Men often try to dilute the evil of sin by comparing what has been done with what could have been done. Pornography does not feel like a flagrant foul if juxtaposed against a more public sin like adultery. Set beside physical violence, verbal abuse is trifling. Slothfulness and gluttony at home are much slighter offenses than getting drunk at a bar or experimenting with illegal substances – at least so we tell ourselves. This logic needs to be exposed for what it is, ridiculous. The measure of a sin is never how far it is from the basement of Hell, but how far it is from the ceiling of heaven. God did not say, ‘Be better than thy neighbor.’ He said, ‘Be holy for I am holy’ (cf. Lev. 19:2, 1 Pet. 1:16).
Here is a question worth pondering: Why did Israel struggle incessantly, repeatedly, and uniformly with idolatry? The answer is because idolatry felt normal. Never in the history of the world, until Sinai, had anyone said that making idols was wrong. Every culture adjacent to Israel made use of idols. Carved images were as ubiquitous in the Ancient Near East as smart phones are in America. Therefore, since idol worship did not feel evil, a lot of Israelites made the mistake of thinking that idol worship was not evil. They confused feeling for truth.
This confusion was not accidental. It was part of a sinister plan hatched by Satan, a strategy he is still employing today. Satan loves nothing more than to dilute the shame of sin, to numb its discomfort, and to erase its boundaries so that God’s own people begin to accuse Him of being legalistic. Kierkegaard says, ‘Most people believe that the Christian commandments are intentionally a little too severe – like putting the clock on half an hour to make sure of not being late in the morning.’ But God’s wisdom is not high-strung. It is exact and purposeful. To doubt the judgment of the Almighty is to play into the hand of a diabolical strategy. Satan would like nothing more than for men to think they are doing God a favor by choosing a minor offense rather than a major one. This would be a double-win for Satan. Not only would a sinful action itself be chosen, but an undetected attitude of indifference would darken the mind. Men would take one step forward along the path of not caring about their sin.