Sin is a controversial topic in regards to discussions about Christianity, because I think a lot of people, Christian and non-Christian alike, misunderstand it. And this isn’t to say that I have the answer for sure; don’t take my words as gospel, but here is my take on it:

It’s not because it’s written on a piece of paper or stone tablet that sin and law are what they are; it’s not technicality-based; it’s not merely a matter of being nice or looking holy; and it’s not only a matter of which afterlife you’ll end up in. And before anybody accuses me of saying “ohh it’s all free grace, just be vaguely nice and bask in sin all you want you’ll be forgiven!”; the avoidance of sins, and the consequences of committing sin is deeper-embedded into our very nature, materially and spiritually alike, which if anything is arguably even more serious than a lot of people play it out. Christianity isn’t joking or being a little abstract when it says that sin is death.

If you sin against yourself, you eventually start to find yourself desensitised to the way you treat yourself, and once you’re desensitised to the way you treat yourself, you start to become desensitised to the way you treat other people. This is why unhealthy actions against yourself have always been considered sinful. This goes the other way around too of course; if you sin against other people enough to be desensitised to the way you treat them, eventually you start to become desensitised to the way you treat yourself, leading to your eventual agony and demise. More over, if you’re incapable of loving other people, you aren’t going to be capable of loving God either, so your relationship with him will be severed. Hell isn’t only an afterlife destination; it’s a path too, and it’s possible that the worst of sinners end up in it before they even die.

Eventually, you start to realise that what Jesus said and taught aren’t only a bunch of rules for entering Heaven when you die, or making yourself look holier than the others. They’re for your own benefit too. Repentance is good, and Jesus forgives if you truly are repentant, but Jesus also still told those he healed and forgave to cease their sinning, therefore it should be understood that we too should still actively try not to sin.

Remember the two great commandments (Matthew 22:37-40): The first, to love God with all of your heart; the second, to love your neighbour as yourself. Accept the holy spirit, and embed those two great commandments into your heart, and the rest of your understanding in regards to right and wrong should build up from there.