“…and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.” – 1 Peter 2:24
You know, believe it or not, condemnation is not our real mission. But, we Christians have a pretty good track record of condemning sins, particularly those in which we are not currently participating! Do you realize that God demands that we embrace the spirit of Jesus? While we are to hate sin, we are to love the sinner.
Anyone who is a sinner (which, by the way, includes ALL of us) can take great comfort in this fact: the Gospel clearly states that Christ paid the penalty for your sins. Anyone who confesses and repents of their sins will receive forgiveness and salvation. Recognize that Christ did not die just for certain big sins or little sins, as we sometimes like to say, but for all sins. Never fear that your life has been so sinful or that your sins are so very horrid that you are beyond the power of the cross. And certainly, never declare that other people are so sinful that they are beyond forgiveness. The cross of Jesus Christ is stronger than any sin!
Yes, we Christians must take a firm stand against sin. But we completely fail in our duties if we do not pair this condemnation with the proclamation that the cross of Christ is big enough to forgive any sin.
