There are three aspects of the sin that distresses the human personality. The first aspect is guilt. The second aspect is inclination. The third aspect is the cause or the actual residence or presence of sin that gives rise to the guilt and the inclination. The Divine plan of salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ removes the guilt, the inclination, and the cause.

Notice the expression in the above passage, "to put an end to sin."

Christians are so accustomed to wrestling against the evil powers in the heavenlies that the idea of sin coming to an end is almost more than we can hope for. Yet the Bible says there shall come an end to sin and everlasting righteousness shall take its place. This Word cannot be changed.

Last night at the Bible study we were discussing the works of the flesh, particularly those that have to do with anger, factionalism, envy, selfish ambition, and so forth.

The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; Idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19-21—NIV)

"Those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God."

There are people in the study who have been trained in the conventional Christian point of view that Christ made an end to sin on the cross and now all we have to do is to believe.

I raised the point that if an end has been made to sin and we are not to be concerned about it, then most of Paul's writings are superfluous, as in Galatians 5:19-21 (above).

This led one lady to say she had been taught that if we as a Christian continued to sin we would not inherit the Kingdom of God, we would not bear the fruit of the Spirit, but we would be saved and go to Heaven anyway. Can you imagine? We will be saved and go to Heaven but not inherit the Kingdom of God?

There being no Bible teaching to the effect that being saved means we will go to Heaven but a great deal of emphasis concerning entering the Kingdom of God, we conclude this lady was taught Christian traditions and not the Scriptures.

Since all of us Christians agree that Christ died on the cross to forgive the sins of mankind, and yet a great part of the New Testament is an exhortation to the believers not to continue in sin, we conclude that further explanation is required.

There are three aspects of sin. First of all, there is the guilt of sin. The guilt of sin arises from our not obeying the moral laws of God. The soul that sins shall die because the soul is guilty of breaking God's laws. This we understand.

To be continued.