A common perception among people, including Christians, is that God doesn't really care about the little things. In fact, God has become the excuse for many sins because we make the assumption that God doesn't have a problem with smaller things as long as we are not out committing big sins. I have even heard people say with one breath that sin is sin both big and small and in the same thought they will convince themselves that God doesn't really care about the smaller ones or that the smaller ones are not really even sin at all. It's almost like a defense mechanism to remove any guilt or thought that we could even possibly be sinners. If we simply wish the small stuff away, then we can continue to do what we want guilt free and wallow in our own self deception. So is this true? Is the God of the Bible a God that doesn't care about the little things?
Maybe our problem is that we tend to have a very human perception of God. When our own philosophy is "don't sweat the small stuff" we tend to place that same quality upon God. We tend to take all of our philosophies about life and use them to shape our view of God when God should be the one shaping our philosophies.
Should we sweat the small stuff? The quick answer is yes. When it comes to holiness and our own sanctification (becoming like Christ) we should sweat the small stuff!
Le 11:44 "I am the Lord your God; consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy." Le 11:45 "I am the Lord who brought you up out of Egypt to be your God; therefore be holy, because I am holy."
Le 19:2 "Speak to the entire assembly of Israel and say to them: 'Be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy"
Le 20:7 "'Consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am the Lord your God."
Le 20:26 "You are to be holy to me because I, the Lord, am holy, and I have set you apart from the nations to be my own"
1Co 1:2 "To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ--their Lord and ours."
Eph 1:4 "For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love"
Heb 12:14 "Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord."
1Pe 1:15 "But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do;"
1Pe 1:16 "for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy."
We cannot deny that God has called us to be holy. In 1879 John Ryle wrote this:
"I have had a deep conviction for many years that practical holiness and entire self-consecration to God are not sufficiently attended to by modern Christians in this country. Politics, or controversy, or party spirit, or worldliness, have eaten out the heart of lively piety in too many of us."
I believe what was true for Ryle 127 years ago in England is true for America today. We get so caught up in worldliness and politics that personal integrity and holiness is the furthest thing from our minds. At the slightest whim, many modern day Christians in America will speed, drink, cuss, gossip, over eat, disrespect others, ignore people in need, watch inappropriate movies, listen to inappropriate music, steal from their jobs
(food, envelopes, stamps, paper, whatever is taken without permission or without compensation or spending time on the internet or e-mail without actually working), steal from God
(refuse to tithe), lie to people, cheat on tests, have affairs, commit sexual immorality and then go to church with no conviction or thought of repentance for the "small stuff". This attitude is prevalent among not only Christians but among those who have been called to be leaders or pastors in the church. Those in a position to lead by example are doing a good job of leading by example...its too bad they are giving the church a bad example to follow.
Does God really care if we eat too much? Is God bothered by us saying a few cuss words? Is it ok to break the law as long as it isn't a major deal? As long as you haven't killed anyone or stolen anything or hurt another human being, surely God doesn't care if you speed. I'm sure there are Christian leaders who would laugh at me for even suggesting that they no longer speed so that they might have integrity and be holy. People that have become so arrogant that their own selfish pride keeps them from even entertaining the idea that breaking or bending the law is sin. Their own self-importance blinds them to the fact that the small sins are just as debase, corrupt, and putrid before God. It is conceit that draws Christians and Christian leaders into the realm of unrepentant sin. Even Christian leaders can become so full of themselves that they think they have everything under control. They can be so pompous that they feel no need to show any reverence or humility for the small things because they are apparently "so good" at everything else. This hogwash can corrupt the best of all us. You can be an excellent pastor, preacher, teacher, and leader and still be a lousy Christian.
Being holy or sanctified is a process. It's not something that happens instantly, it is something that must be worked at every day of our lives. It is kind of like being healthy. We have to constantly watch what we eat and get plenty of exercise in order to stay fit and healthy. If we stop exercising and begin to eat whatever we want we begin to become fat and lazy. Eventually our fatness and laziness will lead to disease, sickness, and ultimately our death. To be holy we have to constantly work at dealing with our issues and sins every day of our life and when we don't we become spiritually fat and lazy.
God has called us to be holy because he is holy. This doesn't mean we are trying to achieve some human idea of holiness, we are called to achieve Godly holiness. To be like Christ, holy and blameless. This process starts with the small stuff.
