Five Sins to Avoid

Creation Date: 5-Dec-2021
 

Last updated: 8-Dec-2021
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Sections

1 Preface 2 Put Away Falsehood, Speaking the Truth
3 It Is Okay To Be Angry, But Do Not Sin 4 Do Not Steal
5 No Corrupt Speech, only Speech that Edifies 6 Grieve Not the Holy Spirit
7 Summation and Righteous Indignation 8 The Remedy

Preface

The entirety of the Bible was given to us with "precept written upon precept" to reinforce truth, authenticate the scriptures are from God.  There are 66 books written by over 40 authors that do not contradict one another that continually reinforces the primary theme of Jesus Christ.
 
Isaiah 28:10 For it is precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, there a little.
Psalm 40:7 Then I said, Behold, I have come; in the scroll of the book it is written of me:
Hebrews 10:7 Then I said, Behold, I have come to do your will, O God, as it is written of me in the scroll of the book.

As discussed in the "Are we under the Mosaic Laws? No" topic, we are under a new Law of the Holy Spirit which is actually requires a greater commitment in our Christian life that starts with our thoughts which is where actions come from.  Jesus Christ stated:
Matthew 25:40 The King will reply, Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.
Hebrews 10:16 This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds,
John 13:34 I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another

Understanding the greater responsibilities, that we all have as Christians, then we can absolutely depend upon the Holy Spirit to help us.  Unlike those in prior Dispositional Periods that looked to the Ten Commandments and the 613 Laws of the Old Testament, we have been given a greater understanding because of the fulfillment of the Messiah Jesus Christ that is so abundantly written about in the entirety of the Old Testament and elaborated in the New Testament. 

We are now to live with a greater gift of knowledge by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that will strengthen us against our human frailties.  The temptations and ability to sin still remains in us until we receive our new Bodies at the Judgment Seat of Christ.  As we live, we should be sinning less and less.

Matthew 5:17 Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.

Through the Apostle Paul's writings in Ephesians, we learn about five specific sins which we all commit, that need to be avoided.  The Holy Spirit is reinforcing the need for us to be an example to the world as we are Ambassador's for Jesus Christ, where when we do what is correct and righteous, we will have better lives with rewards in Heaven.

1. Put Away Falsehood, Speaking the True

Ephesians 4:25 Wherefore, putting away falsehood, speak ye truth each one with his neighbor: for we are members one of another.

Not too much explanation of this sin is required, other than the ability to "put away falsehood" starts in our thoughts.  Examples

  1. When working for a company, telling a customer that a product has the ability to do something which it does not, or stating a service from the company includes something which it does not.  This is often called "False Advertising".
  2. Cheating on an exam starts with the contemplation on how to do the cheating, where the results of the exam are not true fully representing the knowledge of the test taker.   Cheating on an exam is telling the person grading the exam that you know the answers to questions which you did not know.
  3. When accidentally or intentionally doing something wrong then the explanation of the event is not the truth.

2. It Is Okay To Be Angry, But Do Not Sin

Ephesians 4:26-27 26 Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: 27 neither give place to the devil.

This is perhaps one of the most difficult of the five sins to be avoided that the Apostle Paul mentions.  This is a sin where we can feel the emotion but we cannot act on it, with the exception of Righteous Indignation discussed later in this topic. 

Chuck Missler's written PDF commentary on Ephesians has some additional points that explain "anger" perfectly, which is summarized as:
  1. Anger is an emotional arousal caused by something that displeases us.  
  2. Malice is anger that smolders.
  3. Wrath is anger that bursts forth.

ANYBODY can become angry, that is easy; but to be angry with the right person, and to the right degree, and at the right time, and for the right purpose, and in the right way, that is not within everybody's power, that is not easy.

So wrote Aristotle, more than 2000 years ago, in his classic work The Art of Rhetoric.

3. Do Not Steal

Ephesians 4:28 Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labor, working with his hands the thing that is good, that he may have whereof to give to him that hath need.

All of us are guilty of theft in different increments.  Some examples:

  1. Not giving a full days' labor for our employer and still receive 100% full wages for less than full effort.
  2. Taking anything that appears to be trivial such as a pencil or pen from your employer's office. 
    (a) This author's father once told me never once took a pencil or piece of paper from the company he worked for 32 plus years, which was The Prudential Insurance Company, and he said this was the prevailing norm understood by most people in the 1950s that carried on for that generation.
    (b) Abuse of Power is business and politics has become a blight against everything that God has intended for those He allows to rise in power.

There are many other far worse forms of theft, which was not in the context of Ephesians 4:28, such as:

4. No Corrupt Speech, only Speech that Edifies

Ephesians 4:29 Let no corrupt speech proceed out of your mouth, but such as is good for edifying as the need may be, that it may give grace to them that hear.

This is a very important area, as many people who are not Christians, will judge our actions with greater scrutiny because they know we are supposed to be living by a higher standard.  Additionally, there are people who will not know that we are a Christian, where they should recognize a difference that should make them to want to emulate us, where given the chance will explain it is because of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

The point, of Ephesians 4:29, can have these examples:

  1. Always giving constructive advice, with compassion, for those who have unintentionally done something incorrectly, and also when done intentionally.  In John 8:7, we learn from Jesus Christ who said, ",.,he that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone...".
  2. Spreading gossip, which is a form of slander, about others.  Beside the assaulting of another with words against someone who may or may not be present, there is nothing that can be done to remove the words being heard once they have been spoken.
Colossians 4:6 Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.
1 Thessalonians 5:11 Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.
Proverbs 12:18 There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.

5. Grieve Not the Holy Spirit

Ephesians 4:30 And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, in whom ye were sealed unto the day of redemption.

Grieve means to suffer, feel sorrow and feel stress because of the actions of someone we know.  We cannot grieve anyone unless the person loves us or cares about us.  We know that God loves us as so many of the scriptures impart, which is why God created the most intricate and perfectly executed plan to reconcile us through Jesus Christ.

When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior, then the Holy Spirit resides in us.  This is the gift that Jesus Christ spoke about which was different from the previous Dispensation of the Old Testament, where King David was afraid and prayed for God to not remove His Spirit from him.

This is the fifth sin to avoid and it is perhaps the most difficult to recognize.  Even when we suppress the urge to do any sinful action, then the thought in our minds can grieve the Holy Spirit if we let the thought linger to long.  We are to put our thoughts captive

2 Corinthians 10:5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

The antithesis of understanding the idea of not grieving the Holy Spirit is not being judgmental towards anyone knowing that is God alone is the judge of our sins and others.  As an example, the Archangel Michael didn't even judge Lucifer as read in Jude 1:9.

Jude 1:9 But when the archangel Michael, contending with the devil, was disputing about the body of Moses, he did not presume to pronounce a blasphemous judgment, but said, The Lord rebuke you.

Summation and Righteous Indignation

Ephesians 4:31-32 31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor, and railing, be put away from you, with all malice: 32 and be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving each other, even as God also in Christ forgave you.

The summation of the five sins to avoid is given to us in Ephesians 4:31-32, which states that by putting away:

then we can be more like Jesus Christ, as God the Father forgave us through Jesus Christ on the Cross. 

The Crucifixion of Jesus Christ, and the scourging that Jesus Christ went through before the Crucifixion, was the most painful torturous death that the world has known.  While there have been absolutely evil torturous deaths throughout history, the process of death on the cross has been well documented in medical terms to describe the agony that is brought on to have the victim continually feel pain without losing consciousness. 

Additionally, the scriptures let us know that beside the physical body pain, at the moment Jesus Christ began the process of the scourging and then the cross, then Jesus Christ took on the full weight of the sins for every human being who lived, was living and will live.  When taking on the "sins of every human being", then Jesus Christ also felt the wrath of God the Father against the sins of the world, which cannot be described or completely understood.  This involved temporary removal of Jesus Christ from the union He had from God the Father and God the Holy Spirit.  Notice in Matthew 27:46 that God is said twice.

Matthew 27:46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani? that is, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

Some of us have asked if it is okay to have righteous indignation that can be acted upon?  The answer is a complicated answer of "yes".  We are to defend the character of God, when lead by the Holy Spirit, and we are to defend others against evil. 

There are many examples, where here are two points of many to consider:

  1. We can feel insulted by hearing someone speak evil of God, but that does not mean:
    (a) We should defend God's character verbally.
    (b) Hurt or act in revenge against the person. 
    It is better to walk away as the perpetrator will see you walk away knowing you disagree.  If the hearing involves a television show or a movie, then do not watch it.
  2. We can see a country use a military force to invade another company, where war is an acceptable form of retaliation that involves justifiable killing and the killing is not the same as murder.
Matthew 21:12-13 12 And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all those who were buying and selling in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves. 13 And He said to them, It is written, MY HOUSE SHALL BE CALLED A HOUSE OF PRAYER ; but you are making it a ROBBERS DEN.
Matthew 25:40 The King will reply, Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.
Luke 12:11-12 11 When you are brought before synagogues, rulers, and authorities, do not worry about how to defend yourselves or what to say. 12 For at that time the Holy Spirit will teach you what you should say.

The Remedy

The remedy against the list of five sins to avoid, is to take every thought captive and avoid a pattern of specific types of sins.  Once we commit one of these five sins to avoid, then it becomes easier to continue.  There are far worse sins that patterns can become very difficult to remove, as they become strongholds of demonic oppression in our lives. 
 
2 Corinthians 10:5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

The first step is to gain victory over a sin, and never top quitting the action, until the point when there is no longer the impulse to commit a sin.  The companion step is to use a thought that replaces the desire to sin.  As an example, when wanting to gossip, then remind yourself how you would feel if someone was spreading negative information about yourself and how that would feel.

What to read next?

What is Salvation?  Is it possible to lose Salvation?  We have eternal life.  Evolution is not real.  When a Christian suffers is there benefits from it.  Rewards in heaven.  Do we Tithe?  What does the 3rd Commandment tell us?  What is Grace and Mercy?  Is there an Age of Accountability?  Is there a place of unending punishment and exile form God?