Tele o tagata e le fiafia i le upu agasala. Latou maua le fetolofi ma matutu pe a latou faalogo i le upu agasala, Ae o le a le agasala e tusa ma le Tusi Paia? E toʻatele Kerisiano e fesoʻotaʻi le agasala i le loia, O se noataga, O se pule malosi, the Old Covenant, and a God, Who punishes as soon as a person violates the law (of Moses). The older generation of Christians may be reminded about their youth and the strict way they were raised, the many rules and punishments for violating these rules. The younger generation of Christians considers the word sin as outdated and legalistic. But what is sin? What does the Bible say about sin and the root of sin? Why do so many Christians become angry and have a defensive attitude and walk away as soon as you talk about sin?
People don’t like rules and laws
Ua tatou ola i se taimi, where people want to be free. The majority of people don’t like rules and laws being imposed on them. They don’t want to be bound to rules and regulations. They don’t like to be told what to do and how to live. This rebellious spirit, which is working in the world is also working in the church.
Christians also want to live in ‘freedom’, without obligations. Because Jesus has made them free from sin and the law. It’s all by alofa tunoa, therefore sin no longer exists.
They believe that Jesus has taken away the sins of the world and because of that, there is no more sin. Since there is no more sin, you can’t walk in sin. E le afaina pe o le a le mea e te ola ai, you won’t have to change because Jesus has done it all for you.
This deception is taught in many churches and many Christians believe the words of the preachers above the words of God.
Because of this false doctrine, many Christians have created a wrong perception of sin and have become indifferent towards sin and are led astray and can’t hear and bear the truth of the Word anymore. But what is sin? What does the Bible say about sin? And why do so many people have such a defensive attitude towards sin?
What is the first sin in the Bible?
Almost everyone is familiar with the first sin in the Bible, which took place in the Garden of Eden. Although the very first sin took actually place in the heavenly Garden of Eden. But the first sin of man on this earth took place in the Garden of Eden (Faitau foi: o le taua i le togalaau).
Man listened to the words of the devil and believed the words of the devil above the words of God and as a result, man obeyed the devil instead of keeping the commandment of God. Ona o lenei, man became lē usiusitai i le Atua and His words and chose to believe the words of a stranger instead.
God had warned man out of love. He told the truth. God told them what would happen if they ate from the forbidden tree, namely that they would surely die.
The devil told a partial truth, which is not the truth but a lie.
The devil seduced man through his lie. He not only tempted man through their senses, tu'inanauga, ma faanaunauga o le tino, but also their curiosity and pride of their soul, by promising them that they would become like God.
Man chose to believe the lies of the devil above the truth of God, and acted upon the words of the devil, despite God’s warnings.
God had warned them out of love, but man chose to believe the devil above God, whereby man rejected God, their Maker, and made the devil their master.
Man sinned and as a result, the devil became his master and death entered man and the spirit of man died, e pei lava ona valoia e le Atua.
Man became separated from God and their relationship was broken. God had not broken the relationship, but man had broken the relationship. Manuia, God’s love for man didn’t stop after this act of disobedience of man.
God’s love for people
I le Feagaiga Tuai, we not only see God’s love for man but also His hatred against sin. It was the people, who were stubborn and rebellious and left God’s way to go their own way.
Because of the rebellious behavior of the people towards God and their stubbornness, they got themselves into trouble over and over again.
Instead of listening to God and being led by the words of God, they listened to the devil, who reigned in their flesh.
Since they were carnal and sense ruled and led by their lusts and desires, they automatically did the o le a avea ma tiapolo and did those things, which were against God’s will, whereby they brought mischief upon themselves.
But every time they got into trouble and they cried out to God in their distress, God showed His mercy and goodness and redeemed His people over and over again (Faitau foi: O se Atua e mausali a le Atua po o se fouvalega?).
The warnings of God
God constantly warned His people, whom He had set apart from the Gentiles. He warned them because He didn’t want anything bad to happen to His people. God loved His people and didn’t want them to bring a curse and disaster upon their lives.
O lea la, God made His will known to them, I le tuuina atu ia i latou Lana tulafono. So that they would get to know their God and have a relationship with Him.
E ala i le tulafono, God revealed Himself to His carnal people. Because how else can you serve a God, if you don’t know anything about that God?
Sa i ai le Atua (ma o lea lava) transparent and didn’t keep anything back. He made His will, Lona natura, and His Kingdom known by the law.
God didn’t force anyone to mulimuli ia te Ia and obey His law. His people could make their own decision to be obedient to God’s will and serve Him or not. But they would bear the consequences of their choices.
Since man was carnal and not spiritual, God gave the written laws, because they couldn’t receive His Spirit. Their flesh was affected by evil. The sinful nature reigned in their flesh. And due to the fact that God is a holy God, His Spirit could not live in a flesh that was unclean and has the rebellious hostile nature of the devil and carried sin and death.
The spirit of God’s people was dead. Therefore they could only get to know their God and His will through the words of God, na tusia i le tulafono.
O le manuia ma le malaia
E ala i le tulafono, God not only revealed His will, Kingdom and His righteousness, which leads to( faavavau) soifua, but God also revealed sin, which leads to bondage and (faavavau) oti. .
Aua sa faaletino ae le faaleagaga, God made known to them what would happen if they stayed obedient to God and keep His law and walk in righteousness and what would happen if they decided to become disobedient to God and do their own will and become trespassers of the law and walk in sin.
If they chose to obey God and keep His commandments and trust in Him they would be blessed.
But if they chose to do their own will and go their own way, then they would live under the curse (Faitau foi: Do the mountains of blessings and curses still exist in the New Covenant?).
God spoke the truth, because what He said and promised, we see in the lives of people.
I le Feagaiga Tuai atoa, God warned His people through His written Word and the mouths of the prophets. Every time God called them i le salamo and to return to His commandments and His law.
God didn’t want to freighted or scare His people, like so many people, fai. But He warned them, because of His great love for people.
God is the Creator of heaven and earth and His laws are settled in the universe forever.
God knows everything, He knows the nature, will and the mission of the devil for humanity, because He created the devil. He knows that the devil is a liar, a thief and a destroyer and that everyone, who believes in him shall be deceived and eventually be destroyed.
God doesn’t want anyone to perish and therefore God warned people and still warns people for sin.
O le a le agasala?
O le mea o le a agasala e tusa ma le Tusi Paia? Sin is disobedience to the God and His Word, which represent God and His Kingdom. Sin means disobedience to the words and the will of God and obedience to the words and the will of the devil, o loʻo pule i le tino.
If you walk in sin, you walk in the will of the devil and exalt the devil by your works. By sinning you build his kingdom on earth.
God revealed sin through His law. O lea la, through the law sin was no longer hidden for people.
E leai se tasi, who can say that he, pe, didn’t know. Because God has revealed everything through His Word.
But because of the spiritual blindness, ignorance, and a lack of knowledge of God’s Word, many Christians lead a destructive life and are on their way to hell.
If a person decides to not believe God and not obey Him, the person shall automatically do the will of the devil. Since the devil is the father of fallen man ((Faitau foi: the will of God versus the will of the devil).
Many Christians confess they believe and Alofa i le Atua, but their lives and works don’t confirm the words they confess. Because they don’t submit themselves to Jesus; le Upu ae aua le faia le mea ua Ia fetalai mai ai. They don’t do the will of God and are not taught, corrected and led by the Word and the Holy Spirit.
Instead they feed themselves with the knowledge and wisdom of the world. They live according to what the world says, and what their carnal mind and intellect, ua faia e le lalolagi, fai mai, and they walk after the lusts and desires of their flesh. And so they live their own lives, faia mea latou te mananao e fai.
They remain carnal and live like the world, just like all those people, o le a le lalolagi ma le pule o le lalolagi, le tiapolo.
They love the world and the works of the flesh and are not willing to change. They don’t want to put off the works of the flesh, but they want to stay the way they are. Mea tonu lava lena, they become irritated, angry and hostile, or even walk away, when you talk about sin or confront them with their sinful behavior.
Put off the works of the old man
To give an example, let’s have a look at lying. God is the Truth and He doesn’t lie. Therefore His words are reliable and trustworthy (Esoto 34:6, Teuteronome 32:4, Ieremia 10:10).
God doesn’t want you to lie, because in His Kingdom there is no lie. That’s why God has given the commandment to not lie. God gave this commandment to His people, who lived in the Old Covenant and belonged to the generation of fallen man, who was a prisoner of the sinful flesh. O lea na fetalai mai ai le Atua, “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.” Since the flesh wants to lie by nature.
O lenei tulafono e tutusa lava i le feagaiga fou. Ae peitai, people don’t belong to the generation of the old creation anymore, but belong to the generation of the new creation through regeneration in Christ. The flesh with its sinful nature has died in Christ and the spirit has been raised from the dead in Christ.
The new creation is born of God and has the nature of God and shall speak the truth.
The sons and daughters of God shall not lie but shall just like their Father speak the truth.
Vaai ia Iesu. Jesus always spoke the truth and didn’t lie. His words were often confronting and hard to hear, but Jesus never lied. Jesus didn’t compromise with the world to be liked and accepted by the people and to win people. Jezus didn’t speak what the people wanted to hear, but Jesus stayed faithful to His Father and spoke the words of His Father.
Jesus kept speaking the truth, E ui i taunuuga. Because by speaking the truth of God, Jesus was hated by the world and persecuted, delivered and eventually killed.
The devil is a liar and in him is no truth. He is the father of lies and therefore his words are not reliable but are lies.
Mo i latou na, who put their trust in him and follow him, his lies will be their refuge and under his falsehood will they hide (Faitau foi: Lalafi i le sulufaiga o pepelo).
O oe o lou tama le tiapolo, ma le tuʻinanau o lou tamā o le a outou faia. O ia o le fasioti tagata mai le amataga, ma nofo i le mea moni, aua e leai se mea moni ia te ia. O le a tautala o ia, Na ia faamatala mai lona lava: aua o ia o se pepelo, ma le tama o ai (Ioane 8:44)
Ae toe fanauina Kerisiano are sons of God (e faatatau lenei mea i alii ma tamaitai) and have the Holy Spirit of God abiding in them. Ona o le mea moni, that the Holy Spirit is living inside of them, O Le Finagalo o le Atua; His commandments are written upon their new hearts.
Latou salamo of the sin of lying and shall not lie anymore, a e tautala i le mea moni. because their new nature wants to speak the truth.
They shall also speak the truth regarding the gospel of Jesus Christ, and shall not waver for the world and turn the Word and the gospel of Jesus Christ into a lie. Believers shall not compromise with the world but shall stand upon the truth of God and His Word, despite the hatred and sauaga o le lalolagi.
When someone claims to be toe fanauina, but doesn’t remove the lie, but keeps speaking lies and little white lie or changing the words of God into lies and adjust to the will, lusts and desires of carnal man, then the person doesn’t walk as the foafoaga fou Ina ua mavae le finagalo o le Atua, but still lives as the tuai foafoaga, who has the nature of the devil and does the will of the devil.
Tagata uma, who lies, walks after the flesh in sin and does the will of the devil. Take for example Ananias and Sapphira, who died because of their lie.
Pepelo le tasi i le isi, seeing that you have put off the old man with his deeds; Ma tuu i luga o le tagata fou, e fa‘afouina i le poto e tusa ma le fa‘atusa o lē na faia o ia (Kolose 3:9-10)
Many say they believe, but only few can prove it
Aua o le mafaufau faaletino o le ita e faasaga i le Atua: Aua e le noatia i le tulafono a le Atua, e le mafai foi. Ia o lea latou te i ai i le tino e le mafai ona fiafia i le Atua (Roma 8:7-8)
Many say they believe in God and loves Jesus, but only few can prove it. O le O le tagata matua, who is led by his senses and walks after the flesh, shall never be able to please God. Because the old man has a carnal mind and shall not submit himself to God’s Word.
The old man belongs to the world. Ae o le upu fai mai, that friendship with the world is enmity with God (Iakopo 4:4).
The old man is rebellious and stubborn and walks in disobedient to God and His Word and obeys the words of the world; the words of the devil.
The old creation lives in a covenant with death
As long as a person walks in sin; in disobedience to God and obedience to the devil, a person proves by his or her deeds, that the person is a tagata agasala; o se atalii o le tiapolo. O le tagata, who perseveres in sin is bound by death.
The person has a covenant with death and sin reigns as king in his/her life (Faitau foi: Let no sin reign as king in your life!)
Although the person might think to be delivered from sin in Jesus Christ and be saved, but the reality is that as long as the person keeps sinning, the person is not delivered from sin. O se tasi, who is delivered from sin is truly delivered from sin and shall no longer persevere in sin and live in disobedience to God.
Sin means doing the o le a avea ma tiapolo, who is the adversary of God. Therefore everyone, who habitually keeps living in sin is an adversary of God.
Although Jesus has dealt with sin and has given everyone the ability to be redeemed from the power of sin and death, which is the punishment for sin, sin still exists.
It is a lie from the devil to say, that in the New Covenant there is no sin, because Jesus has dealt once and for all with sin, and therefore it doesn’t matter how you live and what you do.
Ae o le mea moni, that it does matter how you live and what you do (Faitau foi: E te le oti pe a e faia le agasala?).
Ina ua uma le faasatauroga and the resurrection of Jesus Christ, Peteru, Paulo, Ioane, Iakopo, and the other apostles still wrote about sin. They warned the churches about the danger of sin, bondage of sin, consequences constantly wrote about the danger of sin, bondage of sin, consequences of sin, and commanded them to remove the sins from their lives and from their midst and repent.
Paul even commanded the church at Corinth to remove a person, who didn’t want to listen and persevered in sin, Mai le Ekalesia (Faitau foi: O le a le uiga o le tuuina atu o se tagata ia Satani?).
If sin would not matter or would not exist, then why did the apostles urged the believers, who sinned to remove the sins from their lives?
If sin would not matter and would no longer exist, then why did Ananias and Sapphira die?
And if sin wouldn’t matter and wouldn’t exist after the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ, then why did Jesus confront the seven churches with their sins and called them to repentance?
‘Ia fai ma masima o le lalolagi’
