Beginning with Adam and Eve, people have found reasons to attempt to excuse sinful choices. After all, they are only excuses that can never take the place of truly confessing sin and repenting.
Genesis 3:1-13 provides us with the first excuses for sin:
“Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’” “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it.” The first excuse for sin was to satisfy the desire to enjoy something Eve felt she deserved. She also chose to excuse her disobedience to God because she thought she would benefit from the wisdom she might gain from eating the fruit. I believe that Eve felt God was holding back on them, that He was not giving them everything they needed, or deserved. It was all about Eve. When we make it all about us, we are in very dangerous territory.
The truth is, God provides what we need for sustenance, wisdom, and everything else. God knows all, so He provides all we need. “Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.” James 4:14
“She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?” He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.” And he said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?” The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.” Notice Adam’s excuse to sin, someone else made him do it! It is far too easy for us to think that we can pass the responsibility for our sin onto someone else.
But God doesn’t see it that way.
Romans 6:23 reminds us that there are grievous consequences for sin: “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
“Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” Notice in this verse how the woman attempted to use the “ pass the responsibility for my sin excuse”?
Without Christ coming into our lives through the power of the Holy Spirit, we are helpless to make the changes necessary so that we accept responsibility for our sin. The Holy Spirit then enables us to confess our sin to the Lord. God then facilitates our repentance.
1 John 1:9 reminds us of God’s willingness and faithfulness to cleanse us from our sin: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
With that promise of forgiveness, comes this promise for eternal life with our great God: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
Have you made that step of faith, by God’s grace, to humbly submit to Jesus as your Lord and Savior? If you have not, what is holding you back? This is the greatest and most urgent choice you can make. If Jesus is your Lord and Savior, how are you working to not make excuses for your sin?
We have many blessings in our relationship with Jesus. Our obedience is blessed by God. We have every reason to choose to obey God.
Hebrews 6:10 provides some insight into God’s awareness of what we do, and how He responds to us: “For God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name in serving the saints, as you still do.”
Some other excuses we come up with to disobey God:
How about Moses’ excuse of inadequacy? Then Moses answered, “But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you.’” Exodus 4:1 But God didn’t allow Moses to back away. God always equips His people when He calls them to a work for Him.
Taking Scripture out of context is also a popular way to condone sinful behavior.
Rationalization is a common way to excuse one’s sin.
Women often attempt to use their hormones as an excuse for sinful outbursts and improper behavior.
You might attempt to dismiss Scripture’s commands for holiness thinking some of them are outdated, written only for people who lived in Jesus’ day.
Some people choose to sin because of fear of the reaction truth will bring in the person you speak truth to, so a lie is spoken instead, or silence when truth should be spoken. This means the person fears people more than they fear displeasing God. Isaiah 51:12-13: “I, I am he who comforts you; who are you that you are afraid of man who dies, of the son of man who is made like grass, and have forgotten the Lord, your Maker, who stretched out the heavens and laid the foundations of the earth, and you fear continually all the day.”
Minimizing our sinful choices is another attempt at excusing our behavior.
All of these, and more, are insults to God, and the gift of His Son, Jesus. Jesus, who paid for our sins on the cross, deserves for us to address our sinful behavior.
There are many reasons why we can excuse our sin, but God is waiting for us to run to Him for help to not sin, and to offer forgiveness when we do sin.
God provides grace and mercy so that we can run from sin, and when we do sin, He is holding out His hands, running to us to offer forgiveness. This is the picture Jesus gave of our Heavenly Father in His parable of the prodigal son.
Dear Heavenly Father, please help us to not make excuses for our sin, but instead to quickly bring the temptation to sin to you for the power to flee from it, and when we sin, to accept responsibility for it by confessing it and repenting. Thank you.
Please contact me at: ButGodCares@gmail.com if you want to talk about a relationship with Jesus, and what it is like to walk in the truth.
Living for Jesus, Donna
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Copyright 2024 Donna Shappy All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means – electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other – without the prior permission of the author.