What other scriptures emphasize the seriousness of "all unrighteousness" as sin? Unpacking 1 John 5:17 “All unrighteousness is sin, yet there is sin that does not lead to death.” • John levels the ground: anything outside God’s righteous standard is sin. • The apostle’s point echoes and amplifies what the rest of Scripture repeatedly declares. Foundational Truth: Sin Defined • 1 John 3:4 — “Everyone who practices sin practices lawlessness as well; indeed, sin is lawlessness.” • Romans 14:23 — “Everything that is not of faith is sin.” • Proverbs 24:9 — “A foolish scheme is sin, and a mocker is detestable to mankind.” Every unrighteous thought, motive, or deed misses God’s perfect mark. Universal Guilt of Humanity • Romans 3:10-12 — “No one is righteous, not even one… there is no one who does good, not even one.” • Romans 3:23 — “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” • Ecclesiastes 7:20 — “Surely there is no righteous man on earth who does good and never sins.” God’s Holiness Intolerant of Unrighteousness • Habakkuk 1:13 — “Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; You cannot tolerate wrongdoing.” • Isaiah 59:2 — “Your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden His face from you.” • Psalm 5:4-5 — “You are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil cannot dwell with You.” The Deadliness of Even One Offense • James 2:10 — “Whoever keeps the whole law yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.” • James 1:15 — “Sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.” • Matthew 5:28 — A lustful look equals adultery of the heart, revealing that inward attitudes carry the same guilt as outward acts. Catalogs of Unrighteous Acts • Galatians 5:19-21 — “The works of the flesh are obvious… those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” • 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 — “Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral… nor thieves… will inherit the kingdom of God.” • Revelation 21:8 — “The cowardly, the unbelieving… all liars — their place will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur.” • Proverbs 6:16-19 — A “top-seven” list God hates includes arrogance, lying, and sowing discord. Consequences Stated Plainly • Romans 6:23 — “The wages of sin is death.” • Colossians 3:5-6 — “Because of these things, the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience.” • Ephesians 5:5-6 — “No immoral, impure, or greedy person… has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.” • Ezekiel 18:4 — “The soul who sins is the one who will die.” No Sliding Scale in God’s Court • Mark 7:20-23 lists evil thoughts, deceit, envy, pride, and foolishness together as defiling acts. • Romans 1:29-32 places gossip, disobedience to parents, and murder in the same indictment. • Isaiah 64:6 reminds that even “righteous acts are like filthy rags” apart from divine cleansing. The Only Remedy for Unrighteousness • 2 Corinthians 5:21 — “God made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” • 1 Peter 2:24 — “He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness.” • 1 John 1:7 — “The blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.” Because all unrighteousness is sin and every sin is deadly, grace in Christ shines all the brighter. Living in the Light • Titus 2:11-12 — Saving grace “trains us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions.” • Romans 8:13 — “If by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” • 1 John 3:9 — God’s seed abiding in the believer produces a new pattern: practicing righteousness instead of unrighteousness. The testimony of Scripture is consistent and clear: every form of unrighteousness is sin, utterly serious before a holy God, and only the righteousness provided in Christ can rescue and transform. |
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