THE EMISSARIES OF WRONG DOING.
SOURCE: res.cloudinary.com
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses,
let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.
And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for. Hebrews 12:1 (NIV)
There are things that may not really be sinful in themselves; but, they bring you too close to the arena of sin. These are things that tend to make sin look less sinful and they wet your appetite for sin. They are emissaries of sin and they come craving your indulgence, telling you that err is human.
These are very subtle strategies the enemy employs, as he lies in wait to drown your glory. These are things you should guard against, if you truly seek God’s honour, immortality and eternal bliss. They are weights that press against your devotion and service to God. They come to strip you of the proof you have for an acceptable service. They are things that border on your self styled inclinations; things you are apt to doing, that are obviously at variance with God’s setting for your life.
You may very well hide under the awful excuse that they are really not wrong in themselves; but, the underlying truth is that they usher you into erroneous paths that sets your whole being aflame against divinely appointed codes and conduct for living.
Saul King of Israel was a “people” kind of a person. You may be wondering what the problem is with that; after all the Bible in Acts 24:16 talks of having a conscience void of offence towards God and toward men. The truth is that you can become too conscious of the commendation from men that you lose consciousness of God’s demand for your life. These are weights in themselves that lead to the corridor of sin.
Our text passage advocates a weight loss; for you to lay all such aside: When Saul returned from his mission against the Amalekites; he gave the people’s wish as an excuse for not obeying God fully. When Samuel pronounced God’s judgment against him; all he was after was for Samuel to soft pedal and honour him before the elders of his people (1 Samuel 15:30). People again!
Beware of those traits in your life that inhibit your zeal for God and takes you off the speed lane on the highway of holiness. No matter how you try to cover up with Scriptural quotations, you will one day end up being a victim: Scriptures warn for you to lay them aside.
Associations that don’t look sinful, but they are eating deep into your spirituality. Prayer partners that give you avenue for gossip, pass mark you give yourself that makes for regression on the path of goodness: These are things that may not be evil in themselves, but they are weights and the Bible advocates a weight loss. They have the appearance of evil and the Bible says for us to
“abstain from all appearance of evil” (1 Thessalonians 5:22).