1 mistake only.

1 Corinthians 6:9-10 says, “Don’t you realize that those who do wrong will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Don’t fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, or who worship idols, or commit adultery, or are male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality, or are thieves, or greedy people, or drunkards, or are abusive, or cheat people—none of these will inherit the Kingdom of God.” Paul listed the sins as is, not according to rank. They are all sins. But you have to separate the person and his actions. The person has a part in the kingdom of God; but the sin does not. You cannot have a holy God who compromises. Everybody is guilty and will have consequences for their sins.

Romans 1:21-23 says, “Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools. And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles.” If all sin is missing the mark, how did you get here? Sin is not only behavior. It is an inversion of reality. Man makes their own truths and makes it real for everybody. Go straight to the source. Go straight to God. When you twist your worship, God allows your desires to become twisted because you have free will. He cannot force you to bow to Him. But everything you do has consequences too. Do not blame God when they come.

But then again, Romans 3:24 says, “Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins.” After He made us realize all of our sins, He forgave us by dying on the cross for us. Not because you are good. You are declared not guilty of all your sins because of His grace. He paid for it all.

Knowing how prone you are to miss the mark and knowing the staggering price Jesus paid to justify you, how will you avoid the root of all of these sins?

Guard your worship with daily gratitude. Thank God for everything that is happening to you. He only has good plans even when you think otherwise. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 says, “Give thanks in all circumstances, for it is God’s will for you who belong to Jesus Christ.”

Stop ranking sins and start repenting for them. Proverbs 28:13 says, “People who conceal their sins will not prosper, but if they confess and turn from them, they will receive mercy.” 1 John 1:8-9 says, “If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.” Everyone is struggling in sin. Ask for forgiveness from the Lord. To a holy God, sin is sin. Big or small, you missed the ark so you need to repent.

Calibrate your mind with scripture. Nothing else can make things straight by you but the bible. Romans 12:2 says, “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” You cannot renew your mind if you do not know the truth. Truly, all men are sinners. Jesus is the only way, the truth and the life. It is only through Him that you can come to the Father.

Live in radical accountability. Oftentimes, you sin because nobody is accountable to you. Nobody checks on you and you do not have anyone to talk to. James 5:16 says, “Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.”

Everybody needs Jesus even if they do not deserve Him. When Jesus came, nobody is guilty anymore. He has paid for all of your sins and you do not deserve it. What are you going to do about it now?