16. Furthermore, when he sent Jesus to Herod in an attempt to rid
heard sermons reproving that sin, as well as private conversations warning against it, and they have witnessed numerous examples of others committing similar sins and facing punishment, perhaps even experiencing it themselves, to go against all these is exceedingly heinous. Sometimes God orchestrates circumstances in such a way that a sin becomes even more significant due to forewarnings. For example, Judas committed a great sin because he knew beforehand that Christ was the Savior of the world. He knew this from the miracles he had witnessed, Christ's gracious words and interactions, and his own profession of following Him. He also had the written word against it: "You shall not murder the innocent." Furthermore,
God intensified his sin to the highest degree by arranging for Christ to tell him of his betrayal just before it happened, pronouncing a woe upon him in Luke 22:22 and saying in Mark 14:21, "It would have been better for that man if he had not been born." Even the disciples were saddened by Christ's words when He suspected one of them, expressing their abhorrence and detestation of such an act. There was a jury of eleven men, witnesses against him. Judas himself inquired if it was him, and Christ gave him a sop, saying, "You have said it; do what you are going to do quickly." These circumstances would have caused his conscience to recognize that Christ was God, searching and knowing his heart, yet Judas went out immediately and carried out his plan. He sinned against all odds, and these circumstances greatly aggravated his sin.
Another clear example of this is Pilate, whom God tried to deter in various ways from condemning Christ. When examined before the Pharisees, Pilate found no fault in Him, as stated in Luke 23:14, regarding the accusations brought against Jesus. Yet, to appease their malice, he unjustly had Him scourged, as mentioned in verse
16. Furthermore, when he sent Jesus to Herod in an attempt to rid himself of the matter, even Herod found nothing worthy of death in
Him, according to verse 15. This should have further convinced Pilate of Christ's innocence. Moreover, to intensify the act, the life of a notorious murderer, Barabbas, was placed in the balance against Christ's. When the people chose Barabbas, Pilate asked, "What evil has he done?" (verse 22). Pilate clearly knew and considered that Jesus was handed over due to envy. Furthermore, when he was about to pass sentence, God cautioned him through his wife, who had been warned in a dream. She sent him word that she had "suffered much because of Him" that night and advised him to have nothing to do with "that just man" (Matthew 27:19). Pilate even washed his hands when he condemned Jesus. This pattern repeats itself in many sinful situations when God repeatedly and in various ways tries to dissuade people, intervening in their paths. He reproves them, as He did with Balaam through a donkey (2 Peter 2:16). Similarly, through silent passages of providence and His Spirit standing in their way, with threatening judgments at hand, just as the angel brandished a drawn sword before Balaam, God tries to hinder them. Yet, they persist, which is truly fearful.
(2.) There are three rules also by which the sinfulness of sin, particularly in its opposition to knowledge, can be measured. These rules can be observed in the very act of sinning.
[1.] Firstly, the less passion, inward violence, or temptation there is in a sin committed against knowledge, the greater the sin against knowledge becomes. When there is less passion involved, the knowledge becomes clearer, as passion or temptation is like a mist.
Therefore, to sin when one is not in a state of passion is like stumbling in broad daylight. Just as drunkenness impairs reason, so does passion, which is a temporary form of drunkenness, cloud and obscure one's knowledge. Thus, Aristotle compares the knowledge of an incontinent person to the knowledge of a drunkard. For example,
when Peter denied his Master, he had received prior warning, so it was a sin against knowledge. It involved lying, swearing, and perjury, which are sins directly contrary to knowledge. However, he was caught off guard and faced with unexpected circumstances. He was in the judgment hall where his Master, standing before him, was being accused for His life. Peter believed that he, too, could be brought to the judgment seat if his discipleship was discovered. In such a state of passion, his soul was disturbed, and reason had little time to regain control. Therefore, although it was a sin against knowledge, it was less severe because knowledge did not have its full effect on his heart. On the other hand, Judas, in betraying his
Master, not only received prior warning but was not tempted to do it.
He acted of his own accord, made the offer to the Pharisees, and carefully planned it. He had his wits about him and had ample time to contemplate his actions. Therefore, besides the heinousness of the act itself, it was also a greater sin against knowledge. Similarly, when
David intended to kill Uriah, he did so in a state of calmness and composure. When he committed adultery with Bathsheba, he was intoxicated, but when he made Uriah drunk, he was sober. He proceeded quietly and deliberately. In this case, we find David criticized specifically for the matter involving Uriah, rather than the incident with Bathsheba.
[2.] Secondly, the more sorrow, reluctance, and regret there is in one's mind against a sin, the stronger and quicker the knowledge opposing it becomes, and thus the greater the sin against knowledge.
This opposition and displeasure arise from the strength and intense stirring of conscience, resisting and opposing the sin. It stems from a greater and deeper understanding of the sin's evil in the very act of committing it. Although this reluctance is a better sign of a person's condition than having no remorse at all, as is the case with those who are "past feeling" and commit sin greedily, indicating a worse state
and a greater incapability of repentance, the sin itself becomes more heinous because it reveals a strong, active, and awakening knowledge. Herod's sin provides a clear example of this. In Mark
6:26, it is said that he was "exceedingly sorrowful." This level of sorrow could only have arisen if he had a deep understanding of how great a sin it was to behead John, whom he knew to be "a just and holy man" and whom he esteemed highly. Herod was greatly influenced by John's ministry. He realized that he was sacrificing
John to satisfy the wicked woman's malice. In such a case, the sin becomes even more significant because conscience stirs up a contrary passionate response against the temptation. Therefore, to commit the sin in defiance of such opposition, breaking through the barriers that could have resisted it, demonstrates a severe violation of knowledge. Such a sin greatly undermines conscience.
[3.] Thirdly, on the contrary, the more hardness of heart and lack of tenderness there is in committing a sin that one knows to be a sin, the greater the sin against knowledge. Hardness of heart in sinning is the consequence of having previously sinned greatly against knowledge. Just as the light of the sun hardens clay, the beams of knowledge and conscience, when they illuminate a person's heart, often harden it, making it unfeeling in the end. Therefore, in 1
Timothy 4:2, sinning against knowledge is identified as the cause of a seared conscience. They "speak lies in hypocrisy," knowingly uttering falsehoods that damn not only themselves but also others who believe them (2 Thessalonians 2:11-12). Consequently, it is not surprising that their consciences become seared with a burning and shining light. It is not a cold iron that sears their consciences and renders them insensitive, but a hot iron—a burning and shining light.
Once this light has taken root in their consciences but is rejected, their hearts begin to harden and become seared. Knowledge makes sins and their apprehension familiar, reducing their terror and dread
over time, just as bears and lions become accustomed to their keepers through familiarity. Judas had a hardened heart when he came to betray his Master. Surely, his conscience troubled him more initially for pilfering from the money bag than it did later for the act of murder. He could not have developed such a hardened heart without having possessed significant knowledge. His heart was callous when confronted face to face, and he asked, like the others,
"Is it I?" Even when Christ cursed him in His presence and the other disciples were repulsed by his plan, Judas, having lived under blessed and glorious means, sinned for a long time against knowledge. All of this should have startled him and shaken his resolve, but he proceeded as if it were of no consequence, although his conscience was awakened too late. When a person is less troubled by a gross lie committed now than by a previous minor sin, which they cannot tolerate as well as the latter, or when they used to be disturbed by neglecting prayer but can now go a week without it without feeling any remorse, it indicates that their knowledge has hardened them.
III. Having provided these rules by which you can evaluate the sinfulness of particular acts, I will now proceed to other ways of aggravation based on the kind of knowledge against which one sins.
To sin against a particular kind of knowledge is both highly heinous and dangerous. There are five rules derived from the different qualities of knowledge and the light that individuals sin against. The greater, stronger, and more effective the light and knowledge are, the greater the sin of knowledge that one commits. I will use this as a third general point to clarify this doctrine. All five rules are applicable to specific acts against knowledge, as well as to a state of impenitence against knowledge and other particulars mentioned.