The Normalisation of Sin

 

The Normalisation of Sin: From Sodom to Hollywood to the Pulpit

Suffering is part of the Christian journey. It is the furnace where faith is tested, and the tool God uses to break our pride and build our trust in Him. Without suffering, we would never truly learn dependence on God. It teaches us that our strength is not enough, that our wisdom is not sufficient, and that our lives are not our own. Suffering shapes us for eternity, pressing us into the image of Christ, who Himself was made perfect through suffering. This is why Scripture says we must arm ourselves with the same mind—because suffering is not meaningless, it is God’s refining fire preparing us for glory.

But suffering is not the only reality pressing on the church today. There is another breach—a far greater one than we often admit: sin being normalised in our culture.

⚠️ The Warning from Sodom and Hollywood

Sodom and Gomorrah give us a clear warning. They were not destroyed simply because sin was present; sin exists in every city. They were destroyed because their sin was normalised until the entire population believed perversion was natural. From the youngest to the oldest, they celebrated what God called wicked. What was once shameful became identity. What was once hidden was flaunted openly. When the men of Sodom surrounded Lot’s house, demanding to defile the angelic visitors, it showed how deeply they had been deceived. They had learned to call evil good, and judgment was the only answer.

The same spirit lives today. Hollywood has become the loudest pulpit of our age, preaching rebellion through screens. Movie by movie, series by series, homosexuality and queer identity are portrayed as beautiful, natural, and even heroic. What once shocked us has now become a staple in nearly every script. This is the strategy of Satan: drip by drip, hearts are desensitised until sin feels normal, even noble.

But I cannot write this as if I stand above anyone. My own life is marked with sin and failure. I know what it is to stumble, to run back to chains Christ broke, and to feel the sting of shame. If not for God’s mercy, I would be lost. I do not speak as a judge looking down—I speak as a sinner saved by grace, warning because I know how easily hearts—including mine—are led astray.

Proverbs highlight the value of rebuke. The wise listen and develop, but the fool rejects correction. “He who hates reproof will die” (Proverbs 15:10), yet “he who receives instruction is on the path of life” (Proverbs 10:17). There is blessing in correction, and danger in stubbornness. The blind, who refuse to see their sin and ignore godly counsel, will stumble into ruin.

⚠️ The Blind Leading the Blind

“Let them alone; they are blind guides. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit” (Matthew 15:14).

This is the reality today: Hollywood and worldly culture lead millions astray, and when compromised pastors fail to correct or rebuke, the church stumbles alongside them. Both leaders and followers risk destruction when they close their eyes to the truth.

Yet even as I confess my weakness, I must hold to the truth: grace is never an excuse for sin. To use “I am weak” as permission to live in rebellion is deception. Christ’s blood was not shed to make me comfortable in bondage—it was shed to set me free. I may fall, but I must rise, repent, and keep fighting. And this is true for every believer: we may stumble, but our Saviour will never abandon us. He has promised, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5). Even in our darkest failure, His hand reaches for us. His Spirit convicts us, not to condemn but to restore. So, remember to pray for fellow believers across the globe. We also know that we are not alone in our struggles, as we all fight the good fight of faith and share the same cup to endure. Sure, it may vary in dynamics, but when stripped down, it is all cut from the same cloth.

And this is why being compromised in the church is so dangerous. While Hollywood normalises sin in the world, too many pastors are normalising it from the pulpit. Some remain silent to avoid offence; others twist Scripture to fit culture. But when a shepherd withholds truth, he betrays the flock. When a watchman sees the enemy coming and refuses to sound the trumpet, blood will be required at his hands (Ezekiel 33:6).

God has not changed. The cross still saves. His Word still stands. The fire that fell on Sodom is a warning for us: do not make peace with what God has called rebellion. My failures remind me daily of my desperate need for grace, but they also remind me that grace is meant to transform, not excuse.

Church, this is the hour to wake up. Parents, guard your children from Hollywood’s discipleship. Pastors, preach the Word without fear. Believers, fight sin with everything in you—but never lose sight of this: your victory is not in your own strength, but in Christ who will never leave nor forsake you. Listen to rebuke, embrace correction, and walk in the path of life, or risk stumbling as the blind who refuse to see, and do not lead others into the ditch with you.

All hail King Jesus—the only One who gives repentive sinners the right to cry, “Abba, Father.”

“Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same way of thinking, for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live for the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God.”
— 1 Peter 4:1–2

Signing off,
Tyrone