Do you remember the Price Is Right game called “Hi Lo”?

The daytime gameshow standard features a particular game where a contestant is presented with six items from a grocery store. The contestant’s challenge is to pick which three of the items are the most expensive. Those three items are then placed on the “Hi” row, and the remaining three items are placed on the “Lo” row.

If the contestant is successful at determining which items cost the most, they win the game.

Now, a harmless little daytime game may not seem like a good illustration for a biblical post, but people play this game all the time with sin. In fact, it’s the basis of many a Christian’s moral compass. The question usually sounds like this:

Which sins cost me the most, and which ones can I get away with?

As human beings, we have rankings of sin. We tend to think of them as big or small, and we judge our character based on which of the big ones we’re not committing. Meanwhile, we judge the character of others on the little ones they embrace. So while we pat ourselves on the back for not murdering anyone, we cry foul when someone else watches a movie we deem inappropriate.

Here’s the truth about sin: before God, all sin—small or large—is an offense to his holiness. Any sin is enough to separate us relationally from our perfect Heavenly Father. The truth is that all sins carry a cost—which is why all sins need Jesus to cover them, all sins need repentance, and all sins need forgiveness.

Here on earth the differences we see in sin are differences of consequence. Some sins bring far more destruction into our lives on a practical level. Jesus said that lust is the same as committing adultery, but while lust can be hidden for a while, actually committing adultery will blow up a relationship in a heartbeat. Jealously wanting what our neighbor has is the same as stealing, but the police don’t lock you up for wanting your neighbor’s Harley - they only lock you up if you steal it.

If we want to grow deeper in our relationship with God, we have to get brutally honest about our sin. We have to recognize and admit that any sin creates distance between us and our Heavenly Father, and we have to lean into His grace and forgiveness while repenting of our actions. Then, we have to fight against that sin in the future by drawing even closer to God.

Hi or Lo, big or small, we all stand before God guilty as sin—but thank God He made a way for us through the covering of Jesus’ work on the cross.