Sin is More Than the Physical
2 Corinthians 7:1
"Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God."
One of the most disturbing things I see among Christians today is their mentality towards their spirituality. It amazes me how many Christians have a higher perception of their spirituality than what they should. When I preach a week of revival meetings, I often see there are some who never go to the altar to get things right with God. This amazes me because God spoke to people all around them about something that they needed to get right, but that one person won't move. In fact, that person hasn't gone to the altar in months, yet they have a very high perception of their Christianity.
The verse above reveals to us that there are more than just sins of the flesh. If you were to talk to those who never go to the altar during the invitation, they would tell you that they are not doing anything wrong. What they mean by this is that they are not physically doing something wrong. They are not drinking alcohol, doing drugs, living the party life, or participating in some "big" sin. The average Christian looks at themselves through the prism of whether they have physically sinned. The average Christian can say that they are not physically doing anything that is wrong.
However, when you look at the verse above you will see that their are more than just sins of the flesh. God commanded these Christians to not only remove the sins of the flesh, but also remove the sins of the spirit. In other words, you can sin with your spirit just as much as you can sin with your flesh. I believe many church-going Christians are guilty of sins of the spirit. Yes, the average church-going Christian could say that on the surface they are not physically doing anything wrong, but if you were to see their spirit you would see that it is filled with sin.
What are the sins of the spirit? Throughout the Scriptures when God talks about the spirit it is often referring to someone's attitude. When God talks about the sins of the spirit, He is referring to your attitude towards Him and man. There are many Christians who are not doing anything physically wrong, but their attitude towards serving God is bad. They have sinned with their spirit by having an indifferent spirit towards the things of God. The church of Laodicea was guilty of committing sins of the spirit by having a lukewarm attitude. Christian, your attitude towards serving God is important. It shouldn't be that you have to serve God, but it should be that you get to serve God. It shouldn't be that you have to go to church, but it should be that you get to go to church. Let me ask you, have you sinned with your spirit towards God? Is your spirit right with God? Is your spirit on fire for the things of God?
Moreover, your attitude towards others can be a sin of the spirit. If there is one person with whom you have bad feelings, not hateful feelings, then you have sinned with the spirit. Christian, your spirit towards another Christian should be right. Let me ask you this, is there a Christian whom you avoid? Is there someone towards whom you are indifferent? Though you may never physically wrong another person, be careful that you don't sin against others with your spirit.
God commanded the church of Corinth to cleanse themselves of the sins of the spirit. It is as important for you to remove the sins of the spirit as it is to remove the sins of the flesh. Your spirit towards others should be such that there is no one whom you would avoid. If you avoid people because of ill feelings, then you are guilty of sins of the spirit.