- Matthew 9:13 “For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
- Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
When the year-end comes around, God always checks the individual, the family, the nation and the world, and judges whatever is unclean. People too. They bring judgment every day on trash by throwing away ‘filthy trash,’ right? If people do not throw away filthy trash, it will cause them to become sick or get hurt. In the same way, God does that too. God judges ‘evil and sin’ and judges ‘wicked people and sinners.’ By doing so, He makes things clean. If you do not make yourself clean by repenting, at the time God is passing by while checking, He will make you clean through judgment. Therefore, just as you make sure and clean off ‘the old dirt,’ starting from the time right before the year-end and to the year-end, you have to make yourself clean through repenting for your sins.
Whether sin is big or small is not the issue. Repentance is the issue. Therefore, God looks to see ‘whether you repented for your sins or not’ rather than ‘whether you sinned or not.’ It is said that God judges ‘wicked people and sinners.’ So who are ‘wicked people’ and who are ‘sinners’? It refers to those whose ‘wickedness and sin’ are still intact because they did not repent. That is why repentance is so big and important.
If sin is left alone, it will keep spreading like ‘a disease.’ Sin causes you to become distant from ‘God.’ Sin becomes ‘a wall that blocks your relationship with God.’ Sin blocks off ‘blessing.’ Sin darkens ‘the face and spirit that were once radiant.’ Sin changes ‘your destiny.’
You have to know about sin. Only then will you repent properly. If you don’t know, you will either not [repent or repent] poorly. If you [repent] poorly or just half-heartedly, ‘sin’ still remains even if you repent. Rather than only wanting God to forgive you, you have to truly ‘repent.’ Only then will you be ‘forgiven.’ Rather than paying for the sin by failing to repent, you have to struggle with all your might and truly repent and be forgiven. Just as you would go to a hospital and remove a tumor if you have a tumor in your body, you must remove sin by making sure to repent. You, yourself must ‘repent.’ Only then will the Holy Son and the Holy Spirit perform ‘surgery on your sin.’ You have to know about sin correctly. Only then can you also repent correctly. You have to know repentance correctly. Only then can you also receive forgiveness.
I will teach you ‘something truly important’ about sin. If [something] become rotten, it will be finished forever. If people die, they are finished forever. If that is the case, why do people become rotten and come to an end? The reason they become rotten is not because God defined it as sin. If anything deviates from the law of existence, whether they are things or people, they will become rotten. Consider fruits. The reason they rot is not because they are defined to rot. If they become corrupt on their own, they will go rotten wherever they may be. In this way, even if God did not define it as sin, if you sin, you will rot. The unique quality of sin is that it ‘rots.’ Therefore, if anyone sins, they will rot and so be finished forever.
Sin is ‘sin’ even if they themselves do not define it as sin and do it. Even if neither the world nor you define something as sin, say, “This is good. This is natural. This is daily life,” and do it, ultimately as a result of your own deeds, your spirit, soul, thoughts, and heart will all gradually rot, stink, and you will eventually die. Consider satans and the devils. What is their most distinctive quality? It is that they ‘do not obey God’s laws.’ That is why they are kicked out of God’s domain, the domain of life, and are living in [the domain of] death. They say, “Where is sin? All we need to do is live freely,” and do not keep even ‘a single (!)’ law of God. Those who take action thinking this way are people who have not received God’s thoughts and are influenced by the thoughts and influences of Satan and the devil. Wicked people also do things against God’s laws. However, they do not consider their deeds as ‘sin.’ They consider them ‘one way of living life’ and live even considering them to be ‘righteous deeds.’ No matter how much they do not consider their deeds to be ‘sin,’ their deeds become ‘sin,’ and causes their hearts, actions, and spirits to rot, and both their bodies and spirits will go through the suffering of Hell and be tormented as a result of that.
No matter who they are, if they violate the laws of existence, they will no longer be able to exist, will suffer, and even die. Even as you do it while liking it, enjoying it, and rejoicing in it, that deed will ultimately harm you and may destroy your life or even kill you. Knowing this, God established the laws and kept you from doing it. How great it feels to drink water when you are thirsty, right? In fact, you have to drink water for you to be healthy. However, if you cross ‘the line’ and keep drinking water continually, it will become harmful. Imagine drinking water continually beyond the line. What would happen? You will ultimately die. This is why God defined it saying, “If you cross the line, it is sin,” and told us to “repent.” Knowing everything, God established laws for both the body and the spirit. If you violate the laws, it is ‘sin’ and it is ‘unrighteousness.’
Whether they are individuals, families, nations, or the world, if people sin and do not solve it, they will suffer and even die as a result of sin. The way to solve the issue of sin and the way you can get out of sin and live is ‘only repentance.’ Violating the laws of existence is ‘sin.’ Since they violated the laws of existence, they end up being unable to exist and as a result, they will suffer and even die. That is why God gives the laws and says, “You must live by the laws. Only then will both your body and spirit prosper.”
I will give you a short explanation about sin and repentance by giving you a one-phrase parable. If driving a car beyond the speed limit is sin, then repentance is to realize your wrong doing, say you will not do it again, and immediately reduce your speed. Violating God’s laws and crossing the line and taking action is sin, and repentance is knowing God’s laws, recognizing you have done wrong, saying you will not do it again with ‘words,’ and immediately stopping it with ‘actions.’
If you sin, you must ‘repent immediately.’ Only then will you pay only a small price for the sin and come out to the light as soon as you are restored. When it comes to repentance, you must do it right away without letting it accumulate!
God watches to see whether you break the laws of existence and cross the line of existence. If you cross that line, you are in danger. God is anxious and worried that ‘they might cross the line and die.’ That is why He enlightens us in various ways such as through the Word, through creation, through spiritual inspirations, through our consciences, and through inspiration. He says, “If you do that, you will have an accident. You will suffer. Hurry up, repent, and turn back.” When it comes to your own sins, since ‘you, yourself,’ know it, you, yourself must repent quickly.
If you sin and do nothing about it, it is like having the disease of sin burrowing continually into your heart, body, and spirit. It is to repent until the day that God has appointed. Sin and repentance is something that pertains to all human beings and not just those who believe in God. God’s laws pertain to all human beings and not just those who believe in God. No matter who they are, if they cross the line of God’s laws, it is as though they violated the laws of existence and crossed the line of existence. Therefore, they will be unable to exist. People are ‘free’ to believe in God or not. However, see what happens if they go to the end without believing in God according to their freedom. They will ultimately be in violation of God’s laws, go to the world of suffering without end, and forever be unable to live freely. Believing in and loving God and living within God’s laws is true freedom for both the body and the spirit.