What is "sin that lead to death''?

It is not a matter of what kind of sins, nor any catalogue of shocking or sensational wrongdoings. The issue is not the size, severity, or frequency of the sins. What matters is this:

Where or on what ground is one standing (or seated) when he gets arrested in his conscience and is facing trial for his sins/law breaking?

His position—whether he has overcome “by the blood of the Lamb” and so stands righteous before God despite his sins, or not— and what he says— “the word of our Testimony” concerning his situation— make all the difference. Life and death are in the power of the tongue.

Is he:

• Seated with Christ our Advocate and Bearer of sins, or
• having “approached the bench,” is begging for forgiveness for the same sins for which Jesus died his death-- trying to present God the Righteous Judge with a checklist of obediences, church donations, fasts and other commands of the law aka evidences of why he should not face the sentence of death; and effectively turning his back on his Advocate and Bearer of sins.

Notice the judicial terms? The wages of sin, any sin, is death. All sins lead to death; the only Way for sin to not lead to death is to believe tha Another has died that death for our sake. The ground on which one is standing (or seated) when he goes on trial for his sins — under Law or under Grace— that’s what determines whether his sins will lead to death or not. 

This death which the Law of Sin and Death demands for sin is separate from and superior to “Caesar’s” demands. The one who is under the Law must “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” For example, going to jail for murder may satisfy Caesar’s demand — the earthly penalty — but it does not satisfy the demand for death under the Law of Sin and Death, any more than getting bit by a dog while fleeing the scene of a crime makes the suspect entitled to a lighter sentence in court. Getting shot in the head for adultery and ending up a paraplegic is incidental— many people do it and don’t get caught. Caught or not, the wages of sin remain.

The Law of Sin and Death condemns the best of us, and the condemned must die— any sin of his leads to death. But Grace (Christ Himself) saves the worst of us, even salvation from sin and death

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EXTREMELY LOOOOOOONG POST ALERT.

As always, the Bible always interprets the Bible. Even our Saviour Jesus Christ didn’t deviate from this pattern in explaining to Nicodemus and to us what it means to be born again, or to believe/have faith (both are translated from the same Greek word pistis) in Him for salvation—

“as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness…” John 3

In essence, you try to get rid of your sins (snakebite symptoms) caused by the fiery serpent’s sting within (the inherited sin nature), and death — preceded by suffering (earthly ills) — must surely follow. But stop your silly efforts to save yourself from your sins. Stop trying to become godly (be like God) who has no sins. Instead, trust utterly in — look to — Jesus Christ the Tree of Life lifted up for our salvation from sin and death, and be free from sin and death.

Unfortunately, in many places of worship, emphasis is placed on treating snakebite symptoms (acts of sin that lead to death) by scampering about trying to curb sins in order to be made whole/perfect (to be like God), and fasting for 70 days to escape the symptoms of death (lack, disease, unemployment, depression, poverty, etc.). This is a testament to the utter disregard for, and rejection of, Jesus Christ who was lifted up “as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness…”

With this background, we can now address sins that lead to death —

Man’s definition of sins that should cause death is simple and transactional: “big” sins such as murder or even the “great wickedness” called adultery— we know that adultery is “great wickedness” from Joseph's words in Genesis 39:9, when when Potiphar's wife attempted to seduce him and he resisted:

“How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?”

But have you ever heard of Onan in the Bible? He was Judah’s son. The law demanded his death for the sin of practicing coitus interruptus—Genesis 38:9–10 —

“But Onan was not willing to have a child who would not be his own. So whenever he had intercourse with his brother’s wife, he withdrew and spilled his semen on the ground. This prevented her from having a child who would belong to his brother. But the Lord considered it evil for Onan to deny a child to his dead brother. So the Lord killed him, too.”

To digress a bit, many non-believers and even churchgoers read the part in bold above and wonder how the Lord could kill Onan, I mean, God is Love/Merciful. True. But God is also the Righteous Judge. His Word in Psalm 89:14 states—

"Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; Mercy and Truth go before Your face."

The Passion Translation says: “Your glorious throne rests on a foundation of righteousness and just verdicts. Grace and truth are the attendants who go before you.”

Let’s pay attention to the words in bold— God is the Righteous Judge. He can’t sweep sins under the carpet—even we would be appalled, even outraged, if an earthly court judge let his own beloved son off the hook for his crimes. His righteousness demands justice. Now consider the latter part of Psalm 89:14—

"Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; Grace and Truth go before Your face."

We know that Jesus Christ is the Truth. But did you know that Grace is a Person? His name is Jesus Christ. Titus 2:11 says of Him:

“God’s marvelous grace has manifested in person, bringing salvation for everyone."

Jesus Christ is “Grace and Truth” who go before God’s face— because He so loved us, God placed His own Son Jesus Christ before Him to absorb the full brunt of condemnation and judgment that the law demanded for our sins.

Christ came be our Ransom, Mediator, Advocate and Bearer of Sins— He died in our place so that our sins (law breaking) no longer lead to our death — “He who believes is not condemned…” says John 3. Based on His finished work at the cross, the Holy Spirit bears Witness or Testifies that in Him, God no longer remembers our sins and lawless deeds (Hebrews 10:17)

Notice the judicial terms in bold? The system of judgment in earthly courts provides a mirror of how we are saved in Christ. We get more clarity on what our warfare (a legal battle) entails and how sin results in guilt, condemnation and the prison of death —preceded by time on death row manned by earthly ills of lack, stupid mistakes and manned by prison wardens of demonic oppression —when we consider Satan’s role in this entire affair as it is written in Revelation 12—

“Then I heard a strong (loud) voice in heaven, saying, Now it has come—the salvation and the power and the kingdom (the dominion, the reign) of our God, and the power (the sovereignty, the authority) of His Christ (the Messiah); for the accuser of our brethren, he who keeps bringing before our God charges against them day and night, has been cast out!

Satan is a Lawyer. HaSatan is literally “prosecutor at law” in Hebrew. In Israel today, prosecuting attorneys are called HaSatan (the Satan.) “Ha” is the definitive article “the.” In the Bible verse “your adversary the devil goes about like a roaring lion,” the word “adversary” is translated from the Greek word “antidikos” meaning “opponent in a lawsuit.”

Satan is a lawyer and our warfare is a legal battle. The battleground for our warfare is the heart from which Proverbs tells us “proceeds the issues of life” and where we are “pulling down strongholds, casting down imaginations and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.” 1 Corinthians 5

Notice what we are up against in this warfare? Satan’s weapons are strongholds, thoughts, imaginations, and “every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God” — akin to the thoughts that Peter entertained when he assumed that had knowledge superior to that of the Knowledge of God Himself — Jesus Christ — concerning the matter of his denials. It’s the same posture taken today by churchgoers who think that some sins are beneath them.

The weapons of our warfare are not carnal (man-made) like that of Judas who depended on his human might aka the arm of flesh to assuage his guilt and restore himself after he saw that he was condemned. Our weapons are not useless 70 days of fasting or more attempts at using the law — the knowledge of good and evil (like the tree) — to attain godliness or “be like God.” According to the same chapter or Corinthians, the only weapon that cuts it in this warfare is “the obedience of Christ” by which we are made righteous or acquitted before God the Righteous Judge—

“By one man’s disobedience many were made sinners. So also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous.” Romans 5:19.

From the above, we see that committing acts of sin is not what makes a person a sinner. Adam's sin took care of that for all of his descendants, infecting all with the fiery serpent's sting called the sin nature. Stealing or a man lying with another man is not what labels a person as “sinner.” Adam’s disobedience took care of that long before anyone could present symptoms of their infection. The fiery serpent’s sting which caused the infected Israelites to produce deathly symptoms is a typology for the sin nature; the sin nature is like HIV, hence David’s lament in Psalm 51:5—

“Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.”

Another version says—

“I’ve been a sinner from birth, from the moment my mother conceived me.”

Pray what sin has a baby committed to be deemed a sinner? No, beloved. Sin is in the blood. Inherited. A person can live his life in a bubble of (self-)righteousness. Apart from acknowledging that Jesus is and looking to. Christ lifted up as his only title to his enjoyment of every blessing of God, even eternal life, he is still a sinner.

So, your hand in the cookie jar is not why you are a sinner— that’s merely a snakebite symptom of being infected with the sin nature. You can’t even choose or get rid of your symptoms (acts of sin) or suppress them (obey the Ten Commandments) anymore than an infected Israelite could have chosen what snakebite symptoms to present, or escaped death by doing things to suppress them. In fact, your efforts will only worsen your case hence Romans 5:20—

“The law was given that sins might increase…”

Based on the vagaries of time and chance as well as God’s mercy in not letting many experience Satan’s sifting — which makes many think they are being godly or doing okay in terms of not committing sins as was the case with Peter who just knew that he could never deny Jesus but ended up doing so copiously — sinners will produce sins—

• just as carriers of HIV will produce symptoms of their infection under adverse conditions; remember “your adversary the devil…” aka opponent in a lawsuit (from the Greek antidikos)
• just as a person born with genotype SS will experience the crises associated with the condition under adverse conditions;
• just as a person infected with COVID-19 will produce varying degrees of symptoms — I recall my spouse first caught the virus and barely sneezed. I got it from him and had severe symptoms, even lost my sense of taste and smell: YOU CANNOT CHOOSE YOUR SINS ANY MORE THAN THE ISRAELITES COULD CHOOSE THEIR SNAKEBITE SYMPTOMS. Anymore than my spouse and I could choose our Covid symptoms
• just as the Israelites who were infected with the fiery serpents sting were bound to produce symptoms that would’ve eventually killed them all if God had not provided the bronze serpent—a type of Christ.

Again, the sting-infected Israelites couldn’t even choose their snakebite symptoms— a typology for acts of sin that lead to death, any more than those flouting Leviticus or any other law today can choose where their sins ooze out from!

Sin is in the blood, beloved, passed down from Adam. It is the default mode of all mankind, to have the old or sin nature. The one who is not exhibiting it in copious amounts or flouting Leviticus with relish, and is boasting about his obedience and right-living prowess, that one is like a sting-infected Israelite feeling smug and berating others for their kind of symptoms because his symptoms are not as evident or are deemed “more acceptable” by society.

The law (including it’s works such as starving yourself for 70 days or indulging in other “trade by barter” works such as doing charitable works in order to to get God to bless) which many are still hugging in order to be right with God and depending on their own obedience of it, it is the launchpad for Satan the Accuser’s accusations or charges aka “fiery darts of the wicked one” aka the imaginations and thoughts which we bring into captivity to the obedience of Christ—our acquittal through His obedience—

Often we think those negative thoughts are original to us, even thoughts such as —

❌“I’m too fat”

❌ “I’m not at the level of my peers”

❌ “What gives her the audacity to talk to me that way”

❌“I’m going to be exposed for that thing I did 30 years ago, so I’d better kill myself now before the shame hits, etc. —

Believer, those thoughts and imaginations aren’t you; they are merely Satan’s weapons launched over the airstrip that is our heart from which proceeds the issues of life. Remember the Lord God’s conversation with Adam Genesis 3:11 —

“And He said, ‘Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?’”

Now the Bible tells us in verse 7 that Adam and Eve KNEW that they were naked —

“Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.”

— as if they realised it on their own. But God’s word shows us that someone told them. That someone is Satan who is still projecting charges — accusing thoughts and imaginations highlighting sins and imperfections — over the airstrip called the heart of man, telling the flock to eat more law (the knowledge of good and evil) or depend on their ability to use more of that same tree (the law) in order to be godly — even from the pulpit!

Beloved, it was Satan who put the thought that they were naked in their heart, but they believed that they came up with it all by themselves, and started trying to cover their nakedness (a picture of sin, unrighteousness or ungodliness) with what I believe was leaves from the same tree of the knowledge of good and evil (a type of the law), which is what many pastors are leading the flock to do today with their prescriptions of more efforts at obeying the law to be godly (be like God) and fasting for 70 days in order to be more “spiritual”— be like God who is Spirit!

Satan hopes that man will TAKE ownership of those thoughts by speaking them and acting on them — by trying to cover their nakedness with “fig leaves” of more dependence on the law which is the knowledge of good and evil, instead of trusting utterly in Jesus Christ (the Tree of Life) and Him crucified alone.

The way to TAKE ownership of and experience the negative issues of life from those thoughts is by SAYING them hence Christ’s counsel to us in Matthew 7—

“Take no thought SAYING….”

We accept or take ownership of a thought by SAYING it, hence Proverbs 18:21—

“Life and death are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.”

Another version says— “What you say can mean life or death. Those who love to talk will be rewarded for what they say.”

So let us continually speak or SAY God’s thoughts towards us in Christ, for unlike Satan’s, they are of peace and not evil; Jeremiah 29:11—

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”

All have sinned… and the wages of sin is death. So how come there are sins that lead to death and some that don’t? —

This is man’s reasoning— to assume that some sins shouldn’t cause a person’s death. But God’s thoughts and ways are far above ours—completely outside the framework of human logic or fairness, as He says in Isaiah 55.

8 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, says the Lord. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts."

His Way is illogical to human reasoning—

"For the message of the cross is foolishness [absurd and illogical] to those who are perishing and spiritually dead [because they reject it], but to us who are being saved [by God’s grace] it is [the manifestation of] the power of God." 1 Corinthians 1:18.

Often we have the idea that some sins should carry a heavier sentence because they are greater, and this is true according to Christ Himself— we see this in Christ’s word to Pilate in John 19:11 -

“Jesus answered, “You could have no power at all against Me unless it had been given you from above. Therefore the one who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.”

Now God's word says “all have sinned…” so by default, no one on earth is excluded from the dragnet of “the wicked.” It encompasses all who have sinned, whether "big" sin or "small" sin. And, in light of James 2:10, anyone who has one tiny sin might as well have broken the entire law because—

“Whosoever shall keep the whole law yet stumble at one point, he is guilty of all.”

This means that the one who believes that his good works, obedience or ability to not commit particular sins contributes an atom to his salvation or ability to not perish but have eternal life, that one has to keep the whole law or else he is guilty of all. Not fair? Typical of man to justify himself and imply that God is unjust in His dealings with man, like self-righteous Job who also touted his obedience and good works as why calamity should not befall him, until we realise that the only reason why we, even believers, are not wallowing in horrid sins and Job-type calamities right now is written for us in 1 Corinthians 10–

12 "So beware if you think it could never happen to you, lest your pride becomes your downfall. 13 We all experience times of testing, which is normal for every human being. But God will be faithful to you. He will screen and filter the severity, nature, and timing of every test or trial you face so that you can bear it. And each test is an opportunity to trust Him more, for along with every trial God has provided for you a way of escape that will bring you out of it victoriously."1 Corinthians 10.

If God were not filtering and screening… well, let us remember Peter who thought that he was being good all by himself until his testing. The potential to commit horrid sins is in everybody. God sees this potential and how favourable circumstances make some religious folk think that they are doing good all by themselves or that some sins are beneath them.

Peter was not wallowing in sins when he made the proclamation that He would follow Christ to prison and to death— and then his trial came and he lied with swearing and cursing. So let he that is standing take heed lest he falls. No one is good but God. Man of himself is flesh. No good. We would all be shocked at ourselves but for God’s restraining hand which is the “Skeleton” that is propping man up from expressing the baseness of his “no good” humanity in the form of horrific sins and Job-type calamities. It is by His mercy alone that we are not consumed… consumed by sins and calamity.

Recall again the parties that determine the outcome when we face trials of life which arise — as it is in any earthly court of law — when we break the law and the Satan the Accuser/Prosecutor at law begins to ram one with charges to push one in to depression and suicide-mode as he did Judas—-

‼️ God is the Righteous Judge.

‼️ Jesus Christ the Advocate and Bearer of sin for all who believe.

‼️ The Holy Spirit testifies or bears witness from the witness box of our heart to the Truth that in Christ, God does not remember our sins and lawless deeds (Hebrews 10.)

‼️ Satan is the Accuser of whom Revelation 12 says “brings charges against our brethren day and night.” —

Only God the Righteous Judge can pronounce a verdict and based on the righteous requirements of the law. What Job experienced was what all of mankind truly deserved: condemnation and the death sentence—

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”Romans‬ 6‬:23‬

Christ paid in full the wages of sin. He has rid all who believe in Him — having Him as our Righteousness and Strength, acknowledging that of ourselves, we have absolutely no good in us to as much as do or uphold a tittle of His commandments — of the old or sinful nature/sin virus which Adam passed on to all of his descendants and thus conscripted us all to a life of expressing sins that lead to death— akin to how any Israelite who was infected with the fiery serpents sting would have died no matter how severe or mild his symptoms were. See Colossians 2:11–

“When you came to Christ, you were “circumcised,” but not by a physical procedure. Christ performed a spiritual circumcision—the cutting away of your sinful nature.” Colossians‬ 2:11‬

That sinful or old nature which Adam passed on to all of his descendants conscripted man to a lifetime of producing acts of sins that lead to death aka any son at all, even overeating. The one with the sin nature disagrees with Christ’s word “There is none good but God” and strives to be like God (who is Good and has no trace of sins or ungodliness) by human effort. That has been Satan’s religious deceit since Eden—

dependence on human effort (the arm of flesh) for the development of godly traits (be like God) by doing the commands of the law (the letter) which kills and is the knowledge of good and evil like the tree of the same name in Eden.

See the forbidden fruit as a typology for the law which many churchgoers are feeding on in order to be godly (be like God) in Romans 7:8-12 (MSG)—

8-12 "Don’t you remember how it was? I do, perfectly well. The law code started out as an excellent piece of work. What happened, though, was that sin found a way to pervert the command into a temptation, making a piece of “forbidden fruit” out of it. The law code, instead of being used to guide me, was used to seduce me."

Recall Adam and Eve? They were created in God's likeness—

26 “God said, “Now we will make humans, and they will be like us. We will let them rule the fish, the birds, and all other living creatures.” 27 So God created humans to be like himself; he made men and women.” Genesis‬ 1‬:26‬-27‬

Adam and Eve were already godly "like God," and not because they had anything to do with attaining this status. It was a free gift from God. But Satan deceived Eve and consequently Adam into striving for godliness by human effort and through dependence on the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The law gives the same knowledge and the letter kills, just like the tree.

As a new creation in Christ, God made us godly or good (like Himself) as a gift of Grace— that’s what Christianity is about. But not so with every other religion in this world— atheist or not, the focus is trying to be good (be like God) by human effort and using the available knowledge of good and evil. Little wonder the Bible describes Satan as the god of this world. Trying to get man to improve himself towards being more like God (godly) and using the available knowledge of what is good land what is evil, that has been Satan’s religious deceit since Eden; it’s why the severely-religious Pharisees could not stand Jesus and why, today, many church folk shun the Grace of God aka Jesus Christ who Himself is the (Tree of) Life — after all, many reason—

“what is bad in one doing his best to be godly and by his own human striving?”

Beloved of God, that is neither godliness nor humility; that is UNBELIEF in Jesus dressed in religion. From the Garden of Eden until now, Satan’s deception has been the same: subtly promoting PRIDE in the arm of flesh/human effort for the attainment of godliness (to be like God) — the desire to “be like God” through human performance. That is Satan’s religion, and it has always been the downfall of man.

How can a heap of rubbish or debris improve itself by itself? Recall Genesis 2:7–

“And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.”

Also Psalm 103:13-14 tells us—

“As a father pities his children, So the Lord pities those who fear Him. For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust.”

“Dust” in the verses above is translated from the original Hebrew text “apar” and has the following outline of Biblical usage—

‼️dust, dry earth

‼️ashes

‼️debris

‼️a heap of rubbish

The above is the constitution of man of himself. Debris. But man who is “none good” flesh of himself attributes the benefits of the “skeleton” that is the remnants of the breath of God in his nostrils to his own human ability to stand or be godly, and expects that God should recognize him for it, like an infant on his father’s shoulders in a parade boasting about how he can see further and better than his peers, and disregarding his father’s help, attributing it to his own strength. That was the mindset that Job had before his suffering began!

Beloved, let's not put the cart before the horse with that mindset and false teaching that promotes the doing of useless works in order to move God to act on our behalf. That confidence is self/arm of flesh aka thinking that one can produce even an atom of good by oneself is what God detests; the mindset challenges His Word who says "There is none good but God" and leads to sins increasing.

Such are yet to realise that they are following in the footsteps of Adam and Eve who received Satan’s doctrine of deceit. Satan’s strategy has not changed since Eden. Such who follow it cannot but experience “life under the sun” as it is written in the Book of Ecclesiastes.

Just like the tree, the letter kills. The spirit of the antichrist is not necessarily or vocally anti-God. The word “antichrist” is translated from two Greek words—

Anti — meaning “replace” or “in place of” and

Christos — meaning “Christ” = “Anointed”

“Antichrists” refers to anyone who tries to REPLACE what CHRIST has done to make us righteous, free us from the imputation, guilt, condemnation and penalty of sin (death plus its symptoms of earthly ills) and to grant us eternal life in Himself, with what MAN must do by his useless human effort aka the arm of flesh at eating from the same tree— the law.

The wages of sin, any sin, is death. All have sinned. And James 2:10 tells us—

“For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all.”

So, stole a pin? Stole an elephant? Ran a red light because your pregnant sister is in labour, the baby’s a breech and the foot is out? The law isn’t interested in backstories, it must punish sin to the uttermost. And the punishment meted out by the Law of Sin and Death is exclusive of that meted out by “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s” — getting caught for stealing and going to jail doesn’t absolve one of the demands of the Law of Sin and Death— that’s as incidental as being bitten by a dog while trying to flee the scene of a crime and still going to jail for said crime.

Anyone outside the blood-bought covering of acquittal that we have in Christ is under the Law of Sin and Death— subject to being charged and condemned; such do not even need to believe in God for Satan to accuse and push into condemnation so that judgment can follow any more than denying that the Law of Gravity exists can remove its impact. It’s why trials that tend to death seem to not discriminate between atheists, churchgoers and those who practice the zillion other religions out there.

It’s not WHAT type of sins, or any long list of ghastly sins. Rather, it’s WHERE or on what ground the sins are committed.

Sin that leads to death depends on where you stand (or in this case, where you are seated) when trials of life begin and Satan let’s loose his fiery darts of charges — those thoughts, imaginations and “every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God” akin to the ones Peter took ownership of (by speaking them) when he believed that he had knowledge superior to that of his Maker on the matter of his then-upcoming denials —

Recall the parties hearing what you have to say and are aware of your position/where you are during your trial—

• God is the Righteous Judge.
• GRACE-PERSONIFIED Jesus Christ the Advocate and Bearer of sin for all who believe; the one with whom we are seated in the heavenly places, far above all principalities and power and might and dominion….
• The Holy Spirit testifies or bears witness from the witness box of our heart to the Truth that in Christ, God does not remember our sins and lawless deeds (Hebrews 10.)
• Satan is the Accuser of whom Revelation 12 says “brings charges against our brethren day and night.”

Everyone has sins to be accused of and the wages of sin, any sin, is death— so, what makes the difference concerning sins leading to death or not?—

‼️Remain seated with Christ your Advocate and Bearer of sins (under Grace), believing the Witness of the Holy Spirit who testifies that in Christ, God does not remember your sins, and your sins — no matter how great or small — cannot lead to your death. How could they? — your Advocate Jesus Christ who is the Reality of the bronze serpent and with whom you are seated even in the court of your heart (from which proceed the issues of life) paid for them in full! From His side which was pierced for you, speak the truth of how we have overcome: not by a “try harder to not sin” or “fast for 79 days to be pure” religion but according to Revelation 12—

“Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony,”

It is a finished work that Christ did for us. We have (already) overcome, and not by trying harder to be obedient but by

❤️ “the blood of the Lamb” by which we are declared righteous before God the Righteous Judge:

“And there is still much more to say of his unfailing love for us! For through the blood of Jesus we have heard the powerful declaration, “You are now righteous in my sight.” And because of the sacrifice of Jesus, you will never experience the wrath of God.” Romans 5:9

and

❤️ “the word of our Testimony” as witnessed by the Holy Spirit testifies or witnesses to us in the witness box of our heart —

“And the Holy Spirit also testifies that this is so. For he says, “This is the new covenant I will make with my people on that day, says the Lord: I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds.” Then he says, “I will never again remember their sins and lawless deeds.””

Pray, what sin is God going to sentence you to death for? The same ones He does not remember because Jesus died for them, and when His verdict over you and I who are seated with Christ is “Not Guilty” according to Romans 8:33—

“Who then would dare to accuse those whom God has chosen in love to be his? God himself is the judge who has issued his final verdict over them—‘Not guilty!’”

See the NKJV— “Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.”

Even more, unlike the claim of antichrist pastors, Jesus with whom we are planted so we get to flourish in the courts of our God, He doesn't just leave us to continue to wallow in sins which is the default mode of all of mankind if we truly believe and acknowledge His word — “There is none good but God.” Rather, as it was with the bronze serpent and the Israelites who were helpless to stop oozing symptoms, He saves us from them all, for this is Christ’s job description—

“And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins.” Matthew 1:21

BUT

‼️Stand in your own ability to be good (be like God) through even a smidgen of your own obedience (not 💯 Christ’s) and your sins will lead to death, because you effectively turn your back on Jesus Christ your God-given Advocate. You see, as it is in any court of law, in order to present God the Righteous Judge with your fasts, church offerings and other evidences of your good behaviour (what you have done to be like God) or what you have done to merit even an inch of His goodness, you need to “approach the bench.”

Any lawyer will tell you that to “approach the bench” to present your case directly to a judge, you need to literally turn your back on your lawyer—

Just one sin unaccounted for somewhere and the one approaching the bench by himself will still suffer and die. And all have sinned. Lawyers will understand this issue better— our warfare is a legal battle. To approach the bench to give God the Righteous Judge your tithe, obedience or 79 days’ fast in return for escape from the prison of poverty, you have to turn your back on your God-given Advocate/Lawyer- Jesus Christ who was condemned and died in your place. So you are saying you don’t want Jesus as your Lawyer but you want God to settle you based on your own arm of flesh (human effort)-driven works. The arm of flesh will fail. The sentence is death, “for by the deeds of the law shall no man be justified in His sight.” Romans 3.

And that approaching the bench to present the Righteous Judge with useless 10% and 70 days fast to break the generational or other curse which Christ already hung on the cross to redeem us from (Galatians 3:13) is what many pastors are preaching!

Like many churchgoers who are trying to present God the Righteous Judge with 70 days of fasting and other “good works” in order to escape Satan and to earn God’s Salvation or acquittal from the judgment of death for sins which is always preceded by time on death row of lack, disease, barrenness manned by prison wardens of demonic oppression, Judas depended on the LAW (the knowledge of good and evil, like the tree of the same name) to restore him to godliness (be like God); notice how Satan’s religious strategy has not changed since Eden.

God in His mercy is still keeping many on this ground of the law safe, but they think that their safety is because their 70 days of fasting “is working” and all the laws they are obeying should count before God the Righteous Judge Believer, Romans 3 tells us—

“…by the deeds of the law shall no man be justified in His sight.”

Another version says— “For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are.”

And what about the other laws that you have not kept, you who are fasting for 70 days and trying to be godly (be like God) using “the knowledge of good and evil” that is available to you in order to escape death for sins or to get God to bless you?

In essence, doing what the law commands to escape the prison of poverty and death is as ridiculous as a convicted criminal expecting a judge to waive his sentence because he also has some redeeming qualities or righteous works. Nah. Those righteous deeds that many feel God should consider in granting them escape from the prison of death, this is how God sees them—

"We are all like one who is unclean, all our so-called righteous acts are like a menstrual rag in Your sight." Isaiah 64:6

Only the blood of God’s Grace Himself — Jesus Christ — suffices for acquittal. None of our efforts (the arm of flesh) at trying to be good (be like God) required—

“For without the shedding of blood, there is no remission”

It’s why Cain’s sacrifice — which was much more laborious than Abel’s — got rejected. And Cain got angry because he felt he was entitled to the blessing because of his hard work and sweat. Only the blood of the Lamb suffices— Jesus’ blood shed for the remission of our sins, as it is written in Matthew 26:28 —

“For this is My blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.”

Because of His sacrifice, we who believe are a new creation— created to be like God, so beloved of God,—

“Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.” Ephesians 4:24

in essence, where you are stand/seated and what you believe about Jesus when your conscience is arrested for your sins — under law or under Grace — determines whether your sins, any sin, leads to death. Only by trusting utterly in Christ — on Grace ground — do we have life.

In fact, Romans 7 describes any admixture of man’s attempts at being deemed good/ godly (be like God) before God to Christ’s finished work of making us “be like God” as ADULTERY that leads to the production of “a harvest of sinful deeds that lead to death”—

“Now, dear brothers and sisters—you who are familiar with the law—don’t you know that the law applies only while a person is living?

2 For example, when a woman marries, the law binds her to her husband as long as he is alive. But if he dies, the laws of marriage no longer apply to her.

3 So while her husband is alive, she would be committing adultery if she married another man. But if her husband dies, she is free from that law and does not commit adultery when she remarries.

4 So, my dear brothers and sisters, this is the point: You died to the power of the law when you died with Christ. And now you are united with the one who was raised from the dead. As a result, we can produce a harvest of good deeds for God.

5 When we were controlled by our old nature—sinful desires were at work within us, and the law aroused these evil desires that produced a harvest of sinful deeds, resulting in death.

6 But now we have been released from the law, for we died to it and are no longer captive to its power. Now we can serve God, not in the old way of obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way of living in the Spirit.”

Beloved, it is a marriage relationship that we who believe now have with Mr. Grace — Christ Himself. And He is more than enough to cause us to bear the living fruit of morality and godly living. Mr. Law can only condemn and make a person bear fruit unto death.

God’s Word in Romans 7:1–5 shows that to maintain a relationship with the Law while claiming to be the bride of Christ (Grace) is spiritual adultery. Even worse, those who practice that mixture doctrine — trying to relate with Mr. Law in order to produce godliness while claiming to be married to Christ — are implying that Grace is impotent, unable to cause His bride to bear the fruit of morality and holy living. Beloved, let’s not be found on that ground where every sin lead to death. Grace is sufficient. Grace is enough.

Satan’s war is waged in this place called the heart — the same place Proverbs says “proceeds the issues of life.”

A guilty conscience means negative issues of life flow outward — issues that tend toward death — for the simple reason that the conscience is carrying sins that remain unresolved, since Christ has been rejected as Advocate by its owner, who instead trusts in his own obedience, fasting, donations, and sacrifices to make God bless and save from the judgment of death.

The heart is where Satan accuses. Here is where he tries to make a person accept guilt for sins that Christ died to take away, and then start running around frantically — fasting, striving, obeying in fear — trying to buy deliverance from the prison of death.

And it is often a war of attrition.

Breaking down his target sometimes slowly, bit by bit, using charges — accusing thoughts, imaginations, and mental interrogations — against them. The goal is always the same: to get the person worried, harried, mentally destabilized and speaking same to take ownership of them. It is psychological warfare — like

Chinese water torture - Wikipedia

And those thoughts don’t have to look spiritual to be deadly.

They can be small and ordinary:

• Maybe I left the gas cooker on…

• What if the iron is still plugged in…

• What if something bad happens while I’m away…

And notice how you only “remember” when it’s too late to turn back and check?

Then the spiral begins:

— What if the house catches fire?

— What if everything burns?

— What if the company downsizes and I’m the next to go?

— What if my plane crashes?

Drip. Drip. Drip.

Irregular. Unpredictable. Seemingly out of nowhere.

That is mental Chinese Water Torture.

Each anxious thought makes the heart jump — the psychological equivalent of a tiny incision on the flesh. One cut doesn’t kill. But enough small cuts create a wound or depression in the heart that can kill. Sometimes the thought is even ridiculous:

— What if this small pain is a deadly disease?

Even from some church pulpits, people are subjected to the same mental torture:

— You have a curse — fast 80 days to break it.

— How can God bless you when you’re still committing XYZ sin?

— Your spouse is the enemy of your destiny.

And then someone begins cross-examining themselves in their conscience — scrambling for defenses of human obedience, long fasts, vows, sacrifices, penances, and religious “efforts” as a way to escape judgment or consequences… even though Jesus has already paid for our acquittal.

Beloved: do not stand on the ground of self-help. Never trust yourself. Trust Christ.

Those “follow-up questions” that come after the initial fear — the demands to measure guilt, calculate consequences, predict disaster, and figure out what now I must do to avert punishment — those thoughts are not yours either. They are simply the continuation of Satan’s cross-examination.

They enter the heart the moment the first accusation gains a foothold — when you take ownership of the thought instead of rejecting it. Recall, Christ counsels us in Matthew 7 to “Take no thought, saying…”

Believer, let’s not take (ownership of) Satan’s fiery darts of imaginations and thoughts by speaking them, for “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” Rather, let’s “It is written (insert what God’s word says about that situation in Christ)” those thoughts into oblivion!

Believer, hear this:

The sins that should kill you — for the wages of sin is death, all sin — Christ died for them.

Because of that, in Him, God sees us as righteous, “even though we are guilty of many sins” — the same sins that should lead to our death, so we do not die but live the abundant life. See this truth plainly written in His word in Romans 5:16 which many pastors will never preach--

"And the result of God’s gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man’s sin. For Adam’s sin led to condemnation, but God’s free gift leads to our being made right with God, even though we are guilty of many sins."

To the self-righteous who challenge God's Word by claiming to be able to keep even a tittle of the law and produce good when Christ says "There is none good but God"; to those who follow Satan’s doctrine by believing that they can keep even a jot of the law and attain an atom of godliness by human effort, this truth of God's word is foolishness, blasphemy and license to sin—

"For the message of the cross is foolishness [absurd and illogical] to those who are perishing and spiritually dead [because they reject it], but to us who are being saved [by God’s grace] it is [the manifestation of] the power of God." 1 Corinthians 1:18.

So for their unbelief, their sins lead to death.

But to the one who has been chiseled by trials like Peter after his denials; to the one who has Grace to see man's utter weakness and helplessness against sin and our utter need for God's Salvation by Grace despite his squeaky clean life which many envy, it is the Good News and the Way to live in triumph over sin and death through Christ as it is written in God's word:

"And the result of God’s gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man’s sin. For Adam’s sin led to condemnation, but God’s free gift leads to our being made right with God, even though we are guilty of many sins. 17 For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and His gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one Man, Jesus Christ." Romans 5:16-17.

Believer, Christ is in charge of saving us from sins and making us eager to do good deeds (Titus 2:14) so cast all your care on Him. This is what He is doing in our lives as we await His coming: John 6:43-46 (MSG)-

"Jesus said, “Don’t bicker among yourselves over Me. You’re not in charge here. The Father who sent Me is in charge. He draws people to Me—that’s the only way you’ll ever come. Only then do I do My work, putting people together, setting them on their feet, ready for the End."

In the meantime, no matter how steeped in sins and addiction you might be, keep on hearing the hearing of faith beloved of God; I would recommend teachings by Joseph Prince, lots of those available for free on YouTube

Keep on trusting Him to do His work in John 6 above —

"being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;" Philippians 1:6.