A Brief Discourse on Sin (Part I)

Well, by popular demand, a few thoughts. First, I think there are clearly severities of sin, not just against people, but against God. For example, I have friends who have repeatedly been sexually abused as children. I'm sure the abusers have also said occasional unkind words to store clerks.

Suppose an abuser were together both his sexual abuse victim and the store clerk in the same room and say "I wanted you both here to ask your forgiveness; I've horribly wronged both of you, and I want to seek reconciliation. So-n-so, I want to ask your forgiveness for snapping at you in the store, and so-n-so, I want to ask your forgiveness for abusing you..."

Something deep within us ought to cry out at how wrong this picture is; that the sexual abuse and passing remarks are not equivalent. They are not the same in their magnitude against people - one is a much greater offense against the image of God, and therefore against God. I would accept as a pastor a man who said something snide to a cashier last week; I would not accept a man as a pastor who sexually abused a child last week.

Likewise, if a man had a habit of both viewing pornography and being rude to strangers, I would have no hesitation in recommending which sin to focus on (given no highly unusual circumstances).

I don't think this inequality is purely from a human perspective either. Various sins are more or less assaults against God and his image, and thus of various offense against God. Here's a few passages that come to mind:

That servant who knows his master's will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. [Jesus, on faithless (non-Christian) servants]

If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. [Paul]

Then Jesus began to denounce the cities in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent. "Woe to you, Korazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to the skies? No, you will go down to the depths. If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you."

So sin by ignorance is better than sin with knowledge; providing for immediate family is of utmost importance, and it is really bad to refuse to repent when Jesus shows up in your city and does miracles.

I don't mean to suggest that all sins do not have some common attributes: They are great offenses against God (and often people), they separate us from God, they create an humanly unpayable debt owed to God. I don't think an exact "sin severity" chart can be constructed; likewise, if we are aware of only committing "less severe" sins, that ought not be a source of pride. If we truly know ourselves and the fullness of sins we are committing (unlikely), we certainly know our capacity for committing greater sins and this awareness leads to a humble gratefulness toward God's goodness toward us.

As for the gender specific thoughts...well, that is at least not until part II.