Pr. 4:17: “For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.”
This is what the wicked are said to do in Proverbs 4. It could be easy to type the contrasting words, “Christians eat from the Bread of Life,” but we all know that’s just not the plain facts. All of us sin and fall short of the glory of God. If we weren’t sinners, we wouldn’t need a Savior. Thank God for the Lord’s mercy and the forgiveness that came through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.
Let’s pause this morning, and ask ourselves what bread we are eating right now. Are you eating the bread of wickedness? Is there a sin that seems tasty right now? Are you savoring the morsels of a sinful act? Your heart has been deceived and the bread you are eating will turn to ash in your mouth.
David told the Lord, in Ps. 119:103, “How sweet are Your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” You can once again taste the sweetness of the Lord and His Word. Turn to The Bread of Life and ask Him to forgive you for finding pleasure in lesser things. Ask the Lord to fill you, to satisfy the depths of your soul, and ask Him to help His word to become sweeter to your taste than honey. He is faithful. He will not only forgive you, but He will fill you so that you won’t hunger for lesser things. (John 6:35-36)
What have you been drinking? Have you been drinking the wine of violence? Are you being so consumed by violence and wickedness that you are drunk on it? Sin can be so consuming that it seems there is no way out. Satan gives us one taste, and if we don’t turn back and repent, we can become addicted and consumed. It seems that life without our sinful pleasures is no longer possible. This is a lie.
If we drink of the living water we will never thirst for lesser drink. Jesus said the living water that He gives will become in us a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life. Sin causes us to cling to dust. When our souls are parched, dry, and thirsty, the only thing that will truly satisfy our thirst is the Living Water. The Living God revives us and pours life into our souls. The fountain that will spring up within us springs up into everlasting life. Are you thirsty?
Thank You, Lord, for providing salvation for us. Thank You for your love. Thank You for Your faithfulness; for being the same God yesterday, today, and forevermore. Thank You that Your proven Word reminds us that You do not change. If You said Your water would cause us not to thirst, then its true. You said that the one who comes to You, You will by no means cast out. It is impossible for You to lie. Thank you for this promise. Thank you for everlasting life that comes through you. We are all sinners, but You loved us so much that You wouldn’t leave us without a Savior. Help us, Lord, to accept that gift and rely on Your strength and Your truth to hold on to it and not become drunk with sin ever again. Holy Spirit, consume us, and make us new. In Jesus’ holy name I pray. Amen.
considering the word 