The problem of sin
1 John 3:7-10 - Thursday, January 4, 2024, Christmas Week
Today, John surprises us with a perplexing statement from his letter: "No one who is born of God sins, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot sin because they are born of God" (1 John 3:9). This seems contradictory to our daily experiences, as we often find ourselves committing various sins. Additionally, it appears to conflict with his earlier assertion that "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us" (1 John 1:8). The topic of sin in John's letter poses a significant challenge to our understanding.
The word "sin" appears on the pages of the Bible for the first time in the story of Cain murdering his brother Abel. God tells Cain that "sin is crouching at the door" (Gen 4:7) aiming to take control over him, but Cain should not allow it to happen. Unfortunately, in the story sin became Cain's master. This personified view of sin is found in Paul's letter to the Romans. The apostle describes sin as possessing the power to thwart our will to do good and force us to do something we do not want (see Rom 7:13-25). For Paul, humanity is being enslaved by sin and only Christ can liberate us from this slavery.
The Hebrew word for sin, "khata", means "to fail" or "to miss the goal". Therefore it is often understood as deviating from the proper path in life, failing to live up to a moral or spiritual standard. Cain for example failed to live up to the standard of being a brother to Abel. The Greek word for sin, "hamartia", has the same meaning and it was used outside of religious context. Thus, one can "err" in many aspects of life. There is nobody who has never committed mistakes or failed in life. "To err is human" rightly observed Roman Philosopher, Seneca.
History of humanity knows only one person of whom it was said that he was without sin (Heb 4:15). Then, the Catholic Church believes that Mary, the mother of Jesus was preserved from sin by her son's redeeming grace. But, how about all other followers of Christ? John says "No one who is begotten by God sins" (1 John 3:9). We understand the statement of being "begotten by God" as referring to the sacrament of baptism. But how many baptised Christians have failed to live up to the standards of the Gospel? The scholars struggle with offering a satisfactory explanation of this verse and we have no way to ask John directly what he meant by it.
Let me end this reflection with one more thought regarding sin taken from Master Eckhart, a German Dominican friar of the 13th century. He spoke of illusory and real sin and the difference between the two is the pain it causes us. "Believe me, that our committed sins are not sins if they cause us pain" (Master Eckhart). But even this statement does not solve the challenge posed by John that speaks about a life free from the power of sin, a life that reaches its goal of becoming Christ-like.