Silent Sins

We all enjoy sinning or we wouldn’t do it, let’s not lie about that. In much of our society, and often in our own lives, we have accepted certain behaviors as perhaps not exactly desirable, but not exactly sinful either. There are many sins that we recognize immediately as serious and destructive, such as murder, stealing, and adultery.

These are obvious sins and God willing we would never try to fool ourselves into thinking they were permissible. However, there are other undesirable behaviors that we sometimes get comfortable with, ignore, and tolerate in our own lives and the lives of others for as long as we possibly can. These are what I’m calling silent sins —the ones we can shrug off and make excuses for—pretend that we don’t really need to give them up. We keep these behaviors because they make us feel good in some way—at least in the short term. But they will surely do us some serious damage in the long run.

[29:4]  Do those who commit sins think that they can ever fool us? Wrong indeed is their judgment.

How many of these silent sins sneak into our lives and hang around making us weak and vulnerable to Satan’s invitations? Have I gossiped? Spoken critically of others? Become impatient? Acted selfishly? Failed to trust God during a difficult time? Succumbed to materialism? 

Here is a very short list of some common sins that easily make themselves at home in our lives and what God has to say about them.

Gossip & other sins of the tongue

[33:70]  O you who believe, reverence GOD and utter only the correct utterances.

[Proverbs 21:23]  He who guards his mouth and his tongue, guards his soul from troubles.

[49:12]  O you who believe, you shall avoid any suspicion, for even a little bit of suspicion is sinful. You shall not spy on one another, nor shall you backbite one another; this is as abominable as eating the flesh of your dead brother. You certainly abhor this. You shall observe GOD. GOD is Redeemer, Most Merciful.

Greed, envy or covetousness

[11:86]  “Whatever GOD provides for you, no matter how small, is far better for you, if you are really believers. I am not a guardian over you.”

[74:6-7]  Be content with your lot. Steadfastly commemorate your Lord.

Unappreciativeness

[2:152]  You shall remember Me, that I may remember you, and be thankful to Me; do not be unappreciative.

[14:7]  Your Lord has decreed: “The more you thank Me, the more I give you.” But if you turn unappreciative, then My retribution is severe.

Impatience

[17:11]  The human being often prays for something that may hurt him, thinking that he is praying for something good. The human being is impatient.

Cont’d on page 2