When we see people die in a terrible manner, some of us have the tendency to associate their death with the gravity of the sin they have committed. It is because we know that there is a serious consequence of sin. But does the manner in which a person dies give us any indication of the seriousness of the sin he had committed? This seemed to be one of the dilemmas of the people when they told Jesus about the death of some Galileans whose blood Pilate mixed with their sacrifices. Jesus said, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish” (Luke 13:2-5).
From the response of the Lord, we could see that sin is a “sin” and, unless properly dealt with, will bring death in whatever manner. Therefore, there is a need for all of us to repent or we will all perish. No one can say that he has not sinned since the Scriptures tell us that all have sinned. The apostle John said, “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us . . . If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us” (1 John 1:8,10). This truth that we all have sinned was further proven when the Pharisees and Teachers of the Law brought a woman caught in adultery. They demanded that Jesus give the verdict and have the woman stoned to death. However, Jesus responded, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her” (John 8:7). As everyone searched their hearts, they all realized that they all have sinned hence, no dared to pick up a stone to throw at the woman. They all departed. This is the real truth if we only search our hearts and be true to ourselves. Therefore, we need to repent or we will all perish.
In reality, many are living like the Pharisee mentioned in the parable of Jesus. In this parable, the Pharisee went to the temple to pray. Rather than searching his heart truthfully, he looked around and lifted himself up saying, “God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get” (Luke 18:11-12). On the other hand, the tax collector beat his breast and said, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner”. Jesus said that this man, and not the other, went home justified. Therefore, we ought to humble ourselves before God and let him reveal to us the true condition of our hearts. We cannot live in denial just like the Pharisee. Our good works cannot be used as cover for our sins.
We cannot afford to keep living in sin. No amount of justification is enough to cover for it. In fact, the apostle Paul warned, “Because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed. God will repay each person according to what they have done” (Rom. 2:5-6).No one else will suffer the consequence but those who chose to be stubborn and refused to repent. The Bible is replete of stories of people who sinned and suffered the consequences. We have Ananias and Sapphira who died instantly in front of the disciples for lying to the Holy Spirit (Acts 5), Achan who was stoned to death together with his family for stealing some of the devoted things (Joshua 7) and Gehazi, the servant of Elisha, who employed deceit and lies to receive two talents of silver and two sets of clothing from Naaman. For his sin, he was inflicted with leprosy (2 King 5).
To avoid the consequence of sin, we need to specially listen to the warning of the Lord spoken by the prophet Ezekiel. He said, “Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall. Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, people of Israel? For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone. Repent and live!” (Ez. 18:30-32). Indeed, sin has been the downfall of many who chose to be stubborn. They are so entangled in sin that they keep an unrepentant heart. But we do not have to go that path – we do not have to die. We only need to repent and have a change of heart and be renewed in our spirit. It is God’s will that we enjoy life to the fullest and we will only have it if we are able to set ourselves free from sin. It is imperative then that we take everything that is needed to repent and forsake our sins. With that one act of repentance, we shall be liberated from all the consequences of sin. Therefore, let us repent and live. Hallelujah!
