When Faced with Sin

If we really all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, then what do we do when we are confronted with this sin? The Bible lists plenty of good and bad examples for us, but let’s take a quick look at the first two kings of Israel to reflect on our own lives.

Saul, after being commanded to kill all the Amalekites and their possessions and failing to do so, reports back to Samuel that “I have carried out the Lord’s instructions.” Samuel cuts him off with a reproach and yet Saul continues to say, “The troops brought them … The troops took sheep and cattle …”

Lies and finger pointing led Saul to be rejected by God as king.

What about David’s sin with Bathsheba? Nathan is the man who confronted him and David’s response in 2 Samuel 12 is, “I have sinned against the Lord.”

Not even the kings of God’s chosen people were immune from sin or the messy aftershock of its effects. Neither are we. We may be lay-leaders, deacons, pastors, and Sunday School teachers – but we are not exempt from sin.

Here are five different reactions when faced with sin we see in Saul and David:

1. Outright lie. The tongue lashes quickly before wisdom reigns control. Saul boasted that he had carried out the Lord’s commands when he clearly knows that not all the Amalekites or their possessions had been destroyed.
2. Omitting the key truth. When retelling a situation, we only present half the facts. Satan himself is a master at manipulating half-truths. He whispers fragments of Scripture to imprison us in a pit of guilt. Saul conveniently forgot to tell Samuel that the troops had spared the livestock.
3. Passing the buck. As long as we were just the one who was following along and not the one who initiated the sin, then it’s okay … right? That seems to be Saul’s goal in pointing his finger to everyone except the one in charge – himself.
4. Comparison. We admit we are wrong, but not nearly as wrong as the other guy! Or our sin may be bad, but not nearly as bad as “those other” sins so we can live with our little sin. Saul wasn’t the strong leader who enforced the rules as he should have, but at least he wasn’t the one who spared the animals … oh wait … there is no such category as “little” and “big” sin. Sin is sin.
5. Confession. The word “confession” in Greek is homologos which translates quite literally to “same word.” To say the same word means that we are to agree with God – God calls it sin and so sin it shall be called. We may linguistically try to minimalize the sin by calling it an error in judgment, mistake, wrong, or misrepresentation. But God calls it sin. King David recognized that his sin, though against Uriah and Bathsheba, was first against the Lord.

We are not to be sorry that we got caught or that our actions have consequences, we are to be sorry that we chose disobedience. No matter our position in the church or at work, we need to be on guard because we are just as susceptible to sin as two of the great kings of Israel.

How do we follow David’s example and respond properly when (not if) we sin? We first call the action by its God-given name, sin. We admit that even if our sin has caused us to hurt ourselves or the people around us, we have first and foremost sinned against the Lord himself.