Theology Matters

What is Sin?

“²The woman said to the serpent, ‘We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden;’ ³but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, nor shall you touch it, or you shall die.’ ⁴But the serpent said to the woman, ‘You will not die; ⁵for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.’” (Genesis 3: 2-5) 

From that moment in the garden, sin has passed through all the generations of the human race, and we, as descendants of Adam and Eve, have inherited sin from them.

Man rebelled, disobeyed, did his own will, having heard the voice of the serpent instead of the voice of God. Man did what he knew he should not do.

The word sin refers to any interruption of our fellowship and communion with God. Sin is the rupture of man in his relationship with God, with himself, and with others. The Book of Genesis tells us how in creation, everything was harmony and beauty until that moment, naturally with the consent and free will of man, when the tempter appears to interrupt the peace that God had established with man.

From this very moment, it is clear that sin begins in and within man, not that God created it. Sin is thus the inclination of man to follow his own instincts or desires.

In the Book of Common Prayer we read, “Sin is the seeking of our own will instead of the will of God." (BCP, 848)

The condition of sin or selfishness is so frequent that it is manifested in thoughts, words, deeds, and omissions. It encompasses all the circumstances of man; and as the Catechism reminds us, sin distorts all our relationships, thus it destroys the image of God in which we were created.

Thomas Cranmer, in his writing of the Book of Common Prayer, understands and includes the liturgical tradition of the Church that, recognizes the sinful nature of man before God and invokes God's forgiveness. This is why our liturgies comprise the acknowledgment and confession of our sins.

We ask God's forgiveness because we need to be re-established in His communion and love. We need the strength that comes from God, following the obedient example of Jesus through the Holy Spirit, to overcome sin and not allow ourselves to be enslaved or subdued of our own volition.

"³⁴ Jesus answered them, ‘Very truly, I tell you, everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin. ³⁵The slave does not have a permanent place in the household; the son has a place there for ever. ³⁶So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed." (John 8: 34-36)

Sin nullifies the freedom of man, limits him and makes him a slave to his own whims. The more man lives in sin or approves of sin, the more he moves away from being truly free, because he is denying himself the opportunity to allow Jesus to free him from where he has alienated himself.

When we acknowledge our sin and understand that God has the desire to restore us and free us from our sin; we accept that our Lord God is the absolute most important in our lives, and that despite our sinful condition, it is possible to live anew in His new commandment- loving God first and foremost with all that we are and loving others as ourselves. 

The Rev. Fabian Villalobos

Rector, Christ Church, Dallas

¿Qué es el Pecado?

^“La mujer respondió a la serpiente: “Del fruto de los árboles del huerto podemos comer; ³ pero del fruto del árbol que está en medio del huerto, Dios ha dicho: ‘No comerán de él, ni lo tocarán, para que no mueran.’” ⁴ Y la serpiente dijo a la mujer: “Ciertamente no morirán. ⁵ Pues Dios sabe que el día que de él coman, se les abrirán los ojos y ustedes serán como Dios, conociendo el bien y el mal.”   (Génesis 3:2-5) 

A partir de ese momento, el pecado ha pasado a través de todas las generaciones de la raza humana, y nosotros como descendientes de Adán y Eva, hemos heredado de ellos el pecado. 

El hombre se rebeló, desobedeció, hizo su voluntad, y escucho la voz de la serpiente en vez de la voz de Dios e hizo lo que sabía que no debía de hacer.

La palabra pecado hace referencia a toda interrupción de la comunión con Dios. El pecado es la ruptura del hombre en su relación con Dios, consigo mismo, y con los demás. El Libro del Génesis nos narra como en la creación todo era armonía y belleza hasta el momento donde el tentador se aparece a interrumpir la paz que Dios había establecido, naturalmente con el consentimiento y libre decisión del hombre.

Desde ese momento, es claro que el pecado comienza en y dentro del hombre, no que Dios lo creo. El pecado es así, la inclinación del hombre a seguir sus propios instintos o deseos.

De acuerdo al Libro de Oración Común, pecado es “seguir nuestra voluntad en lugar de la voluntad de Dios”. (LOC, 741)

Es tan frecuente esa condición de egoísmo que se manifiesta en pensamientos, palabras, obras y omisiones. Es decir abarca y envuelve toda las circunstancias del hombre y como nos recuerda el Catecismo, cada pecado deforma y destruye la imagen de Dios.

Thomas Cranmer, en su redacción del Libro de Oración Común, entiende y continua con la tradición litúrgica de la Iglesia que reconoce al hombre pecador delante de Dios e invoca su perdón. Es por eso que nuestras liturgias incluyen el reconocimiento y la confesión de los pecados.

Le pedimos perdón a Dios porque necesitamos ser reestablecidos en su comunión y amor; necesitamos la fuerza que viene de Dios, siguiendo el ejemplo obediente de Jesús, a través del Espíritu Santo para vencer al pecado y no dejarnos esclavizar o someter por nuestra propia voluntad.

“Jesús les respondió: “En verdad les digo que todo el que comete pecado es esclavo del pecado; ³⁵ y el esclavo no queda en la casa para siempre; el hijo sí permanece para siempre. ³⁶ Así que, si el Hijo los hace libres, ustedes serán realmente libres.”  (Juan 8: 34-36) 

El pecado anula la libertad del hombre, lo limita y lo hace esclavo de sus propios caprichos. Más el hombre vive o aprueba el pecado más se aleja de ser verdaderamente libre, porque está negándose la oportunidad de permitirle a Jesús de liberarlo de sus alienaciones.

Cuando reconocemos nuestro pecado y entendemos que Dios tiene el deseo de restaurarnos y liberarnos de nosotros mismos, estamos aceptando que Jesús es lo más importante en nuestras vidas y que no obstante nuestra condición pecadora es posible vivir su mandamiento nuevo amando a Dios y a los demás como a nosotros mismos.

The Rev. Fabian Villalobos

Rector, Christ Church, Dallas

Theology Matters: What is the Gospel?

The Gospel is the account of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ in whom were fulfilled the hopes and dreams of the Old Testament. The word Gospel is the translation of the Greek noun euangelion “Good News”, and the verb euangelizo, meaning “to bring or announce Good News”. In our Christian culture the word Gospel has developed significantly until the point of be associated with the person Jesus.

The Gospel is the story of Jesus: his birth, life, passion, crucifixion, resurrection and ascension. The Gospel is certainly the “Good News” that Jesus offered to every person, it is “Good News” because it is a gift from God, the gift of His son to the world. Through Jesus, God provides a way of salvation for all men and women of all ages.

The early Christians had not written Gospels such as ours and their faith was based upon the preaching and teaching testimony of others who knew directly or indirectly the Lord Jesus in his earthly life. As in the case of the Twelve, whose testimony was based upon a personal knowledge of our Lord. Others had an indirectly, but equally vivid personal experience, of His risen life, such as the case in the Apostle Paul.

It was only after these special eye-witnesses had begun to disappear, and in order to avoid false teachings about Jesus that it seem necessary to set down their testimony in a written form, later called Gospel; which tell in consecutive form the story of Jesus which the apostolic teachers told only in a broken and fragmentary way. In writing their Gospels the authors concentrate their attention primarily in some major events of the life of Jesus. Especially His death and resurrection which demonstrate that the power of God was working in and through Him.

Each Gospel differs from the others but all of them have the common story of Jesus. Each one of the Gospels tells the story from his own characteristic point of view but they were editors rather than authors. Each version of the Gospel receives and organizes the material of testimony and presents it from their own perspective. Their purpose was not to write a biography in the modern sense of the word or to share accurate historical information. The purpose of the Gospel is to facilitate the encounter of the reader with the person of Jesus.

The Gospel is written to show who and what kind of person Jesus was, and to arouse in the readers a response of faith and love. The Gospel is the “Good News” because it puts the reader in front of the Savior and touches his/her life. “Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.” John 20:30-31

The Gospel was written in spirit of faith to ignite the reader’s faith in the person of Jesus, in His words, actions and teachings; and ultimately to reveal the Presence of God through Jesus, as Messiah and Son of God. The Gospel offers abundant, new life in Jesus name to those who read it in the same spirit in which the writers wrote it.

The Apostle Paul, one of this privileged indirectly witness of Jesus, understood and summarizes the Gospel in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 “For I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures.”

In our liturgy during Holy Communion we proclaim the message of the Gospel. When we celebrate the faith of the Church:

“.. The memorial thy Son hath commanded us to make; having in remembrance his blessed passion and precious death, his mighty resurrection and glorious ascension; rendering unto thee most hearty thanks for the innumerable benefits procured unto us by the same.”          Rite One, BCP 335

“We celebrate the memorial of our redemption, O Father, in this sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving. Recalling his death, resurrection, and ascension, we offer you these gifts.”    Rite Two, BCP 363

This is the essence of the Gospel: Death, burial, resurrection and appearances of the resurrected Christ. The message of the Gospel is a faith confession in two parts: (1) Christ died for our sins and (2) He was raised on the third day. The Gospel is certainly the “Good News” of God in Jesus all the time for all the people.

The Rev. Fabian Villalobos is rector of Christ Church, Dallas