My Sin, Everyone's Sin
Pastor Tan Thai · Aug 1, 2023
This sermon explores humanity's tendency toward self-deception regarding personal sinfulness and shortcomings. Through scriptures from Romans, Matthew, and James, the pastor demonstrates that all people have sinned and fall short of God's glory. The sermon calls the congregation to genuine confession of sin and to receive the grace of Christ the Savior.
The sermon begins by observing that humanity is very skilled at deceiving itself about its own failures and shortcomings. We tend to focus on truths we like, minimize things we dislike, and always believe we would behave more nobly than we actually do. The pastor cites commentator David Brooks to show that modern society has established a moral framework emphasizing personal sin and evil impulses within the human heart, rather than celebrating human perfection.
The second section develops the theological argument through scriptures about the universality of sin. Romans 3:23 and Romans 5:12 affirm that all people have sinned and fall short of God's glory, and sin entered the world through one person. 1 John 1:8-10 warns that if we say we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves. The pastor also cites social reformer Beatrice Webb to illustrate that even humanists recognized that evil impulses and instincts naturally dwell in humans and cannot be changed by social mechanisms.
The third section uses scriptures from Genesis 3:11-13, Matthew 7:3-5, and Matthew 23:25-28 to condemn the hiding of sin and hypocrisy. Jesus's teaching about seeing a speck in another's eye while missing a log in one's own is applied to call for self-examination and personal confession of sin. Hebrews 4:12-13 emphasizes that God's word is sharp as a two-edged sword and nothing can be hidden from God's sight.
The fourth section applies the message to real life through James 1:22-25, encouraging the congregation not merely to hear God's word but to do it. Luke 18:10-14 tells of the tax collector who confessed his sin with humble repentance and was declared righteous, while the Pharisee who exalted himself was brought low. Psalm 51:1 states that the sacrifice pleasing to God is a broken and contrite heart.
The sermon concludes by citing 1 Timothy 1:14-16, where the apostle Paul testifies that the grace of Christ the Savior has abounded in him, a person who counts himself chief among sinners. Receiving the saving grace of Christ the Savior is not earned by worthiness but by God's mercy, so that the congregation might become a shining example to those who will believe in Christ the Savior to receive eternal life.