one of the questions i get often when working with students is this:
“is [ fill in the blank ] a sin?”
i do believe the question comes from good intentions and the desire to do the right thing—most of the time. i say most of the time because there is another group of people that may ask this question with a different motive.
there are times when we ask this question with the intention of identifying and knowing where “the line” is and how close can i get to “that line” without falling over it — “how can i live however i want to but still be good with God?”
before i go any further i want to clarify—there are those that grew up in extreme legalistic contexts and religious manipulation where the line was, in fact, blurred to the point there may be genuine confusion about whether something is right or wrong.
with these people, we are to love them and give grace upon grace and point them to the truth, as it may take years of undoing and healing from the pain and hurt that some have caused in their life.
as i move forward to the point i am wanting to make—i’m not speaking to this group of people that have experienced real hurt in the church.
i do want to speak to those who are trying to live with one foot in the world and the other in the kingdom of God. the Bible calls this being “lukewarm” or “double-minded,” and there are some very strong words that are used to warn against this way of life.
“i know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. i wish you were either one or the other! so, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—i am about to spit you out of my mouth.”
Revelation 3:15-16 (NIV)
“do not love the world or anything in the world. if anyone loves the world, love for the father is not in them. for everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the father but from the world.”
1 John 2:15-16 (NIV)
living a double life is very hard; it’s exhausting, and in the end, it will cost you a lot. there’s a famous quote from a pastor—one whom i won’t name but (iykyk) and he said:
“sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay.”
the tragic irony with this pastor was that sin did, in fact, take him farther than he wanted to go, kept him longer than he wanted to stay, and cost him everything.
the point i desire to make is that there is a better way of living—one that Jesus offers to all people and promises eternal life, freedom from sin and death, and true satisfaction.
there are many things that may not necessarily be a sin, but there are a lot of things that can act as gateways to expose you to other temptations, which many times do lead to sin. to intentionally and continuously make the decision to put yourself in that position is what the Bible would call “foolishness.”
growing up, every night i would lie in bed and before my dad went to bed i would hear him going around the house locking every door and window and ensuring the house was secure. even when my siblings and i grew older and were out late with friends, my dad would struggle to go to sleep until we were all home and he was able to secure the house—checking every door and window to ensure the house was, in fact, secure before going to bed.
we are like a house—inside is our being—our body, soul, mind, and spirit.
can we choose to leave our doors and windows wide open?
yes, we could, but it would be foolish and unwise—
why?
because leaving a door open is inviting unwanted guests to come in and have their way inside your house.
my analogy is inspired by the Apostle Paul when he says:
“do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? you are not your own; you were bought at a price. therefore honor God with your bodies.”
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (NIV)
the same is true with the things we choose to allow into our lives—the people we spend time with, the media we consume, the images we see, the paths we choose to walk down—our lives and who we are as individuals are not made from one single moment but an uncountable number of daily choices and decisions over time.
to put this idea even simpler, and to quote King Solomon in all of his wisdom:
“above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”
Proverbs 4:23 (NIV)
i too once lived in such a way where i was trying to know where “the line” was so that i could live right up against it without falling over—(i fell over it many times)—living the way i wanted to, taking part in the worldly activities so many others my age were also doing.
even in this last year i’ve felt that tension in my current life—what things are in my life that are not inherently sinful, but are shaping me in a way that is different from who i ultimately desire to become—through this tension i realized,
we were asking the wrong question.
if we’re wondering where “the line” is so we don’t cross it—we’ve got it all backwards.
when you are deeply in love with a person, you are willing to do anything for them—to be with them, listen to them, serve them, and love them. you don’t seek to hurt or harm them or go out of your way to betray them.
the same is true with Jesus. when we are deeply in love with Him, we’re not looking for ways to intentionally go against Him or His word, but rather we seek to please Him, love Him, and honor Him with our lives.
it can be easy for us to focus on behavioral modification alone, but we will never be successful in changing our way of life if we’re only focused on the wrong things we’re doing. it’s not something we accomplish on our own, but a work done by the Holy Spirit as we become more and more surrendered to God.
God’s concern is not addressing our behaviors and practices first—God’s primary desire is to capture your heart and out of your heart everything else will flow from it!
when we were consumed with managing our behaviors, we were not focusing enough on how we can be absolutely surrendered to Christ—when a person is on fire for the Lord, they surrender themselves and allow God to fill every area of their lives—when we do the same, our heart is transformed, thoughts begin to shift, even our desires begin to align with the Father’s because we are completely given over to Him.
however, when we are unwilling to surrender, it reveals that we were believing that God isn’t good enough to give us something better.
this issue goes all the way back to the garden—where in genesis 3 it describes to us how eve saw something desirable in the very thing that God said would kill her. why do we fear to surrender or let go of the very things in our life that God has told us would kill us?
i believe that our fear of surrender comes from unbelief—is God actually better than what we were afraid to give up? is what i’m clinging to worth more than deep personal communion with God?
this is a question every person must wrestle with when they come to a crossroads in their life where they’re faced with the choice—to choose between the life they’re creating for themselves apart from God or walking the path of grace, where each step you take in obedience is a step closer to the blessings God desires to pour out over you and the life He has for you.
This is so good! Well written. It reminds me of Meister Eckhart who says that if you do anything for any other reason other than the love of God, you love those reasons more than you love God.
I particularly like the part where you talk about having one foot in the world and one foot with God, this idea of how close can I walk to the line while still being good with God. Love it!
Truth.. so easy in todays world to make excuses, and to drift away.. it’s also devestating to watch leaders and pastors do so.