The idea that God cannot be in the presence of sin is a resilient Christian myth that does not seem to go away. It is what I call preacher-talk or Facebook theology, and academics call “folk theology”.
This is a belief that is widely held and repeated, but that came out of hearing it from other people (folk), not from the Bible (the source of our faith).
It is true that God will always withstand sin, and God will one day judge all sin, but it is not true that God cannot stand in the presence of sin. Here’s why:
- God walked in the same garden and spoke to Adam after he sinned (Gen 3:8; then he closed Eden).
- Israel was a nation of sinners, but God dwelt among them in his temple, albeit in a place he declared holy. He instructed sinners to come to his holy temple, although not without a sacrifice (Lev 4:28).
- Every sinner will stand in God’s presence in judgment after they die (Heb 9:28).
- Satan presented himself before the Lord in Job 1:6 and Job 2:1.
- Since God knows all and is omnipresent, all sin is open before his eyes (Heb 4:13).
- Hell was made for sinners, yet God is there (Ps 139:8).
- God was made flesh in Jesus Christ, lived among, ministered to, touched, and ate with sinners. (He called them to faith and repentance.)
- Sinners argued with Jesus, beat him, and nailed him to a cross (He voluntarily received this treatment).
- God dwells within sinners saved by grace today, whom he calls temples of God, even though sin is still present (1 Cor 3:16; Rom 7:20; Eph 4:30).
In short, the Bible is full of God being in the presence of sin and sinners without being tainted by it himself. After all, if God could not be in the presence of sin or sinners, then no one could be saved.
God is holy. God cannot lie, judge unrighteously, or call evil good. Therefore, God will always work to remove, destroy, and denounce sin, but he also provides for the salvation of sinners.
He does this not by becoming a sinner and making sin acceptable, but by atoning for sin and making it possible for sinners to be justified before a holy God through faith. How can this be? God’s grace in Christ abounds over sin.
“For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” – 2 Corinthians 5:21
Thank God that he came into this world, in the presence of sin, was not tainted by it, and by His death and resurrection allows sinners to be saved and enter His presence with peace and joy forever.
For His Glory,
Justin “saved by grace” Johnson