Sins By Category

Have you ever noticed that certain sins are more important than others? I'm not talking about the difference between murder and a little white lie, I'm talking about how sins are viewed depending on where you are. For instance, in journalism it's a sin to claim you have sources for your story that you either make-up or get from others without citing the source. However, in preaching, we use sources all the time and rarely cite where they come from. We use made up stories or illustrations and don't bother to find out if the story is true or not. I watched a cooking show on TV, one of those competitive shows ("Top Chef") and one of the chefs used a prepackaged ingredient rather than make it from scratch. Big "no-no." He got criticized for it. I don't know about you, but I use prepackaged ingredients all the time! Apparently, no self respecting chef would do that. Funny, I respect myself just fine. I think I'll still use the prepackaged stuff if I need to.
Lawyers lie to defend their clients (or, at least, present half-truths); actors sleep with their co-stars while married without impunity ("Brangelina"); AIG executives get huge bonus' for performance while their company tanks; Athletes do drugs and get caught using illegal substances and then get millions of dollars in bonus' and new contracts - I wonder which sins are "OK" and which ones are not acceptable? Over the course of teaching some classes this year I have had to flunk some students because they cheated on their work. Most of the time it is technical (like not citing your sources in footnotes) but sometimes it is outright cheating where you submit someone else's work as your own - even whole sermons. These are students either in ministry or preparing for ministry and they are found cheating - cutting corners instead of doing the work.
When are sins, sins? When is it wrong to do something and there are no excuses? When is it wrong to do something as a Methodist and it is still wrong to do it as a Nazarene? Why do Catholics and Lutherans believe that alcohol is OK but the Church of God and Brethren Church don't? Why is OK for a minister to be a homosexual in the Episcopal Church but unacceptable in the newly formed Anglican Church of North America? One of the reasons people are confused about the church and don't see it as speaking with the voice of moral authority is that those in the church cannot figure out what is sin and what is not. If the Cross of Christ is for the forgiveness of sins (I think we all agree on that) can anyone tell me what the church believes is sin and what is not? What do we have to be forgiven of before we can become a full-fledged Christian?
As Good Friday approaches, it is becoming increasingly difficult for the Church to speak with one voice about the Cross of Christ. We have developed a mentality that allows for sins to be placed in one category or another. Then, depending on who we are, we choose the categories that are really sinful and those that really aren't that bad. It is killing the church and negating its message. I have a suggestion. I think there is only one sin. I go back to the Garden and the problems of Adam and Eve. They only sinned once. They broke one sin and that caused all the problems. What was that one sin? They wanted to be God. They wanted to make the rules. They wanted to do what was wrong in order to be the one who could determine what was right and wrong. For me, that's the only sin. Every time we I do something that puts my wants and desires above God's call and command, that is sin. Every time I do something on my own without His help, that's sin. Every time I act without his Word, Spirit, and guidance that is sin. I think there is only one sin. It's the sin of humankind. It's the sin of the Garden. It's the sin that gets us all in trouble. We want to be God and make up our own rules. Well, it doesn't work like that. There is only one God and one Savior. He died on Calvary. I didn't - and neither did you. He gets to make up the rules. We get to follow. He does a better job of making up the rules and providing grace for us when we blow it. My job is to be the best follower I can be. In the end, being a good follower may be better than trying to define all the things we think are sin or not sin.