What should i do if i commit a sin?

What do you do when you’ve found yourself confronted with the reality of sin in your life? More specifically, what is a healthy way to repent and move forward?

Before I approach any kind of “steps” to take, I want to address what the Bible says sin is and why sin in our lives is bad. It has helped me in my life to understand why something is a sin, rather than just hearing, “that’s a sin, don’t do it.”

Sin, as defined in the original translations of the Bible, means “to miss the mark.” The mark refers to the standard of perfection according to God’s Word and exemplified in the nature and character of Jesus. It’s clear that we are all sinners. The Bible says, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Rom 3:23).

When thinking about sin it’s important to remember that it violates multiple parties: first and foremost, God, then yourself and/or/another person. First and foremost, sin is an offense against to God because it goes against His very nature. For example, lying is a sin because God cannot lie. Secondly, sin violates yourself because sin is morally wrong and brings destruction and ultimately death (Rom. 6:23), but it also harms others. All sin, even so-called private sin, harms others indirectly. If you have ever watched the TV show Intervention, you know what I mean.

Ultimately, sin separates us from God, brings death to our inward life, and eventually brings eternal death to our souls. Paul says, “the wages of sin is death…” (Rom. 6:23). That means the only thing that sin brings to our lives is death, whether that be emotional, mental, or physical.

One of the hardest mindsets to break is the one that comes when you know you are living in sin. The Bible says when that happens, the accuser (Satan) brings words of condemnation, like: “Oh man… you did it again! You’re no good. You’ll never measure up and be good enough.” This thought process is called condemnation, and it’s not okay. Condemnation makes you think you can earn forgiveness by beating yourself up and putting yourself on probation for a few days. But the truth is that you can’t earn forgiveness.

We often feel that our sin is too great for God to forgive. Please understand that condemnation is not from God at all, however conviction is. Condemnation keeps us from God and in essence says to Jesus ‘Your blood isn’t good enough to cleanse me of this sin.’ Conviction sheds light on our sin, helps us feel truly sorry, and points us to our Savior. This is from the Holy Spirit (John 16:8).

‘For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.’ 2 Cor. 7:10

True repentance is more than acknowledging sin, it is turning away from sin and to God. It is not simply saying ‘Lord, I repent’ and while still seeking sin out. If you find that your desires are sinful, pray ‘Lord, create in me clean and pure desires. Take out these sinful desires in my heart.’ Be honest with yourself. You won’t get past sinful desires if you never admit that they are there.

It’s important to confess your sin to a pastor, counselor, or trusted friend because this helps bring light into this dark area. When sin is in the darkness, it thrives; but when you confess your sins, it helps nullify the power of shame. Depending on what sin you’re dealing with, you may also consider receiving Christian counseling from a professional.

I believe the final step of accepting Christ’s forgiveness is crucial to your commitment to turn from sin. This is an act of accepting that we are a new creation because of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, and that we are new (2 Cor. 5:17). When I’m accepting Christ’s forgiveness, I speak it out loud in a prayer. An example might be, “I accept your forgiveness and believe that I am made righteous in Your sight. Thank You for forgiving me and justifying me.”

Summing up this post, I will tell you what has helped me in the past to move forward and walk in victory over sin: fighting to enjoy fellowship with God. That may sound odd, but I believe we must be intentional and aggressive in our pursuit of enjoying God. This starts with taming the thoughts that feed your flesh until it produces sin (James 1:15).

‘…bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ…” 2 Cor. 10:5

You have to be aggressive and be on the offensive with your thoughts. Passivity usually leads to stumbling, because the greatest battleground is our minds. Learn how to distinguish when your mindsets are fleshly and have the courage to fight them. If you find your mindset is out of line with Scripture, but don’t know how to fix it: stop and pray, ‘Lord, I know this mindset is wrong, but I don’t know how to fix it. Give me understanding. Lead me, Holy Spirit.”

When you realize your sin against someone, come to them humbly, apologize for the hurt you've caused, express your remorse, ask if there is any way you can make it right, and ask for forgiveness. Don't offer excuses, but accept full responsibility.

Sin is a real, positive evil. The Greek word itself means to “miss the mark”. Each and every one of us have missed the mark of God’s perfection by our sinful decisions. It is an outright rebellion against God’s Law and standard of righteousness. When we violate God’s Law through our own willing sin, it’s a contradiction to the holiness of God and reveals our own sinfulness of the heart, mind, and action. We both sin because we are sinners and are sinners because we sin. The Bible declares that the wages of sin is death, eternally but the gift of God is eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus alone has satisfied the wrath of God upon the cross and rose again from the dead to prove it!

Here are 8 things you can do about sin:

Acts 2:38 (NLT) “Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

1 John 1:9 (NLT) “But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.”

Matthew 6:14–15 (NLT) “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.”

1 Peter 4:8 (NLT) “Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins.”

Galatians 5:16 (NLT) “So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves.”

1 John 1:7 (NLT) “But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.”

• Forgive All My Sins. Lord Jesus, You opened the eyes of the blind, .
• Mercy. Lord Jesus, Son of God, Have mercy on me, .
• Friend of Sinners. Lord Jesus, .
• Luke 15:18; 18:13. Father, I have sinner against you.
• Psalm 50:4-5. Wash me from my guilt.
• Forgiveness. Jesus, I believe you love me.
• Penance. My God, .
• Lamb of God. Lord Jesus Christ,

Remember, Lord,your compassion and mercywhich you showed long ago.Do not recall the sins and failings of my youth.In your mercy remember me, lord,because of your goodness.

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Lord Jesus,You opened the eyes of the blind,healed the sick,forgave the sinful woman,and after Peter's denial confirmed him in your love.Listen to my prayer:forgive all my sins,renew your love in my heart,help me to live in perfect unitywith my fellow Christians that I may proclaim your saving powerto all the world.

- Author Unknown

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Lord Jesus, Son of God,

Have mercy on me,

a sinner.

- Author Unknown

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Lord Jesus,

You chose to be called the friend of sinners.By your saving death and resurrectionfree me from my sins.May your peace take root in my heartand bring forth a harvest of love, holiness, and truth.

- Author Unknown

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Father, I have sinner against youand am not worthy to be called your son (daughter).Be merciful to me, a sinner.

Father of mercy, like the prodigal sonI return to you and say:"I have sinned against youand am no longer worthy to be called your son."Christ Jesus, savior of the world,I pray with the repentant thiefto whom you promised paradise:"Lord, remember me in your kingdom."Holy Spirit, fountain of love,I call on you with trust:"Purify my heart,and help me to walk as a child of the light."

- Book of Luke

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Wash me from my guiltand cleanse me of my sin.I acknowledge my offense;my sin is before always.

- Book of Psalm

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Jesus, I believe you love me.Please forgive me for my sins.Help me to be a better person. Amen.

- Author Unknown

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My God, I am sorry for my sins with all my heart.In choosing to do wrong,and failing to do good,I have sinned against you whom I shouldlove above all things.

I firmly intend, with your help,to do penance, to sin no more,and avoid whatever leads me to sin.

Our Savior Jesus Christsuffered and died for us.In His name, my God, have mercy.

- Author Unknown

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Lord Jesus Christ,You are the lamb of God;you take away the sins of the world.Through the grace of the Holy Spiritrestore me to friendship with your Father,cleanse me from every stain of sinin the blood you shed for me,and raise me to new life for the glory of your name.

- Author Unknown

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The recompense for an injury is an injury equal thereto (in degree): but if a person forgives and makes reconciliation, his reward is due from Allah: from (Allah) loveth not those who do wrong. But indeed if any do help and defend themselves after a wrong (done) to them, against such there is no cause of blame. The blame is only against those who oppress men and wrong-doing and insolently transgress beyond bounds through the land, defying right and justice: for such there will be a penalty grievous. But indeed if any show patience and forgive, that would truly be an exercise of courageous will and resolution in the conduct of affairs.

- Holy Qur'an

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Here are 4 thoughts:

Your initial thought to this starting place might be: “Really Josh? Focus on the seriousness of sin? I am well aware of how bad my sin is and already feel guilty and downcast.”

That may be true, but if we use Psalm 51 as a template for our own repentance and confession of sin we see David saying:

In the right proportion it is good for us to call to mind the seriousness of sin. I fear we often have heavy thoughts about how bad sin is morally. How it might hurt others or ourselves. But do we lament over the fact that our sin is against God himself? Your sin is a statement of "I do not care about you or your authority over me". You scream that in God’s face every-time you sin.  "You're not Lord over me, I am!" To the God who has only done you good.

Be careful that you are grieved over sin because it is against God and not just because it has consequences that make you feel bad. All true repentance and confession stem from hatred of sin, not guilt. It is only in seeing the ugliness of sin that we can see the beauty of forgiveness.

Satan tempts you after sin too. He tempts you to be discouraged. To assume God hates you. To believe you are without hope. It’s healthy to feel a bit of discomfort in seeing how serious our sin truly is, but the aim of seeing that is to drive us to Christ all the more. Not to drive us away from Him.

Consider 2nd Corinthians 7:10: “And now I rejoice, not because you were made sorrowful, but because your sorrow led you to repentance… Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation.”

A sorrow for the seriousness of sin is good as long as it leads you to God, not away from God. The key is reminding yourself of the Gospel.

The question is, what state were you in when Christ died for you? Good? Perfect? Holy? No! You were “weak” and “ungodly”. There was nothing in you drawing the affections of God. He wasn’t up there going “oh, that person is really strong and has been holy for 50 days, maybe we should offer grace.” No, everything in you was screaming “I’m broken and I deserve death”. Remember the seriousness of sin?

But the point of Romans 5 is that it was while you were in the state of weak and ungodly when Christ said “I will die for them”. God looked at you at your worst and said “I want them and I will pay the price to cleanse them, love them, and forgive them even if it costs me my life.”