In today's world, there's "big sins" and "little sins". Homosexuality, fornication, murder, etc. are the "big ones". These are the sins that we focus on most, the ones that make us cover our mouths and look away in horror.
Well, as far as I know, there aren't Gossip Pride parades, or festivals celebrating lying and arrogance. But I do see homosexuals (or, rather, the LGBTQ community) displaying and celebrating their sexual perversion in annual parades, and festivals, and prosecuting those who don't do cheer them on. When sin is shoved in peoples' faces this way, it tends to stand out in their thinking.
Certainly, murdering someone is a greater evil than stealing a cookie from Grandma's cookie jar. We
ought to be horrified at murder and rape, sex slavery and violent robbery because they
are "big" sins - clearly "bigger" than little Johnny pinching his sister in a childish fit of anger. We
ought to focus on those sins that seriously endanger and/or cut short human life; we
ought to be more concerned about the man who breaks into someone's home and robs them at gunpoint than the man who lets his poodle poop in the neighbor's yard.
But what about the other sins that no one talks about? Little white lies, acting out in anger, hating someone (which is the same as murder!), disobeying our parents, pride, laziness...all these things are listed in the Bible as wrong. Yet we don't talk about them. Even adultery can get glossed over!
??? Sure we talk about them. You're talking about them right now in this thread. I've also heard a great multitude of sermons over the years address the "lesser" sins you've listed.
So when is it a sin? Why do we decide that some sins are more important than others and when does a sin become important? Why do we excuse hatred but stamp out homosexuality?
When is sin a sin? When it's sin (
James 4:17; Romans 14:23; 1 John 3:4).
Why do we make some sins more important than others? Because it is obvious that some sins are more serious, more damaging, in their consequences than others. Such sins we ought to take special pains to prevent and avoid. Doing so, though, doesn't mean we should neglect to address lesser sins.