Sin

“Be a sinner and sin boldly!” “Let your sins be strong!” “Sin bravely!” All quotes from Martin Luther.

One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?" "The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these." -Jesus (Mark 12:28-31)

Is it just me or am I safe to say that the church, AKA Christians, are pretty judgemental people? Did Jesus not walk on this earth and spend his time with sinners? Are we not all sinners? Who gives us the right to label one sin greater than another? Last I checked the people Jesus got ticked off the most with were Pharisees, the religious leaders, who made lists of rules and enforced them on the people. Let me ask you this, is the church today playing the role of religious leaders? Does the church roll out these laundry lists of do's and dont's? I mean it is pretty clear in Mark 12 that Jesus says our number one priority is to love God and love our neighbors as ourselves. Does all the other junk really matter? I mean it is pretty simple, I think in the end we will be asked if we love our God with all that is in us and love our neighbor as yourself.

I came across the quotes from Luther after speaking to someone today. I had never heard them and they intrigued me. I think what Luther is saying here is that all that matters really is what is laid out in Mark 12. In Luther's time the Catholic church was pulling out all the stops with lists of rules and Luther would not play along. "Be a sinner and sin boldly" I think what this boils down to is your own personal definitions of morals. After talking with a dear friend last night it became clear to me that there is no set right or wrong. One person's morals are going to be different than another. This is based on life experiences, on the way we are brought up, on our own personal being. If the church labels something as a sin and we don't agree then take a stance, be a sinner and boldly stand up for what you believe. One thing I am realizing is that I often agree with the majority because I don't want to ruffle feathers but ultimately I am not being true to myself. I am not standing up for what I believe. So, today I have a new view, focus on loving God and loving my neighbor as myself, outside of that nothing matters and standing up boldly for what I believe in.