Talk to any long-time dedicated Christian and he or she will tell you that the moral fabric of society seems to be unraveling or, at the minimum, turning 180 degrees in a different direction. While I understand this perception and, in many ways agree, I must also confess that there have been many times throughout history where this has seemed to be the case depending on the group or community effected. I suppose what is different now is how widespread and prolific the moral changes seem to be. With social media, television, internet and other forms of communication it is so much easier for aberrant ideas to spread rapidly to all levels of society.
Reasons aside, Christians come increasingly under attack for our “outdated” and “backward” ideas on sin; particularly sexual. Even more recent additions to the Body have challenged long-revered Biblical standing on sexual sin. “What is the big deal?” Seems to be the question to ask pastors today. “Why does sexual sin have to be worse than, say, stealing?”
Well the truth is ALL sin separates us from God. This we know from scripture. So rather than address what type of sin is “worse,” I would rather just speak to the subject at hand since it seems to crop up so frequently. First: lets define sexual sin:
Sexual sin or sexual immorality is defined in scripture as any sexual relations had that is OTHER THAN sex between one consenting biological male and one consenting biological female who are married to one another. This means that sexual sin includes, but is not necessarily limited to, fornication (such as with multiple partners), sex outside of marriage, sex with same-sex partners (homosexual, pansexual, etc), bestiality,adultery, pornography and anything related to lust, to name a few.
Why is this such an issue? Well, partially because it has been a challenge raised originally by people who wished to defy God’s (and Christ’s) commandments regarding love, marriage, sex and sin. In other words, it has ALWAYS been an issue in the Church because God gave us the rules regarding sex and marriage in the beginning! It became an “issue” when mankind sought to CHANGE IT.
Why is it such a big deal? Because we are image-bearers of Almighty God! He created us in HIS image. And He ordained marriage and sex as between one man and one woman, period. He later illustrated the holiness of this relationship by describing His holy relationship in His marriage to the nation of Israel. Christ further defined this holy relationship in relation to the marriage of Christ to the Church.
When we corrupt ourselves sexually, we are, in fact, corrupting the very image of God Himself! We are not only defying Him, but making a mockery of His holiness within ourselves. Consider the pagan religions that have religious orgies and religious prostitution. We associate their actions with the unholiness of the gods that they worship. When we act outside of God’s boundaries, we are no different. We are, in effect, treating God like an unholy false idol.
So is sexual sin really a big deal? It certainly is! But it is also something that can be repented of and forgiven through Christ! Of course, true repentance means resisting the temptation to sin (understanding that true mistakes can still happen). Willful sin is the problem. This is true of ANY sin. Are sexual sinners any worse than other sinners? Why should we quantify it in this manner? Just because we may sin differently than another person does not make our sin any less grave.
We must all bear the consequences of our sins, repent and beg forgiveness through Jesus Christ. As for judging others based on their sins, remember, we must NEVER judge people, as that is hypocrisy. We may judge their actions, but again, only without hypocrisy. It is better to remain loving, welcoming and guiding, accepting people where they are. Pray for God to change hearts and minds!
~Pastor Brian Wattenbarger