In my last
post, I wrote about the many times the word “all” appears in the Scriptures –
nearly 6,000. The term offers great encouragement, assurance of God's presence and personal involvement in every circumstance, good and bad, that we
confront in this journey called life. But not every use of “all” is as
uplifting.
 |
| We need to understand the meaning of "all." |
Romans 3:23
declares, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” The same
chapter also says, “There is no one
righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God.
All have turned away, they have
together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one” (Romans
3:10-12). That sounds harsh – and all-encompassing.
Why is this
important? All we need to do is watch the evening news, or read a newspaper,
for the answer. Of late we’ve heard report after report about prominent
individuals – entertainers, politicians, news media celebrities, athletes and
others – accused of multiple instances of sexual misconduct. Reactions by
employers and their industries have been swift and severe. And sadly, as some observers
suggest, this may be merely the tip of a proverbial iceberg of similar
accusations yet to come.
Some of
these persons reveled in the misdeeds of others; now the weight of guilt has
fallen on their own shoulders. How can this be? It’s because, as the Bible
asserts without wavering, we all have
sinned – and fallen far short of God’s glory and His perfect standards.
These
recent episodes focus on one specific form of sin, but they teach a broader
lesson. How can such wrongdoing be so pervasive? Why have so many stumbled,
people who should have known better?
Sociologists
and psychologists might offer different explanations, but I believe the reason
is very simple. In our “enlightened,” “progressive,” amoral culture, we’ve
rejected the clear warnings of the Scriptures. The ancient book of Job, describing
the travails he endured and the debate between himself and his so-called
friends, recounts his bold statement, “I
made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully at a girl” (Job 31:1).
He knew even a desiring stare could lead to serious consequences.
In the book
of Proverbs, chapters 4-9 speak about the snares of sexual temptation and the
devastating results when those temptations are acted upon and turned to sin.
Here’s a sampling:
- “Above all else,
guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life” (Proverbs 4:23).
- “For the lips of
an adulteress drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil; but in the
end she is bitter as gall, sharp as a double-edged sword” (Proverbs 5:3-4).
- “…a man who commits
adultery lacks judgment; whoever does so destroys himself” (Proverbs 6:32).
- “All at once he
followed her like an ox going to the slaughter, like a deer stepping into
a noose…little knowing it will cost him his life” (Proverbs 7:22-23).
Jesus
addressed this in His “sermon on the mount.” He warned, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall
not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully
has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:27-28).
Not
everyone is guilty of sexual sin, although a wise man once told me that we all
have broken every one of the Ten Commandments in thought, word or deed. But
without question, we all fit the description of Romans 3:23. We all have sinned
and fallen desperately short of God righteous standard.
What’s to
be done about this? It has already been done. Romans 5:8 declares, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in
this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” A bit later it also
states, “For the wages of sin is death,
but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans
6:23).
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