Is All Sin The Same? EP 13

The familiar phrase "all sin is equal" rolls off the tongue of many believers without a second thought. But what if this comfortable theological shorthand isn't actually biblical? This episode challenges a widely accepted Christian belief by examining what Scripture actually teaches about different sins and their consequences.

Diving into passages where Jesus himself speaks of "greater sin" (John 19:11) and different levels of punishment (Luke 12:47-48), we uncover a more nuanced understanding of how God views our transgressions. The evidence is compelling: while all sin separates us from God and requires grace for redemption, the Bible consistently shows that some sins carry heavier weight, responsibility, and consequence than others.

This isn't just semantic nitpicking—it profoundly affects how we understand God's perfect justice. When we recognize that God looks at our hearts, motives, knowledge, and intent, we gain a deeper appreciation for His righteousness. He doesn't judge the person who steals a pen the same as a murderer, though both have sinned. This understanding doesn't minimize any sin's seriousness but magnifies God's perfect judgment. 

Through biblical examples and practical applications, this episode will transform your understanding of sin's nature and inspire a more complete surrender to God. Stop reserving rooms in your heart that you keep off-limits to Him—true faith means signing over the entire deed. Subscribe, share, and join our growing community as we pursue biblical truth together, even when it challenges what we've always believed.

Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction and Channel Updates
• 2:10 Questioning If All Sin Is Equal
• 6:33 What Scripture Actually Says
• 11:20 Different Weights of Sin and Judgment
• 16:57 Heart, Motives, and God's Just Nature
• 21:33 Giving God Full Control of Your Heart
• 22:36 Closing Thoughts and Call to Action

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Before we get into today's video, I just wanted to say thank you to all of the new subscribers. If you haven't yet, consider subscribing, hit that bell notification so that you can see every time I put out a new video. A major portion of you that watch my videos haven't subscribed yet, so why not? It's free. You can also find a PayPal link below if you want to give a one-time or give a monthly to support the channel. Anything, great or small, is appreciated. Now let's get into the video. Hey, what's up everybody? Welcome to another episode, faith and Failures.

Speaker 1: 0:37

If you're watching online, whether on Rumble or YouTube, you can see that I'm a little bit in a different atmosphere. We're on vacation, so I got a little bit of time. I'm talking a little soft. The baby's asleep in the next room, so I wanted to talk to you a little bit today about is all sin equal? So if you're watching online, you'll see that I'm in my studio. Usually I'm sharing verses on my screen, but I can't do that today because of the setup.

Speaker 1: 1:09

But I wanted to talk about this. We have and I've said it myself, and I've started reexamining myself as far as things I believe versus how I was raised and, that being said, 90% of how I was raised is biblical. Well, it may be even less than that, maybe 70, maybe 80%. You'll probably understand this when I spit out. What I'm trying to say is that we easily spit out. What I'm trying to say is that we easily we will quote things or repeat things or regurgitate things that are actually not truth, but more of preference, and we call it theology instead of biblical.

Speaker 1: 2:02

Let me give you a good example. I was raised where my dad and no shame on my dad, it's just how he was raised it was the movement at the time Pentecostal Women didn't wear pants. You have clean-shaven faces? Well, no, my dad had a mustache, but like beards and stuff and it was. We couldn't go to the movie theater, I couldn't wear shorts and I know I got some some sexy legs, but my dad would not allow it. I guess he didn't want those ladies out there lusting, just little things like that. That were what in the moments and in the time and the raising, like they thought that that was how it was supposed to be done, which is understandable. I did the same thing with my kids today, like if I tell my son, hey, don't do this, why? Cause I said so.

Speaker 1: 2:59

You know there's just don't push a whole lot of biblical why on, just like household stuff, because it's kind of like not everything you find in the Bible, it's more preference. But I make sure to distinguish that of like. Hey, if you're lying, this is what the Bible says. Hey, if you're eating that ice cream after I said not to, you're supposed to obey your parents or you will die, something like that. I think that's in the Word. So, that being said, as a parent, now that I'm a parent to a little baby, a little toddler, almost two years old actually today, yesterday she's 21, so about one and a half, and then he's always going to be 17 in November I have, over the course of time, established some mostly unwritten, but I have established that the punishment must fit the crime.

Speaker 1: 4:03

And so I've said in sermons and I apologize for this because it's actually not biblical is that all sin is the same, and while that is technically true, it's actually biblically not. And what I mean by that is like we will say all sin is the same in God's eyes, which is true, but there are different levels of sin. For instance, sodom and Gomorrah would be a great story for you to have a deeper understanding of exactly what I'm trying to say is it was because of their sexual perversion that God actually sent the angels of destruction to go and wipe them off the face of the map. It was because of the sexual sin they even wanted to partake in the humping of the angels. He even offered his virgin daughters to them and they did not want that. They wanted the angels, and that's how terrible it was. They saw something new that they wanted and desired, and this is not far off from what I see our culture today.

Speaker 1: 5:10

So the question of the podcast and the title of this podcast is going to be is all sin equal? So let's walk through some stuff. It's a phrase that believers repeat over and over again that sin is sin. Right, sin is sin. If you're sinning against God, you're missing the mark. But I think sometimes we put on all sin at the same level and that's not true. Matter of fact, even in the Bible the Old, that was directly a word and was a mandate law from God, and it was different levels of things that someone did. There was a certain punishment to follow. So sin is sin, yes, but is that what the Bible actually teaches? And, more importantly, could this idea be leading us into a dangerous misunderstanding of God's justice, his holiness and His grace? So let's on this podcast.

Speaker 1: 6:14

If you're new here, thank you so much for joining we myself, as a believer, my first response is not well, what does your pastor say? What does a YouTube channel say? What are you feeling? What does your theology say? It says what does the Bible say? So let's go to scripture, so where the phrase comes from. So let's go to scripture, so where the phrase comes from.

Speaker 1: 6:38

Many people quote Romans 3.23 as the foundation of this belief. So for all have sinned and fallen short of God's glorious standard. Okay, this is true. Yes, everyone has sinned, but no one stands righteous on their own. But that truth doesn't automatically mean all sins are the same in nature. We see this in our judicial system, where we have different levels of punishment that fit the crime.

Speaker 1: 7:04

As a parent, I think I started this and didn't actually finish the thought as a parent, the punishment must fit the crime. If my son throws something one more time after I told him not to, or he sits somewhere like we have this little I'm thinking of it because he did it last night this little something rider. It's like a basket thing or whatever you call it. What do you call it? Anyways, it's like a little square and you can pull stuff, a wagon and he sits on it and probably it won't hurt it. But my wife told him hey, I'd rather you not sit on that because we don't want it to mess it up. We just got it on the vacation. Well, he said on it again. Well, it's my punishment to go out in the middle of the highway and stone him, or to take a board or my belt and start whooping the fire out of him. Because he's not listening. He is being disobedient. He is sinning against his father, against his mother, because we told him not to do something. Yet he's still doing it. But does the punishment fit the crime? No, I get a little loud. I encourage him very softly to get up before it leads to the next phase, which is corporal punishment. And he gets up and all is right again.

Speaker 1: 8:23

So, yes, everyone has sinned. No one stands righteous on their own. But the truth doesn't automatically mean all sins are the same in nature, consequence or impact. For instance, a serial killer does not have the same impact in their sinning as a person who steals a pen from their job because their job can't afford it, or copy paper, whatever the case may be, it's not the same, even though both are sin, because they are, and stealing is one of the big 10. Murder is one of the big 10. But you see how there's a different level. So, yes, all of the evil and the bad and the stuff, in God's eyes it is evil and it still remains bad, but you wouldn't punish the same when caught, if that makes sense.

Speaker 1: 9:16

The Bible shows that God sees the heart, which is very important. He sees the motive and the weight behind every action. So let's listen to what Jesus said and how he phrased up when he was speaking to Pilate in John, chapter 19, verse 11. It says you would have no power he's talking to Pilate over me at all unless it will be given to you from above. Jesus was not a weenie. He's saying it to the guy that decides his fate. I love it. So the one who handed me over to you has the greater sin. The greater sin. That means some sins carry more weight than others. Okay, another example would be Matthew 11, 21 and 22. What sorrow awaits you, chorazin and Bethsaida, for if the miracles I did in you had been done in wicked Tyre or Sidon.

Speaker 1: 10:19

So not all sin is weighed the same on Judgment Day, according to scripture. Not what you've been taught, not what a catchy saying is that people put on a t-shirt, but what does the word say? This has to be the foundation of the belief and theology of every believer. We must take our opinions out of reading scripture, remove our bias. And what does the word just plainly say? This is how God is righteous and this is how God is fully just. Because he takes all of these things into account, he has all the necessary information to make the call right. He looks at our heart, our motive, our knowledge and our intent. Look at Luke 12, 47 and 48. Heart, our motive, our knowledge and our intent. Look at Luke 12, 47 and 48. A servant who knows what the master wants but isn't prepared and doesn't carry out those instructions will be severely punished. But someone who does not know and then does something wrong will be punished only lightly. It's Luke, chapter 12. That's a clear indication that knowledge and intent affect the severity of judgment. Also, james 3.1.

Speaker 1: 11:45

Dear brothers and sisters, not many of you should become teachers in the church, for we who teach will be judged more strictly. There is more of a weight to the burden of teaching because you will be held accountable, because you have the knowledge whether you're teaching right or teaching wrong. Some are judged more strictly because responsibility increases accountability. What should we believe instead? So what's the right perspective on? Is sin all equal? All sin separates us from God. All sin Look at Isaiah 59 too.

Speaker 1: 12:28

It's your sin that have cut you off from God. Because of your sin, he has turned away. But not all sin carries the same consequences. Earthly and eternal consequences vary. Think of David's adultery with Bathsheba. His sin was forgiven, but his consequence was tragic he lost that firstborn child. We must take all sin across the board seriously, but we must also understand some sins destroy lives and dishonor God more deeply than others. So instead of saying this, instead of saying sin is sin and all sin is equal and all this other stuff all sin is evil, not equal we should say instead, maybe try this all sin is deadly, but not all sin is the same. All sin separates us from God, but not all sin is judged equally and as harshly, because some bear more responsibility when you're in charge of other people, like I know for me, being the pastor and leader and doing a podcast and teaching people the word of God.

Speaker 1: 13:43

I'm going to be held to a level of responsibility that I better be ready for because I have so much people that listen to what I say. That's why I don't teach boring. Everybody's going to heaven. Just give your 10% and God will let you win. I don't teach that crap because I'm going to be held responsible very seriously. There's going to be ministers that are going to stand before God and God's going to bluntly and blatantly ask them why did you not preach Christ crucified and pick up your cross daily? And they're going to not have a good reason, they're not going to have a good answer and it's going to be tragic because that blood is on their hands.

Speaker 1: 14:30

So all sin, all sin is evil, all sin separates us. So all sin, all sin is evil, all sin separates us. All of us have sinned, but we have to have a deeper theological understanding of what does the word say? And the word doesn't actually teach that all sin is equal, but it does teach and echo every single book, every single chapter that all sin is evil and it will separate us from God, whether you steal a pen or whether you murder your brother, it will separate us from God. Whether you steal a pen or whether you murder your brother, it is a separation from God. It is missing the mark. It is not what you are supposed to do, but I felt like I needed to make a video to help correct this, that not all sin is the same, but all sin is evil. All sin separates us from God and that's the worst. Like you may you may not, you may not Think much about stealing a pen, but understand the reason. All sin is evil is because it is leading you down the path, the broad path that leads into the jaws of hell. It's the narrow path, the hard path of living right, of doing right, not that that will see. Here's the thing. That path leads you to heaven. Okay, it goes to the gates of heaven. The path there is lightly traveled and very few will find it. That's the word.

Speaker 1: 15:57

So my job as a minister, my job as a believer, let's go beyond minister. My job as a believer is to challenge other believers and say listen, this is what the word says and you are doing it wrong. This is how you approach a believer who's doing it wrong. I don't believe you're actually trying to do it wrong. But now that you have this knowledge after this, you are choosing to do it wrong. And now the burden is on them. 1 John 1, verse 9. And this is so cool.

Speaker 1: 16:32

But if we confess our sins to him, talking about God, he is faithful and he is just. Why is he? Just Because he thinks about our motive, our knowledge, our intent. He looks at our heart. He cares about the reason we're actually doing it. It goes so much deeper Some of us in the more hardcore Christian walk when I say hardcore Christian walk, I'm thinking like legalistic People who it's like they wrote the Bible themselves and they're doing it perfect and they do things a certain way and they think they're holier and they look down at other people that don't do it that way.

Speaker 1: 17:11

And to me that's a Pharisee mindset, completely unbiblical. Well, I guess it's biblical, it's in the Bible, but it's who Jesus talked against. But God looks at our heart. So this is why the Bible tells us not to judge whether someone is saved or not, because that tries to put us in the seat of judgment which only belongs to God. So we are called to call each other out as believers, lift each other up, help, correct and spur towards conviction, but we have to remember where we come from. This is one thing that keeps me humble is I don't ever want to forget where God brought me from.

Speaker 1: 17:54

I'm not going to do it on this podcast, but let me tell you. There were some dark times in my life and some dark places. And even though I was in a place of such darkness, such evil, doing such evil, yet he still reached down to where I was and saved me and pulled me out. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and he is just to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from all wickedness. He is faithful, he is just, he is gracious. So, out of that placement, or out of that place where God is giving us these things, the free gift that Jesus gave his life for salvation, the grace and the mercy that God gives he says every day, his mercy and grace is new, thank God, because I need it every single day. This should spur me, this should encourage me, this should inspire me to live a life for God, completely, not holding anything back, not holding any dark part of my life.

Speaker 1: 19:05

I gave this example to my congregation last Sunday, at the time of recording this, and I said you know, when we come to Christ, when we give our life to God, I said think of your heart as a house and you sign the deed over to Christ. Now he is the owner, the way he wants your house to be renovated, what he wants to be cleaned out, whatever he says, do you do it because now he is the owner, and gladly so, because what you owed on the house, the debt, has been completely paid and ownership is now given, voluntarily, given to God, to Christ. And I said but a lot of us in the church, we have rooms or a room in the back that we don't want God to touch. They're like hey, you can do everything you want in here, you can do everything else, you can make all this, clean it up, move the furniture, put new stuff on the walls, take the TVs down. I don't care, lord, whatever you want to do, but that back room back there, that's my area, that's for me. And so I asked them this area, that's for me. And so I asked them this if that is the case and you're telling and you're reserving things and not actually giving God the entire house, does the house actually belong to him? The answer is no, because if he has ownership, he has access to everything. If he has ownership, he has access to everything. And that's why we have unhealthy churches, unhealthy believers, because we want God's name on the mailbox but we want control to still be in our name.

Speaker 1: 21:00

But God doing this, grace and mercy, love and Jesus' sacrifice and Holy Spirit power and mercy and love and Jesus' sacrifice and Holy Spirit power. It should inspire us to live fully for Him. He doesn't want us to do anything half-hearted, because that's what he is using as a launching point or a marker of whether we actually live for Him or not is what is our heart say? What does our heart say? What does our heart say? What does our heart do? What is our motives? What is our reasons for serving in the church? Are we doing it to be seen? Are we doing it because we feel we're obligated? Why do we give our money? Are we doing it because a guy says we're supposed to? Are we doing it because we feel guilty? Or are we being cheerful givers because we believe in what the body is doing? And if you don't believe in what the body's doing, aside from money, you shouldn't be going to that church. If you're not willing to put the money where you say you believe, then you shouldn't be there.

Speaker 1: 22:04

I hope this podcast episode helped further your understanding of grace and mercy and realizing that all sin is not equal, but all sin is evil. So, yes, we all sin, we all mess up and at the same time, we all have access to grace. We all have access to mercy, and so show that grace and mercy to other people. Share this video, like this video. Make sure you subscribe and hit that little bell so you can get notified every time I put out a new video. Thank you so much.

Speaker 1: 22:41

We are so close to hitting 11,000 subscribers on the YouTube channel, so if you're listening anywhere else, make sure to hop over on YouTube right quick and give a little thumbs up, give a subscribe and make sure to comment. I want to say this if you have any questions or you want to be interviewed, most of you probably seen on the first Monday, which is when I put episodes out of every month. Last month, june, I actually did an interview with somebody who her father molested her entire childhood from, I think, the age of 11 to 19. And so it's a very powerful testimony. So make sure you jump over and go find that video and show your support. I love you, I'm praying for you and I hope you have an amazing rest of your week.