I think at first blush we might say, of course not.  Sin is not irrational.  We know that “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” Romans 3:23.

Psalm 51:5 says, “Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.”

So is sin really irrational?  I don’t think that it is rational to believe that we can be sinless but I believe that sin itself is irrational.  The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines irrational this way: not thinking clearly: not able to use reason or good judgment: not based on reason, good judgment, or clear thinking

In this way I certainly believe that sin is irrational.  Being rational would tell us to DO things that are good and conducive for productive and healthy lives.  If we were totally rational we would steer clear of things that would harm us or would cause us distress.

But sin is irrational.  We lie even though we know we could be caught and cause ourselves and others great discomfort.  We gossip even though we know that it could hurt others and might even hurt our relationship with others.  Some drink too much even though they know that getting in their car after a night of drinking might result in an OWI or worse in an accident.  Others may cheat on their spouse even though they know that NOTHING good can come from this.

Sin is TOTALLY irrational.  Paul says in in Romans 7:19 – : For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.” Now that sounds irrational!

It would seem that we would keep ourselves from sinning because sinning ALWAYS hurts us.  Sinning hurts our relationship with others and it certainly hurts our relationship with God.

The irrationality of our sin has consequences.  Wayne Jackson in “Have you Considered the Consequences of Sin?” states that our sins have MANY consequences. He says that sin can have national consequences. When nations move away from the moral standards that God expects and wickedness is all around, the Lord imposes judgment.  God severely judged Israel and Judah, His chosen people, but he also judged the Assyrians, the Babylonians and many other secular countries for this mistreatment of His people

Sin can also have physical consequences.  When Adam and Eve sinned, their physical consequence was death, a death that would then be imparted on all mankind. Adam and Eve were living in perfection, walking in the beautiful Garden of Eden with the Creator.  But then Eve decided that she would rather believe the snake than the God who had created her.  How irrational!  But this irrational sin had gargantuan physical consequences.

Sin can also have mental consequences.  Sin can cause someone so much guilt and grief that they find it hard to sleep at night.  2 Corinthians 7:10 tells us that,”Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.”  So that mental anguish caused by sin in the life of a Christian should bring about repentance but to a non-believer it will bring death.

Sin can also bring about societal consequences.  I believe the sin of abortion has taken a huge toll on society.  Have you ever wondered why social security is almost bankrupt?  Well think about the more than 50 million children who have been aborted.  Many of these same children would have been working and paying into the social security roles but instead, the number of people involved in this program has diminished so drastically because we have aborted generations of people, that his program is no longer sustainable.

Sin also has spiritual and eternal consequences.  If we continue in our sin, our relationship with the Lord is diminished.  If we fail to accept Jesus and repent of our sins, we should expect nothing less than eternal condemnation.

So if we believe that sin is irrational and that sin ALWAYS hurts us, then let’s pray that God places within us a rational heart, a heart that sees the consequences of sin before they are committed so that we can spare ourselves the pain of those consequences and instead of feeling pain, feel the blessings of God.  For not only do we hurt ourselves when we DO sin but we live in harmony and peace with God when we DON’T sin!  Pray for a rational heart!