God told Adam that if he ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil he would die, but he doesn't die immediately. So what did die? When Paul says that the wages of sin is death, what does he mean? Sin causes death in more ways than one. Our sin can lead to the death of relationships, trust, peace, joy, and many other things. Seeing sin as death in our lives can inspire us to pursue the life God offers to us.