I'm only human--no excuse for sin

“I get irritable, but I’m only human.”

Is that the gospel? Is that goodness? Is that “righteousness by faith” (Gal. 5:5)?

Actually, it is not the gospel. “I steal, but I’m only human.” “I look at pornography, but I’m only human.” “I killed, but he/she made me mad. After all, I’m only human.” “I do drugs, but I’m weak and only human.” “I covet, but I’m only human.” “I’m resentful and unforgiving, but I’m….” “I have the right to be angry and unforgiving.”

“I’m only human” is the reason this world is the oppressive place that it is.
 

Excuse for sin comes in every variety and is the foundation of Babylon. When our proud fallen nature is never overpowered and shut down by the thunder and lightning of Almighty God, the genius that God put into man finds some loophole to excuse for disobedience to the Law of love. Because of our mischievous genius, for every right action of God’s character there exists an equal and opposite excuse for actions against His character. And Satan is the mastermind behind all of our self-centered genius.

But, the Bible is clear; there can be no excuse for sin. “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Heb. 4:12).

The truth of the gospel is that God alone will excuse our guilt. But He will only do this after making our guilt painfully apparent to us.

“I had not known lust, except the Law had said, Thou shalt not covet. But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence. For without the Law sin was dead. For I was alive without the Law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died. And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death. For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew me…. Sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful.” (Rom. 7:7-11,13).

And He will only clear our guilt when we have an exceeding guilt and sorrow for sin.

Additionally, we can't clear ourselves of guilt and shame. But, we do have a merciful Saviour who can and will. We can't justify sin or excuse it; and neither will Jesus. But, He will justify and excuse sinners. And again, He will only excuse sinners when they have an exceeding sorrow for their sin.

“Addressing Peter, Jesus said, ‘Simon, sleepest thou? couldest not thou watch one hour? Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak.’ The weakness of His disciples awakened the sympathy of Jesus. He feared that they would not be able to endure the test which would come upon them in His betrayal and death. He did not reprove them, but said, ‘Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.’ Even in His great agony, He was seeking to excuse their weakness. ‘The spirit truly is ready,’ He said, ‘but the flesh is weak.’ Desire of Ages, p. 689.

Christ's justification leads to eternal and happy indebtedness to Him for His reconcilingn Spirit of peace and to His righteousness: our own self-justification leads to indebtedness to ourselves, which causes self-righteousness—humanism. We will never have victory over sin by excusing ourselves. There is no such thing as righteousness by humanism.

Even during a Bible study or in a church setting, “I’m only human” is humanism and causes God to turn away from us. “And when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide Mine eyes from you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of blood.” (Isa. 1:15).

Hands full of blood? Yes, because if I don’t see sin in all of its shamefulness and then repent, I don't receive the Spirit of reconciliation with God, and I don't have the life of God to give. Therefore, I don't give life I take it. (See Mk. 3:4; Lk. 6:9). I can't love my brother with a love that comes from walking in the light of the holy God of love. So i am a murderer. “Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.” (1Jn. 3:15).

In other words, the standard (I’m only human”) is not God’s standard. His standard is reality. Ours is only a surrogate reality and God cannot bless it.

God’s holiness is infinitely far from “I’m only human.”

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isa. 55:8,9).

Humanism insidiously overthrows the ability for God to convict and convert us. Our excusing sin can never get anything good from God. It’s an offense that burns in His deepest frustration and anger at Satan.

“And it come to pass, when he heareth the words of this curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, I shall have peace, though I walk in the imagination of mine heart, to add drunkenness to thirst: the LORD will not spare him, but then the anger of the LORD and His jealousy shall smoke against that man, and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him, and the LORD shall blot out his name from under heaven.” (Deut. 29:19,20).

“They have moved Me to jealousy with that which is not God; they have provoked Me to anger with their vanities: and I will move them to jealousy with those which are not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation. For a fire is kindled in Mine anger, and shall burn unto the lowest hell, and shall consume the earth with her increase, and set on fire the foundations of the mountains.” (Deut. 32:21,22).

“Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.” (1Pet. 1:16).

In God’s eternal kingdom, there can be no excuse for sin.

“The strongest temptation is no excuse for sin. No matter how severe the pressure brought to bear upon you, sin is your own act. The seat of the difficulty is the unrenewed heart.” Adventist Home, p. 331.

“But, I’ve got to be me!” “I can’t be anyone else. I got to be what God made me to be!”

“But, I’m weak! Only Jesus could be perfect! He was God!”

“Of the bitterness that falls to the lot of humanity, there was no part which Christ did not taste. There were those who tried to cast contempt upon Him because of His birth, and even in His childhood He had to meet their scornful looks and evil whisperings. If He had responded by an impatient word or look, if He had conceded to His brothers by even one wrong act, He would have failed of being a perfect example. Thus He would have failed of carrying out the plan for our redemption. Had He even admitted that there could be an excuse for sin, Satan would have triumphed, and the world would have been lost. This is why the tempter worked to make His life as trying as possible, that He might be led to sin.” Desire of Ages, p. 88.

“Had He even admitted that there could be an excuse for sin, Satan would have triumphed,” and Jesus would have been “led to sin.”

We are what Satan’s kingdom has made us. By a long shot Satan has had first dibs on us and we’ve assisted him in his bridge building a fortress stronghold in our soul. “But in his estate shall he honour the God of forces: and a god whom his fathers knew not shall he honour with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things. Thus shall he do in the most strong holds with a strange god, whom he shall acknowledge and increase with glory: and he shall cause them to rule over many, and shall divide the land for gain.” (Dan. 11:38,39).

“(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.” (2Cor. 10:4,5).

God has had the disadvantage except for everyone who surrendered to His humbling truth or consequences. They came away from His victory with the real spoils— “Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned.” (1Tim. 1:5). But everyone who swerved from it “turned aside unto vain jangling.” (1Tim. 1:6).

“Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt. 5:19).

“In vain they do worship Me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.” (Matt. 15:9).