One Leak Will Sink A Ship, So Don’t Be Lenient Toward SinSample

Signs Of Leniency Toward Sin 

The first image of Eli we find in 1 Samuel 1:9 where we find him sitting on a chair by the doorpost of the Lord’s temple. The last image of Eli we find in 1 Samuel 4:13 where we find him again sitting on his chair by the side of the road watching. He is the high priest. Shouldn't he have been in the temple?

Eli’s overweight physique (1 Samuel 4:18) could also be telling of his failure to divide from the sinful activities of his sons. While he paid lip service to abhorring their sin, it seems he willingly partook of the spoils, setting a poor example. Scripture does not make a definitive connection, but the mention of Eli’s weight implies his willing indulgence in eating the meat sacrifices that his sons were stealing. God included Eli with his sons by saying, “making yourselves fat with the choicest of every offering of my people Israel” (1 Samuel 2:29).

Even though Eli did finally address his sons' behavior and asked them why they kept sinning and told them to stop (1 Samuel 2: 23-25), we find that they didn't listen to him and though he may have confronted them, we don't see any evidence that Eli took disciplinary action with them. 

He knew that those who treated the Lord's word with contempt and disobeyed his commands were to be cut off from the community (Numbers 15:30-31). But he did not correct them or bring consequences. He was lenient toward them.

Leniency is the counterfeit version of mercy. Leniency is where we say, “Hey, everybody sins. Let’s not be too hard on him.” Leniency precedes judgment and derails it. Leniency happens when we fear judgment. Leniency hopes to shut God’s mouth and the mouth of God’s just ones, hiding the very things that must be named and judged in order to be forgiven and healed in Jesus’ name. Leniency hides and covers truth.

When Jesus spoke about removing the log from our eye in Matthew 7:3-5, He is reminding us that we are far too quick to tolerate and be lenient toward our own sin over the sin of others. 

Why is the log of our own sin so hard to see? At the root of our sinful actions lies a proud heart that is unwilling to acknowledge and turn from sin.

Logs don’t develop overnight. They’ve been around for a while. The leniency of sin over time blinds us to its existence. And since it has been there such a long time, we may even excuse it as part of our personality. 

Eli was lenient towards his sin and the sins of his sons and paid the price for it.

Quote: “Indeed the safest road to Hell is the gradual one--the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts.” ― C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters

Prayer: Search me O God, and know my heart today. See if there is any wicked way in me and help me to root it out. Amen