Website owner: James Miller
Sin and its consequences
Sin leads to unhappiness in this life. It messes people’s lives up. It messes up the life of the sinner and very often messes up the lives of those around him. A wise man knows that the secret to a happy life lies in the pursuit of virtue and goodness. For a happy and good life, follow the principles taught in the Bible, especially the principles taught by Jesus. You have only one life to live. It is mostly in your power to make it a good life or to mess it up. The vast majority of people mess their lives up. They follow their own wayward ways. Then they end up living with the consequences of their foolish actions and conduct. They live unhappy, messed up lives. They follow the ways of the world and the flesh; the ways of impulse, bodily appetites, fleshly desires. They follow where the body leads and then live with the consequences. All of this is an excellent reason for following the principles that God has given to us. However, having said all this, there is a far more compelling reason for following God’s principles. What is that, do you ask? Well, according to the teachings of Jesus, there is another life after this life and in this next life, the afterlife, each person will receive in accordance with his conduct and behavior in this life. If, in this present life, one leads a good, upright life, believes in God, has faith in him, follows in the way taught by Jesus, he will go to heaven. If, on the other hand, he follows the way of the world, follows the way of the flesh, he will go to hell. Since both heaven and hell last forever, it behooves him to consider this matter carefully. We see that sin not only messes us up in this life, it also brings eternal damnation in the next life. We end up paying twice for our wayward ways, once in the present life, but far, far more in the life to come. At bottom, all of the teaching of Jesus is about sin, its consequences, and how to avoid its consequences. A wise man does well to take the words of Jesus seriously. Jesus claimed to be God himself, come down from heaven for the very unselfish purpose of saving man (his creation) from his sin - an act revealing the very caring, self-sacrificing nature of God. A wise man would listen to what he had to say. He came to tell man of important hidden spiritual principles that mankind would do well to heed.
Most people today just don’t take the Bible very seriously. They are dazzled by all the accomplishments of science and technology. They are dazzled by the mind of man. In our modern age science has become a God. People turn to science as an authority. The mind of man has become their authority, their God. They have lost faith in God, their creator. The Bible, they think, is outdated and not to be trusted. Well, that is a terrible mistake - to think that way. The Bible is not outdated. It is as relevant today as it has ever been. The basic nature of man has not changed in the slightest from the most ancient of times. He is still as sinful, immoral and wicked as he has ever been. As naive, foolish and easily duped as he has ever been. The truths of the Bible are timeless. Its principles are absolutes. It is concerned with far greater, for more important, issues than the questions of modern science. This current world, this universe, will one day pass away. It is true that modern science has done great things. But if modern science causes man to lose faith in God, all that he enjoys from it will come at the price of his soul. He may enjoy a modern marvel such as air conditioning in this life but he would do well to remember that there will be no air conditioning in hell. There won’t be any internet there either. The modern liberal intellectual is leading mankind down the road to an eternal hell. He is Satan’s friend and servant and he is not your friend. Mankind is highly inclined towards gullibility and foolishness and Satan is a very clever fellow.
May 2012