The Doctrine of Sin

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Mental Attitude Sins (HTML) (PDF) (WPD)

The Sins of the Tongue (HTML) (PDF) (WPD)

Overt Sins:

The Doctrine of Envy (HTML) (PDF) (WPD)

The Doctrine of Adultery (HTML) (PDF) (WPD)

The Doctrine of Lust (HTML) (PDF) (WPD)

The Doctrine of Homosexuality (HTML) (PDF) (WPD)

The Doctrine of Vanity (HTML) (PDF) (WPD)

The Doctrine of Murder (HTML) (PDF) (WPD)

The Doctrine of Hatred (HTML) (PDF) (WPD)

The Doctrine of Polygamy (HTML) (PDF) (WPD)

The Doctrine of Abortion (HTML) (PDF) (WPD)

The Doctrine of Revolution (HTML) (PDF) (WPD)

There are two more related doctrines: The Sin unto Death (HTML) (PDF) (WPD) and the Doctrine of Evil (HTML) (PDF) (WPD)

James Rickard’s Doctrine of Sin

1.      Definitions of sin:

         1)      Sin is a violation of the law or standards of God. It is transgression against Divine law. These Divine standards are revealed in the Word of God, for example Prov 6:12-19; Col 3:5-10, etc.

         2)      Col 3:5-10, "Therefore, begin to put to death the members of your earthly body: immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry. For it is on account of these things that the wrath of God will come, and in them you also once walked, when you were living in them. But now you also, put these all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices, and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the one who created him."

         3)      The Westminster Catechism's definition of sin is: "Sin is any want of conformity unto or transgression of any law of God given as a rule to a reasonable creature."

         4)      Dr. L. S. Chafer's definition of sin is: "Sin is that which proves unlike the character of god."

         5)      Charles C. Ryrie defines it as: "Defection from any of God's standards. It is a lack of conformity to the moral law of God, either in act, disposition, or state. It is anything in man that does not express, or which is contrary to the holy character of God."

         6)      The sinfulness of sin lies in the fact that it is against God even when the wrong we do is to others or ourselves, Psa 41:4; 51:4.

         7)      Psa 51:4, "Against You, You only, I have sinned: and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You are justified when You speak and blameless when You judge."

         8)      The essence and law of God are perfectly harmonious. Therefore, since God's character and standards are perfect, anything that violates that has been defined in the scripture as sin.

         9)      Therefore, sin can be by a thought, a motive, or any act of wrongdoing, and is a state of alienation from God.

         10)    All sin emanates from the heart of your soul, Mat 15:18-19.

         11)    Mat 15:18-19, "But the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile the man. 19For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders."

         12)    In the list of seven sins that are an abomination to God each represent one of the three categories of sin, and Prov 6:17 lists all three, "Haughty eyes (mental), a lying tongue (verbal), and hands that shed innocent blood (overt)."

2.      Definition of the Three Categories of Sin.

         1)      Mental Attitude sins: Mental attitude is the function of human thought. Your mental attitude is what you think at any given time. Mental attitude sins are sins of the cognitive mind including your emotions. It is sin in your thought process. Remember that temptation is a thought, but it is not a sin. Temptation becomes sin when you linger on the thought, message it in your mind, or expand on the original temptation where you visualize the action of the temptation. At that point temptation becomes sin.

                  (1)     Mental Attitude sins include: arrogance, pride, jealousy, implacability, bitterness, vindictiveness, inordinate ambition and inordinate competition, all categories of lustfulness, all motivational sins, and sinful thoughts, Rom 12:2-3; 1Cor. 2:16; James 3:13-16.

                  (2)     Rom 12:2-3 warns us not to have mental attitude sins but instead have the thinking of Christ in our souls. Cf 1Cor. 2:16.

                  (3)     1Cor. 2:16, "For who has known the thinking of the lord that he should instruct him, but we have the mind of Christ (the Mystery Doctrine of the Church Age)."

                  (4)     Thinking is the battlefield of your soul. The life of every believer is in his mental attitude. The life of every believer is determined experientially by two principles: what he thinks and what he decides. That is why it is of vital importance to not have a mental attitude that is filled with sin.

                  (5)     We are command in 2Cor. 10:5 to, "take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ." That means when temptation enters your soul you recognize it for what it is based on the Word of God in your soul and you say no to the temptation and stop thinking about it immediately. Yet if you linger on the thought as noted above, it will become sin in your soul.

                  (6)     In relation to Proverbs 4:25, your eyes are the window to your soul. For most people it is the primary way you learn; (the other ways are by hearing and your senses). Nevertheless, what you gaze at through your eyes has everything to do with how you think.

                  (7)     All sins begin in the mentality of your soul. Therefore, if you are filled with evil thoughts of envy, or jealousy, or anger, or fear, you will eventually malign others, brag about your exploits, cut others down in criticism and gossip, or speak in some way that is inconsistent with faith, love, and hope. You may also enter into the categories of overt sins because of the mental attitude sin in your soul.

         2)      Verbal sins are sins that are spoken by you including gossip, maligning, slander, judging, lying, verbal deception, perverse speech, silly talk, flattery etc., Psa 12:2; Eph 5:3; James 3:1-12.

                  (1)     Eph 5:3, "But immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints; 4and there must be no filthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks."

                  (2)     Psa12:2, "They speak emptiness one to another with flattering lips; and with a double standard they speak."

                  (3)     3. Overt sins are any sin that includes the function of your body. This is the actionable category of sins when your body is used in the production of the sin including; chemical sins, criminal sins, sexual immorality (adultery, fornication), stealing, fraud, murder, and licentiousness, Mat 15:19; Gal 5:15-26; 1 Tim 3:3, 8; Titus 1:7.

                  (4)     Matthew 15:19, "For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders."

                  (5)     Galatians 5:19-21, "Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, 21envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you just as I have forewarned you that those who practice such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God."

         3)      Overt sins, vs.26-27, are any sin that includes the function of your body. This is the actionable category of sins when your body is used in the production of the sin including; chemical sins, criminal sins, sexual immorality (adultery, fornication), stealing, fraud, murder, and licentiousness, Mat 15:19; Gal 5:15-26; 1 Tim 3:3, 8; Titus 1:7.

                  (1)     Matthew 15:19, "For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders."

                  (2)     Galatians 5:19-21, "Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, 21envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you just as I have forewarned you that those who practice such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God."

                  (3)     This is when your body and soul are in full participation in Satan's Cosmic System, as opposed to using your body, soul and spirit in the worship and glorification of God, Luke 10:27.

                  (4)     The heart is the "master-control" of the life; a wrong heart always produces a wrong life. To allow sin into the heart is to pollute the entire life. Yet a righteous heart produces a right life before God, one that has much Divine Good Production, John 15:1-5, 8.

                  (5)     John 15:8, "My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so become My disciples."

3.      There are two kinds of sin that come from human volition.

         1)      Sins of Cognizance, in which a person, recognizing the temptation as a sin, wants to do it, and he does it. This is called a "known sin" and is a transgression involving human perception and/or cognizance. You know you are doing it.

         2)      Sins of Ignorance, in which a person is not aware that the Old Sin Nature is tempting him to sin and does not know that the thing he is tempted in is a sin; but he desires to it, and he does it. This is called an "unknown sin" and is a violation in which the act is committed without human perception or cognizance.

4.      Final points on sin:

         1)      Because all sin is related to the function of human volition, the believer is responsible for both categories of sin in his life. In both categories you are equally guilty because you used your human volition to sin in both known and unknown sins. Volition is the issue in the Angelic Conflict and God does not excuse you because you did not know what you were doing. Just as our law in America states, "ignorance is not excuse for the law."

         2)      Nevertheless, by the grace of God all sins were judged at the Cross of Jesus Christ, and for the believer the grace of God cleanses us from all sin, both cognizant and ignorant sins, when we confess (name) our cognizant (known) sins to God, 1John 1:9.

         3)      Also please remember that temptation is not sin!

         4)      Another interesting fact regarding the three categories of sin is that they are the same three categories of temptation that Satan has been using since the creation of man (and we can assume before); that is, as I call it, the temptations of "appetite, beauty and ambitious pride." Cf. Gen 3:6; Luke 4:3-9; Col 2:18 (in reverse order), 1John 2:16.

         5)      He used it on Eve in the Garden of Eden and on our Lord after being in the wilderness for 40 days and nights. And we are warned of his ways in 1John.

         6)      We taste with our tongues, (take a little sampling of things - including sin), see with our eyes, (lust after those things that look beautiful) and run with our feet in arrogance to evil, Prov 1:16; 6:18; Isa 59:7.

         7)      Isa 59:7-8, "Their feet run to evil, and they hasten to shed innocent blood (overt sins); their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity (mental attitude sins), devastation and destruction are in their highways. 8They do not know the way of peace, and there is no justice in their tracks; they have made their paths crooked, whoever treads on them does not know peace."

         8)      That is why it is so important to "watch over" your heart, so that you are not overrun by Satan's winning combination of temptations of appetite, beauty and ambitious pride that lead you into wickedness and evil, and ultimately defeat in the spiritual life.

         9)      As Proverbs puts it, the reason given for this care is because out of it are the "springs" (issues) of life. And out of a heart well-kept will flow Divine Good Production to the glory of God and the edification of others.

         10)    All of the actions of life flow from the heart, and therefore keeping it is to have a good life and health. Our lives will be regular or irregular, comfortable or uncomfortable, according as our hearts are kept or neglected.

         11)    In order to deal with sin in our lives, we must learn to look beyond the surface sin and go to the root issues or we will never experience true and lasting change that begins deep in the innermost part of our being through faith.

From James Rickard http://gracedoctrine.org/proverbs-chapter-4/ accessed February 28, 2015.

This was taken out of the Prov. 6 exegesis. This could stand some reorganization.

James Rickard’s Second Doctrine of Sin

What is Sin?

First we need to distinguish between Imputed Sin and Personal Sin, by understanding that the source of sin is twofold.

1.     Imputed Sin, is the imputation of Adam’s original sin from his fall in the Garden of Eden. At the point of physical birth we are born physically alive and spiritually dead having received the imputation of Adam’s original sin. At the moment of physical birth of every member of the human race God imputes Adam’s original sin to the inherent Sin Nature of the new born baby. This results in the spiritual death of that baby. 1 Cor 22:15, “For as in Adam all die…” So as a result of the fall two things occurred for mankind,

        1)     He receives the genetically inherent Sin Nature passed down from Adam,

        2)     He receives the imputation of Adam’s original sin, resulting in spiritual death. Spiritual death means total depravity. Therefore, we are prone to sin. We are spiritually dead before we commit our first sin. Rom 5:12, “Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned.”

2.     Personal Sin, The sins people commit during their lives, which is our topic in Prov 6:12-19, which is the function their human volition.

        1)     Personal Sin is anything done contrary to the character of God, or acting independently of God and His provision. It is coming short of God’s righteousness and glory, Rom 3:23b. Rom 3:23, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

        2)     Personal Sin is a fundamental relationship; it is not necessarily wrong “doing”, but wrong “being.” It is deliberate and determined independence from God.

        3)     Personal Sin preceded human good and evil because Adam could only sin in the garden; he could not produce human good or evil. In choosing to sin Adam acted independently from God and His provisions.

        4)     Therefore, Personal Sin is the result of the volitional decision on the part of the believer to say “yes” to the various temptations of life that come either internally from your Old Sin Nature or externally from Satan’s Cosmic System.

        5)     Remember that temptation comes from Satan’s Cosmic System or your Old Sin Nature, but sin always comes from human volition. Therefore, sin is a thought, a motive, or an act of wrong “doing”, plus a state of alienation from God that results in wrong “being”; experientially speaking. Temptation in itself is not sin, but the volitional act of succumbing to temptation is sin. Sin as the result of human volition is related to two categories.

                 (1)    Volition related to known sin is a Sin of Cognizance. It is that in which a person, recognizing the temptation as a sin, wants to do it, and he does it. A known sin is a transgression involving human perception and/or cognizance. You know you are doing it. Temptation is not sin.

                 (2)    Volition related to unknown sin is a Sin of Ignorance. It is that in which a person is not aware that the Old Sin Nature is tempting him to sin; but he desires to do the sin, and he does it. An unknown sin is a violation in which the act is committed without human perception or cognizance.

        6)     Rebound: That is why God in Grace gave us 1 John 1:9 that says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” “Forgiveness of our sins” are the “sins of cognizance” that we have named, or confessed (HOMOLEGEO) to God. “Cleansed from all unrighteousness” are the unknown sins of ignorance that we have committed. Whether it is a sin of cognizance or ignorance, we stand guilty of committing those sins before God and do not stand in a right relationship with Him experientially. Yet in Grace, the penalty for those sins has been paid for at the Cross of Jesus Christ, which is applied experientially for forgiveness and cleansing for the believer who confesses his sins to the Father.

                 (1)    The more you know about sin, the closer the accounts you can keep with God via the utilization of 1 John 1:9. In the Rebound Technique of 1 John 1:9, the believer takes the responsibility for his own decisions, including his own sins, and does not blame someone else for the function of his own volition. You must always take the responsibility for your own decisions. You begin to do so when you are consistent in the use of the Rebound Technique.

                 (2)    In addition, by understanding what sin is gives you the opportunity of building up resistance against it. You can identify what is sin in the temptation stage and say “no” to that temptation and thereby avoid sin. Therefore, awareness of what is sin helps you to resist it. However, the identification of temptation sometimes results in succumbing to that temptation, and so you sin.

3.     The vocabulary of sin:

        1)     The Greek term largely responsible for relating the Biblical concept of sin in the Old Testament is CHATTAH and in the New Testament is HAMARTIA, although numerous other words in the New Testament are used as well to highlight sin’s different aspects and dimensions of definition.

        2)     For instance, ADIKIA, “iniquity,” is the antithesis to the Biblical principle of justice; ANOMIA, “lawlessness or anarchy,” dramatizes contempt for the law of God, while ASEBEIA, “godlessness,” indicates contempt for God himself. Besides these terms there are many other words for specific sins such as murder, adultery, theft, and so on.

4.     In the New Testament the character of sin is fully exposed, whereas in the Old Testament it is understood primarily in relation to the Law. The New Testament also understands sin in light of the self-revelation of God in His Son. Because Christ has come and has spoken the Word of God and has carried out the plan of God all the way to the Cross and beyond, sin is without excuse, John 15:22-24. Sin is no longer simply a breach of the Law, sin rebels against God himself. Furthermore, it is not only stubborn disobedience of the Law, sin involves unbelief and rejection of the gospel.

5.     Personal sins are classified by the familiar Biblical terms designated to them that include:

        1)     Sin: In the Hebrew it is the noun CHATTAH or CHATTATH, חַטָּאת, that means, “sin, or offense”, as ASHAM, means “offense or guilt.” Prov 5:22, “His own iniquities will capture the wicked, and he will be held with the cords of his sin.” Prov 20:9, “Who can say, “I have cleansed my heart, I am pure from my sin”?” Prov 21:4, “Haughty eyes and a proud heart, the lamp of the wicked, is sin.” Prov 24:9, “The devising of folly is sin, and the scoffer is an abomination to men.”

        2)     In the Greek it is the noun HAMARTIA, ἁμαρτία, meaning, “sin, sinful deed, sinfulness or failure”, and the Verb is HAMARTANO, ἁμαρτάνω, meaning, “to miss the mark, do wrong, or sin”, which is coming short, or missing the mark of God’s holiness and righteousness.

                 (1)    Rom 6:17-18, “But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, 18and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.”

                 (2)    1 Cor 6:18-20, “Flee immorality. Every other sin that a man commits is outside the body, but the immoral man sins against his own body. 19Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? 20For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.”

                 (3)    Heb 3:13, “But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.”

                 (4)    1 John 3:4, “Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is

        3)     Transgression: The Hebrew uses the noun PESHA, פֶּשַע, that means, “rebellion, offense, trespass.” It is derived from PASHA, “to break away, to transgress.” Prov 12:13, “An evil man is ensnared by the transgression of his lips, but the righteous will escape from trouble.” Prov 17:19a, “He who loves transgression loves strife….” Prov 29:16, “When the wicked increase, transgression increases; but the righteous will see their fall.”

        4)     The Greek uses three nouns, first the noun PARAPTOMA αράπτωμα, that means, “a false step, a trespass or transgression.” It generally denotes “a fall beside or near something.” It can refer to a fall or deviation from the truth or that which is correct, for example, “an erroneous step.” So it is the stepping to one side, or the overstepping of those boundaries which God has marked off. It speaks of the fall of Adam, Rom 5:15-20, the fall of Israel in rejecting Christ, Rom 11:11, 12, and of the transgressions of the Gentiles which contributed to their spiritual death, Eph 2:1. It also describes the believer’s sins, Gal 6:1.

        5)     PARABASIS, παράβασις, that means “a going or step aside, a transgression.” It means an intentional infraction of the law in Rom 4:15, (violation); 1 Tim 2:14; Heb 2:2. 1 Tim 2:14, “And it was not Adam who was deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression.”

        6)     PARANOMIA, παρανομία, is the noun “against law, law breaking, transgression, wickedness” in 2 Peter 2:16 speaking about Balaam.

        7)     Iniquity:

                 (1)    The Hebrew nouns AVON, עָוֹן, meaning, “iniquity, guilt, punishment for iniquity”; and AVEN, אָוֶן “trouble, sorrow, wickedness, evil” referring to that which is altogether wrong. Prov 5:22, “His own iniquities will capture the wicked, and he will be held with the cords of his sin.” Prov 10:29, “The way of the LORD is a stronghold to the upright, but ruin to the workers of iniquity.” Prov 16:6, “By lovingkindness and truth iniquity is atoned for, and by the fear of the LORD one keeps away from evil.”

                 (2)    The Greek uses ADIKIA, ἀδικία, “injustice, unrighteousness, doing wrong.” It is the antithesis to the Biblical principle of justice. Acts 8:23, “For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bondage of iniquity.” James 3:6, “And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell.”

        8)     Error:

                 (1)    In the Hebrew it is the noun SHEGAGAH, ש ְגָגָה , meaning, “sin of error by inadvertence or ignorance.” It comes from the verb SHAGAG, ש ָגַג , that means, “to go astray, commit sin or error.” It refers to an inadvertent sin or error that is not consciously committed; a sin of ignorance or unknown sin. Eccl 10:5, “There is an evil I have seen under the sun, like an error which goes forth from the ruler.” Psa 119:67, “Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep Your word.”

                 (2)    The Greek is the noun PLANE, πλάνη, that means, “a wandering, or straying about.” It means that which disregards the right way and goes astray. James 5:20, “Let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.” 2 Peter 2:18, “For speaking out arrogant words of vanity they entice by fleshly desires, by sensuality, those who barely escape from the ones who live in error.”

        9)     Wickedness:

                 (1)    It is the Nouns RISHAH or RESHA meaning, “wickedness, evil or evildoer.” It is from the Adjective RASHA, “wicked, criminal, or evil.” It is the outworking and expression of an evil nature; depravity. Prov 8:7, “For my mouth will utter truth; and wickedness is an abomination to my lips.” Prov 11: 5, “The righteousness of the blameless will smooth his way, but the wicked will fall by his own wickedness.” Prov 12:3, “A man will not be established by wickedness, but the root of the righteous will not be moved.” Prov 13:6, “Righteousness guards the one whose way is blameless, but wickedness subverts the sinner.”

                 (2)    In the NASB New Testament several Greek Words are used for “wickedness.” ADIKIA which we noted above for “iniquity”, the antithesis to the Biblical principle of justice, in Acts 1:18; 2 Thes 2:10, 12; 2 Tim 2:19 2 Thes 2:11-12, “For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false, 12in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness.” 2 Tim 2:19, “Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands, having this seal, “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Everyone who names the name of the Lord is to abstain from wickedness.” KAKIA, κακία, that means, “evil, malice, ill-will, or desire to injure.” It is passive cruelty in Acts 8:22; James 1:21 James 1:21, “Therefore, putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls.” PONERIA, πονηρία, a noun that means, “depravity, iniquity, wickedness, malice, evil purposes and desires.” It is active cruelty in Mark 7:22; Luke 11:39; Rom 1:29; 1 Cor 5:8; Eph 6:12. Mark 4:21-23, “For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, 22deeds of coveting and wickedness, as well as deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride and foolishness. 23“All these evil things proceed from within and defile the man.”

        10)   Evil:

                 (1)    The Hebrew noun RA, רַע , meaning, “evil, distress, misery, injury, or calamity.” Also the noun RAAH, רָעָה , means, “evil, misery, distress, or injury.” It references that which is actually wrong, or opposing God. Gen 6:5, “Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” Prov 1:16, “For their feet run to evil and they hasten to shed blood.” Prov 6:14, “Who with perversity in his heart continually devises evil, who spreads strife.”

                 (2)    The Greek primarily utilizes the nouns PONERIA, and KAKIA as well as their corresponding Adjectives Heb 5:14, “But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.”

        11)   Ungodliness:

                 (1)    It is used twice in the Hebrew Old Testament. First in Psa 18:4 with BELIYYAAL, בְּלִיַּעַל, also meaning, “worthlessness”, as well as in Prov 6:12 for “worthless.” Therefore, “ungodliness” means lacking any worthy fear of God. Also it is used in Isa 32:6 with the noun CHONEPH, חֹנֶף, meaning, “profaneness or ungodliness.” Psa 18:4, “The cords of death encompassed me, and the torrents of ungodliness terrified me.” Isa 32:6, “For a fool speaks nonsense, and his heart inclines toward wickedness: to practice ungodliness and to speak error against the LORD, to keep the hungry person unsatisfied and to withhold drink from the thirsty.”

                 (2)    In the Greek it is ASEBEIA, ἀσέβεια, meaning, “ungodliness, or impiety.” It is a wanting, i.e., lack of, reverence towards God that indicates contempt for God himself. Rom 1:18, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness.” 2 Tim 2:16, “But avoid worldly and empty chatter, for it will lead to further ungodliness, 17and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus.” Titus 2:11, “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, 12instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, 13looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus.”

        12)   Disobedience: Used only in the NASB New Testament with

                 (1)    the noun is APEITHEIA, ἀπείθεια, from the Adjective APEITHES. It is the opposite of PEITHO that means, “to be persuaded or to have confidence” which means faith applied or obedience to the Word of God. So APEITHEIA means, “disobedience, obstinacy, obstinate opposition to the Divine will.” It is a lack of faith and confidence in God, an unwillingness to be led or guided in ways of truth (Bible Doctrine). Rom 11:30, “For just as you once were disobedient to God, but now have been shown mercy because of their disobedience.” Eph 2:2, “In which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.” Heb 4:11, “Therefore let us be diligent to enter that rest, so that no one will fall, through following the same example of disobedience.”

                 (2)    Also in the Greek we have PARAKOE, παρακοή, meaning, “a hearing amiss, unwillingness to hear, and by implication disobedience.” It is used in Rom 5:19; 2 Cor 10:6; Heb 2:2 Rom 5:19, “For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous.” Heb 2:2, “For if the word spoken through angels proved unalterable, and every transgression and disobedience received a just penalty.”

        13)   Unbelief: Found only in the New Testament Greek, APISTIA, ἀπιστία, means, “unbelief, unfaithfulness, faithlessness, want of faith, weakness of faith, or failure to trust in God.” Rom 4:20, “Yet, with respect to the promise of God, he (Abraham) did not waver in unbelief but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God.” 1 Tim 1:13, “Even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; 14and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus.”

        14)   Lawlessness: Also found only in the Greek New Testament, uses ANOMIA, ἀνομία, that means, “lawlessness or anarchy” and dramatizes contempt for the law of God, i.e., “lawless deeds and the condition of being without law because of ignorance of it or because of violating it. It is contempt and violation of law; iniquity, or wickedness. So it is the persistent contempt of Divine law in self-gratification regardless of Divine admonition. Mat 23:28, “So you, too (Pharisees), outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.” Mat 24:12, “Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold.” Rom 6:19, “I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, resulting in further lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in sanctification.” 1 John 3:4, “Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness.”

6.     So in conclusion, if a person sins, doing what is forbidden in any of the LORD’s commands, even though the person does not know it, he is guilty and will be held responsible. It’s easy to see why it was impossible for the Israelites to stay clear of guilt for long. God is a holy God. He wishes to have fellowship with humankind, but cannot tolerate sin. Sin, therefore, causes a separation experientially between God and the one guilty of sin. But if we confess our sins, He will forgive, 1 John 1:9, and we are restored to fellowship with Him once again.

7.     Now in Proverbs 6:12-19 we see a type of sin in each of the three general categories of sin we can commit: Mental, Verbal or Overt sin.

        1)     Mental Attitude Sin: These are sins of the mentality of your mind that occur when a temptation enters your conscious thought process and then is messaged or contemplated as an actual thing or event that you would do and then envision yourself as doing, cf. Prov 6:14a, 17a, 18a. There are two groups of Mental Attitude sins:

                 (1)    Emotional sins with its four categories.

                         i       Sins related to fear, which includes worry and anxiety.

                         ii       Sins related to hatred, which includes anger, violence, and murder.

                         iii      Sins related to self-pity.

                         iv      Sins related to guilt.

                 (2)    Mental sins. These include arrogance, pride, jealousy, implacability, bitterness, vindictiveness, inordinate ambition and inordinate competition, all motivational sins, and sinful thoughts.

        2)     Verbal Sin: Verbal sin or sins of the tongue are sins that are spoken with your mouth that includes gossip, maligning, slander, judging, lying, and verbal deception, cf. Prov 612b, 14b, 17b, 19b. All verbal sins originate from mental attitude sins, which lead to motivational sins, which lead to the sins of the tongue, which are designed to destroy your target, James 3:5ff.

        3)     Overt Sin: Sins performed with your body parts that include chemical sins, sexual sins, criminal sins, etc, cf. 13b and c, 17c, 18b.

8.     Final points:

        1)     Different types of sins are sprinkled throughout the New Testament that include commands of what not to do in life and many commands of what we should do that when we do not do them it is sin.

        2)     Rom 5:8, “Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. 10Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.”

        3)     The following passages give us several lists of sins that we are told not to do and therefore we need to avoid then so that we do not enter into sin. Rom 1:24-32; 13:8-10; 1 Cor 6:9-10; Gal 5:19-21, 26; Eph 5:1-7; 1 Tim 1:8-10; 2 Tim 3:1-9

        4)     Likewise in Proverbs 6:12-15, we have mental attitude sins in vs. 13a, 14a; verbal sins in vs. 12a, 14b; and overt sins in vs. 13b, 13c. We will see their parallels in verses 17-19.

From http://gracedoctrine.org/proverbs-chapter-6/ accessed September 21, 2015.

The Abbreviated Doctrine of

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