1 John 1

“If we say, “We have no sin,” we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say, “We don’t have any sin,” we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.” 1 John 1:8-10 (HCSB)

“There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of every man which cannot be filled by any created thing, but only by God, the Creator, made known through Jesus.”  Blaise Paschal 1623-1662

What is sin? As a child, I learned that “sin” is an archery term, meaning “to miss the mark.”  I believe everyone knows they sin because everyone feels empty or incomplete to some extent. We all feel as if we have fallen short of “some” standard.

The pertinent question is not, “Do you sin?” meaning, “Do you feel incomplete?” Instead, “Do you believe the standard you fall short of is God’s standard, as written in the Bible?”

Missionary martyr Jim Elliot expanded Blaise Paschal’s statement by saying, “The soul is a vacuum that longs to be filled. It cares not with which it fills itself, as long as it is full.”  He was describing the scenario where a person could visit a church and be filled & satisfied with the things of God, only to leave that place and (shortly after that) satisfy the flesh with the things of the World. When our standard for righteousness is “how we feel,” we simply live for whatever satisfies the flesh. When our standard is God’s Word, we live to deny the flesh to honor God.

Many believe that if they deny the Bible as God’s standard, they don’t have to compare themselves to it, fill themselves with it, or conduct themselves by it. Those foolish people say, “I have not sinned against the Bible because I don’t believe its claims to authority.”  

They deceive themselves because the Bible doesn’t need man’s approval to be right. It simply IS right. But mankind needs the Bible to live rightly unto God. Where else will we learn of His standard, our sins, and Jesus’ gift of forgiveness & cleansing of unrighteousness?

To say, “We don’t have any sin,” makes God a liar, who gave Messiah Jesus to pay the penalty for our “missing the mark” and complete what is lacking. It makes Jesus a fool, suffering needlessly. And it means we are condemned, without atonement, wandering this earth trying to fill our “God-shaped vacuums” with “World shaped” stuff.