The other day someone approached my husband for advice on a Biblical issue. I won't go into details of what it was, but it inspired this article. If you want to follow Yahweh (God), then here is some advice when you're not sure what to do. If you want to know why I use the name Yahweh see my article The Sacred Name, Part 1 - Name Replacement.

There are some things that we know are wrong. See the ten commandments for ten examples. So no matter the reason, murder is always wrong, stealing, adultery, etc. With murder, I am not talking about self-defense nor justice through the judicial system.

If you look in the Bible and don't find the answer to whether or not something is a sin, then I suggest you pray about it.

In Paul's day, some people thought it was a sin to eat meat that had been "sacrificed to an idol". Paul said that if it is a sin to you, don't eat it. If it is not a sin to you, you may eat it. However, he did add that if you are going to cause a brother to stumble, then you should not eat it for his sake. (1 Corinthians 8)

In the world of black and white, we know some things are absolutely wrong (black). Things like murder and theft are wrong. Some things are always right (white)... Loving others and helping the widow and orphan are only two examples. Then there are things that some say are wrong and others don't (gray). If you have looked in the Bible and don't see it spelled out, ask yourself if what you're thinking about fits the character that Yahweh wants us to live by? We can see how the people in the Bible walked out their faith. Yeshua is our best example, but there are others too, just keep in mind, the other examples weren't perfect people.

The church I grew up in said it was a sin to dance. Reading the Bible, I realized that David danced. Yahweh said about David that "He is a man after my own heart". So if David danced then why would it be wrong. I know that David did sin when he committed adultery and murder but was admonished for it and he repented. My point here is that when people think something is a sin and they do them... to their conscience, it is a sin.

Some say gambling, playing cards, and swimming are a sin. If those are a sin to you, then don't damage your conscience. If you aren't sure or want to double-check something, then pray about it. I would put these in the "gray area" because they aren't talked about directly in the Bible. If anything comes up that you aren't sure about and you don't find it directly in the Scriptures, then pray the gray.

If there is something that doesn't appear to be a sin, but it causes you (or someone else) problems when you do it, then I would recommend abstaining from that too... at the very least in their presence.

Thank you for reading. 

(The images are public domain from pixabay.com.)