Feb 5, 2016
Avoid the Pitfalls
Proverbs 5:1-2
My son, be attentive to my wisdom [godly wisdom learned by costly experience], Incline your ear to my understanding;
That you may exercise discrimination and discretion (good judgment),
And your lips may reserve knowledge and answer wisely [to temptation].
Matthew Henry concise commentary
Verses 1-14 Solomon cautions all young men, as his children, to abstain from fleshly lusts. Some, by the adulterous woman, here understand idolatry, false doctrine, which tends to lead astray men's minds and manners; but the direct view is to warn against seventh-commandment sins. Often these have been, and still are, Satan's method of drawing men from the worship of God into false religion. Consider how fatal the consequences; how bitter the fruit! Take it any way, it wounds. It leads to the torments of hell. The direct tendency of this sin is to the destruction of body and soul. We must carefully avoid every thing which may be a step towards it. Those who would be kept from harm, must keep out of harm's way. If we thrust ourselves into temptation we mock God when we pray, Lead us not into temptation. How many mischiefs attend this sin! It blasts the reputation; it wastes time; it ruins the estate; it is destructive to health; it will fill the mind with horror. Though thou art merry now, yet sooner or later it will bring sorrow. The convinced sinner reproaches himself, and makes no excuse for his folly. By the frequent acts of sin, the habits of it become rooted and confirmed. By a miracle of mercy true repentance may prevent the dreadful consequences of such sins; but this is not often; far more die as they have lived. What can express the case of the self-ruined sinner in the eternal world, enduring the remorse of his conscience!
Miyagi’s commentary
This chapter warns against committing sexual immorality. The wisdom of this chapter is to help a person avoid its pitfalls. It even spells out what will happen to a person who commits this sin. The sign is shouting Warning! Warning!
God is the author of sex. He created sex for the enjoyment between a man and his wife, so that they can reproduce and multiply. But the devil has so perverted sex that many, many people (both believers and non-believers) have fallen into this trap, only to suffer the devastating consequences. The devastating consequences of sexual immorality far outweighs its momentary pleasures. In fact, the damage is costly and irreversible. And usually, it starts with just one impure thought. The word says “as a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.” (Prov 23:7) So with that impure thought, it will eventually lead to impure action. So be careful what you allow to go into your mind.
Brothers, here is a word of caution. Stop looking at the women in church or in public. Many of them dress in such a way to attract men for the wrong reasons. They dress that way to draw attention to themselves. It is all about the flesh. They are putting themselves out there….as free meat. You don’t want free meat. You want a godly woman in your life. Wake up and smell the coffee! Avoid temptation. Run away...if you have to. Avoid the pitfalls and temptations at all cost.
Sisters, stop dressing scantily. You don’t need to show cleavage and legs. So get rid of the low cut blouses and mini skirts. If you are not in the business, stop advertising. Dress modestly and cultivate your inner beauty instead and let that radiate because that glorifies God. Your mini skirt will only glorify the flesh and satan.
Summary conclusion:
Never once has anyone said that committing this sin has made him a better person. But the opposite holds true. With this sin came many, many regrets, heartaches, loss, and grief. Avoid the pitfalls, people.
Psalm 51:10-13 AMP
10 Create in me a clean heart, O God,
And renew a right and steadfast spirit within me.
11 Do not cast me away from Your presence
And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of Your salvation
And sustain me with a willing spirit.
13 Then I will teach transgressors Your ways,
And sinners shall be converted and return to You.
Matthew Henry Concise commentary
Verses 7-15 Purge me with hyssop, with the blood of Christ applied to my soul by a lively faith, as the water of purification was sprinkled with a bunch of hyssop. The blood of Christ is called the blood of sprinkling, ( Hebrews 12:24 ) . If this blood of Christ, which cleanses from all sin, cleanse us from our sin, then we shall be clean indeed, ( Hebrews 10:2 ) . He asks not to be comforted, till he is first cleansed; if sin, the bitter root of sorrow, be taken away, he can pray in faith, Let me have a well-grounded peace, of thy creating, so that the bones broken by convictions may rejoice, may be comforted. Hide thy face from my sins; blot out all mine iniquities out of thy book; blot them out, as a cloud is blotted out and dispelled by the beams of the sun. And the believer desires renewal to holiness as much as the joy of salvation. David now saw, more than ever, what an unclean heart he had, and sadly laments it; but he sees it is not in his own power to amend it, and therefore begs God would create in him a clean heart. When the sinner feels this change is necessary, and reads the promise of God to that purpose, he begins to ask it. He knew he had by his sin grieved the Holy Spirit, and provoked him to withdraw. This he dreads more than anything. He prays that Divine comforts may be restored to him. When we give ourselves cause to doubt our interest in salvation, how can we expect the joy of it? This had made him weak; he prays, I am ready to fall, either into sin or into despair, therefore uphold me with thy Spirit. Thy Spirit is a free Spirit, a free Agent himself, working freely. And the more cheerful we are in our duty, the more constant we shall be to it. What is this but the liberty wherewith Christ makes his people free, which is contrasted with the yoke of bondage? ( Galatians 5:1 ) . It is the Spirit of adoption spoken to the heart. Those to whom God is the God of salvation, he will deliver from guilt; for the salvation he is the God of, is salvation from sin. We may therefore plead with him, Lord, thou art the God of my salvation, therefore deliver me from the dominion of sin. And when the lips are opened, what should they speak but the praises of God for his forgiving mercy?
Miyagi’s commentary
King David committed this sin. And he was broken over it and repented. AS a result, God restored him back to fellowship with Him. But there were many dreadful consequences that followed him thereafter. If you have committed this sin and is truly remorseful, and have repented, God has forgiven you and you are restored into fellowship with Him. But usually, God does not take away the consequences. There may be unpleasant consequences that you have to live with such as an unplanned pregnancy, STDs, and so forth, but know that God has forgiven you. If you haven’t repented yet… now is the time.
However, if you have not repented and are not remorseful and do wish to continue this sin, know that you are going in with eyes open and you have been forewarned. And God will deal with you accordingly. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
Summary conclusion:
The wisdom is to avoid the pitfalls of sexual immorality.
Foolishness is to plunge right in, even after this warning message.
When a person thinks he has arrived, he falls into the trap of complacency and the enemy puts the thought in him that he has made it. He is all good. If a person is out of fellowship with the Lord and with other brethren, he falls into that trap thinking he is all that. The Lord’s prayer says “Lead me not into temptation, but deliver me from evil.” The Holy Spirit is our counselor, and teacher. He knows our condition and when he sees a brother in that state of mind, he will deliberately lead him into temptation, to be tested and tried. Then, the temptation of the world...money, power, and pleasure will start to affect the appetites of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and this pride of life that says “I have arrived and made it.” It is foolish to conceive of self-righteousness, especially if you are in leadership. You will be tested and tried.
Faith in Jesus Christ must be tested. Anyone can say that he believes in God. But the genuineness of one’s faith will be tested. The devil already started this temptation in the garden of Eden. He already knows that women is the bait, the weapon of warfare. She can take down a man. So to avoid the pitfalls, one must be in constant daily discipline to train up and maintain his spirituality in Christ through prayer, meditation and study. “Deliver me from evil” is the way of the Word and the Holy Spirit. And his declaration “Yours is the kingdom that I choose by the power and glory” he is really saying “I belong to You, oh Lord and to no other God. He is making his allegiance to the Lord.
So as iron sharpens iron, ask the Lord to reveal to you a mature seasoned brother in Christ to keep you in check, to minimize the pitfalls. We are proposing two things to help you avoid the pitfalls of hell?
- daily due diligence of prayer, meditation, and study
- regular fellowship with a mature, seasoned believer
The big picture:
Brothers, keep your eyes looking up at Jesus and avoid looking at women.
Sisters, keep your bodies covered so you won't cause a brother to stumble. As mentioned earlier, if you are not in the business, don’t advertise.
The byword:
If you cannot control yourself, get a wife.
It is better to get a wife than to burn with passion.
Miyagi
No comments:
Post a Comment