The 7 Deadly Sins

Posted on September 15, 2014

Devotion for the week of 9/15/14-9/21/14

Proverbs 6:16-19 lists the 7 deadly sins: ‘The Lord hates six things; in fact, seven are detestable to him: arrogant eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that plots wicked schemes, feet eager to run to evil, a lying witness who gives false testimony, and one who stirs up trouble among brothers.’ Notice how these sins are partnered with a body part. It doesn’t just say that God hates arrogance, it says that He hates arrogant eyes. By putting it in this style, it is shown that our sins are done with our body, inside and out. We do not just lie, we have a lying tongue. Our body, the tabernacle of God, deceives us, and Him, with sin. If you break it down, the sins are: arrogance, lying, murder, wicked acts, eagerness to sin, false testimony, and the gossip. Notice that a couple of those break the Ten Commandments: murder and false testimony. The others are mentioned elsewhere in the Bible as things God hates. Proverbs 16:5-Arrogance, Proverbs 12:22-Lying, 1 Corinthians 6:9-10-Wicked acts, Isaiah 59:2-Eagerness to sin, Proverbs 20:19-Gossip. Some of these are everyday sins for most of us. It’s strange to think that the things we’re so used to doing are sins that are detestable to God. We often say that some sins are worse than others, but they are all the same in God’s eyes. Both lying and murder are sins He hates and sins He views as equal. I believe that God wants us to know these things that He hates so that we won’t just assume that the sins detestable to Him are the same as the sins detestable to us, the sins we view as ‘major’. So, instead of comparing yourself to murderers to make yourself seem like a better person, realize that your sins are just as bad. The good news is that God loves you anyway, and He will forgive you as long as you ask.