For some time, educators have faced accusations of "dumbing down" exams in order to compensate for increasingly poor student performances.

The Professional Association of Teachers (PAT) in Great Britain, however, proposed another solution: banning the word "fail" from classrooms and replacing it with the phrase, "deferred success." Eliminating negative language, a spokesman for the group said, would help avoid the lasting educational problems associated with the labeling of pupils.

Applying this type of thinking to theology would lead us to eliminate the word "sin." Instead, we might speak of "deferred obedience," or even "delayed righteousness."

There's a fatal flaw in the easy speak, however, with farther-reaching consequences than either unhappy students or poor test scores. Eliminating sin also eliminates the need for a Savior.