The Danger Zone: The Lost Sense of Sin

If you seek to understand how society is changing the basis for its morality, you will notice that the role of religion has been diminished resulting in a lost sense of sin. It is common to view sin now, not as a transgression of the law of God, but as a transgression of the law of man.

In current times, the presence of sin in the modern lexicon is something some may find offensive. We have ethics. We have crime and punishment. Atheists, agnostics, humanists, Christians, and all other belief systems can pursue a high standard of ethical, altruistic living with or without the word ‘sin’. Is it therefore still relevant? I’m going to say that yes, it is.

I guess we need to start with what “Sin” is. When you trace it back to the Hebrew and Greek origins of the word, there are two big concepts: one is that of a transgression (stepping across a boundary or limit), and the other is that of missing the mark (you may think of a soccer player shooting for a goal but missing it.).

There are two types of sins: sins of commission and sins of omission. The first is pretty well spelled out in Scripture. Take the 10 Commandments for instance –  idol worship, adultery, theft, murder, covetousness, dishonoring your parents, blasphemy. Galatians 5:19-21 goes on to list a few others: sexual immorality, impurity, debauchery, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, and orgies. Then there are sins of omission: the sins you commit when you see something that requires action, but you do not act (James 4:17.)

Why is sin being diminished in society and culture?

Although the abandonment of religion is a general cause, let’s look at more specific probable causes. 

Believing there is no afterlife –How much do we owe our sense of positive meaningfulness and the desire to do the right thing to our belief in an afterlife? There are people on both sides of this debate. I believe that believing in an afterlife, especially one in which you believe you will be judged by your actions in this life, provides the structure for morality and the definition of right and wrong. For those who believe that there is only this life, the purpose tends to become more selfish; a search for personal gratification – lust, greed, fame – without the guardrails of a moral framework.

Individualism – There certainly has been a move away from the common good to seek value for oneself.  This trend drives people to choose their sexual identity, to ignore morality when seeking pleasure, and to define their own “truth”.  This means morality is guided by whatever limits individuals want to impose on themselves.

Victimhood –  Society now views many behaviors that the Bible calls “sin” as psychological or emotional issues caused by the individual’s upbringing, environment, or other external causes. Therefore,  therapy, not repentance, is the solution. Sin has become a disease that we treat therapeutically, not a behavior for which we’re responsible. When sinful actions become accepted by society, structures of sin can emerge, which tend to push others toward committing sinful acts.

These factors have combined to try to create a different moral structure away from religion. The evidence, however, points in the opposite direction.  Our society, in the name of compassion and “social justice”, has permitted lawlessness to spread as seen by the increase in drug addiction, homelessness, stealing, vandalizing, rioting, transgenderism, and mental afflictions.

Sin is still an important concept. For centuries, Christianity has acted as a moral guidepost of society. In a post-modern world, and what some would call a post-Christian world, this is not a place the Church occupies anymore. But sin must still occupy a place in the modern culture for several reasons:

• The word ‘sin’ is related to ‘wrongdoing’, ‘crime’, ‘evil’, and ‘unethical’ and these are very present in the modern world. The idea of right and wrong is engraved deep within all of us. We don’t need to believe in God to know when something is wrong. We don’t need to believe in God to feel guilty over not standing up for a bullying victim, or cheating or stealing. It is there in all of us.
• The other part of sin’s definition is simply not measuring up to the standard of a holy, perfect God. By virtue of our humanity, we are sinful. We should stop thinking of sin as pure evil. Instead, we should start thinking of it more as a fact of life, a part of our humanity – one remedied by repentance and God’s absolution. So sin is not only for evil; it also means imperfect; it also just means human.
• The presence of sin does not exempt us from doing our best, even though it will never be as perfect and superhuman as God. It simply means we do what we can, knowing we can self-correct to get on the right path. Matthew 3:8 says, “Bear fruit in keeping with repentance.” This means that true repentance involves not only turning away from sin but also living a life that is consistent with that change. The verse is a call to forsake sins and let the integrity, regularity, holiness, and usefulness of one’s life manifest the sincerity of one’s repentance.

The “sense of sin” refers to having an accurate conception of sin and an awareness of sin in one’s life. It is part of what is normally understood as “conscience.” Pope John Paul II in “Reconciliatio et Paenitentia” wrote of a “sensitivity and an acute perception of the seeds of death contained in sin, as well as a sensitivity and an acuteness of perception for identifying them in the thousand guises under which sin shows itself. This is what is commonly called the sense of sin. This sense is rooted in man’s moral conscience and is as it were its thermometer.”

Thus, without a healthy sense of sin, our conscience becomes clouded, and we easily go astray. When this happens on a large scale, it can be disastrous for society.