Christmas: Saved from Our Sin

Christmas: Saved from Our Sin
by Rick Warren

She will bring a son to birth, and when she does, you, Joseph, will name him Jesus — “God saves” — because he will save his people from their sins. Matthew 1:21 (MSG)

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The term sin is tossed around so often that, for many people, it’s lost any significant meaning. They think of sin as a list of things they shouldn’t do. And, since everybody has their own list of sins, what may seem bad to me might not be such a bad behavior for you.

The problem with thinking of sin in this way is that I will look at my list and think, “If I just don’t do these things, then I’m not a sinful person.” And, you’ll look at your list, and think the same thing. And, we’ll both look at each other’s list and think, “His list is all wrong! A really good person would follow my list, not his!”

Get this: Sin is an attitude. It’s not something you do. It’s an attitude.

What’s the middle letter of sin? “I”

What’s the middle letter of pride? “I”

Sin is an “I” problem. Sin is saying, “I want to be my own boss. I don’t need God. I’m doing just fine, thank you very much.” Sin is saying, “God, I know what will make me happy more than you do. So I’m going to do what I want to do with my life, not what you put me on earth to do.” That’s sin.

The Bible says every one of us has had that attitude at some time or another. That attitude has caused us to be separated from God. That’s why, when you pray, you feel like your prayers bounce off the ceiling – because they do. There’s a separation between you and God. That’s why God sent Jesus as the Savior.

Every one of your problems is caused by sin – the separation from God. Sin causes confusion in your life. It causes guilt. It causes shame. It causes regret, bitterness, resentment, grudges, worry, fear, anxiety, depression, discouragement, emptiness, despair, and conflict between you and other people. Every one of your problems is the result of you not being connected to God. You are separated from God by your own sin.

The Bible says that Jesus came to save you from your sin, your “I’m going to do my own thing” past. No matter what you’ve done, Jesus can give you a clean slate. His ability to save you from your past is more powerful than anything you ever did in your past.

The name Jesus means “to save people from their sin.” He came to set you free from your sin.

Jesus wants to set you free from the burden of guilt. Did you know God doesn’t want you to carry guilt around? That’s why Jesus came – to pay for all your guilt so you can be forgiven.

Jesus wants to set you free from the pain of bitterness. When you hate other people, when you hold resentment of others in your heart, it’s like a cancer. It’s going to eat you alive.

Jesus wants to set you free from the expectations of other people, from your worry of, “What would other people think?”

Jesus wants to set you free from the fear of death, from the burden of worry, from anxiety and stress. God says, “I want to set you free from all that.”