Systematic Theology - Sin

Sin and Righteousness

Professor: Dr. R.J. Rushdoony

Subject: Systematic Theology

Lesson: Government

Genre: Speech

Track: 21

Dictation Name: 21– Sin and Righteousness

Year: 1980

Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, we live in a time when indeed the nations conspire together and take counsel against Thee and against Thine anointed. But we thank Thee that Thou who sittest on the throne doest hold them in derision. And Thou shalt in Thine own time smite them with the rod of Thy judgment. Give us grace, our Father, to live in these troubled times, yielding ourselves unto Thee and ready and valiant in battle, summoning men, women, children and nations to kiss the Son, lest he be angry, to bow down before Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and to commit all their ways unto Him. Bless us in our studies, prosper us in Thy service and make us bold and courageous in the things of Thy kingdom. In Jesus’ name, amen.

We have for a number of sessions been studying the doctrine of sin. We will conclude our studies in this doctrine tonight. It has been our purpose to set forth the religious, the theological meaning of sin and our subject in our first session will be “Sin and Righteousness.”

Let us look at II Timothy 2:19-23. The key verse, of course, is the latter part of verse 19. II Timothy 2:19-23:

“19Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let everyone that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

20 But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour.

21 If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work.

22 Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

23 But foolish and unlearned questions avoid, knowing that they do gender strifes.”

Too often the meaning of sin has been reduced to a theological, to a churchy meaning so that sins are seen in relationship to the church and to the officers of the church and to some very narrow concerns of the church. On the other hand, the Modernists have given sin a sociological and a political meaning so that we have books such as R.J. Sider’s Rich Christians in a Hungry World in which sin is Capitalism in effect and God becomes a Marxist. The result of all these efforts has been a limited view of sin, a man-centered view, not a God-centered one.

As we have been discussing sin, there are many areas which we have not touched or have barely touched. Let me cite one:

A contributing factor to our current inflation is the indifference of churches to the issue. After all, what is inflation? It is theft! But how many churchmen teach that it is so? In Luther’s day, Luther knew that it was theft and he called it so in his lectures on Romans. But how many clergymen will today describe inflation for exactly what it is: theft? The Modernists and the Neo-evangelicals have indeed promoted this sin by advocating deficit spending and taxation as the solution to all social problems. But the Evangelicals have refused to see it as a violation of God’s Law against theft, as a violation of the law against just weights and measures. Well, the Church had better wake up to this sin. If in the past year you did not get a pay raise of about 15%, you probably lost money in terms of your purchasing power. Competent economists are estimating that inflation this year will be between 18% and 25%. Think of what that will do to your income. In terms of the kind of money appropriated already by the past congress for the next two years, we will have massive inflation.

But this is not limited to us. Every civil government around the world has added to the sin of theft (which inflation is), the sin of false witness. The annual statistics with regard to inflation are prepared by the federal government with its usual standard of accuracy. If you want to know what inflation is like this is January. Write down the prices per pound or package and wait of the staples you get at the grocery store and then check them at the end of the year. I think you’ll get a very different story, if you keep a track of what the basics cost you. Psalm 50:18 tells us that silence before evil in the face of evil is consent to that evil. And we have to say that there is a great deal of sinning by Christians here.

Our salvation from sin is Jesus Christ in His person, his work and his Word. We are saved by His atonement. We are then to live in obedience to His every word, for man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceedeth from the mouth of God. In any area it is a sin for man to move in terms of his own word. In every area, we are to move in terms of the Word of God, whether it be in the area of civil government, economics, politics, the Church, education—in every area. And yet, the church has been sinning here.

Sin is total war against the triune God. The war against sin must be waged in every area of life and thought. This Wednesday just past, I was in Sacramento to be interviewed on a talk show (call-in show). I have been on such for twenty years approximately now off and on all over the country on television interviews and radio call-in interview shows. The thing that was interesting to me was, twenty years ago, had I spoken as I did two days ago, the switchboard would have lighted up with angry protests. There was not a single dissent on Wednesday. At least now with regard to Christian education, people are beginning to see the light. But we have a long ways to go before we turn the tide.

All sin is a violation of God’s covenant with man. A breech of the covenant requires restitution. And restitution is in most cases both the death of the offender and the recompense of the offended. As one scholar, Kenneth Grayston has said, “The violator of the covenant becomes the debtor of the righteous.” Now, that means that he must both pay with his life and make restitution. God in Christ makes the recompense and pays the death penalty to restore us to covenant, communion and obedience.

The Shorter Catechism says that sin is any want of conformity unto or transgression of the Law of God. In I John 3:4 we have the Bible’s definition of sin from whence the shorter catechism derives its definition. “Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth the Law, for sin is the transgression of the Law.” Sin is rebellion against God in word, thought and deed. It is war against God and the antithesis of sin is the obedience of faith, for faith without works is dead. The scope and the consequence of a sin is total. It is death. And Paul tells us that the whole creation groans and travails waiting for the full redemption of the sons of God. The war against sin also must be total and we must claim all things for Christ.

Too long the Church has held a cheap view of sin. It has trivialized sin. I can recall years ago hearing someone say (and I don’t think I’ll ever get over the shock of hearing his statement, and it was simply this), everybody who smokes goes to hell. That’s a cheap and trifling view of sin. Our doctrine of sin depends on our doctrine of God and our doctrine of justice or righteousness. And if we have an unsound doctrine of God and His righteousness, then we have a trifling view of sin. A trifling God, and a trifling doctrine of sin; the one follows from the other. Antinomianism trivializes sin.

Now Paul uses two words for sin—more than two words—but there are two words that he uses: adikia, which is anti-justice and it’s a legal word. Its background is legal process. It has reference in his usage to God’s Law. Another word that he uses, asebeia, means ungodliness. The ‘a’ in both cases means against; anti; not. In Romans 1:18 for example, he uses both terms. Sin or as ungodliness is enmity to God. Sin as anti-justice is a contempt for God’s righteousness and person, for His Law.

Paul tells us in II Timothy 2:19 that the Lord knoweth them that are his, and who are they that are his? Let everyone that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity, from anti-justice, anti-righteousness. Let everyone that nameth the name of Christ, those whom the Lord knows are they who depart from iniquity, from anti-righteousness, anti-justice.

We are called to righteousness, to justice, and the purpose of our calling is, as Paul declares in Romans 5:21, “as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.” Thus, to be guilty of anti-justice, anti-righteousness, to be guilty of antinomianism is a contempt for and a denial of God and His grace.

Are there any questions now?

No questions? Very well then, we will take a recess for about ten minutes and then resume our meeting with our second session.