What is sin?

Martin Luther defined sin as the turning in on oneself. I like this definition and description. It’s pretty accurate. When we turn in on ourselves, we turn away from others, and more importantly, away from God. When we turn in on ourselves, we are acting in a narcissistic manner — making ourselves into a god, where all of our focus and attention turns. It’s about me, what I want, what I desire, what pleases me, etc.

In this sense, sin is the antithesis of the two great commandments — to love God and to love our neighbor. We can’t do either when we turn in on ourselves.

I think there are other ways of defining sin too that are helpful. I have heard sin defined as broken relationships. Sin is a broken relationship with God and with others. In a sense, it is also a broken relationship with ourselves. Again, the care and concern of anything outside of ourselves is broken. Trust is broken. Faith is broken. And it can’t be re-established until things change.

Another way to define sin is to talk about vision — as in sight. Sin is the clouding of our vision. Our vision is clouded so that we can’t see what is actually best for ourselves and others. Sin is a distortion of vision that prevents us from seeing the reality of truth. Sin is like a pair of eyeglasses that are not your prescription. You can see elements of what is there, but you can’t see clearly. The blurrier the…