A sin is a Sin is a SIN?
I heard the other day that someone tried to excuse their life choices by using the “my sin is no worse than your sin” excuse. Hypothetically speaking, when people use this excuse they tend to compare their adultery with my speeding.
All Sin is Created Equal, Right?
The reality is that all sins are the same in that they are a rebellious act against God and are punishable by death (Romans 6:23); however, not all sin, in the context of our lives, carry the same mortal consequences. The damage a sin does in the lives of the perpetrators and the victims can be different by orders of magnitude. Even within the context of the Ten Commandments there were different maximum penalties a community could impose upon an offender. In other words, Jews didn’t sentence someone to death by stoning or any other method for stealing and killing an Ox (Exodus 22:1). Death was reserved for the sorcerers (Exodus 22:18), adulterers (Leviticus 20:10), murderers (Numbers 35), idol worshipers (Exodus 22:20) and those that curse their parents (Leviticus 20:9).
We even see differentiation of sin in the New Testament. Sexual sin ranks as one of the most destructive sins because of the injury to others and to self. In 1 Corinthians 6 we see Paul single out sexual sin as being different than any other type of sin in that it destroys us on the outside and inside.
When Paul wrote his letter to the Romans he directly rebukes this idea that sin is justifiable. He spends the majority of the letter addressing the relationship a Christian now has with the law. It’s worth reading Romans in one sitting because of the progressive nature of defining the life in Christ against a life under the law.
Just because Christians are no longer held to the specific standards of the law does not mean that we should go and do anything that we please even if it means that God can be glorified in redeeming us from the most detestable life we could live. While we cannot be made righteous by keeping the law it does not mean that the law should not be kept. The reality is that for those of us in whom the Spirit of Jesus lives we will be led to do right things by the Spirit, and the power of Sin will lead us to do the wrong things. So, while the penalty for sinning has been taken care of…the power of sin remains our enemy and when we side with the enemy we fail to be ministers of reconciliation. Instead we become ministers of destruction.
Only the Vulnerable Need Apply
We are wired to be connected to others. The story of creation in Genesis is a story of a God who is connected with people and people who are supposed to be connected with one another. Sin breaks connection. Our response to sin, whether it be what we have done or what others have done to us or to others, can either be to embrace and accept it and admit it hurts or we can try to ignore, grow callous toward, hide from and attempt to separate it from us. Just as Adam and Eve did we hide, use blame, and we tell lies. We may even go to war in order to not accept our own fallibleness as Cain did against Abel thinking that killing those that know our imperfection might mysteriously remove it from reality. In an effort to be perceived as whole, complete, and strong we utilize force, either physical or psychological as in making rules, to protect our image. This sad thing is that the image we protect is, in fact, a false image.
God, on the other hand, is vulnerable. The fact that he places the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil in the Garden of Eden in the first place is evidence of God’s willingness to be vulnerable. God loves Adam and Eve and then gives them the opportunity to reject, rebel, and injure Him. This vulnerability extends to Jesus and the Cross and beyond in the invitation He gives us to believe.
God’s example of vulnerability is extremely vital for us because the lie we tend to live is that we need to protect ourselves from allowing the truth about who we really are to be exposed. To allow others to see us as the abuser, the abused, the fornicator, the addict, the murderer, the adulterer, the gossip…the broken is seen by the vast majority of people as weakness. Yet if God is God, and He is the epitomy of strength, then being vulnerable and actually inviting the experience of pain and loss should be seen as experiences that lead to strength.
Just think of things that make you feel vulnerable. For me, asking anything of anyone makes me feel vulnerable. As a kid inviting someone to come over used to cripple me with anxiety and when rejection came I would dive deeply into a sea of self pity. I hate it yet I know from God’s example in the Bible that I must be vulnerable. The Church, then in my opinion, should be a gathering of people that doesn’t just allow vulnerability, but demands it. It requires it’s people to invite others to be connected to them and to be confident in the fact that Christ is enough.
In this 20 minute talk, while she doesn’t mention God or the Church, Brene Brown does reveal some biblical truths about what it means to be healthy people. I strongly encourage you to take the time to watch it. Her conclusion falls a little short in my mind as it should be “Jesus is enough,” but everything leading up to her conclusion is an accurate portrayal of our plight as people. For those who have taken the Redemption class her words should ring true. For those who haven’t – this is the kind of stuff we will explore.