The confusion comes when the world defines love as approval and kindness as silence. Jehovah does not.
Jesus was called a friend of sinners (Luke 7:34), yet He never once excused sin. He forgave, but He also commanded repentance. If we follow Christ, we must learn to hold truth without cruelty and love without compromise.
This morning, we are going to look a bit closer at just what God’s word says about tolerance and intolerance.
I. God Is Intolerant of Sin
Jehovah is intolerant of sin. The Bible is unambiguous and clear on this point.
“10a O you who love the Lord, hate evil!”
Psalm 97:10
“4b …the soul who sins shall die.”
Ezekiel 18:4
“23b …For the wages of sin is death.”
Romans 6:23
Death! You can’t be any more intolerant than to condemn someone to death, yet that is just how the scriptures tell us Jehovah is about sin, in Ezekial and Romans. God’s intolerance of sin is not harshness—it is holiness.
But why can God not tolerate sin? Well, let’s look and see what the scriptures have to say.
“1 Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear; 2 but your iniquities (sins) have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.”
Isaiah 59:1-2
Because of Jehovah’s holy character He will not look upon or tolerate evil.
A man once complained that his phone had “stopped working.” He pressed the call button, spoke clearly, even raised his voice—but no one ever answered. Frustrated, he took it to the store and said, “Something’s wrong. I know the signal is strong, but nobody can hear me.”
The technician picked up the phone, glanced at it, and calmly said, “Sir, your phone is in airplane mode.”
For those who don’t know what “Airplane Mode” is… it is a mode you can put your phone into where it is still on and some functions work but for any function that requires it to transmit or receive communications it won’t work. So that it supposedly won’t interfere with the airplane functions.
You see for this man the signal hadn’t weakened. The network hadn’t failed. The problem wasn’t on the other end at all. A setting the man himself had chosen had cut off communication.
Isaiah says something very similar about our relationship with God:
When prayers seem unanswered, it’s easy to assume God is distant, distracted, or powerless even in some people’s minds. But Isaiah reminds us that God’s strength hasn’t faded and His hearing hasn’t grown dull. Often, the separation comes from choices we’ve made — sin we’ve tolerated, rebellion we’ve excused, or hearts we’ve hardened.
The good news is just as airplane mode can be turned off, separation from God is not permanent. When sin is confessed and hearts are humbled, repentance is made then communication is restored—not because God moved closer, but because we remove the barrier.
God does not overlook sin any more than a good doctor overlooks cancer.
A surgeon who refuses to remove a tumor because he doesn’t want to “offend” the patient is not compassionate—he is negligent. In the same way, a church that refuses to address sin is not loving; it is abandoning souls to spiritual death.
II. God Loves Sinful People
My next statement may sound a bit odd at first and it is one which the world often applies incorrectly.
God loves sinful people.
While God hates sin, He never stops loving sinners, he never stops loving us.
“8 But God shows His love for us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
Romans 5:8
There is no reason why Jehovah would send his only Son to earth in order to be crucified for sinners. No tangible reason that is. The only reason that makes sense is because He loves us – His people… His creation… created in HIS image.
“9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.”
2 Peter 3:9
Jesus did not wait for people to clean up their lives before He loved them.
When the woman who was caught in adultery and was brought before Jesus, what did He do? What did He say?
“11 Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.”
John 8:11
Notice what Jesus did not say:
• He did not deny her sin
• He did not excuse her behavior
• He did not redefine adultery
But He also did not crush her spirit.
Unlike in the world today where mankind is accepting of peoples sins, they do excuse the sinful behavior and they most definitely redefine what adultery is.
A man once said, “I know God hates what I’m doing—and I’m not sure He still wants me.” That statement reveals how many people misunderstand God. The cross proves God’s love for sinners; repentance proves our love for God (John 14:15).
III. The World’s Definition of Tolerance vs. God’s
The world says:
• “If you love me, you must accept my choices.”
God says:
• “15 If you love Me, keep My commandments.”
John 14:15
Biblical tolerance is not moral approval. We find this out in the scriptures.
“11 Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.
Ephesians 5:11
“33 Do not be deceived: Bad company ruins good morals.”
1 Corinthians 15:33
“9 Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ does not have God.”
2 John 9
A schoolteacher once noticed a student bringing a pocketknife to class every day. The student never threatened anyone. He simply kept it in his pocket and went about his business. The teacher tolerated the student’s presence in the classroom—he didn’t expel him on the spot or humiliate him publicly.
But one day, the teacher quietly pulled the student aside and said, “You cannot bring this into school. I care about you too much to ignore it.”
The teacher’s tolerance of the student did not mean approval of the knife. Allowing the student to remain in the classroom was an act of patience and care, not endorsement of the behavior. In fact, approving of the knife would have meant failing the student—because it put him and others at risk.
Scripture shows us the same distinction. Jesus ate with sinners, spoke kindly to them, and showed compassion—but He never called sin acceptable. As I was preparing this lesson I thought about how Jesus, a perfect man, could show compassion to those sinners, how being perfect and never falling to temptation how he could be compassionate to even have sinners in his presence. Until I thought about Jesus Himself having been tempted by the king of tempters – Satan. And yet with each temptation Jesus overcame the temptation. Its easy I suppose to say “Well Jesus was also God so of course it was easy for Him to overcome temptation.” But remember, the man Jesus had been alone and fasting when he was tempted by Satan but one of the positive effects of fasting is it can help bring mental clarity and emotional resilience – things every human strives for. My point is that Jesus had the temptations but he very likely also had to delve deep into the human part of himself to be able to face and overcome those temptations. So, Jesus knew and knows what it is for us to face temptations and how difficult it can be for us to conquer them, so Him having compassion on sinners should not be surprising He knows what temptation feels like.
So, Jesus tolerated people in order to reach them, not to affirm their choices. Biblical tolerance says, “You matter enough to be here,” while moral approval says, “What you’re doing is fine.” `Those are not the same thing.
True love does not remove boundaries; it explains them. And true tolerance does not silence truth—it makes room for repentance.
God never calls us to tolerate sin—but He does call us to tolerate sinners long enough to teach, correct, and restore.
IV. How the Church Must Respond
So just how must the church, must Christians, respond to those who are violating Jehovah’s directives? Dismissing His commands?
1. We Must Love Without Compromising Truth
“9 Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.”
Romans 12:9
You see, truth without love becomes brutality.
Love without truth becomes betrayal.
Consider how a father who never disciplines his child is not kind—he is careless. Likewise, a church that refuses to teach hard truths, (that is truths which have the authority of Jehovah – IN THE SCRIPTURES) that church is not loving souls; it is protecting comfort.
2. We Must Correct with Gentleness
“1 Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness…”
Galatians 6:1
“24 And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, 25correcting his opponents with gentleness. ”
2 Timothy 2:24–25a
A skilled horse trainer will not raise his voice or strike a horse that refuses to obey their commands. They will tell you that while doing so will make the horse move, it will also instill fear in the horse and will not trust anyone again.
A horse trainer doesn’t fight against a young horse that resists the reins. The trainer loosens his grip, speaks calmly and then patiently guides the horse until it responds correctly. It learns not because it was overpowered with brute force and harsh language, it learned because it was led.
Paul says the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome, but kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, correcting opponents with gentleness. Harshness, you see, may force compliance for a moment, but it rarely produces repentance. Argument can win a debate, but it is gentleness that opens a heart.
You see, God doesn’t grant repentance through humiliation or verbal domination. He uses calm truth, patient instruction, and humble correction. When we speak gently, we leave room for God to do what only He can do—change the heart.
And we should always remember that correction should not be condemnation. Restoration is always the goal.
3. We Must Be Intolerant of Our Own Sin First
“3 Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?”
Matthew 7:3
“17 For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?”
1 Peter 4:17
Consider the story of Jonah. Jonah was furious that God showed mercy to Nineveh. He sat outside the city, angry that God had spared people he believed deserved judgment. In Jonah’s eyes, Nineveh’s violence and wickedness were unforgivable—yet he seemed blind to his own rebellion.
Jonah condemned Nineveh for their sin while forgetting that he himself had fled from God’s command, endangered sailors, and had to be rescued through God’s mercy. Jonah was outraged by God’s grace toward others, even though he was alive only because of that same grace.
God exposed Jonah’s distorted vision through the plant that gave him shade. But when Jehovah caused a worm to eat and destroy the plant, Jonah mourned deeply for a it, for a plant he did not even plant or grow, yet felt no compassion for a city full of people. The prophet could see the “speck” of Nineveh’s wickedness clearly, but the “plank” of selfishness and lack of mercy in his own heart went unrecognized.
A Christian, and by extension a church, that ignores its own sin loses the moral authority.
People are rarely offended by truth—they are offended by hypocrisy. When the church condemns sin publicly but excuses it privately, then the world stops listening.
V. What Tolerance Looks Like Biblically
But what does Biblical tolerance mean? Again, we go back to the scriptures for answers.
Biblical tolerance means:
• Patience with people (Colossians 3:12–13)
• Endurance with weakness (Romans 15:1)
• Teaching with clarity (Matthew 28:19–20)
• Calling for repentance (Acts 17:30)
It does not mean:
• Redefining sin
• Silencing Scripture
• Affirming what God has already condemned
“9a As it is, I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting…10 For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.”
2 Corinthians 7:9–10
You know, a hospital emergency room is always full of people with serious problems, especially at night and on the weekends. Some arrive drunk, some come in angry, some are pretty much uncooperative, and then there are some whose injuries are the direct result of poor choices. Yet the doctors and nurses do not stand at the door arguing about how the patients got there. They don’t refuse treatment because someone “should have known better.”
At the same time, no doctor ever tells a patient who does stupid or dangerous things, “What you’re doing is fine—keep it up.” A physician may treat a smoker’s lungs, but he will also warn the patient to quit. He may reset a broken bone caused by reckless behavior, but he will caution against repeating that behavior.
The hospital tolerates the patient in order to heal him, not to affirm the behavior that put him there.
Biblical tolerance works in much the same way. Jesus welcomed sinners, he ate with them, and he most definitely showed compassion—but what He never did: he never redefined sin as good, right and healthy. Tolerance means we keep the door open, speak with kindness, and offer help. Love demands treatment; truth demands a diagnosis.
Grace says, “Come in.”
Truth says, “You need healing.”
Both are necessary—and neither cancels the other.
For Christians, and for the world for those who would open their hearts, the cross stands as the perfect balance of God’s intolerance of sin and His love for sinners.
At the cross:
• Sin was condemned (Romans 8:3)
• Mercy was extended (Ephesians 2:4–5)
• Repentance was required (Luke 13:3)
The church must never apologize for what God calls sin. The church must also never forget that every soul is worth saving.
Let us be a people who: Love deeply, Teach clearly, Stand firmly, and Restore gently.
And above all, do as 1 John 2:6 says and walk as Jesus walked.
If you need help in being patient and loving with lost sinners, let us know so we can be there for you and offer prayers to Jehovah on your behalf.
If you have found yourself walking through a life of sin and justifying it by redefining sin so you can feel good about yourself, that won’t cut it on judgement day. Turn from that sinful life you call okay and trust in God’s definitions of what is sin.
If you’ve never taken on Christ in baptism, we are here to help you lovingly take that step and that plunge beneath the healing waters of baptism as well.
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