08/06/2020
The little sins in our life are the most dangerous. Do we allow ourselves to tell the small white lies, and think they are not really sin? How about the person we allow ourselves to have lustful thoughts about, but never actually get physical with? Is it alright to do that because, after all, we aren’t going to act on those fantasies? Well, it is the little things that lead us to the larger ones, and although they seem safe, they lead us to points of no return... sin.
“Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions.”
Romans 6:12 ESV
There was a boy who used to love to go sledding in the wintertime. When the first substantial snows fell, and covered the hillsides, He would grab his sled, round up his friends, and off they would go. In the hills where they went sledding there was a very steep slope, and it had several dangerous jumps, drops, and corners on it. Although none of them wanted to go down that hill, it was the one that they always dared each other to attempt. Many a boy had gone to the top of that hill, got on his sled, and looked down at the impossibility of it... only to roll off his sled and walk away to the jeers of the others.
“What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you?”
James 4:1 ESV
One day the boy in our story became that boy. He was having a great day sledding and was going exceptionally fast, so the others began challenging him to go down “The Hill”. He took their taunting for a while and then walked to the top of “The Hill”. His plan was to do as the others had done; to get on his sled, look down the hill, and then roll off and go back to the group. You see there was a certain thrill in just being at the precipice of that hill, and the other guys thought you were brave for even thinking about it. So on that day He went to the top of “The Hill”, laid down on his sled, and eased to the edge of the drop off. He could hear the others urging him on, so he inched forward until he was dangerously close to the edge. His heart was pounding, but he wanted to go a little further than any of the others had dared go, without actually going down. As he inched forward, the other boys became very excited, and proud of himself, he looked back at them... it was then that it happened... while looking back and smiling at how he had managed to reach this point, he pushed a bit closer with his toes, and in an instant he was zooming down the slope. He had gone further than he had anticipated, and now was beyond the point of return. He flew over the first jump, and managed to go around a thorny outgrowth of briars, but when he reached the second jump he was out of control and crashed. It was a bad accident, but he was fortunate enough not to break anything, other than his sled. He had suffered some bruises, scrapes, and damaged his pride, but that was all. This is exactly how the little sins in our lives lead us to commit the large ones, and put us in situations we not only thought we would never be in, but place us on slippery slopes from which we can't extract ourselves. For this reason we should pray for strength to resist temptation, and not underestimate the power of small sins, because they don’t stand on their own... they are part and parcel of the much larger sins.
“For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.”
Romans 6:14 ESV
Small sins are the tips of the far greater icebergs that lie just beneath the surface, and by not realizing this our ship of righteousness can be lost... just as the Titanic was lost. So many souls have suffered, and great men of faith have fallen, after tripping over what appeared to be trivial sin. Although we try to convince ourselves otherwise, a small sin is a sin nonetheless.
“For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it.”
James 2:10 ESV
So remember this when you hear Satan’s voice in your ear. Keep in mind that regardless of what he tells you, there is no insignificant sin... each one separates you from God.
Prayer:
Father, thank you for our spirit’s ability to discern evil, and to speak to our minds when temptation lures us towards sin. We especially thank you when Satan is trying to convince us to commit the “small“ sins that he makes seem so innocent, yet still carry within them the penalty of sin. Strengthen us Lord, and let your Holy Spirit bring scriptures to mind so that we can use them to defend ourselves against his urging. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you our God to whom all sin is unacceptable, and who desires us to be perfect in our faith, and righteousness... without blemish. We praise you for your mercy, grace, and for your Son Jesus who heals the wounds of our sin, and conquers the death that all sin brings. You are mighty, and without equal Lord. You have conquered our sin, and death, through Jesus, and lift us above temptation with the power that is in your Word. Help us to search out your Word for our salvation, and dress us in its armor as we walk through the world. Teach us that no sin resides in you, and that if we are to be with you then no sin can be in us. Give us escape from sin, and hold us close to your breast Father. Lead us from temptation, and deliver us from evil Lord. Have mercy on us, and pour your grace over us, so that we will be pleasing to you, and dine at your table forevermore.
“Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.”
Romans 6:13 ESV
Rich Forbes