Alienation
That relationship with God was broken by sinful rebellion.
The same opening chapters of the Bible that describe personal and intimate relationship
of people with their Creator also tell of the tragedy
of that relationship being broken by sin. This account is not only an event of history,
it the story of every ordinary human being since.
Because of those events every one of us is a sinner, in rebellion against God, in
violation of his moral law, in danger of eternal punishment, in desperate need of
salvation, and deprived of true life. The Bible declares in sweeping terms:
All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
Your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God; your sins have
hidden his face from you.
This broken relationship with God has left all of us lacking and looking—
lacking in the joy and meaning of lives lived with God and looking for some way
to fill that void. The image of God in us is now deformed and defaced.
- Now our lives are characterized by hollowness.
We have lost that meaning, purpose, and identity that were part of God's design
in relationship with him. A void exists in the very center of our beings in our
separation from God by sin. Of course, voids seek to be filled; they
motivate us to fill them.
And so we try to find satisfaction in all sorts of things—career, material
possessions, money, educational degrees, appearance, athletics, religious practices
and involvement, and the list goes on.
- We are helpless to deal with this sin that
grips us. God is holy.
He is perfectly and morally pure and cannot tolerate sin.
Our predicament is not just our sin but our sinfulness. We sin because we are sinners.
We break God's law by what we do
and what we fail to do,
not only in action,
but even in our thoughts.
There is nothing we can do, either to make up
for the guilt of our past sin or to measure up
to God's unchanging standard of perfection
that he requires.
- We are left hopeless. Incapable of dealing
with the condition of sin in our lives, we can only expect the punishment of God
upon us for our sin.
Not only are we without God and without hope in this life,
the gavel of God's judgment on us as violators of his moral law is poised to fall
at our physical death.
God's pronouncement of "guilty" hangs over our heads and his sentence of eternal
separation looms before us.
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What a tragic and terrifying predicament! In our separation from God we live an
awkward and anemic life in this world, trying to make the best of things, satisfying
ourselves with temporary and illusory measures.
We are impotent to deal with the guilt of sin that condemns
us and the power of sin that enslaves
us. (What's sin all about? See sin FAQs)
But God…
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Cause for pause
Do I find an emptiness in my own heart and restlessness in my life?
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