God Detests Sin

God, who is absolutely holy, is in no respect the author or approver of sin. In God’s sight, all sin is reprehensible
and worthy of the most severe punishment. Sin is not due merely to human inadequacies or
shortcomings. It is a moral evil, resulting from, or involving, deliberate choices. For this reason, God
justly condemns the person who chooses to commit sin. Sin, therefore, is not an affliction or failing for
which an individual is to be either pitied or excused.
The following Scriptures exemplify that sin is detestable to God:
Habakkuk 1:13
(13) Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity:
wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest
thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous
than he? (See vv.12-17)
Deuteronomy 25:14-16
(14) Thou shalt not have in thine house divers measures, a great and a small.
(15) But thou shalt have a perfect and just weight, a perfect and just measure
shalt thou have: that thy days may be lengthened in the land which the
LORD thy God giveth thee. (16) For all that do such things, and all that do
unrighteously, are an abomination unto the LORD thy God.
Psalms 10:3
(3) For the wicked boasteth of his heart's desire, and blesseth the covetous,
whom the LORD abhorreth.
Luke 16:13-15
(13) No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and
love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye
cannot serve God and mammon.
(14) And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and
they derided him. (15) And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify
yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is
highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.
Man’s Free Will
At the creation, God gave man free will. It was, therefore, easy for man to choose the good and right,
and to obey God—especially since, as yet, he had no experience of choosing evil.
At the Fall, however, man’s free will was corrupted so that the inclination of his mind and will became
permanently biased toward evil. From this point on, and because of fallen man’s sinful inclinations, it
became much easier for him to choose evil than to choose good. Indeed, because of the corruption of
his moral nature, mankind often found it more desirable to choose evil.
So, although God gave mankind a free will, mankind now abuses or misuses his free will. Instead of
choosing to honour their Creator and God, men and women now exercise their free will in the deliberate
choice of sinful and godless living. However, although they may defiantly reject God—or carelessly
Bible Truths Explained: Sin
BTE03: Sin 24 1.1.05
neglect him—mankind is still responsible to God. God will hold every man and woman fully accountable
for every sin they have committed—whether in thought, speech, or act.
Concerning the fact that fallen mankind’s free will is biased continually toward evil, the Bible says:
Ecclesiastes 7:29
(29) Lo, this only have I found, that God hath made man upright; but they have
sought out many inventions. (Cf. Rom. 1:30)
In his Word, God has given us his moral law, summarised in the Ten Commandments. (Exodus 20:1ff)
He who is the Lawgiver will one day be the Judge. He will judge every secret thought, and every evil
deed; and no one will escape the searching judgment of the Lord.
Responsible and Accountable to God
God Will Judge Every Thought, Word and Deed
Concerning the searching nature of God’s judgment, the Scripture says:
Ecclesiastes 12:14
(14) For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing,
whether it be good, or whether it be evil.
Matthew 12:36-37
(36) But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall
give account thereof in the day of judgment. (37) For by thy words thou
shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned. (See vv.31-
35)
Romans 2:16
(16) In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according
to my gospel. (See vv.1-12)
Clearly, then, man cannot say that he is not responsible for his actions in the sight of God, or that God
cannot call him to account for these actions. Nor can he claim that God cannot judge him since he is a
fallen sinful creature by nature. When man sins, he chooses to sin. Every evil thought, word, and deed
are conscious and deliberate exercises of his own corrupted free will. Mankind, therefore, remains fully
responsible to God for his every thought, word, and action; and God will judge him according to his
deeds.