Are All Sins Equal?
A couple of years ago at a church youth service we tackled the question, “Are all sins equal?” This brought up some interesting discussion, and honestly the answers were all across the board. Somehow all of us innately know that there are some grievances that are worse than others. We would be hard-pressed to try to convince someone else that a “little white lie” is just as bad as sexual abuse or murder. Even in the justice system there are levels and degrees of offenses…misdemeanors, felonies, first-degree murder, second-degree murder, etc. Some sins are just more severe, right?
However, is that how God sees it? Does God put more weight on one sin than another? Are all sins equal in God’s eyes? Answering and debating this question can put a lot of Christians at odds with one another, not to mention the conflict this argument can cause with non-Christians. One could take their arguments into opposite ditches. Some would argue that all sins are equal as a way to overlook the severity of certain sins or even as a license to sin. Others would argue that all sins are not equal as an attempt to single out certain groups of people in order to condemn them. Both ditches are wrong.
My goal today is to hopefully provide a little clarification and to give some additional resources to get more wisdom in this area.
Not a quick and easy answer
Unfortunately, I don’t believe this question comes with a quick and easy answer. If it did, here’s how I would respond…
Yes, all sins are equal in that ALL sins separate us from God, regardless of degree of severity. No, all sins are not equal in consequence or in the harm and damage caused to self and/or others. Yes, all sins are equal in that Jesus’ blood and sacrifice is enough to cover them all, each and every one, regardless of degree of severity.
I love the way Michael Kruger differentiates between sins…
“First, to say all sins are the same is to confuse the effect of sin with the heinousness of sin. While all sins are equal in their effect (they separate us from God), they are not all equally heinous… In the end, all sins are the same in their effect, but some sins are different in terms of their heinousness.”[1]
I also love the way John Piper responds to this question in this short video clip…
So what is sin?
The original biblical definition of sin means to wander from the path of uprightness or to miss the mark. Sin is basically leaving God’s path to follow our own, thus putting ourselves into the place of God.
“All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the LORD laid on him the sins of us all.” Isaiah 53:6 (NLT)
Billy Graham once said,
“A sin is any thought or action that falls short of God’s will. God is perfect, and anything we do that falls short of His perfection is sin.
The Bible actually uses a number of examples or “word pictures” to illustrate what this means. For example, it tells us that sin is like an archer who misses the target. He draws back his bow and sends the arrow on its way—but instead of hitting the bull’s-eye, it veers off course and misses the mark. The arrow may only miss it a little bit or it may miss it a great deal—but the result is the same: The arrow doesn’t land where it is supposed to.
The same is true of sin. God’s will is like the center of that target—and when we sin, we fall short of His will or miss the mark. And this is something we do every day; as the Bible says, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Even when we aren’t aware of it, we commit sin by the things we do (or fail to do), or by the way we think.
This is why we need Christ, for only He can forgive us all our sins, and only He can help us live the way we should. We can’t forgive ourselves, nor can we change our hearts and make ourselves better in God’s eyes.
… whether our sins are relatively small or great, they will place us in hell apart from God’s grace. The good news is that Jesus paid the penalty for our sins and the sins of the whole world at the Cross. If we will repent and turn to Jesus in faith, our sins will be forgiven, and we will receive the gift of eternal life.”[2]
All sins are equal in that they separate us from God
Each and every sin, no matter how big or small, will separate from God. One of the reasons God hates sin is because he hates being separated from us.
“Everyone has sinned and is far away from God’s saving presence.” Romans 3:23 (GNT)
“It’s your sins that have cut you off from God. Because of your sins, he has turned away and will not listen anymore.” Isaiah 59:2 (NLT)
“When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned.” Romans 5:12 (NLT)
“For the person who keeps all of the laws except one is as guilty as a person who has broken all of God’s laws.” James 2:10 (NLT)
Does God see degrees of sin? Are there different levels of judgement?
The bible does state in various places different degrees of sin and different levels of judgement and or punishment. If there are various levels of judgement, we can presume there are various levels of sins.
Jesus said there would be more severe judgement for leading someone else astray or causing someone else to sin.
“One day Jesus said to his disciples, “There will always be temptations to sin, but what sorrow awaits the person who does the tempting! It would be better to be thrown into the sea with a millstone hung around your neck than to cause one of these little ones to fall into sin.” Luke 17:1-2 (NLT)
James said that teachers will be judged more strictly.
“Dear brothers and sisters, not many of you should become teachers in the church, for we who teach will be judged more strictly” James 3:1 (NLT)
Paul points out that some sins have a greater impact on us personally.
“Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body.” 1 Corinthians 6:18 (NIV)
Peter warns of false teachers describing how the Lord will be “especially hard” on them even to the point of reserving the darkest part of hell for them.
“He is especially hard on those who follow their own twisted sexual desire, and who despise authority. These people are proud and arrogant, daring even to scoff at supernatural beings without so much as trembling.” 2 Peter 2:10 (NLT)
“These people are like dried up water holes and clouds blown by a windstorm. The darkest part of hell is waiting for them.” 2 Peter 2:17 (CEV)
In Proverbs, there is a list of 6 things that the Lord hates, and the seventh thing listed is considered an “abomination” or detested by the Lord. In other words, there are some sins (six listed in the passage) that God hates more than others. Then there is another sin (the seventh listed) that he hates to an even greater degree.
“Six things there are, which the Lord hateth, and the seventh his soul detesteth” Proverbs 6:16 (DRB)
Matthew Henry said, in part, of this passage in Proverbs 6:16-19:
“God hates sin; he hates every sin; he can never be reconciled to it; he hates nothing but sin. But there are some sins which he does in a special manner hate; and all those here mentioned are such as are injurious to our neighbor. It is an evidence of the good-will God bears to mankind that those sins are in a special manner provoking to him which are prejudicial to the comfort of human life and society.”[3]
Different degrees of punishment are listed throughout scripture. A few include: Numbers 35:9-29, Deuteronomy 25:2, Matthew 11:20-24, Luke 10:10-15, and Luke 12:42-48.
In a quote in the same previously mentioned article, Billy Graham goes on to explain that there are degrees of seriousness to sin stating that “it seems obvious that some sins are worse than others in both motivation and effects” but that it’s difficult and dangerous to attempt to list those degrees.[4]
Jesus’ blood and sacrifice covers all sins
Regardless of the degree of sin or level of offense, Jesus’ death on the cross and resurrection covers each and every sin. No sin is too big. Jesus already paid the price on our behalf. Nothing we could ever do will separate from the love of God or from the sacrifice and gift of salvation available to us through Jesus Christ. Because of Jesus, his sinless life, his death on the cross on our behalf taking our sins upon himself, and then his resurrection and defeat of death…we no longer have to be separated from God because of our sin.
“For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.” 2 Corinthians 5:21 (NLT)
“For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he makes sinners right in his sight when they believe in Jesus.” Romans 3:25-26 (NLT)
“He was handed over to die because of our sins, and he was raised to life to make us right with God.” Romans 4:25 (NLT)
“Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people.” Romans 5:18 (NIV)
“Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.” 1 Peter 3:18 (NLT)
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16 (NIV)
“And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:38-39 (NLT)
Take Some Practical Steps to be Able to Answer the Question “Are All Sins Equal?”:
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First, know and state that ALL sins separate from God, regardless of degree.
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Secondly, know and state that not all sins have the same impact and repercussions.
There ARE indeed levels and degrees of severity and heinousness of sin, both in its effect on others and on ourselves. Some sins cause more damage, more hurt, and more pain.
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Then, due to degrees of severity and heinousness, some sins have more severe consequences.
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Next, ALL sins are covered by the blood of Jesus and removed because of his sacrifice on your behalf.
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Finally, remember that even though Jesus removes all sins that doesn’t mean all consequences will be removed.
Sin has consequences and ramifications. Unfortunately we may still suffer the consequences of some of our sinful choices even after repentance. Read this post for a better understanding.
How have you answered the question “Are All Sins Equal”? Tell us about it by leaving a comment below.
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- Kruger, Michael. “Taking Back Christianese #6: ‘All Sins Are Equal in God’s Sight.’” Canon Fodder, 5 Dec. 2016, www.michaeljkruger.com/taking-back-christianese-6-all-sins-are-equal-in-gods-sight/. ↑
- Graham, Billy. “Billy Graham’s Answer: What Is Sin? Are All Sins Equal in God’s Eyes?” Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, 26 Mar. 2014, billygraham.org/story/billy-grahams-answer-what-is-sin-are-all-sins-equal-in-gods-eyes/. ↑
- Henry, Matthew. “Proverbs 6 Commentary – Matthew Henry Commentary on the Whole Bible (Complete).” Bible Study Tools, https://www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/matthew-henry-complete/proverbs/6.html. ↑
- Graham, Billy. “Billy Graham’s Answer: What Is Sin? Are All Sins Equal in God’s Eyes?” Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, 26 Mar. 2014, billygraham.org/story/billy-grahams-answer-what-is-sin-are-all-sins-equal-in-gods-eyes/. ↑
