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Let’s just be honest: something’s off. Not just in the news headlines, corrupt systems, or “those people over there”—but right here, in us. We feel it when we blow up on the people we love, when we chase success and still feel empty, and when we pretend everything’s fine but quietly sink under the weight of anxiety and shame.
We have a sin problem.
I know, “sin” isn’t exactly a hot topic in today’s world—it sounds old-fashioned, harsh, or overly religious. But before you click away, hear me out. What if naming the problem honestly is the first step to real freedom?
Biblically, sin isn’t just doing bad things. It’s deeper. It’s the fracture in the human heart that separates us from God and causes us to center everything on ourselves. Romans 3:23 says it plainly: “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Not some. All. Sin is the selfish root that keeps growing poisonous fruit—greed, jealousy, hatred, injustice, division.
Jesus didn’t come just to make bad people good. He came to make dead people alive (Ephesians 2:1-5). That’s how destructive sin is—it doesn’t just mess us up; it kills us from the inside out. Spiritually. Emotionally. Relationally.
And if you’re thinking, “But people are capable of change!”—yes, to a point. Study after study shows that real, lasting transformation is rare without outside intervention. According to research from the American Psychological Association (2023), sustained behavioral change (even for things like diet, habits, and addiction) often requires more than willpower—it demands a community, new frameworks of thinking, and sometimes a complete reordering of life.
Sound familiar? The Bible said it first. “Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his spots? Neither can you do good who are accustomed to doing evil.” (Jeremiah 13:23, NIV)
We aren’t just misbehaving. We’re misaligned.
It’s not just individual. Sin shapes systems. We see it in war, in racial injustice, in exploitation, in environmental neglect, in how quickly we turn on one another on social media. Recent global studies show a dramatic rise in loneliness, anxiety, depression, and hopelessness, especially among Gen Z and Millennials (Twenge, 2024; CDC, 2018). Despite our tech, wealth, and knowledge, we’re hurting—deeply.
You’d think we’d have figured out how to “evolve” past this by now. But no. Why? Because sin isn’t something we outgrow. It’s something we need saving from.
Here’s the part that changes everything.
We were never meant to fix ourselves. From the very beginning, God comes looking for sinners. In Genesis 3, right after Adam and Eve sinned, God’s first question wasn’t “What have you done?”—it was “Where are you?” That’s the heart of God.
God the Father initiates. The Son intervenes. The Spirit indwells.
While we were still sinners, Christ died for us – Romans 5:8
The Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost – Luke 19:10
He saved us… not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy – Titus 3:5
This is what the cross was about. This is what resurrection means. And this is why the Holy Spirit isn’t just a “helper”—He’s a life-changer.
The gospel is offensive—because it tells us we can’t save ourselves. And it’s the most beautiful news—because it tells us God did it for us, not reluctantly, but with joy.
“It was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer…” (Isaiah 53:10). That verse used to bother me—until I realized: God delighted in saving us not because we were worthy, but because He is love. And love seeks. Love sacrifices. Love saves.
And we finally begin to live—not just exist. Not just perform. Not just cope.
You can keep pretending you’re fine. Or you can admit you need help—and receive a kind of grace this world can’t replicate.
You can keep trying to find purpose in hustle, self-discovery, and curated Instagram lives. Or you can surrender to the God who made you on purpose, for His purpose, and with a purpose that outlives death.
Sin will always make us smaller. But God? He sets us free.
References
American Psychological Association. (2018). Stress in America: Generation Z. https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/stress/2018/stress-gen-z.pdf
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2023). Youth Risk Behavior Survey Data Summary & Trends Report: 2011–2021.https://www.cdc.gov/yrbs/index.html
Twenge, J. M. (2024). Generations: The Real Differences between Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X, Boomers, and Silents—and What They Mean for America’s Future. Atria Books.
