Ask Pastor Dave: Is It A Sin To Be “Fat”?

This is a great question. There are certain areas of our lives where we tend to give each other passes, excuses, justifications but for which God would call us to be more critical and careful. Our eating habits certainly reflect one of those areas that the American church needs to be more thoughtful about. I love how Brett McCracken calls us to more thoughtful and intentional eating. In his book Gray Matters he wrote:

Are we consuming food in a manner worthy of the gospel of Jesus Christ? That may sound like a silly question, and indeed, for many of us the whole notion of food as a spiritual discipline or missional activity might be a new idea. But if we are talking about being cultured Christians – believers who receive culture well and consume things in a healthy and mature manner – we should not neglect a discussion of food. Food is the ultimate in global pop culture. (26)

We want to eat food in a manner worthy of the gospel. So let’s consider, then, this question at hand: Is it a sin to be fat.

We should start by noting that “fat” is maybe not the best word to use in this discussion. It’s a derogatory term we apply to insult and degrade others. It’s a negative label applied to a wide range of weight proportions. Since people who are often labeled “fat” have varying experiences and reasons behind their waistline we should probably use a more neutral term. It’s probably more helpful, then, to speak of obesity. Even the shift in nomenclature, however, doesn’t solve the problem, there’s more to consider.

Weight gain is a complex issue and there are a number of factors that can contribute to a person’s size. Not all of the scenarios allow us to so easily align obesity with sin. Weight gain can involve emotional, social, psychological, and biological factors making it a bit more difficult to assess. It’s often much easier to identify sin in specific areas related to obesity than to define the obesity itself as sin. So, for example, we may speak of gluttony as sinful.

Lusting after food, being greedy over it, having no control over our appetites, these are sins according to Scripture. In one sense gluttony is evidence of being enslaved to our appetites. Paul spoke of this to the Corinthians. Mentioning food specifically in verse 13, he states in verse 12 of 1 Corinthians chapter 6, that he “will not be dominated by anything.” The Proverbs too speak very harshly about gluttony, saying:

Be not among drunkards^[a]
    or among gluttonous eaters of meat,
²¹ for the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty,
    and slumber will clothe them with rags. (23:20-21)

The one who keeps the law is a son with understanding,
    but a companion of gluttons shames his father. (28:7)

and put a knife to your throat
    if you are given to appetite. (23:2)

The Lord does not delight in self-indulgence. After all, a fruit of the Spirit is self-control (Galatians 5:22). Gluttony, then, is a sin and we can identify that. We can also identify laziness as a sin (1 Thess. 5:14). The important point here, however, is that certain behaviors that lead towards obesity can be identified as sin, while obesity itself can’t be.

This is an important distinction to make and keep before us. It is not so simple to categorize all obesity as sin. The Bible certainly doesn’t give us that ability. The Scriptures concern themselves far more often with matters of the heart. What is the heart behind the obesity, what motives drive our eating? God is far more concerned with our hearts than he is with our waistlines. The latter may reveal the former, but not always.