Sin. It’s a word that’s unavoidable in religious contexts, second only to “repent.” It’s a word that, I think, has done more harm than good in recent years for evangelical efforts. Us Christians won’t make ‘bad’ people ‘good’ just by reminding them that they are “sinners” who need to “repent.” This is not only counterproductive, it’s actually pretty ironic, given the original meaning of the word “sin.” And chances are, if you’re reading this, maybe you found this article because you were trying to find out it if (fill in the blank) is a sin.

Well, what is a sin, exactly? Is it just the bad things that we do, or, as a fundamentalist might argue, is it is strictly anything not listed in the Bible? If that were case, then there’s a cacophony of things that are “sinful”. So to simply use the excuse that “the Bible doesn’t talk about (x)” as a starting point for what a sin actually is, doesn’t do any good. It doesn’t really give us a good vantage point to map out visions of a righteous, noble, wise lifestyle. I think a more productive starting point is to take a more conscious and intentional perspective about how to define sin.

To start, we need to think more categorically about it. In other words, when we ask “Is (x) a sin? Is it biblical?”, let’s ask a different question: “Which ‘bucket’ does (x) go into?” Let’s unpack that a bit more.

What is Sin?

A sin can be what we do, or the omission of doing that thing. The reason that people categorize what we do—or fail to do—as a sin might have its origins in the meaning of the work. Qata, חָטָא; (Qal), could be translated a few ways:

1. to miss the goal or path of right and duty
2. to incur guilt or penalty by sin
3. to forfeit

Most translate it more colloquially as “missing the mark.” This means that if the intended outcome of our actions were a bullseye, that our arrow is off the mark (if it’s even hitting the target at all).

Paul reminds us of our own shortcomings, what with being human and all:

“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.” (Romans 3:23-27).

Translation: each one of us has missed the mark. Every day. Humans aren’t perfect; our actions don’t always have the effect we intended. Even if we mean well, sometimes we miscalculate. We’ve missed the mark. Grace covers the rest, and we should extend it to each other because it’s been extended to us. Pay it forward.

The New Testament reminds us that love is the greatest commandment. Love always fulfills the law; it makes up for having committed a variety of sins (Mark 12:31; 1 Peter 4:8; Romans 13:10). And as we know, love is an inherently social thing. Our actions have consequences that affect those around us. Effects on strangers, co-workers, family, you name it. When these outcomes are negative, it’s called a sin. But when the outcomes are positive, it’s called love, or sometimes, a blessing. All people around us deserves some degree of respect. No one is exempt from it. But depending on our relationships to that person, that degree of respect can change. Hold onto that thought, we’ll come back to it in a moment.

But what about the things we do or say in ‘the heat of the moment’ or because we’re having an off day that cause other people to react negatively? Or what if someone has a certain mental handicap that sometimes causes them to speak harshly (even if they don’t really intend to in their heart.) That’s still a sin. But it’s unintentional sin. And 99.9% of sins can be forgiven.

So, again, instead of worrying about if (this, that, or the other thing) is a sin, let’s instead ask: “Is what I’m doing helping me to love and respect those around me to the best of my ability and to the highest degree that they deserve?”

Putting it all Together

There are three crucial pieces we need to piece together the answer to the question, “What is sin?”

First, the fact that Qata means “missing the mark”.

Second, remember that we have all missed the mark with God, and He has forgiven us, so we should therefore extend that love, grace, compassion, and empathy to others.

Third and final, that love is the greatest commandment.

If we string together all of these concepts, startling insight into how sin is actually defined. In fact, we’ve actually created a whole new definition altogether.

Sin is failing to treat someone to the full degree of respect that they deserve. 

Each person, whether because they’re simply a human being, have a heartbeat (animals, too) or the title they hold (Romans 13), deserve respect. Sure, we may not know to what degree people “deserve” to be respected. An elected official deserves respect, but maybe not the same amount you’d give to a family member. A stranger whose name you’ll never learn is entitled to a certain degree of respect, just maybe not as much as you’d give to a co-worker. But if we asked ourselves how we would want to be treated, we’d probably have a really great answer for to what to do for a person in any given situation. Love your neighbor as you would love yourself (Mark 12:30-31). We forget that second part a lot.

You shall have no other gods before me.

You shall not make idols.

You shall not take the Lord’s name in vain.

Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy.

Honor your father and mother.

You shall not murder.

You shall not commit adultery.

You shall not steal.

You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

You shall not covet.

Be a Blessing

This more ‘conscious’ view of sin, is much more awe-inspiring, don’t you think? Instead of asking ourselves ‘did I do all the right things today?’ it’s much more insightful to ask, ‘did I treat people to the full degree of respect that they deserve today? Did my actions honor them? Did I empathize with them?’

By asking the right question, we can become more cognizant of how we can be a blessing to strangers. We can stop using the Bible as a rulebook. Who knows, by doing this, with all that extra time we save arguing over what is and isn’t a sin, we may even have more time to better love and serve those around us. Some of those strangers may even turn out to be angels, without even knowing it (Hebrews 13:2).

So before you end each day, or after each interaction you have with someone, ask yourself: “did I give this person my full attention and respect?” You may find that after doing this for a while, you stop asking “Is (x) a sin?” you’ll instead be asking,

“Did I give this person as much decency as they deserve? Did I love them as I love myself?”