January 20 | Luke 3:19-20

Pastor Dave Mann
Jan 20
2 min read

DAILY READING

REFLECTION

Adding Up Sin

By Dave Mann

Five different men named Herod are identified in the New Testament, six if you count Herod

Philip who was only mentioned as “Philip” (Mark 6:17). To get a good grip on keeping all these Herods straight, check out this concise explanation. https://reasonabletheology.org/many-herods-new-testament/ For today’s passage, Herod Antipas was the one who locked up John the Baptist in prison and who eventually had him executed.

On one hand, all sins are sufficient to disqualify us from eternal life. Even the seemingly “smallest” sin keeps us from attaining perfection, for God does not allow any sin in his presence. (See James 2:10.) On the other hand, some sins have a greater impact on people around us, and therefore the damage is greater.

We all sin in this life; not one of us is innocent. There are many categories of sin. Here are but

three ways to look at various kinds of sin. There is “accidental” sin in which our actions cause harm to others without our intent. There is “presumptuous” sin in which we presume our planned actions are virtuous. Therefore, we do not consult God about our plans, but later we discover that we violated God’s plan. In addition, some add iniquity upon iniquity. There is sin that is “cumulative.” In this category, people have had so much practice in violating God’s law that they add increasingly arrogant, harmful, and intentional sin to their account. This is the kind of transgression that Herod Antipas committed. He had already lured away his sister-in-law (the wife of his brother Herod Philip) to become his wife. And then he locked up a prophet of God, i.e., John the Baptist, because he made Antipas’s sin public. Later, adding more to his load of sin, he had John beheaded.

There is no unforgivable sin, except the sin against the Holy Spirit (Luke 12:10). What sin is that? The sin for which we resolutely refuse to allow the Spirit to lead us into a posture of sorrow and repentance. Could Herod Antipas be forgiven for his adultery and his persecution of John Baptist? Yes, he could, if he would repent. But did he? We have no record in Holy Scripture that he did.

May God, in his grace, give each of us a heart that is soft and responsive to the leading of the Holy Spirit so that we might repent of our sin to receive the forgiveness won for us by the work of Jesus on the cross. (See John 16:7-10.)

PRAYER

O Holy Spirit, come with your convincing and convicting power. Lead me to the point where I acknowledge my sin and repent. Don’t give up on me. Keep on coming. Win me into a living, loving relationship with Jesus my Lord, in whose name I pray, Amen.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

DAVE MANN

I am a Pastor for Internationals (retired) in the UALC community. I am married to Pam, father of four, and grandfather of six. Pam and I have lived twenty of our years in other countries including France, Cameroon, Haiti, and Morocco. In retirement, we continue to enjoy writing devotionals, learning languages, and teaching English to internationals.

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