p. 16 | Crime and Sin

Pacific Press Publishing Association · Mountain View, California · Jan 23, 1912

Crime and Sin.

A San Francisco daily quotes a clergyman as saying, "Crime is the violation of any law either divine or human." Not so. Crime is the violation of human statute law. Sin is the violation of divine law. It ranges from "missing the mark," coming short of God's requirements, to bold rebellion and unrepented wickedness. Crime and sin may be in a general way synonymous. That is, stealing is a sin against God, an infraction of divine law. It is also a crime, a violation of statute law; but there is this difference: the crime pertains only to the overt act; the sin involves thought and motive. To covet that which belongs to another is sin; but it is not a crime.