The Lure of Sin

The Lure of Sin

“My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not.”

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭1:10‬

Easy or not? 

Such a simple verse. One I wish I would’ve paid attention to many, many years ago. 

If someone or something entices you to sin, don’t consent to it. Wow. Makes it sound so easy. 

So return to that question at the beginning, easy or not?  Such a hard hard question to answer. If you can get alone for five minutes, ask yourself, is it easy for me not to sin?

For the believer, it may be deceiving unless they are completely honest with themselves. 

Side note here, a believer and a saved person are NOT one-in-the-same. Just because you believe IN God doesn’t make you saved. You must believe ON God and that he sent His son to die for your sins. You must turn from your sins and turn to God for your salvation and His Grace. 

Sorry for the rabbit trail. 

I think people who think they don’t sin, think it’s easy not to sin. Sin is crazy. It’s everywhere. Even with good and pure intentions, you will sin. 

You might not steal a car, or push someone over a cliff - but you may embellish a story, talk down to someone or even outright lie. You may even pass by someone in need of help. Yes, that is a sin. 

And there are so many sins, it’s crazy that if you do this or do that or don’t do this - it’s a sin. 

So why do we sin? What’s the lure?

A lure is something used to attract something else. 

Money is a lure, people who take it without earning it commit sin. Beyond that, there has to be a draw or a willingness to commit the sin. The lure is only the bait. The fish has to be hungry before he takes the bait. And the bait comes in so many different sizes and types. 

For many of us, the lure preys on our desires. More money, sex, fame, attention - it is different for all of us. Some have lower desires in some areas, while others have much greater desires in others. 

These desires are enhanced or diminished based on the input, learning and experiences we’ve had in our lives. I’ve gone into length about this in another devotion. 

I believe a young person who has had protected experiences, proper learning and guided input will have less desire in some areas based on that. If a young person is taught that money is earned and given for work completed and that any other means of getting money is punished - less sin would be committed as a result of money. In most cases. Don’t mistake this, this is such a broad brush, hopefully you get the simple meaning I was trying to convey. 

Sin can perpetuate over time and with unchecked behavior, learning, desires and input. As a result, sin can worsen over time. 

The good news, is it can lessen as well if we turn from it or learn to identify the lures and how to control our desires. 

God desires us to be in His Will. He gives people the freedom of choosing to be in His Will or to turn away from Him - but His desire is for us to always be with Him. We just have to choose. 

For some, God will make it obvious. For some, God will make it easy. For some, God will place trials and pain in your life. It will be different for everyone. The one thing that will always be the same......

Sin and salvation. It’s your choice which one you turn to. 

We are humans with a sin-nature. Born to have sin in our lives. We are also born to have eternal salvation. 

Even though WE WILL sin. The good news is that we can turn from those sins, turn to God, change our lives and live for Him. In doing this we will have eternal salvation in Heaven. 

No matter where you are in life, you can be saved from a life of sin and eternal torment. Don’t expect perfection. It’s not possible. But you can choose the path you walk. 

I’ve said it before. We will never be sinless, but we can always sin less. 

You have the power to choose. You can choose what you put into your life. You can choose what you do with your life. You can choose what you do with others in your life. 

I pray God is with you, always. 

“Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men.”

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭4:14‬

“But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day. The way of the wicked is as darkness: they know not at what they stumble.”

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭4:18-19‬