Is Depression a Sin

Is depression a sin? This is the question that has been nagging at my heart and mind lately. I intend to use this platform as a means to record personal reflections as I pursue the answer to this question. I am reading through the book Out of the Blues by Wayne Mack.

I believe the first thing to do is to define depression. Depression has a range of symptoms: sadness, anxiety, difficulty thinking clearly, lack of motivation, feelings of worthlessness. Although I became a Christian in 1998, I have struggled with this since a very early age and continue to struggle with this. I began taking antidepressants in 2002 and have been on them on and off since then. 

Dr. Mack begins by breaking depression down into three categories: mild depression, moderate depression and severe depression. Mild depression is sadness or disappointment about something. He even provides an example of Jesus experiencing sadness at the death of John the Baptist and at the grief of Mary and others at the death of Lazarus. This type of depression is a normal response to events that happen in our lives. It is right to grieve over the death of a loved one. Sadness in response to an experience is not wrong or sinful as long as we do not lose the hope we have that Jesus is coming again and we will be with Him forever. Some verses that shed light on this are:

Romans 12:15: Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.

Hebrews 12:11: All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful.

2 Corinthians 1:3-4: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

God has created us with emotions, including sadness and disappointment. Therefore, experiencing these feelings is not sinful. Jesus, who lived a perfect life, Himself experienced these feelings.