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The Importance of Sin By Don McMurray

Over the past few weeks, we've had several important things to talk about, to preach upon.
Some have said to me, oh, I like that one on growing in grace, or I thought justification was the thing that really lifted me up, or perhaps that one last week was the one that suited me.
They're all important issues, brethren. It's not that one is more important than the other.
It's a whole diet that we need from God's Word.
But I'm not quite sure that I know of a more important subject than the one we have today, the importance of sin, simply because if we do not understand the importance of sin, we will never seek a saviour in our Lord Jesus Christ.
We'll never know what it is to be saved from something that would damn ourselves.
And so I believe it's a very important subject, this matter of sin.
Simply, could I say that sin is, but is the knowledge of sin. Sin is, but is the knowledge of sin. 

The Apostle Paul says here in Romans 7-7, what shall we say then? Is the law sin?
Certainly not. On the contrary, I would have not known sin except through the law,
for I would not have known covetousness unless the Lord had said, you shall not covet.
Firstly, as I've read and as I've thought about this, the conclusion I came is that first heading I've given you.
It's the lost doctrine. Sin is the lost doctrine.
There's a Puritan back in the 1600s, I think 1660 or something, by the name of Jeremiah or Jeremy Burrows.
He wrote a book called The Evil of Evils, and he said this.
His thesis was that it was better to choose the sufferings of affliction than sin.
It was better to choose the sufferings of affliction than sin.
The smallest sin, he said, is more evil than the greatest affliction.
Now, some of you are afflicted. That might be hard to come to grips with this morning.
But think about it. Sin is contrary to the character of God.
Sin is the evil of all evils, the source from which emanates every affliction, every pain, every suffering,
every disease and human misery.
Unlike suffering, sin brings really the curse from God.
And no one is condemned for affliction, are they? But all are condemned for sin.
Sin makes the sinner evil. Affliction cannot do that.
That was back in the 17th century. But if you look about and think about the church,
today's church seems utterly to lack any notion of the profound evil of sin even.
We grieve over calamities. We are troubled by our miseries, trials of life distresses.
But are we equally disturbed by our sin?
Do we believe that the least sin contains more evil than the least affliction?
To most Christians, sin is just not that evil.
In fact, we as a church will not be preaching in one particular church in Newcastle anymore,
simply because one of our preachers preached on sin. That's today's church.
We see shame as a worse evil than the sin that causes it. Isn't that true?
Oh, I got caught out. That's the problem. I got caught in my sin.
Not the sin that caused the shame, but the shame seems to be preeminent.
And if you knock on doors, as some do, and if you speak and witness in your workplace or in your home,
in the environment in which you move in this world, you'll find that there is a whole generation raised without reference to moral absolutes.
And therefore, because there are no moral absolutes, this whole generation is ill-equipped to take responsibility for moral decisions.
God-given consciences have been seared, have been cauterised and rendered virtually inoperative.
Surely, it's true to say that whether it be the Puritan age or whether it be in the former centuries or the church in general today throughout the world, or maybe even here at Alamo Vale, the lost doctrine is sin. And when I say the lost doctrine is sin, I'm not talking about merely words, nothing but words.
I'm talking about the effect and the understanding of sin.
Did you ever think, really, why did God the Son emphasise the fact that when he goes, he will send the Holy Spirit?
Well, that's the second thing we ought to look at.
The Holy Spirit's first work in this earth is to convict of sin.
In the main, society treats sin as some sort of disease, doesn't it?
Some sort of a disease that you can get a cure from.
If you get all our genetic scientists or if you get all our people working on their pills and potions,
their psychology and their psychiatry, we'll come up with a solution for sin.
Well, it's very clear that the therapy industry is clearly not solving the problem that scripture calls sin, is it?
Sin rages. The world is in chaos, as Paul mentioned, because they see no allegiance to the king.
Everyone does that which is right in its own sight.
There's no help for those who deny responsibility for their own behaviour.
There are multitudes today who just suppress their consciences,
and it becomes so defiled that it ceases to distinguish between right and wrong.
And I think the same happens in our midst sometimes.
We can get so taken up with things that we fail to distinguish between right and wrong.
We of all people need to discover or recover a holy hatred of sin,
and I speak that of myself as well as you people here today.
The only hope is for individuals really to become converted
and then to live a life of light and salt in the world, in this corrupt society within which we live.
There is a need amongst us to remember that God hates sin.
Remember it was sin that put his beloved son on the cross of Calvary.
But how can we possibly see these things and know these things?
Surely God the Son knew and foresaw and understood the awful dilemma that we would be in this very day, in this century, in this town.
Surely he would know the deadness that comes upon the heart of those who have seared consciences.
Surely he knew our need of being convicted that we are sinners, that we have sinned against God who is holy, that the penalty for sin is everlasting damnation.
Surely the Lord knows that, that we have that need.
Now turn with me to John chapter 16.
The very reason why he has brought you here this morning is for this particular purpose.
Let's read from verse 16.
These things he said, I have spoken to you that you should not be made to stumble.
They will put you out of the synagogues.
Yes, the time will come that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service.
And these things they will do to you because they have not known the Father nor me.
But these things I have told you that when the time comes you may remember that I told you of them.
And these things I did say to you at the beginning because I was with you.
But now I go away to him who sent me.
And none of you asked me where are you going.
But because I have said these things, sorrow has filled your heart.
Nevertheless, I tell you the truth.
It is to your advantage that I go away.
For if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you.
But if I depart, I will send him to you.
And when he has come, he will convict the world of sin and of righteousness and of judgment.
Of sin because they do not believe in me.
Of righteousness because I go to my Father and you see me no more.
Of judgment because the ruler of this world is judged.
So it is for our advantage that God the Holy Spirit has come into the world to convict.
To convict of sin.
And if there is no conviction of sin, let me tell you clearly there is no conversion.
There is no heaven. There is only hell.
And oh how we need to cry out that the Holy Spirit would come upon us this morning.
To convict of sin.
We need to plead that the Holy Spirit would come in his supernatural power.
To take away the flippancy, to take away the ignorance, to take away the seared consciences.
And to convict those who are dead and hardened and seared.
Oh Holy Spirit, come.
How do we want him to come?
And oh how we want him to come, we cry out in mercy that he would come.
We plead with him to do his divine work in our midst this morning.
Ere we sleep the sleep of death and are no more in this world or in the presence of God.
Sin is the lost doctrine. We really need the Holy Spirit power to convict us of sin.
Then I ask the question thirdly, do you have a true knowledge of sin?
I was reading Martin Lloyd-Jones and he said if you want an understanding of chapters 6 and 7 of Romans,
you need to read Romans chapter 5 verses 20 and 21 in which he says,
Moreover the law entered that the offence might abound.
But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more.
So that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
And then he goes on to point out that chapter 6 deals with the moral aspects of sin, of the law I should say.
And chapter 7, he deals with the place of the law.
And it's in chapter 7 that we're dealing with.
And it deals specifically with the relationship of the Christian to the law.
Step by step Paul shows that sanctification by the law is as impossible as was justification by the law.
Then we come to this passage that we're really looking at he says, verses 7 through 12.
And he shows the vindication of the law.
That is that the moral law which is applicable to the Jews and to the Gentiles, he's writing to the Romans.
And it's not only to the Jews but to the Gentiles.
And it's not only to deal with the ceremonial things as the Jews had but the moral law, the Ten Commandments.
But the law must never be held responsible for our failure to keep it.
And why is that? Because the law is holy and just as good.
That's what he talked about in Romans 7, isn't it?
So we can't hold the law responsible for our failure to keep it.
So he asks the question in verse 7 that we're looking at, is the law sin?
Well the answer is obviously no.
The very opposite is the case because he goes on to say, I had not known sin except through the law.
Yes it is true that there is a general knowledge of sin in all people.
Whether we are in New Guinea amongst tribal people or whether we're here, everybody knows it's wrong.
To steal or to commit adultery or fornication or whatever, they all know it.
You don't have to teach them, they know it because God has given them that understanding in their hearts and their minds.
Paul had that just like you and I had it, general knowledge of sin.
But what's he saying here? He's saying here that the law is not the cause of sin.
What does it then do? Well he says it discovers sin.
It sneaks in, it goes into those hiding places that recesses at our hearts the thoughts and the intent of our mind and discovers the sin.
It's a bit children like when we have a, at our Sunday school picnic isn't it for all your children here.
And somebody seems to always go every year and hides lollies.
And I'm sure that there's never a lolly left on the whole of that reserve because the children seek it out don't they?
And I'm always there trying to get one off them. But that's the same thought isn't it?
The law comes and it seeks out every last detail of our life, of our thoughts and of our action.
So the law is not the cause of sin, it discovers it.
It comes up to sin and it's got all its nice sugar coating around it and it strips it of its disguise.
It says, ah, you look nice but you're sin.
And not only that, after he finds the sin and those deep recesses of our souls and strips of it all as hypocrisy,
it brings us out into the light of the gospel of Jesus Christ and says, there's your sin.
That is what the moral law, the Ten Commandments do when taken to our heart by the Holy Spirit.
So then why does Paul then say in this verse seven, I had not known sin except through the law
for I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said you shall not covet.
What is it to covet? Why did he pick out that one?
I mean say there's another nine he could have picked on couldn't he?
But why pick that one? Seems a bit strange to me.
Why didn't the Apostle Paul know?
He said I had not known sin except through the law, except the Lord said you shall not covet.
Why didn't he know? He's a pretty smart cookie, as the saying goes.
Why do I say that? He was a teacher of the law.
He was a Pharisee of the Pharisees. He was more zealous for the law of God than anyone in his day, he claims.
Who could be more righteous than Paul the Apostle, saw the Pharisee before he was converted.
And yet he was able to say I did not know the law. Don't you think that's strange?
If I were to ask some of you people here today, even though you do not claim to be a Christian today,
some of the Ten Commandments, I'm sure you could rattle off a few couldn't you?
I may say that I could ask anybody in the street probably and they would tell me a few.
So why didn't the Apostle Paul know? And the word means to know absolutely. Why didn't he know?
Why didn't he know that he was a sinner?
And why did he specify this sin of covetousness? You shall not covet.
Well what does covet mean? Well it means a very strong desire. Is that bad or good?
Well according to someone who took the Lord's Supper here the other night, it was good.
Because Jesus said, didn't he, in Luke 22 and verse 15, with desire I have a desire to have this supper with you.
Is that bad or good? That was good. He had a great desire.
But again, doesn't it tell us that there is a good and a bad coveting?
And so what's Paul's not talking about? A good coveting? He's talking about a bad coveting.
He's talking about something that is evil. You see in verse 8 for instance,
But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced in me all manner of evil desire.
For apart from the law sin was dead. I was asleep. It was dormant in my life.
I hadn't seen it before. Here I am. I'm going along my merry way. I'm very proud of my achievements in the law.
But when it came, it produced in me all manner of evil desire.
Something else I noticed about it too in this verse 7. Did you notice it?
Notice what he says, but when the commandment came, he said, the commandment, I should say in verse 8,
by the commandment, singular, not commandments, plural. Now why did he do that?
Why didn't he take hold of kill and lie and steal and all that sort of stuff?
It's very interesting because they're the doing things, aren't they?
They're the things that you can readily see done. And you only got to watch the news every night.
And there's always a couple of murders at least. I mean, say it's hardly a show without a couple of murders,
a couple of wife bashing, a couple of this or that. It's hardly a show, is it?
And if you watch the 7.30 report, I mean, so you can hardly get through with Ray Martin or these other fellows
without at least seeing someone lying and cheating or stealing, can you?
They're all the working outs. Whereas this tenth commandment, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife
when they're manservant and maidservant and donkey and house and anything that is your neighbour.
It's all to do with the inner man, isn't it? It's with the mind, it's with the heart.
It's that inner one that we don't see from the outside.
The Pharisees, like Paul was before converted, thought that evil desire is not sin.
In fact, if you look at the teaching of Roman Catholicism, you'll find they have the same idea.
Especially after the child's been sprinkled, the original sin's gone and now it's only those sins are committed.
What about the thoughts and the intents of the heart?
Have a look at Matthew, chapter 5. Isn't this precisely why Jesus was killed?
He wouldn't conform to the Pharisees or the Sadducees or the religious leaders of the day.
They'd lost their way. We hear that from the politicians regularly.
They've lost their way, they're not with the plot. Well, that's a fact of the Jewish religion when Christ came on a whole.
Not everyone, but primarily they'd lost their way.
They thought it was the outward performance of things or not performing things that got them brownie points with God.
But Jesus came to them, verse 21 of chapter 5 of Matthew,
you've heard that it is said you shall not murder and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.
But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment.
Now people here get angry. Is it for a right cause?
Or is it angry because of frustration or just want to vent your feeling on people?
God calls it murder in the heart and if you could get away that you would do it.
He's saying that to these people. Down to verse 27.
You have heard that it was said to those of us, you shall not commit adultery.
But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery where?
In his heart.
In Luke chapter 8.
And verse 17.
For nothing is secret that will not be revealed, nor anything hidden that will not be made known and come to light.
Oh I bet there's a lot of detectives who would love to have that ability now don't you?
All the unsolved crimes will be resolved in a moment.
But there will come a time when every thought and intent of the heart and the mind, everything that is done in secret will be revealed.
That's what he says. That's what Christ said.
And then over in chapter 12 of Luke and in verse 1 and 2.
In the multitude when an innumerable, in the meantime when an innumerable multitude of people had gathered together so that they trampled one another.
He began to say, that is Jesus began to say to his disciples, first of all beware of the leaven of the Pharisees which is hypocrisy.
For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, nor hidden that will not be known.
You see the leaven of the Pharisees, they thought they could commit sins in their minds and in their hearts and not do things outwardly.
And that's a leaven that's sneaked into the Jewish people, it can sneak into our church here.
A little leaven, leavens the whole lump and people are defected and infected and perhaps defect.
1 Corinthians 4-5.
Therefore judge nothing before the time until the Lord comes, who will bring, both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the heart that each one's praise will come from God.
God will search the heart, he will see and he will declare.
Christ discovered the heart sins of the Pharisees time and time again, even when they so vilely and so miserably took a woman in the very act of adultery before Christ.
And they wanted to pin Christ and he, they said, what does the law of Moses say? Jesus said, let him who has not sinned cast the first stone.
And they wanted to pin Christ and he, they said, what does the law of Moses say? Jesus said, let him who has not sinned cast the first stone.
And beginning with the eldest to the youngest, they all filed out.
The Lord discovered the sin of their heart and maybe of their actions.
Paul says in verse 8 of our text in Romans 7, he says, but sin taking opportunity by the commander produced in me all manner of evil desire, for apart from the law sin was dead.
Paul says that the Lord showed, the law showed him these sinful nature of his evil desires. That's what he says.
We are excited to desire things forbidden by the law. Isn't that true?
Whatever is prohibited is only the more earnestly desired by us. No wonder the police and the detectives and the insurance people have such trouble.
The law may restrain the outward act, but it excites the evil inclinations of the heart and of the mind.
Old John Trapp, he was a, he's a bit of a character, one of the old writers, I like him.
He says, the more the law would dam up the torrent of sinful lusts, the higher did they swell.
Corruption does increase and begin by the law. The more God forbids sin, the more we bid for it, as if we did sin on purpose to provoke God.
As if God need deal with us as he did with the story about the man who was used to command the contrary of what, when he would have something done because he knew the people he spoke to would just do the opposite.
So he wanted something done, he would tell them the opposite of what he wanted and they would comply with what he really wanted. Aren't we fickle people? Isn't that true?
Every Christian knows by experience the truth of all the apostle declares in this verse, verse 8.
When does he know that? Well, once our spiritual eyes are open to the sinfulness of sin in our own heart, wow, isn't it? In flood all these desires.
Maybe this is the problem with you this morning. If you do not understand and feel the sin in your life, your eyes are closed.
But the Christian knows the struggle with sin, knows the awfulness of sin.
I read in another statement. Do you realise the difference between a sincere, spirit-filled, devoted, godly, obedient Christian and a defeated, weak, struggling Christian is what takes place in their mind?
Did you know? You think about that. Why one is strong and the other is weak in their Christian faith is to do with our way we think in our minds and in our hearts.
Do you understand that that is why King David cried out in Psalm 51, create in me what? A clean heart of God and renew a right spirit within me.
It was the appeal for a sound conscience arising from a pure mind when David cried out.
Where did David go wrong in his sin? Where did Achan go wrong in his sin in Joshua 7? Have a look in James 1.
Verse 12. Blessed is the man who endures temptation for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love him.
Let no one say, when he is tempted, I am tempted by God, for God cannot be tempted by evil, for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he himself tempt anyone.
But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires, his own lusts and enticed. Then when desires conceived he brings forth sin and sin when it is full grown brings forth death.
The time to stop sin is at its conception before it comes forth and takes on life and action.
Just because you don't act out an evil deed, that doesn't excuse the secret desires.
Lust itself is sinful. Greed alone is wicked. Covetous anger, pride, lust, all those sort of things and envy and discontent and hatred are all evil thoughts.
They're just as bad as the behaviour they produce. No wonder verse 13 that we end up with says,
Has then that which is good become death to me? Certainly not. But sin that it might appear sin was produced death in me through what is good.
So that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly, super passing everything else, exceedingly sinful.
And why is that? Because it's against God. It's against the character of God, against his holiness and his justice and his goodness and his mercy.
It is a rebellion against the law, which is holy and just and good. You only have to look at the world to see what sin's already done in the world.
And yet, though we know it against our own interests, we do it.
And yet for all that, we look at Calvary's cross and we see the whole climax. The worst sins are the sins against the gospel.
Rejection of the loving messengers sent by God who concern for ourselves and not only of the messengers, but of the message that they bring.
The closing of our mind, the shutting off of our ears, the sleep of death that we engage upon and think that we can go through life.
Oh, these are the worst sins. Against the king of love, my shepherd is. That's where the sins come.
Against him after having perhaps made a profession of loving him, to be numbered amongst his church and yet to be of the world.
These, understood by the grace of God and the work of the Holy Spirit, make sin exceedingly sinful.
Do you have a true knowledge of sin now? Can you say with the Apostle Paul, as it says here in Romans 7, 7,
I would not have known sin except through the law, for I would not have known covetousness unless the Lord said, You shall not covet.
Oh, I hope and pray that you know what sin is now. Because my last point quickly is, no sin, no saviour.
No sin, no saviour. There's no escaping the wrath of God and the everlasting damnation of hell unless you know yourself before God that you're a sinner in his sight.
Forget everybody else in the place, but in his sight. And I tell you what, if that's what God has done for you this morning, that's wonderful.
That's the grace of God. That's the work of the Holy Spirit in your life. That you know that you've sinned against God.
I tell you, I just praise God if that's happened to some today.
That you know that your evil desires, your covetous spirit deserves the wrath and curse of God and God would be just to damn you.
That's a work of grace. Only the convicted sinner is convinced that he needs a saviour.
He will cry out at the back of a serf for the life saviour to come, but the person who knows he's going to die and be lost forever.
My friends, if you're convicted of your sin this morning, you need to reach out to the Lord.
Lord, save me or I perish. Sin is of such importance that Almighty God was personally interested.
Hating it, yet bearing it. Angry with the wicked every day and yet dying once on the cross of Calvary to save his people from that sin.
He is such holiness that he cannot bear to look upon sin.
And so what does he do? He blots it out with his own blood on the cross of Calvary. Isn't that grace? Isn't that a marvellous saviour?
And it's obvious that Paul had this proper view of the Lord only in the cross of Christ.
Because he saw in the cross of Christ he was the righteous demand, the perfect holy demands of God for perfection, fulfilled in Christ.
And his hope was in him and not in himself.
Some of you are in this state today of being exceedingly sinful. You've heard the gospel.
You like me have committed sin in your mind, in your wicked and evil desires. But what have you done about it?
Have you just said, oh well, everybody's the same? Have you done something about it? Or are you going to die in your sin?
And you cannot come here week by week and say that I have not pleaded with you to turn from your sin and come to Christ.
You can't say that before God. But it's either dropped on deaf ears or your heart is so hardened that you couldn't care less.
There's been a little fear and then there's been a going back to the slough of the pig's life.
To feed your mind on the pornography, to feed your mind on the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life.
Your condemnation will be overwhelming when it comes. But why must it come? Why will you die? Why do you want that everlasting damnation?
Why won't you turn? Why won't you come to Christ? Why won't you believe in the Lord Jesus? Why won't you be rid of sin and put your back on sin and come to Christ for his cleansing today?
Why won't you? Surely this is why it's important to know sin, that we might seek a saviour from sin. He's done it all.
We desperately need to recover a holy hatred for sin. So do I.
Will you not hate it today? If the Holy Spirit has awakened your soul, your conscience and shown you your pride, then I plead with you this morning.
Come to Christ. Come to the Saviour. He has promised that those who come will know why he's cast out.
If we confess our sins as Christians, he's just faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
And if we come as an unsaved person to Christ this morning, he says, as far as the east is from the west, I'll take your sins from you.
All it takes is a prayer on your part costs the Lord everything. Just a glance will do.