Error and Sin

W. Carl Ketcherside

[Page 26]

     Several months ago I made a distinction between error and sin. My almost casual reference has brought several requests that I enlarge upon my statement and explain more fully what I meant. Sin is essentially a product of the heart, while error is a mistake of the mind. Jesus declared, "But what comes out of the mouth has its origins in the heart; and that is what defiles a man. Wicked thoughts, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, perjury, slander--these all proceed from the heart" (Matthew 15:18, 19).

     Basic to sin is the factor which was responsible for the first transgression, the exaltation of self and enthronement of the ego to a sovereign state which denies or defies the authority of God. It is rejection of the principle, "Thy will, not mine be done," and acceptance of the

[Page 27]

opposing rule of action, "My will, not thine be done." Sin is the revolt against God of an accountable being. It is often the result of a deliberate choice to do one's thing without reference to the will of God.

     Not all sin is premeditated. One may sin through ignorance and when he becomes aware of it he must at once proceed to secure forgiveness. This is made clear in the old covenant scriptures. "If any person among the common people sins inadvertently and does what is forbidden in any commandment of the Lord, thereby incurring guilt, and the sin he has committed is made known unto him, he shall bring his offering, etc."

     A man may be in error and not be a sinner, although error may lead one to sin. But simply being wrong or faulty in understanding is not a sin. It is obviously better to be right about everything than to be wrong about anything, but infallibility is not an attribute of fallible man. It is ridiculous for our brethren to fight the doctrines of infallibility in Rome which recognizes only one man as infallible, and then create a system which demands that every man be infallible to be received into their number. One may even understand the terminology in which a proposition is stated and be mistaken about the proper application of it.

     No one has yet apprehended all truth in its fulness, not even revealed truth. Therefore, no human mind can be used as a measure or criterion for all minds. The most brilliant mind on earth is finite, and is by nature incapable of grasping the infinite. No generation exhausts the possibility of apprehension so that knowledge can be frozen at the level of that generation and all research cease. To attempt to freeze knowledge at a given level is actually to freeze ignorance.

     All sects demanding conformity are based upon the false premise that all honest men will form the same judgments and reach the same conclusions when exposed to the same doctrinal revelation. Because of this, it is further assumed that any person who forms a divergent opinion is simply not honest. There are several things which indicate this is not so. It is not the case in any other field. A good example is constitutional law. The Constitution of the United States reads the same to every jurist, but there are grave differences over its implications. Even justices of the Supreme Court differ, and are seldom a unit in their decision. That is why we are treated to majority and minority opinions.

     Moreover, even the most rigid parties among us acknowledge that universality of opinion is unattainable by thinking men. For this reason they elevate the one issue around which they polarize and it becomes the partisan beau ideal, while on many other matters tolerance is exercised. Thus, men who must pay lipservice to an opinion about certain institutions and their mode of support in order to be regarded as loyal by a party which runs up the factional standard may disagree about scores of other matters, some of which are regarded as of such vital importance by others that they build parties around them.

     Actually, what happens is that an opinion, or interpretation, is made into a dogma or creed, and becomes the foundation upon which another sect is built. The glory of the faith revealed is that it is not predicated upon a metaphysical conclusion but upon belief of certain historical facts validated by credible witnesses. One who acknowledges that the subject of these facts, Jesus of Nazareth, is the Messiah and God's Son, and surrenders his being unto his lordship may be in error about many other things and still be saved.

     There are no error-free disciples of Jesus in the flesh. Instead of arrogantly pretending that we have perfect knowledge, our proper attitude should be one of openness to truth, so we can alter our concepts as we learn more. One is not wishy-washy when he changes his course because of a greater knowledge of the Father's will. The person to be pitied is

[Page 28]

the one who is glued to his past and is afraid to read or investigate what is said by those who differ with him, for fear he might be changed.

     There is room in Christ for those who are mistaken else none of us could be in him. Freedom from error is not a term of admission into the family of the Father, but trust in His Son is certainly required. All of us are in error about many things, even though we have an eager desire to know the truth. We are not rebelling against God. We love him and seek to obey his will as we understand it. Being mistaken is not a sin unless it is deliberate and voluntary. It is for this reason we must be gracious toward and tolerant of our brethren. Tolerance is not endorsing anything you believe to be wrong, but simply enduring someone who believes it to be right.

     I think it will be readily agreed that we will never be able to unite all who believe in Jesus sincerely, except upon the ground of those things which are universally admitted, that is, truth which is at once recognizable as essential to the very nature and structure of the kingdom of heaven. It is for this reason that the apostle while writing about the unity of the Spirit, defined it in terms of seven cardinal facts. Nothing else can possibly produce unity among men in their current state.

     I subscribe wholeheartedly to the statement of Alexander Campbell, "It must strike every man of reflection, that a religion requiring much mental abstraction or exquisite refinement of thought, or that calls for the comprehension or even apprehension of refined distinctions and of nice subtleties, is a religion not suited to mankind in their present circumstances...Christianity consists infinitely more in good works than in sound opinions, and while it is a joyful truth that he that believes and is baptized shall be saved, it is equally true that he that says, 'I know him, and keeps not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.'"

     When opinions, interpretations and deductions are made the rallying-ground of the saints, when they must be subscribed to in order to be received, then we have new creeds and new confessions, and then we will have new parties and sects. When orthodoxy becomes the standard for judging righteousness, all of the powers of the inquisition, though refined, will again be the agents of conformity! And that will be a sad day!