Should Christians Endorse Sin?

Should Christians Endorse Sin?

It seems the answer to this question should be an easy "No," but how does that work in practice? The world is full of sin. The apostle Paul says all "creation has been groaning" to be free from this curse (Romans 8:22). Sometimes, it feels as though avoiding sin is as futile as walking through a field without stepping on grass. It's everywhere. How does a Christian not endorse sin in a sinful world?

An endorsement can take on various forms, but this blog post will focus on one fundamental way most actions are endorsed—through the world of advertising. Whether it's a promotional poster, a video commercial or an eye-catching billboard, advertisements are dominant all over the globe. They exist in nearly every written language. No matter where someone goes, they are bound to encounter an ad, maybe more than they'll encounter grass.

Let's begin this examination, starting with the sin of...

Gluttony

Consider this scenario: You and a friend walk into a fast food restaurant and on one of the windows is a poster of a guy eating a cheeseburger the size of his mouth. At the bottom of the poster it reads, "Eat a BIG burger! The way you want!" Does this poster endorse gluttony? Nope. It's more than possible for someone to imitate everything in this ad without committing a sin. Extra large portions of meat are not inherently sinful. Otherwise, the prodigal son would be better off sticking with pig slop, since his dad said he was gonna serve the "fattened calf" and "have a feast," (Luke 15:23). Having said that, it is possible for an individual to eat a big burger in a sinful way. Any believer who doesn't take care of their body dishonors the Holy Spirit, because "your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God. You are not your own...Therefore honor God with your bodies," (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). A glutton will over indulge, but believers should feel free to eat until they are satisfied.

Greed

Here's another scenario: You and a friend walk into a convenience store, and you see a sign above the front entrance. It reads, "HUGE SALE! BUY MORE and SAVE MORE!" Is someone falling into the sin of greed by obeying this sign? Not necessarily. People are able to buy more than they need, without it being a sin. If it were not so, then King Solomon, who "was greater in riches and wisdom than all the other kings of the earth," could not have been able to give the people "the wisdom God had put in his heart," since his heart would've been too cluttered with all that sinful gold, (1 Kings 10:23-24). However, it is possible for someone to fall into the sin of greed through the lure of big savings. The Apostle Paul says, "the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs," (1 Timothy 6:10). It can be dangerous for some believers to spend a lot of money, but it isn't a sin for all believers.

Does this make sense so far? Perhaps our exam should consider something with more nuance.

Pride

Here's the scenario: You and a friend are at a clothing store, and in the center aisle is a colorful display. Dozens of shirts surround a big banner that says, "Wear it with PRIDE!" Considering what Jesus says about sexual immorality, is it a sin for a believer to wear these clothes? The answer is "Yes." On first glance, that might not sound fair. None of the other situations led to this conclusion, but none of the other ads directly endorsed sin. In this scenario, though, there is no way to both earnestly and sinlessly wear these clothes, because the words on them are actively endorsing sin. The Apostle Paul says, "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). Jesus also teaches that what goes into someone does not defile them, but what comes out of that person defiles them, (Matthew 15:11). This principle applies to a great deal of behaviors, showing that it's hard for a believer to stay pure on the outside, if their inner spirit is craving sin.

When people endorse and practice sexual sin,
it makes the earth sick (Leviticus 18:24-25).

Is this the end of our exam? Not quite, because there is one more aspect that has yet to be addressed.

All these scenarios started with four words, "You and a friend." This means there was someone else who saw the burger, the shopping cart, and the rainbow merchandise. Now, let's say this friend isn't aware of what makes an action sinful or non-sinful. Does that mean any believer who follows these ads while this friend is watching is endorsing sin? Paul would say "Yes." In fact, he reminds believers that some young Christians are accustomed to seeing certain actions as sinful, even if they're not (1 Corinthians 8:7). For the sake of these believers, Paul urges the Church to "be careful that the exercise of your rights does not become a stumbling block to the weak. For if someone with a weak conscience sees you" doing what they believe to be sinful, "won’t that person be emboldened to" follow you and go against their conscience? (1 Corinthians 8:9-10). In this way, believers can unwittingly destroy one another. Paul concludes stating, "If what I eat causes my brother or sister to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause them to fall," (1 Corinthians 8:13).

"To the weak I became weak, to win the weak.
I have become all things to all people so
that by all possible means I might
save some," (1 Corinthians 9:22-23).

We, as believers, should remember that we do not strive to avoid sin just for our own sakes, but also for the sake of one another. Believers are meant to do good so that the world "may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven," (Matthew 5:16). This isn't just a matter of avoidance. This is about leading sinners to God; to pursue the Lord's righteousness "on earth as it is in heaven," (Matthew 6:10).

Sources

• The Bible (New International Version)

Proverbs 3:11-12 (God's Love is His Discipline)

Proverbs 3:11-12

My son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline, and do not resent His rebuke, because the Lord disciplines those He loves, as a father the son he delights in.

Here's a scene for you: It's the era of the Old Testament, in the time of Joshua. You and your family have finally settled into the land formerly known as Canaan. You survived wars and witnessed miracles, all so your people could live in this place flowing with milk and honey.

Two weeks later, one of your children discovers something greenish on the wall of your new house. You tell the priest that there is "something that looks like a defiling mold," (Leviticus 14:35). The priest determines it is mold; a bad case too. He "must have all the inside walls of the house scraped and the material that is scraped off dumped into an unclean place outside the town," (Leviticus 14:41). So, you, the priest and a few others tear your new house to pieces. After it's in shambles, you then "take other stones to replace these and take new clay and plaster the house," (Leviticus 14:42). But it gets worse. The priest reexamines your rebuilt home, and finds that "the mold has spread, it is a persistent defiling mold," (Leviticus 14:44). He gives you horrible news. The house "must be torn down," (Leviticus 14:45). By sun set, your beautiful new home is a heap of rubble in a garbage pit.

And you family watches at the dismantling of
what God promised you.

This scene can be depressing. Who would do this to someone; get their hopes up, only to have it destroyed by something they couldn't prevent? Who? The answer is in the sentence preceding this story. Concerning defiling molds, God told Moses, "When you enter the land of Canaan, which I am giving you as your possession, and I put a spreading mold in a house," (Leviticus 14:34). God sent the mold.

Why would a loving God send something so heartbreaking?

Because this is how God loves His children.

Readers of my other blog, A Novel Approach, may recall that I faced this question back in February when I wrote the post "All According to Whose Plan." I said, "This month has been mostly bad news." Much of the problems I encountered then are still around. So, I am not writing from outside of suffering. I write as someone who is still in its midst.

Scripture teaches that God sends suffering, so that His children can grow.

Jesus says, "Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline," (Revelation 3:19). The Apostle Peter wrote to the early church, "though now for a little while you have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor," (1 Peter 1:6-7). God also prophesied to Daniel that He would send a powerful leader to earth who would oppose all God's believers. When this evil man arises, "some of the wise will stumble, so that they may be refined, purified and made spotless," (Daniel 11:35). God makes His children suffer, so that they can be more valuable than any gemstone. The way God loves His children is through their trials.

It is indeed true, that "whoever spares the rod
hates their children, but the one who loves
their children is careful to discipline them,"
(Proverbs 13:24).

So, if God loves through suffering, then what does His hatred look like?

There's an odd chapter in Romans where Paul writes, "It is written: 'Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.' What then shall we say? Is God unjust? Not at all!" (Romans 9:13-14). These verses confound even the most Biblical scholars. How is God just in hating someone while loving someone else? I, myself, have wrestled with this, but I recently heard an eye-opening sermon from Paul Washer that addressed this topic. Not only that, but it helped me understand what it means for God to rebuke the ones He loves. The following is an abridged excerpt from Washer's sermon:

If you look at Esau’s life, God fulfilled every promise He made regarding Esau. He blessed Esau with wealth, with power. He became a great leader, a great nation. So how is it that God’s hatred was manifested toward Esau? God never disciplined Esau. He let Esau be Esau. He never worked to make Esau holy. He just cut the rope and let Esau go and live exactly like Esau wanted to live.

Now how did God manifest His love toward Jacob? He beat Jacob every day of his life. He would not allow Jacob to continue on as Jacob. When Jacob became a son, God said, 'Jacob, it’s going to take a while, but I’m going to change you from a deceiver into a prince.' And you look at the life of Jacob, the trials he suffered, the things that he went through. So that when he entered into the Promised Land, he entered in limping. Why?

Because here’s what you need to understand. The goal of God in your life is not prosperity. It’s not health. It’s not wealth. God’s goal, if you belong to Him as a child, is to make you holy, to conform you to the image of Christ. He will cleanse you from your filthiness. He will cleanse you from your idols, and He will be very zealous in doing that. He will do anything that is necessary to make you conform to the image of His son. Is He doing that in your life?

"We glory in our sufferings, because we know
that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance,
character; and character, hope. And hope does not
put us to shame, because God’s love has been
poured out into our hearts," (Romans 5:3-5).

God's love for His children is shown through His discipline. This might come in the form of home disasters, debilitating injuries or any kind of suffering. It can be disheartening, but don't be discouraged, child of God. When you face suffering, remember that this is proof of God's immense love towards you.

Sources

• The Bible (New International Version)
• Paul Washer: What is the Gospel