WHY DO PEOPLE MESS UP?

Why is it that every person has character flaws, makes mistakes, says the wrong thing, alienates themselves from others, thinks he or she is better than others, never admits he or she is wrong and messes up when they have good intentions? It is because since the fall of Adam and Eve the human race has been infected with sin. We all carry within us both the potential for good and evil. This is why, when leaders and celebrities fall from grace, the headlines are full of their failures. The Germans have a word for our reaction: schadenfreude – the pleasure we experience from the misfortunes of others. It makes us feel superior to them and confirmed in our low opinion of them. The media is full of such observations. But, the problem is that we are all accountable to God for our sins (Rom.3:19). What is the essence of our human malady?

“What is sin? Its universal extent is clear; what is its nature? Several words are used in the Bible to describe it. They group themselves into two categories, according to whether wrongdoing is regarded negatively or positively.

Negatively, it is shortcoming. One word represents it as a lapse, a slip, a blunder. Another pictures it as the failure to hit a mark, as when throwing a spear at a target. Yet another shows it to be an inward badness, a disposition which falls short of what is good.

Positively, sin is transgression. One word makes sin the trespass of a boundary. Another reveals it as lawlessness. Yet another as an act which violates justice. Both these groups of words imply the existence of a moral standard. It is either an ideal which we fail to reach, or a law which we break. ‘Whoever knows what is right to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin’ (James 4:17). That is the negative aspect. ‘Every one who commits sin is guilty of lawlessness’ (1 John 3:4). That is the positive aspect.

The Bible accepts the fact that men have different standards. The Jews have the law of Moses. The Gentiles have the law of conscience. But all men have fallen short of their standard. All men have broken their law.. It is the same for us….We all stand self-condemned. To some good-living people this comes as a genuine surprise. They have their ideals and think they attain them more or less. They do not indulge in much introspection. They are not unduly self-critical. They know they have occasional lapses. They are aware of certain character deficiencies. But they are not particularly alarmed by them and consider themselves no worse than the rest of men. All this is understandable enough, until we remember two things. Firstly, our sense of failure depends on how high our standards are. It is quite easy to consider oneself good at high jumping if the bar is never raised above 3ft. 6in. Secondly, God concerns himself with the thought behind the deed and with the motive behind the action. Jesus clearly taught this in the sermon on the mount.”

(John Stott, Basic Christianity, 63)

That is why the first words of Jesus recorded in the Gospels are: “The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news” (Mark 1:15). Repentance means acknowledging your sin, confessing them, turning your life around with the good news of atonement for sins on the Cross, forgiveness and the gift of the Spirit. “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:8,9)

Never asking for forgiveness is self-deception.