“For whoever keeps
the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of
all” (James 2:10, NASB).
From the perspective of God, any
type of sin that we choose to commit is a disrespect of His authority,
no matter how well we have done to keep other laws or commandments of
God. Sin or lawlessness is always
a demonstration of disobedience to His will. Sin will
always separate us from God and
lead to eternal death if we continue in it and do not repent (Isa.
59:2; Rom. 6:23; Acts 8:22; 1 John 1:9).
While we may readily admit that
any type of sin can condemn our
soul to Hell (if not repented of) we still have a tendency to categorize
sin. In Catholicism, there is a special warning against the “Seven
Deadly Sins” or “Cardinal Sins” (i.e., Pride, greed, lust, envy,
gluttony, wrath, and laziness). Even Christians tend to elevate certain
kinds of sins as more devastating to us spiritually than others (e.g.,
adultery vs. lying, forsaking the assemblies vs. covetousness, etc.).
James, the servant of God, rebuked the brethren for such an attitude:
“For whoever keeps the whole law and
yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all. For He who said,
"Do not commit adultery," also said, "Do not commit murder." Now if you
do not commit adultery, but do commit murder,
you have become a
transgressor of the law”
(James 2:10-11).
To treat some parts of the law of Christ seriously
and other parts of the law as minor, trivial, or inconsequential is
moral inconsistency.
As common as this practice may be, it is a grave mistake for any
servant of God to make and therefore must be remedied.
Why the
Tendency to Be Inconsistent?
We Often View Sin
from a
Personal Standpoint, Rather Than
by the Standpoint of God: In our fight against sin, we are often
more quick to address those sins
that are personally troublesome
or offensive to us. For many, there is self-centeredness instead of
God-centeredness when evaluating sin. Depending on a person’s
background, one may, for example, be more troubled by the sins of sexual
lust, homosexuality, and the drinking of alcohol than perhaps greed,
gambling, or the neglect of prayer. In addition, we frequently place a
higher value on certain laws of Christ over others because we personally
enjoy keeping them (e.g., singing vs. Bible study; hospitality vs.
evangelism).
To combat the above tendencies, we need to develop a
heart for God in all matters of
life.
Rather than be angry or sorrowful over
just those sins that
personally affect us or
personally offend us, we must
learn to view sin as God does. “Thine
eyes are too pure to approve evil, And Thou canst not look on wickedness
with favor…” (Hab. 1:13a).
“For Thou art not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness; No evil dwells
with Thee” (Ps. 5:4).
In addition, we must learn to grieve as God grieves
over all the sins that we
commit. Consider the fact that our sin causes sorrow to the heart of
God: “And
do not grieve the
Holy Spirit of God, by whom you
were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and
anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all
malice” (Eph 4:30-31).
Awareness that our sin is against God (Ps.
51:4) and that our sin grieves Him ought to cause sorrow in our
own hearts, we who have love for the Lord. Such sorrow is essential in
producing a repentance that leads to our eternal salvation (2
Cor 7:9-10).
There Are Sins or
Pleasures People Do not Want to Give Up: Another reason for
moral inconsistency is that many people do not want to give up their
most favorite sins or pleasurable activities. For example, a person may
be quick to take the moral high ground against using profanity in his
speech (Eph. 4:29), yet at the
same time continually partake of television shows and movies that
contain cursing, swearing, and other foul language. In another example,
a person may do well to pay his taxes and strive to be a law-abiding
citizen of the state (Rom. 13:1-7),
only to habitually speed when driving his car exceeding the speed limit.
Many other examples could be given.
More often than not, moral inconsistency is due to
the fact that people are “… lovers of
pleasure rather than lovers of God” (2
Tim. 3:4). Instead of promptly putting away
all sin, they cling to those
sins that are especially desirable or pleasurable to them personally.
They choose “the passing pleasures of
sin” (Heb. 11:25b) and do
their best to justify or rationalize their bad behavior as good or
acceptable in the sight of God (Isa.
5:20). Just as worse, many even try to use God’s grace as a
“license to sin” (Jude 4) and
commonly indulge in their favorite sin “now and then.”
People Are Often
More
Concern About How Their Conduct Appears Before Men, Than How It Looks
Before God: Moral inconsistency is particularly tempting when we
are more concerned about what people think, than what God thinks (e.g.,
John 12:42-43; cf. 1 Cor. 4:3-4).
If we are not careful, we may find ourselves practicing sin just because
it is accepted by society or even by some brethren who are not yet
spiritual, but carnal in their thinking (1
Cor. 3:1-3). For example, while most, if not all brethren may
condemn the sin of adultery (Rom. 13:9),
in contrast, the sin of covetousness (Luke
12:15), is tolerated by more brethren today than ever before
(Perhaps due to living in such a materialistic society?). The brother
who is moral inconsistent will reason: “I cannot get away with
committing adultery, but it seems that a materialistic lifestyle is
allowed!” This is of course faulty reasoning, for the viewpoint of
brethren is not the authority, the word of the Lord is (John
12:48). Similarly, when it comes to keeping the law of Christ
(i.e., 1 Cor. 9:21), there is a
great temptation to ask the question: “Who is looking?” Sadly, some
brethren attend the worship assemblies
only because they know that it is expected of them and do not
want others to look down on them. Therefore, they are diligent to obey
the command “not forsaking our own
assembling together” (Heb. 10:25).
In contrast, these same brethren are not nearly so motivated to obey the
command “Devote yourselves to prayer”
(Col. 4:2a). This is because no
one will notice if they are devoted or not. Yet, of course, there is
always One who will always notice and see all that we do (or not do) and
that Person is God (Heb. 4:13).
The
Danger of Moral Inconsistency.
We Prove Ourselves to
Be Hypocrites, Rather Than Disciples of Christ: As much as we may
tell ourselves that we are Christians and appear to be so in the
community in which we live, if we continually live morally inconsistent
lives we are not genuine
disciples of Christ! If, for example, the condition of our heart does
not match the outward display of our actions, we are seen by Christ as
hypocrites (Mat. 23:27-28). If we
are only good at judging others and “talk the talk,” but do not “walk
the walk” of a Christian (3 John 4),
we are hypocrites (Rom. 2:1-3).
We Lose Our Influence
for Christ: “You, therefore, who
teach another, do you not teach yourself? You who preach that one should
not steal, do you steal? You who say that one should not commit
adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob
temples? You who boast in the Law, through your breaking the Law, do
you dishonor God? For
"the name of God is
blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you…”
(Rom. 2:21-24). Non-Christians
are watching our conduct and will take special note of our moral
inconsistencies. Though we will not be perfect (Rom.
3:23), if our commitment toward holiness is a half-hearted
effort, we will in time decrease or even diminish our effectiveness to
reach others for Christ, no matter how great a teacher we may be of the
law of Christ.
We Put Our Soul in
Eternal Jeopardy: Remember what James, the servant of God said?
“For whoever keeps the whole law and
yet stumbles in one point, he
has become guilty of
all” (James
2:10). The principle of obedience to God requires that we strive
to obey all that God has said.
One part of God’s law is just as
binding as another. Thus, if we disobey
any law of God, we will, as a result, be guilty of the whole. If
any part of our life is sinful,
then we will be judged as a sinner. Any
sin that we continue in will lead to eternal death (Rom.
6:23). No one will be able to plead before the throne of God on
that Last Day and offer their good deeds as a way to avoid punishment
for bad deeds that were never put away (i.e., repented of). Hypocrisy
must be put aside (1 Pet. 2:1).
What
Does Moral Consistency Require?
Not Perfection:
Though we are commanded to strive for perfection or spiritual maturity (Mat.
5:48), let us not misunderstand that moral consistency demands
perfection! We will set ourselves up for failure and misery by such an
attitude. Such thinking is foolish and dishonest to God and us (1
John 1:8, 10).
Total Commitment:
Instead of absolute perfection,
God requires that we do our best to “walk in the light” or practice the
truth in every area of life (1
John 1:5-7). God knows the difference between the person who is
committed to His will and fights against sin, yet stumbles from time to
time versus the person who surrenders to sin and continues in it.
Repentance and
Confession: When we commit sin (as much as we try not to), let us
not dismay, but instead repent for the forgiveness of our sins (Luke
24:47; Acts 8:22). Though sin may involve inconsistency, such
inconsistency does not have to continue!
Rather, let us treat every sin as a serious matter
and be quick to confess our sins to God:
“If we confess our
sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse
us from all unrighteousness” (1
John 1:9).
