Problems with "the grace culture"

Brian Nicklaus's thoughts on the downplaying of repentance in the church are worth reading:

Someone comes down the isle during the invitation song. It is a godly man or woman convicted of the guilt of his/her sin and wanting to confess publicly and ask for the prayers of the church family. The preacher or shepherd proceeds to praise this individual, commenting how we all struggle with sin, how many struggle with this specific sin, and great it is that the person confessed publicly, etc.

With the good intentions of encouraging a beloved christian, we effectively downplay the awfulness of sin, godly sorrow, and repentance. Have you ever snickered when someone confessed to lying or gossiping or running a stop sign? Those people who are super-sensitive, we assume they are neurotic. Good grief! Everyone sins, right?

Well, yes. But as Brian points out, there's an underside to the idea that "it's all about grace."

Update: John Schroeder continues the discussion at Blogotional.