Let’s get something straight right out the gate. You’re not better than the person who sins differently than you. That might sound harsh, but it’s something the church desperately needs to hear. Too often, we Christians act like we’ve mastered righteousness, but in reality, we’re just expert finger-pointers. We throw around phrases like “hate the sin, love the sinner,” yet the way we treat people says something entirely different.

Instead of love, we dish out judgment. Instead of grace, we serve up condemnation. We look at people whose struggles don’t align with our own and think, “At least I’m not as bad as them.” It’s not only hypocritical, it’s unchristlike.

Let me make this as plain as possible. Jesus didn’t come to give you a hierarchy of sin so you could rank yourself against others. He came to save sinners, period. And guess what? You’re one of them. So am I. So is everyone! The gospel levels the playing field, and it’s time we stop acting like our sins are cute little mistakes while the sins of others are grotesque and unforgivable.

Christian Condescension?

The church has created a culture where some sins are deemed more acceptable than others. We don’t bat an eye at gossip, greed, or pride, but if someone is struggling with sexual identity or addiction, we act like they’re public enemy number one. We throw around words like “abomination” while conveniently ignoring that God detests all sin. Yes, including that prideful spirit we carry when we sit in the pews and shake our heads at “those people.”

This culture of condescension has pushed so many people away from the church—and not just the ones who don’t believe in Jesus. I’m talking about people who do believe but feel like they can’t bring their whole selves to the church because they’ll be judged, labeled, or even rejected. You know what that means? It means we’ve lost Jesus’ purpose for the church!

Jesus Loved the Outcast—Do You?

Take a look at Jesus. Who did He hang out with? The perfect? The pure? The religious elites? Nope. Jesus was drawn to the outcasts. He spent time with prostitutes, tax collectors, lepers, and those society deemed “unclean.” He didn’t just preach to them from a safe distance—He sat with them, ate with them, and loved them where they were.

Let that sink in for a minute. Jesus didn’t demand they clean up their lives before He could love them. He didn’t qualify His love with “as long as you get your act together.” His love was unconditional. And in the presence of that love, people’s lives were transformed. In the words of a group I’m part of, Jesus let people belong before they even believed everything he taught. I think we could learn from Jesus’ example!

Where is that love in the church today?

Let’s be honest. We’re more concerned with correcting people than we are with loving them. We want them to know they’re wrong before we show them they’re loved. That’s not how Jesus operated, and it’s no wonder it’s not working for us.

We All Need Grace

Here’s something we forget far too often: your sin might look different, but it’s still sin. Maybe you don’t struggle with the same things as someone else, but that doesn’t make you any less in need of God’s grace. You might not be battling addiction, but do you struggle with greed, anger, or pride? Have you ever lied, harbored bitterness, or been self-righteous? Welcome to the human condition.

Romans 3:23 doesn’t say “for some have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.” It says all have sinned. Yes, that means you, me and everyone! So, why are we so quick to act like our own sins are no big deal while we crucify others for theirs?

Let me make this crystal clear: you are not the Holy Spirit. It’s not your job to convict people of their sin. That’s God’s work. Your job is to love people like Jesus did, without strings attached. You’re not called to change people’s hearts—that’s a burden only God can carry. You’re called to show the kind of love that leads people to want to know more about Jesus, not to judge them into hiding their struggles. We do need to call explain the right and wrong of the Bible but not to through judgement around like it’s candy at a parade.

Radical love looks like listening without lecturing. It looks like accepting people as they are. It looks like walking with people in the messiness of life, even if their mess makes you feel uncomfortable.

If we, as the church, want to see transformation, we need to create spaces where people can be honest about their struggles without fear of rejection. We need to be the kind of people who are known for love, not judgment. The kind of people who see past the surface and recognize the image of God in every human being, no matter what they’re going through.

Jesus didn’t shy away from the broken, and neither should we. In fact, He ran toward them, arms wide open. He loved people so deeply that they couldn’t help but be drawn to Him. That’s the model we need to follow. It’s time to stop acting like loving people means excusing their sin—it doesn’t. It means trusting God to do the convicting while we do the loving. When we rightly explain the law and the gospel of God, it opens a world of possibilities for the Holy Spirit. Paul tells us that faith comes from hearing the word of Christ. If we do the speaking, they’ll do the hearing and the Holy Spirit will do the rest.

Let’s start loving like Jesus did—radically, without reservation, and with the understanding that none of us are perfect. You can love Jesus without hating people who sin differently than you. That’s the gospel, and that should be the mission of the church.