The Sin of Omission - James 4:17

“Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.” — James 4:17

When we think about sin, we usually think about the things we should not do. We think about lying, stealing, hatred, lust, drunkenness, immorality, anger, or some other obvious act of disobedience. But the Bible gives us another category of sin that is often overlooked: the sin of omission. Sometimes sin is not doing what God told us not to do. Sometimes it is failing to do what God has told us to do.

James 4:17 is remarkably direct. It does not say, “To him that knoweth to do evil, and doeth it.” It says, “to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.” There is a responsibility that comes with knowing the right thing. Once God has shown us what is good, obedience requires more than simply agreeing with it. We must actually do it.

This means that knowledge creates responsibility. A person may know he should pray, but continually chooses not to pray. He may know he should read the Scriptures, but never opens his Bible. He may know he should forgive someone, but deliberately holds onto bitterness. He may know he should witness to a lost person, but remains silent. He may know he should give, serve, encourage, help, or obey, yet continually chooses not to. These things may not look like the obvious sins we normally talk about, but James says that when we know to do good and refuse to do it, that refusal itself is sin.

Consider the parable of the Good Samaritan. The priest and the Levite saw the wounded man, but they passed by. They were not the ones who had beaten him. They had not caused his suffering. Their sin was in what they failed to do when they had the opportunity to do good. Jesus deliberately made the Samaritan the example because he stopped, showed compassion, treated the man's wounds, and cared for him. The issue was not merely, “Did you hurt your neighbour?” The deeper question was, “When you had the opportunity to help your neighbour, what did you do?”

There are many Christians who measure their spiritual lives by the things they have stopped doing. “I don't drink. I don't smoke. I don't steal. I don't go to those places anymore.” Those things may be good, but Christianity is not simply the absence of bad behaviour. The Christian life also involves the presence of obedience. It is possible to avoid many outward sins while still living a life of disobedience because we continually neglect the good things God has commanded us to do.

Jesus illustrated this in Matthew 25 when He spoke about those who saw hungry, thirsty, naked, sick, and imprisoned people but failed to minister to them. Their condemnation was not because they had personally caused those people's suffering. They were condemned because they had opportunities to do good and refused to act.

The same principle appears throughout Scripture. God did not merely tell Israel what not to do. He commanded them to care for the poor, the stranger, the widow, and the fatherless. Jesus did not merely tell His disciples what sins to avoid. He commanded them to “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15). Scripture tells believers to pray, to forgive, to love one another, to bear one another's burdens, to encourage one another, to give, to serve, and to make disciples.

The question is therefore not simply, “What am I doing wrong?” We should also ask, “What do I know I should be doing that I am not doing?”

That question can be uncomfortable because omission is easy to hide. Nobody sees the prayer you never prayed. Nobody hears the Gospel conversation you never started. Nobody knows about the person you could have encouraged but ignored. Nobody sees the Bible you left closed when you knew you should have read it. Nobody knows about the act of generosity you deliberately withheld. There may be no obvious outward scandal, yet God sees the obedience that was neglected.

Sometimes we excuse ourselves by saying, “I didn't do anything wrong.” But James challenges that defence. Doing nothing can be wrong when God has commanded you to do something. If you know what is right and deliberately refuse to do it, neutrality is no longer neutral.

This is especially serious because opportunities do not remain forever. There are people we can encourage today whom we may never see again. There are souls we can witness to today who may not be available tomorrow. There are needs we can meet today that may disappear tomorrow. There are acts of obedience that require action while the opportunity is present. Paul therefore wrote, “As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men” (Galatians 6:10).

The sin of omission also exposes the danger of procrastination. We often say, “I'll do it later.” Later we will pray. Later we will witness. Later we will reconcile. Later we will serve. Later we will give. Later we will obey. But delayed obedience can become disobedience when the opportunity God has given us is ignored.

James 4 is actually dealing with the uncertainty of tomorrow. James warns believers against boasting about what they will accomplish tomorrow because “ye know not what shall be on the morrow” (James 4:14). Life is temporary. Our opportunities are temporary. Therefore, when we know the will of God, we should not presume that we will always have another opportunity to obey it.

The answer to the sin of omission is not merely feeling guilty. It is obedience. When the Holy Spirit brings something to our attention through the Word of God, we should respond. If you know you should pray, pray. If you know you should forgive, forgive. If you know you should witness, witness. If you know you should help, help. If you know you should serve, serve. If you know you should make something right, make it right.

The Christian life is not merely about avoiding the wrong road. It is about walking the right road. It is not enough to say that we believe what God has said. James repeatedly emphasizes that genuine faith produces action. We are not saved by good works, but the faith that saves us does not leave us indifferent toward the works God has prepared for us to do.

So ask yourself today: What good do I know I should be doing that I have been refusing, neglecting, or postponing?

James 4:17 leaves very little room for excuses. “To him it is sin.”

Sometimes the sin we need to confess is not something we did.

Sometimes it is something we should have done, but did not.

Sin is not only doing what God forbids. It is also refusing to do what God commands when we know what is right. When God gives you the knowledge and the opportunity to do good, do not merely admire the truth. Obey it.