What Makes One Sin Greater Than Another Part 1

Big Idea: Sin, a major Bible theme, is a flawed relationship with God firstly, but with our fellow man too. All sin pollutes us but some are worse.

Question asked recently by a friend: What makes one sin greater than another? In the Bible, there are so many things that are considered sins, even wearing fabric that isn’t natural is blasphemous! So where are the rules of sin laid out?

“Ask Anything About the Bible” is our newest blog series

Sin at the Core

Human rebellion and separation from God is at the core of the Bible message.

Sin shows up very, very early in the first book of Genesis (Genesis 3).

It is mentioned quite often in the Bible, in some books more than others. See this chart for where the word “sin” is used the most.

Where are the sin rules laid out?

The early chapters of Genesis up through the flood address the beginnings of sin. Then God starts laying out a plan to reestablish the partnership relationship He wants with human beings that began in the Garden of Eden.

From paradise lost God works to communicate and lay out a plan that will eventually connect with all the ethnic groups of the world.

God begins again in a sense, with the man, Abraham.

Abraham’s family is established and the ensuing nation (later called Israel) will represent an example of a people group’s special relationship with God, whether it is deserved or not.

The Ten Commandments and the other 613 laws

Through Abraham’s offspring, rules get established how to live with a holy powerful deity who resides in the middle of their camp. Think Charlton Heston and the pillar of fire in the encampment in the movie, “The Ten Commandments.”

The Ten Commandments (1956)

These commandments and the following 613 rules are not only about a right relationship with Almighty God, but also for a right relationship with those living around us.

Referring to the above chart, notice a lot about sin in the books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy. The Ten Commandments are found in both of them.

Also, that rule my friend, who asked the question, mentioned, about being blasphemous to wear mixed woven cloth instead of natural fiber, is found in both Leviticus (Leviticus 19:19 NLT) and Deuteronomy (Deut. 22; 9-11 NLT).

That which is most important

A Jewish person recently said the Ten Commandments are really the core, the most important instruction.

The first four commandments are about our relationship to God, and the last six are about living right toward mankind.

Jesus pretty much summed this up too in the Gospels. Love God, love others.

“Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?”

Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.” Matthew 22: 36-40 NLT

Is one sin greater than another?

Sin can be in the eye of the beholder. When I lived in West Africa I discovered that a Christian’s idea there of terrible sin was a little different from the way my American friends perceived it.

Yes, people do that!

I believe different generations and different eras of time have viewed sin differently too.

The Bible’s different degrees of sin

In keeping with the Ten Commandments and Jesus’ summary, there are sins against God and sins against our fellow man which are considered worse.

In sins against God, willful intentional defiance repeatedly against Him is considered very grave.

Mankind doing atrocities against fellow human beings breaks God’s heart. Honestly, it should break our heart too.

The LORD observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil. So the LORD was sorry he had ever made them and put them on the earth. It broke his heart. Genesis 6:5-6 NLT

Oppressing defenseless widows, children, and those destitute is considered pretty terrible too.

All sin puts us at odds with God

It is true that any sin, any violation, makes us guilty. It is like a legal moral standing before God.

Sin in the world, the bent toward rebellion that unchecked turns violent, is like a poison.

If you were offered a glass of water and you noticed a drop of a toxin fell into it, would you drink it?

Probably not. It does not take much to pollute. In the same way, it does not take much sin to pollute.

Everyone is in need of a toxic sin cleanse from God.

That is the thing. We are all legally sinners in comparison to a pure God. And I, as good as I try to be, am unable to make myself perfect.

That is why all need God’s cleansing solution. He made a way so we can stand as if we are pure in His presence. That is mind boggling.

Stay tuned for Part 2 for the rest of the story!

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