Are All Sins Equal In Severity?

• Sins Are Not Equally Severe: 

           -While it is true that all sins deserve condemnation because they are a violation of God's moral standard (Romans 6:23), some sins are indeed greater in severity than others (John 19:11; 1 John 5:15-17). Not all sins are equally bad.
          -Just as sins have differing degrees of severity (Ezekiel 8), some commandments are greater in importance than others, with the most important being love of God and love of neighbor (Matthew 22:36-39).
          -Scripture tells us that certain sins are "more tolerable" than others (Luke 10:7-12). Scripture mentions "greater condemnation" (Matthew 23:14; Luke 12:47-48). There are different levels of severity in punishment for those in hell.

          -The fact that crimes in Israel such as homosexual behavior, adultery, and bestiality were considered capital crimes shows that God does indeed see some sins as more heinous than others for earthly consequences.

• Does James 2:10-11 Teach That All Sins Are Equal In Severity?:

          -James does not place theft in the same category of severity as murder (or visa versa). All this passage is saying is that if one commits sins such as theft and murder, then he or she has violated God's Law. In other words, the text is simply stating that there are multiple ways to break the commandments of God. There is more than one way to break His Moral Law, just as there are multiple ways of violating the traffic law. Every sin is the same only in the sense that it violates God's holiness and condemns us to hell.