We will never know the destructive effects of sin unless we understand the nature of God. The nature of God is that He is a perfect being who desires to live in a perfect existence in a loving relationship with His most cherished creation - mankind. The nature of love is that we have to choose to love, obey and walk in relationship with Him. God does not force us to do these things because that would negate freewill and without freewill there is no such thing as love. The destructive power of sin is that in our freewill we chose to reject God, and in doing so we rejected everything good that God had for us. Instead of a harmonious natural world, like it was in the  garden, sin caused a breakdown of our system which has led to earthquakes, famine, hurricanes and every other natural disaster. Instead of a perfect harmonious nature of our physical bodies. It is because of sin that we are left with disease, pain, sickness and ultimately death. But it wasn’t meant to be this way. We chose, and continue to choose a painful and destructive path which may look glittery and glamorous from the outside, but is filled with regret, suffering and ultimate separation from our creator. That is ultimately what sin is. It’s missing the mark or falling short of the perfect  holy standard of God. Sin is choosing to live and function outside of the definitions and designs that God has for us. And we can do no better than what God has purposed for us. The horrible things we experience in our world are our fault, not Gods. They are the result of millennia of rejecting God and what He intended for us. We were never intended to experience pain, loss and suffering. But we do experience these things everyday in this life and unfortunately it gets worse. The devastating effects of sin do not just extend to our natural, physical world but also to the spiritual as well. We cannot stand in the presence of a holy God if we are stained with sin. God, who is perfect and holy by nature, cannot be connected with a sinful person, and all sin has to be paid for. The good news is that God loved you so much that he provided a way for you to be forgiven for your sin and to be set back into a relationship and connection with God, but you have to choose to accept this free gift. Sadly, most people throughout history have chosen not to accept this free gift, but instead have attempted to pay for their own sin. Which is something they will never be able to do, even after thousands of years living in disconnection from God. The only way for sin to be defeated is through a perfect, sinless and blameless sacrifice taking our punishment on Himself and defeating the power of sin and death once and for all.  We still live in a fallen world, and sin is to blame for all the heartache, pain and suffering we live amongst, but for those who are in christ and have accepted his free gift of salvation there is the hope of living in eternity with God - a new heaven, a new earth and a new Eden.  As followers of Christ, we should have a hatred of sin because of what it has caused. We don’t hate the sinner, but we are called to hate sin in the same way Christ does. In our common problem of sin, we have a common solution in Christ. We can’t fix this problem ourselves. We are the problem and the problem cannot fix the problem. Take heart , Christ has given us a redemption from sin through His sacrifice on the cross.

...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse. Romans 1:20

A systematic study of the doctrine of salvation (soteriology) and the doctrine of the Church (ecclesiology). Special attention will be given to the plan of redemption and the contents of the gospel message as it is seen in the incarnation, life, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ. Special emphasis will be on the nature and working of the kingdom of God. The Gospels and Jesus’ teachings will serve as the specific source of the study.

Explicit Gospel
Matt Chandler