Symptoms or the Cause

It is easy to focus on the symptoms and neglect diagnosing and dealing with the source.  For years I have dealt with a shoulder injury by avoiding actions that cause additional pain.  I take care not to lie directly on my shoulder at night, and ensure I stretch properly and warm up before physical activity.  To this point I have not taken the time to seek a professional opinion or pay for scans.  Instead of having the cause fix, history says I prefer to treat my symptoms through strengthening exercises, avoiding painful activities, applying ice and pain relieving rubs, and using anti-inflammatory medications.  Eventually, I keep telling myself, I will have the shoulder examined and scanned.  But in the meantime, I will keep treating my symptoms rather than seeking out the cure.

I do not believe I am alone in this.  Governments, businesses, churches, families, and individuals sometimes see a symptom as a problem rather than ferreting out the cause and dealing with it openly.  Even the medical and scientific communities can focus on the wrong thing.  Billions have been spent on searching for cures of diseases that kill millions every year.  Cancer, for one, is a viscous disease that causes millions to die every year.  People hate cancer.  But cancer, strangely enough, is merely a symptom of a deeper, greater illness in the heart of every man.  Death itself, seemingly the final blow from our perspective on earth, is a symptom of a far worse evil:  that of sin.  Sickness, pain, sorrow, crying, and death are all products of sin.  When Adam rebelled from God, sin and thus death passed to all men.  The fact that people fall ill and die of cancers, disease, or even old age are indicators of man's true spiritual condition in the world.

Sin has a devastating effect upon body and soul.  God says the soul that sins shall surely die.  We mourn disease, suffering, and death in this world, but have we yet mourned over our sin?  Sin is the one who conceives such horrors.  The bodies of believers and non-believers on this planet will perish because we have all been born steeped in sin.  Death for Christians is turning the title page to the first chapter of eternal life in a glorified state.  For the unbeliever it is the penultimate blow, infinitely overshadowed by the second death where all who die in their sins will face the wrath of God for eternity in hell.  To cast a look at sin is to stare into the snarling face of death, truly horrific beyond description.  It is a horror Jesus Christ came to earth to save sinners from and usher us into eternal life through His sacrifice.

I think most people would claim cancer is a far greater evil than sin, but cancer is only a symptom.  Let us take our symptoms to the word of God and see if the effects of sin have clung to us as well.  Consider the list we see in Revelation 21:4-5:  "And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away." ⁵ Then He who sat on the throne said, "Behold, I make all things new." And He said to me, "Write, for these words are true and faithful."  During your life have you every cried, experienced sorrow, or physical or emotional pain?  If you have experienced any of these symptoms, you have most certainly come in contact with sin.  The only cure is found in Christ through the Gospel.  When we repent and trust in Jesus as Saviour, He cleanses our souls from sin and gives us eternal life through Him.  We are all guilty of breaking His Laws, but Jesus has paid our debt.  He took our sins upon Himself, having become sin for us upon the cross.  Have you received this unspeakable gift?

John 11:25-26 reads, "Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. ²⁶ And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?"  This is the question Jesus asks all men.  Our answer will determine where we will spend eternity.  John 14:6 also says, "Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."  It is only after we recognise the severity of our disease we will seek after the cure, regardless of the cost.  Won't a man give anything to save his own life?  And what does it profit a man to gain the whole world but lose his own soul?  Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."  A choice of life and death has been placed before you.  Are you ready to stop treating the symptoms and deal with the cause?