Sin, according to Scripture can be defined as any action, thought, or attitude that transgresses the divine law of God. Or to put it another way, sin is an act of rebellion against God’s holiness and righteousness. And by this definition all of humanity have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.
But another more provocative definition of sin according to Pastor John Piper can be defined as follows: “Sin is what you do when you are not satisfied in God.”1 And it’s this second way of viewing sin that I would like to now focus on.
When we are not satisfied in God we often choose to let our flesh run our lives and allow self-gratification to become more important than doing things for the glory of God. And it’s self-gratification that forgets about God and indulges in things that are centered first and foremost on us, and not God. And the result is when we put God in the background, or forget about Him altogether, we sin.
So, the fundamental question before us is how can we become so satisfied in God, at all times, that we will never want to displease Him and sin. I believe that satisfaction in God is not just a feeling we get when things are going well, but it’s also a choice we make during the difficult times of life. And when we understand that life is in reality training grounds for eternity, and that God will use our trials and tragedies for His glory, if we let Him, then I believe we can always be satisfied in our wonderful God. In my opinion nothing can be more satisfying in life than to know that God is using me, through trials, to bring Him glory!
My friends God is so good to us. He allows us to get to know Him intimately through our time spent in reading the Scriptures and prayer. He supplies all of our needs. We are so special to God that He calls us His treasured possession. He shows us that the highest level of satisfaction we can ever experience in life is when we are walking in obedience to His commands and will. For when we do this abundant joy, amazing peace, and deep satisfaction in life are guaranteed. And if that were not enough, Jesus allows us to experience, what I consider the most satisfying thing in life – to live our lives to the glory of God!
And the exciting thing about the Christian walk is that our journey with Jesus need never end! Satan promises us temporary sinful pleasures that come at the expense of God’s glory. This sinful tradeoff, in my book, is not worth it when compared with the real joy and satisfaction that doing it God’s way can offer.
If I can leave you with two Scripture verses that I challenge you to meditate on that I pray will help you to realize that doing it God’s way is the only pathway to true satisfaction in life.
(Psalm 37:4): “Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.”
(Psalm 16:11): “You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”