What Is Sin? Part 4- by Michelle Peterson (Guest Blogger)

Ok folks, a quick review.

I grew up Southern Baptist, with many rules and regulations. Just about anything enjoyable was considered sin.

I moved closer to God, then back away, then closer, then almost away TOTALLY from Him, and then He plucked me up from my pit of despair and set me straight. I am growing everyday, trying to understand how He loves me so much and how to better serve Him and others.

We started with the fact that there are 10 commandments, and 613 laws in the Old Testament.

We established that sin is anything that separates or moves us away from God.

Now….let’s move on.

Ok, so I grew up with the teaching that drinking any alcohol was sin. However, the Bible mentions drinking wine in many places through its books! Paul even said that a little wine is good for digestion. (“Stop drinking only water, and use a little wine because of your stomach and your frequent illnesses.” 1 Timothy 5:23) While the Bible warns us to avoid drunkenness, it never says to avoid alcohol.

Have you heard the expression that money is the root of all evil? That statement is often attributed to the Bible, but the Bible never says that. God wants us to have blessings of all kind, pressed down and running over, including financial blessings! What the Bible says is actually that “the love of money is the root of all evil’ (1Timothy 6:10).

What about smoking? Well, we are told in that our body is the Temple of God (1 Corinthians 6:19) so we should do all things to take care of God’s temple. Is it a sin to smoke? No, but it probably isn’t very good for your health if you do, and therefore not a very good way to protect God’s Temple.

Dancing? Nope, not that one either. Ecclesiastes 3:4 tells us there is a time to dance, and a time to mourn. Psalm 149 and 150 mention dance in worship. So is dance itself a sin? Nope. However if you are moving your body in a sultry and sexual way, it is not pleasing to God because it inspires lust in the hearts of others.

My point is that often people misinterpret what sin is. So often it is not the action in question itself that is sin, as much as the motive behind the action. If you drink to get drunk, that is a sin. If your dance moves consist of bumping and grinding in order to arouse someone’s desire, then it is not without the consequence of sin either.

We need to examine our motives and intentions behind what we do, rather than nit-picking and splitting hairs over whether something is sin or not. Listen to God; He is the deciding factor after all. If He speaks to your spirit that what you are doing is not pleasing to Him, then LISTEN! If you have questions about what God wants from you READ HIS INSTUCTIONS!!!! Pray about it. You will know what is sin and what is not.

So, my friends, if you want to drink a couple of beers while you play poker or watch a football game, is it sin for you? Only if your need for the beer supersedes your desire to please God. If you have money in your bank account is that a sin? Only if your love of that money makes your assets an idol, taking precedence over God.  What about driving the new Dodge Challenger? Not if you drive it because you like the car and think it handles well and accommodates your needs for transportation. For me it would be a sin, because I would idolize that car. (I have to pray about that anyway, because I kind of drool when I see one drive by and if I did own it I would never have to worry about the money in the bank being my idol because I would use it all on speeding tickets! J )

In summary…..pray about the choices you make. Listen to God, search His Word, and you will KNOW what is sin and what is not.  It is important to find the answers for you, not basing your belief system on what Grandma said or what Pastor so and so said. Many times family cultures forbid or allow things by tradition. Some pastors or teachers do not know what the Word says. Search for yourself, and you will find your answers!

Michelle Peterson:
I am a happily married, stay at home mother of a 12 year old daughter. I was born and raised in Southeast Georgia before becoming a Navy wife for over 10 years. I strive to live purposefully, doing as God directs and leads me. I enjoy reading, writing, scrapbooking and cooking. It is my desire to live a life pleasing to God in all areas and grow in His teachings..

Visit her at- http://www.scrappygypsy.blogspot.com