Not My Vice

In the life of each individual, there are certain weaknesses and struggles that each person will have over the course of their life. However, weaknesses, struggles, and vices can vary from person to person.

For me personally, I am not addicted to coffee or pop. They are not my vices. I rarely ever want either beverage. Other people really struggle with limiting their intake. I shouldn't judge them for their struggles and expect them to overlook my different vice.

We run into problems in the church when we vilify a person who struggles with certain sins, because it isn't a sin we ourselves struggle with.

For example, we silently judge the homosexual or unwed mother in our community, because "how could they so blatantly break God's law?" while we help ourselves to the third plate of food at the church dinner.

Yes, the Bible condemns homosexuality as a sin and sex outside the bounds of marriage. Gluttony is also a sin and so is pride.

If we thank God that we are not like the _______ sinner, then we are being like the Pharisee instead of the tax collector in Luke 18.

God doesn't have a point system to get into heaven. He doesn't rank them and have a list of the worst and least bad sins. He doesn't say that cursing is -10 points, but pride is -30 points. There is a line on the ground. If you have sinned, you are on the far side of the line, separated from God. Thankfully, God offers mercy to the repentant sinner. If you submit to the Lordship of Jesus, His blood covers your sins and allows you to cross the line.

So maybe it is time that we stop silently judging those who struggle differently than we do. Maybe it is time for us to say, "You struggle with X. I struggle with Y. Let's challenge each other to cast off our sins by God's grace."