The travesty of sin in perspective

David Wayne reminds us that in evangelism, it's helpful to talk not only of humanity's sinfulness, but of the righteousness God intended for us before the Fall:

Our created state of original righteousness gives us a reference point for understanding the sinfulness of sin. If God had created man for the purpose of sinning then how could we call anything man does sinful? Man would simply be fulfilling the purpose for which he was created.

But man was not created to sin, He was created in the image of God to glorify God. Sin consists in failing to fulfill that purpose. If a person uses a black magic marker to doodle on a black canvas, or a red magic marker to doodle on a red canvas, the marks aren't noticeable. But if somoene doodles with a black or red marker on the Mona Lisa, then we have a travesty.

Hence, the travesty of sin - man was created to be a thing of beauty, reflecting the beauty of the creator - sin is that which mars the image of God in man and turns man against His creator.

I for one needed to be reminded of this fact. In an effort to the chase it's all to easy to skip over the scandalous "travesty of sin."