Acceptable sins

There is a strange class of sins which are acceptable in evangelical churches. These sins do not shock the congregation. They do not cause the pastor to tremble. They do not provoke the concerned questions of Christian friends. Indeed, some of them are so common among professing Christians, that they are scarcely regarded as sins at all.

They are our "acceptable sins."

We condemn drunkenness, adultery, theft, and profanity -- and rightly so.
But what of pride?
What of bitterness?
What of gossip?
What of envy?
What of an unforgiving spirit?
What of worldly-mindedness?
What of complaining?
What of covetousness?
What of prayerlessness?
What of spiritual laziness?
What of a cold heart toward Jesus?

We may have become very selective in our hatred of sin.

The Bible knows nothing of respectable sins. God does not grade sin according to the standards of evangelical culture. A sin does not become less sinful, because millions commit it, because it is socially acceptable, because it is hidden beneath a smile, or because it is found in the pew rather than in the gutter.

"The wages of sin is death." Romans 6:23

The sin which appears small to us, is not small to a holy God.

Consider pride. We may speak of humility, while secretly craving the praise of men. We may sing "Amazing Grace," while believing ourselves wiser, better, more discerning, and more deserving than others. We may condemn the Pharisee, while proudly thanking God that we are not like him.

Consider gossip. We may never stand in a pulpit and slander another believer, yet we eagerly pass along their failures under the respectable disguise of "prayer requests." We call it concern. God may call it wickedness.

Consider bitterness. We may attend church, read Christian books, sing hymns, and speak the language of grace--while harboring resentment against someone whom we refuse to forgive. We have learned how to worship with a grudge.

Consider worldliness. We condemn the world's gross immorality, while eagerly embracing its love of money, entertainment, popularity, comfort, fashion, applause, and self-exaltation. We have rejected the world's worst sins, while quietly imbibing its spirit.

Consider prayerlessness. Few professing Christians would openly say, "I do not need God." Yet our neglected prayer closets often preach precisely that sermon. Our lives can become practical atheism wrapped in Christian vocabulary.

And what shall we say of spiritual indifference? We can discuss doctrine, attend conferences, debate theological distinctions, and possess shelves filled with Christian books -- while our hearts remain strangely unmoved by the glory of Jesus.

This is perhaps the most frightening thing about "acceptable sins": they can coexist with a respectable Christian profession.

"Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." Psalm 139
(The above was AI generated.)