Prayer: God Almighty, ruler of all that you have created, judge of all mankind, we humbly come before you to ask for your forgiveness for our ongoing sin. Not that we deserve a relationship with you, Oh God, but that we desire your strength and comfort this day as in all days, Amen.
Main Scripture:
If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us (1John 1:8).
Associated Scriptures:
If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you (John 14:15-17)
You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. Yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe me (John 8:44-45)!
The Lord has made everything for its own purpose, even the wicked for the day of evil. Everyone who is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord; assuredly, he will not be unpunished. By lovingkindness and truth iniquity is atoned for, and by the fear of the Lord one keeps away from evil (Proverbs 16:4-6, NASB).
Correlative Quotes:
"HAVE," not 'have had,' must refer, not to the past life while unconverted, but to the present state, wherein believers have sin even still. "Sin" is singular; "(confess our) sins," 1 John 1:9, plural. Sin means the corruption of the old man still in us, and the stain created by actual sins flowing from that old nature. To confess our need of cleansing from present sin is essential to 'walking in the light;' so far is the presence of sin incompatible with us in the main 'walking in light.' [1] – Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown
Again, men are apt to say that they have no sin. It is a profound mistake on their part, arising from defective ideas of what sin is, or from self-ignorance.[2] – F. B. Meyer
All have sinned and come short of the glory of God; and therefore, every man needs a Savior, such as Christ is.[3] – Adam Clarke
Study:
Introduction
It is our nature to be disobedient (Romans 3:23). That disobedience permeates every area of our lives. It begins early in life. Even as babies we are tempted and give in to our sin nature. When a parent tells a small child not to touch a hot stove and the child continues to reach out to touch it, that is our defiant nature at work.
God is Holy. Isaiah 6:1-3 says that He is “Holy, Holy, Holy”, the whole earth is filled with the Glory of God. He cannot and will not tolerate sin. Romans 6:23a says, “For the wages of sin is death.” He will penalize the person who continues in a life of sin with eternal death and punishment. However, He has provided an escape from eternal suffering through the redeeming blood of Jesus. To receive the gift of eternal life we must accept Christ’s payment for our guilt. Romans 6:23b tells us that, “but the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Sinning: the Ways that We Sin
Summary Statement:
Sin separates us from access to God and severs our spiritual and personal relationships with others. Lies are the lowest form of sin since they not only show that the liar has no respect for God or others but also that they have no integrity.
Repentance renews relationships. The truth will set us free. The Truth of God is the word itself. It is given to us by Jesus through the action of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, by reading scripture we can understand the difference between a lie and the truth. Then there is no excuse for lying.
When we say that we have no sin, we put Jesus back on the cross in our lives. By saying that we do not sin or have no sin we are lying. When we lie, we lose the fellowship experience that we share with Jesus and others. To return to that position we must repent and ask for forgiveness.
God knows how hard it is to remove its pollution. He saw that nothing of ours could remove the horrible blot. Brethren, I know of a surety that all the waters of all the seas might be reddened by my scarlet sin, and yet they could not wash out the fatal stain. Not even the fires of hell could burn out the defilement of sin. In this persuasion we have fellowship with the pure and holy God, who saw that there was no means of removing sin but one; He must deliver up His own Son to death, or the sin of man could never be purged away. The sacrifice of the Only-begotten is the unique hope of sinners.[4] – Charles Spurgeon
Lesson within the Lesson:
Do you feel that you can have any type of personal or spiritual relationship with those who would rather lie than tell the truth?
How do you confront those who believe or are teaching a lie?
How does society react to lies and is it ever right to tell a lie?
How do you test the teaching and beliefs of others and why is it important?
[1] Jamieson, Robert, D. D.; Fausset, A. R.; Brown, David, "Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible," P. 3068-9.
[2] F. B. Meyer, Our Daily Homily, P. 231.
[3] Adam Clarke, The Adam Clarke Commentary, Ibid., P. 863.
[4] Charles Spurgeon, Charles Spurgeon, The Child Walking in the Light, Public Domain, Ibid, P. 1.
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