wages of sin | considering the word

Pr. 4:14-15: “Do not enter the path of the wicked, and do not walk in the way of evil. Avoid it, do not travel on it; turn away from it and pass on.”

Oh, I have travelled on those paths too many times. I want to remind us today that we are told to turn away and pass on. There are good reasons for this.

Today happens to be the birthday of a dear friend of mine from back in high school. Sadly, we can’t celebrate together because he passed away several years ago.

There was a night when he chose to take the wrong path. He made some poor decisions with some friends. Afterwards, when his judgment was impaired and his decision-making was affected, he chose to literally walk on the exact wrong path…a busy road, where he was hit and killed by a vehicle as he walked.

God’s warnings are for our protection. He wants to protect us from the consequences of sin. Satan always lies and tells us that there aren’t any. He says that our decisions are our own and they won’t affect anyone else. He convinces us that we can repent at a later time.

Friends, there may not be a later time! My friend did not have a later time. He took the wrong path and he is gone.

Thanks to God’s grace, you and I have been given more time, another chance to turn away and pass on. Let’s do that. Let’s make that choice and be better off for it. There is protection for us here and eternal life for us on the other side of this life!

In memoriam,

jamie

Pr. 10:2: “Treasures of wickedness profit nothing, but righteousness delivers from death.”

So, I tried to make these wreaths with my kids today. They look so cute, right?

I left them in the oven too long and they all melted into big red and white blobs. (This lovely picture came off the internet)

Later today I thought about those blobs. Have you ever seen a sin that seemed like just the right thing to do? You anticipate how it will be. You romanticize the outcome. You think of all the possible positive outcomes, and overlook all the negatives. It seems like the perfect plan.

And then, in the aftermath, it turns into a big melted, messy blob. It looks nothing like your original idea, and the whole place smells of smoke.

Steer clear,

jamie