329. The Greatest Sin

This is the translation (using ChatGPT) of the original blog post made by Pastor Lee Soogwan from Houston Seoul Church on 7/2/2023.

—

In his notable work “Mere Christianity,” C.S. Lewis defines the greatest sin among all sins as “pride.” Perhaps it is more accurate to say that it is the most fundamental sin. Since all sins stem from pride, he expresses in his writing that pride is the ultimate evil within human beings.

So, what truly is the greatest sin? Of course, it might be an exaggeration to claim which sin is the greatest among all. However, despite that, I, personally, believe that two surprisingly significant sins are worry and complaining. Surprising, you might think? When there are numerous wicked sins such as murder and rape, why do I consider worry and complaining to be the most significant sins? Let’s take a moment to ponder why.

Worry is fundamentally a lack of trust in God. Despite God expressing His love for His children, promising to protect and provide for us, worry implies disbelief in those promises. Thus, worry disregards the future that God has promised. However, on the other hand, worry is also an act of disregarding the present moment that God has allowed.

What does that mean? Let’s imagine that you have one major concern that keeps you awake at night, causing you to sigh and stealing your focus. In such moments, I encourage you to set aside that concern and reflect on your life. You will discover that apart from that one concern, things are quite good. In other words, if you exclude that one thing, your family is healthy, your children are growing well, your life is stable, and so on. Essentially, by worrying, I am wasting all the things that God has blessed me with. Therefore, worry is an act of squandering the present moment that God has permitted.

If worry ruins the present and future that God has allowed, then complaining destroys the past that God has permitted. If we find ourselves complaining about something, it is because we have forgotten how abundantly God has filled us. In the book of Joshua, God says to the Israelites, “The place where you are living is not your own, nor did you plant the vineyards or olive groves that you are now enjoying” (Joshua 24:13).

This verse strikes at the core of our common misunderstanding. We often tend to think that the life we are living now is the result of our own efforts. But no, that is not the case. No one has achieved success in life solely through their own efforts. If it were solely up to our own endeavors, our lives would have been much worse. However, it is because God’s guiding hand has been present in every step and provision that we have reached this point. In other words, we are all living lives that we have not established or rooted ourselves.

In such a situation, if I complain, it means I am not acknowledging the grace of the One who has allowed all of those things until now. Therefore, worry and complaining are acts of disregarding everything that God has given us, and that is why God seems to dislike them so much. Instead of worrying, let us anchor ourselves firmly, and instead of complaining, let us enjoy contentment and express gratitude for the present day.