Last time we looked at the story of the Gibeonite deception found in Joshua 9. Today, we are going to look at this passage in relation to sin, with the Gibeonites representing the sin with which we might battle.
There are many sins in the world, from murder and adultery, to actions that lead to addiction. There is also the sin of not doing the good we ought to do.
“If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them” James 4.17.
Whatever the sins we battle with in life, we must remember…
Sin is Deceptive
“Each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desires and enticed” James 1.14.
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We may look at the things of the world and see that they may be good, enticing, and can bring pleasure. However, it is by these things that sin can creep in and bring trouble into our lives.
This is nothing new. We can look at the beginning of things as we know it in the book of Genesis. Adam and Eve were told they could eat of any of the plants and trees that were in the garden. They could even eat from the Tree of Life. The only tree they were not to eat of was the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. If they ate of that tree, they would surely die.
The enemy comes to them as a serpent and deceives them into thinking that it would benefit them to partake of the tree that was off limits.
“When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked” Genesis 3.6-7a.
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Eve saw that it was GOOD for food, PLEASING to the eye, and DESIRABLE for gaining wisdom, and ate some of the fruit. This action brought sin upon them and upon the world.
We may see things as being good, pleasing, and desirable. We might even think that a little taste won’t hurt. However, that drink, that pill, that video, that (fill in the blank), could lead us down a path to sin, to addiction, and to separation from friends, family, and God.
Are we staying attentive to the deceptiveness of sin?
Just a Thought…
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Please come back to read through the other posts or to hear more messages found on this website.
Have a blessed day!