Not Quite as Bad?

"Let me never forget that the heinousness of sin lies not so much in the nature of the sin committed, as in the greatness of the Person sinned against." ~ 'Humiliation', The Valley of Vision

I think this is something that we all need to be reminded of from time to time. We are constantly comparing sins to other sins in an attempt to classify them as "not quite as bad" as others. I think this leads to us misunderstanding sin and, in turn, not appreciating grace as much as we can and should. Certainly some sins have more harmful consequences than others because of how they affect our relationship with God as a Father and our fellowship with Him, however, the eternality and atrociousness of sin comes not so much from the nature of the sin itself, but from the fact that it has been committed against an infinite, holy, and eternal Being. Fortunately, from Him Christians also receive "grace upon grace" (John 1:16) through the eternal sacrifice of Jesus, the theanthropos (God-man). An eternal sacrifice atones for our sin against an eternal Being. It was this beautiful balance of understanding that led Paul exclaim, "Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!" (Romans 11:33). May we do the same.

By His Grace,
Taylor