The word sinner appears 63 times and the word sinners appear 44 times in the Bible.
What does the word sinner mean?
A sinner is a person that commits transgressions against the Lord. The Bible defines sin as: “Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness” (1 John 3:4). Sin means “a failing to hit the mark,” “a wrong deed,” “to miss the mark,” “to err,” “to do wrong.” To sin, is a word used in the Bible for breaking God’s moral law which is listed in Exodus 20: 3-17.
Sin causes separation between God and man (Isaiah 59:2). It erects a wall between the Creator and the created. If heaven seems far distant from earth, it is because sin has hung a barrier between man and His Maker. John states that sin is disregard of the law of God. The Lord makes laws to guide men, to enable them to enjoy life fully, to save them from evil, and to preserve them for good (Exodus 20:1). The law of God is a transcript of the character of God. Jesus came to show men the character of His Father. He is therefore the law illustrated. If men want to make their lives in line with the law of God, they must look to Jesus and copy His life.
Some claim that Jesus canceled the law. But the Bible is very clear that if the law could have been canceled or changed (Matthew 24:35), God would have immediately made that change when Adam and Eve sinned instead of sending His Son to die in the sinner’s behalf to pay the penalty of the broken law. If God could have saved His Son, He would have. But the Law could not be canceled or changed. Christ’s death established the Law. Paul wrote, “Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law” (Romans 3:31).
The law may be briefly summarized in the following words, “be like God,” or “be like Jesus.” The change of men’s characters after the divine image is the great purpose of the plan of salvation. The law shows the character of God and of Christ; the plan of salvation provides the empowering grace for fulfilling every Christian quality.
All that needed to be done could be done by Christ-given power. Paul declared, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13). When the divine commands are sincerely followed, the Lord makes Himself responsible for the triumph of the work done by the Christian. Praise the Lord, in Christ, there is strength to fulfill duty, strength to resist temptation, grace for daily growth and energy for service.
In His service,
BibleAsk Team
