Man and Sin
A Sermon on Sin from Numbers 11:4-6
Originally preached June 2, 1957
Scripture
4¶ And the mixt multitude that was among them fell a lusting: and the children of Israel also wept again, and said, Who shall give us flesh to eat? 5We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, …
Sermon Description
What is sin? Many people say that sin is merely something that we do. In this sermon on sin from Numbers 11:4–6 titled “Man and Sin,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones shows that this is not the biblical view of sin. In the book of Numbers, sin is shown as an attitude and disposition, not only an action. This is why sin is so bad, because it comes out of the very heart and determines motives. The grumbling of the Israelites was not simply their dissatisfaction with life, but it was a dissatisfaction with God. When they said that they wanted meat, they showed that worldly desire for food was more important than trusting God. This was all born out of their sinful desires. What is the answer to the sin that has corrupted everyone’s desires? The answer is found in what God has done in Jesus Christ on the cross. Sin is so bad that God Himself came to die for sinners. All who trust in Jesus are made righteous and children of God. They are given a new heart and mind and freed from sin and death because of Christ’s death. This is the only means of overcoming sin and death.
Sermon Breakdown
- Sin makes us creatures of lust, desire, craving and passion.
- Sin twists and perverts our minds, making us unable to think properly.
- Sin makes us believe lies against God.
- Sin makes us treat God's gifts with contempt.
- Sin means despising God's person. We forget His greatness and glory.
- Sin leads us to despise God's will. We arrogantly substitute our own will.
- Sin leads us to despise God's power. We foolishly pit ourselves against the Almighty.
- Sin means despising God's hatred of sin. God abominates sin and will punish it.
Sermon Q&A
Questions and Answers from Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones' Sermon on Sin
What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones identify as the essence of sin?
According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, the essence of sin is not merely wrong actions or behaviors, but a wrong attitude towards God. He states, "The essence of sin is a wrong attitude towards God, because ye have despised the Lord which is among you." He explains that while we tend to think of sin in terms of actions or failures, the central and fundamental issue is despising God Himself.
How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones explain the story of the Israelites in Numbers 11?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones describes how the Israelites, after being miraculously delivered from slavery in Egypt and provided with manna in the wilderness, began to complain and lust after the foods they had in Egypt. They despised the manna God provided and craved flesh, remembering "the fish which we did eat in Egypt freely, the cucumbers and the melons and the leeks and the onions and the garlic." This demonstrates how they despised God's provision and His will for them.
What does it mean to "despise the Lord" according to the sermon?
According to Lloyd-Jones, despising the Lord manifests in several ways: 1. Despising and insulting God's person by forgetting Him altogether 2. Despising God's will by substituting our own desires and plans 3. Despising God's power by failing to acknowledge His might after witnessing His miracles 4. Despising God's hatred of sin by ignoring His warnings about punishment
How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones illustrate God's punishment of sin?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones points to how God punished the Israelites by giving them exactly what they craved but in overwhelming abundance: "Ye shall eat it... even a whole month, until it come out at your nostrils and it is loathsome unto you." He suggests that God sometimes punishes sin by giving people so much of what they lustfully desire that it becomes sickening to them. He believes this is happening in the modern world with its demand for various "liberties" that are becoming "loathsome and offensive."
What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones say is the greatest sin?
According to the sermon, the greatest sin is to despise God Himself - to ignore Him, forget Him, and live as if He doesn't exist. Lloyd-Jones states, "There is nothing more terrible about sin than just that," and suggests that some of the "greatest sinners" are actually "respectable people" who are so self-sufficient that they never think of God, never thank Him, and never worship Him. He says this is "infinitely worse than murder" or any other sin.
What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones say about the folly of rebelling against God?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones describes the folly of sin as "utter madness and lunacy" because it involves defying the all-powerful creator. He quotes from Isaiah 40 to emphasize God's immense power - that nations are "as a drop of a bucket" to Him, and inhabitants of earth are like "grasshoppers." He warns that anyone who hasn't submitted to God is "pitting yourself against the lord of the universe, in whose ends thy breath is."
How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones describe hell?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones describes hell as "a condition in which you get so much of that for which you've lusted and craved, that you are sick and tired of it to all eternity, and yet you can't stop it." He says people in hell will "just go on stewing in it, the loathsome, foul thing that you so admired" - perpetually filled with what they desired but now hate, being "wretched and miserable and hopeless."
What is the proper response to seeing the true nature of sin?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones urges his listeners to turn to God "in humble, simple repentance," confess their sin, and receive forgiveness through Christ who "bore your sins in his own body on the tree." He promises that God will "give you a new nature which will hate sin and love God, and seek only to glorify him and to do his most holy will."
Old Testament
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.