The Subtle Lure of Sin

The Subtle Lure of Sin
Posted by: "Pastor Bruce Wells"
When you see signs on the road, are you one of the people who heeds
them, or do you push the limits hoping you won't get caught? When
you're playing games…board games, sports games, or the game of life…
are you willing to take short cuts to win? Maybe you're a skier. Are
you willing to go out of bounds to find the fresh powder? A
willingness to break the rules in the game of life is a picture of
our sin nature. Every human has it…and we should all be aware of the
subtle danger it poses.

The prophet Jeremiah understood humanity's propensity to sin and it
caused him to weep. He knew that the root of Israel's wayward
behavior was their tendency to leave God's "straight and narrow"
path. He described four steps that lead away from God: 1) Departing
from Scripture; 2) Disobeying God; 3) Devising their own way; and 4)
Depending upon people.

One of the first signs we've been lured away by sin is when we depart
from God's Word. Jeremiah warned: "They have forsaken My law which I
set before them" (Jeremiah 9:13). Neglecting time in God's Word is
where trouble starts—but it is also where the solution begins. Let me
give you some strong advice—make meditation on God's Word a high
priority in your life. Start and end each day saturated in God's
truth.

Once we depart from Scripture, it's a quick-step to disobedience.
Consider God's assessment of Israel's problem: "They have forsaken My
law which I set before them, and have not obeyed My voice, nor walked
according to it"(Jeremiah 9:13). It is a sad but simple truth:
walking away from God's Word causes us to walk away from God's ways.

The next subtle sign of our wayward ways is an inability to
differentiate between right and wrong, truth and morality—in other
words, we devised our own moral code. The prophet put it this
way: "They have walked according to the dictates of their own hearts
and after the Baals" (Jeremiah 9:14). They followed their own desires
and made up the rules as they went along. Israel didn't totally
forsake God…they simply mixed a little bit of Baal with a little bit
of God and concocted their own religion. Unfortunately, this ancient
approach to spirituality is very contemporary. Many people believe
that all roads lead to God. But Jesus made it clear that there is
only one true God and only one true way to Him: "I am the way, the
truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me"
(John 14:6).

The final sign that we've declined spiritually is that we depend on
men rather than God. Their idolatrous worship of the Baals was laid
on their ancestors: "Which their fathers taught them" (Jeremiah
9:14). Basically they were saying, "We are the way we are because of
what our forefathers did. It's not our fault; it's their fault!"
Don't we hear the same rationale today? We whine, "I'm a product of
my environment." Whenever we reduce ourselves to victim status, we
avoid responsibility by shifting the blame. Although all of us have
had people fail us, we can't blame them for the choices we make. God
held the children of Israel accountable for not standing on their
own. He will hold us responsible for the same.

Are you being drawn off the path by the subtle lures of sin: 1)
Departing from Scripture; 2) Disobeying God; 3) Devising your own
way; 4) Depending on people? If so, protect yourself from sin's
destruction by reading His Word, obeying His commands, following His
way, and depending on Him. It's time to pay attention to the signs
God has put on our life's path. Return to an intimate, personal
relationship with Jesus Christ. He's only one step away.

In His strong love,

Bruce

Matthew 22:37

Manna for Living
is the Bible teaching ministry of Bruce Wells.
A Bible teacher, and writer