Maybe you’re painfully aware that you’re a sinner. You know you’re a mess, and you kick
yourself because of it. Keep reading, because hope is around the corner.
Then again, maybe you don’t think you’re so bad. People are basically good, and you’re a good
person. Sure, you slip up now and then, but hey, nobody’s perfect.
Exactly.
Nobody’s perfect. Not even close.
The Bible puts it frankly:
All have sinned, and all their futile attempts to reach God in
His glory fail. (Romans 3:23 VOICE).
The Chasm
Have you ever loved someone dearly, but something about them has created a chasm between
you and them? You see all that is wonderful about them. But their dark side is so toxic you can’t
be around them. It angers you deeply. And you can’t pretend otherwise.
That’s how God views your condition as a sinner.
“Yeah, but he’s God. He’s too great to hold grudges.”
God is great—so great that whatever we imagine him to be, he’s inconceivably more. That
includes his capacity for emotion. Imagine how intensely he feels about your sinful nature and
the thoughts, acts, and attitudes it births. They are utterly at odds with his character. The
relational rift is infinite, and “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). Not just physical
death—eternal separation from God.
What can you do about it?
Nothing. You can’t cross that chasm on your own merits.
“All of us have become like one who is unclean,” wrote the prophet Isaiah, “and all our righteous
acts are like filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6). Your best efforts are tainted by what’s inside you.
Only God himself can provide a solution. And out of his great love for you, he has. See
Why You Need a Savior [Insert link]