-August 3, 2022-
Good morning, happy Wednesday,
“Catch us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the vines, for our vines have tender grapes.”
(Song of Solomon 2:15).
We all know how dangerous, destructive, and deadly sin is. All sin is an abomination to God. We are especially aware and on guard against the major sins. There is a list of what are called the Seven Deadly Sins: pride, greed, wrath, envy, gluttony, and sloth. But what about the others? Are they really any better? We often think in terms of some sins being little ones and somehow not as bad.
In our text it is the little foxes that spoil the vines. The bad habits we tolerate and allow to fester often lead to worse things. This is why it says, “Catch us the foxes. The little foxes that spoil the vines.” If we can deal the little sins, we can save ourselves big problems. May I suggest the Seven Little Sins that trip us up: lying, stealing, exaggerating, flattery, cheating, making excuses, and procrastinating. They don’t seem that bad, do they? If we think this way we are already in big trouble. They are just as vile as any other sin. Our tolerance level for the little sins is far greater than for sins like murder and adultery. Jesus died for all our sins.
Proverbs 6:10-11 tells us, “A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep—So shall your poverty come to you like a prowler, and your need like an armed man.” If we fail to deal with sin its infancy, we will have more problems with it in its maturity.
From the beginning in the Garden of Eden, man has sought to justify himself. In our society we have lost our sense of right and wrong. There are no absolutes anymore. As believers, our moral compass should be calibrated by the Word of God. Christians are often called “narrow minded,” meaning we are too strict, too conservative, too rigid. We will always be safe by obeying and applying the Word to our lives in the little things as well as the big things, yes in all things. Our sin tolerance level should be set at zero. We must answer to God, not to man. God’s standards are much higher than man’s.
Grape vines are very tender are are prone to damage. This speaks of our consciences as well. As soon as we start compromising, it leads to minimizing, and minimizing to justifying our sin. Things that once bothered us don’t seem quite as bad as they once were. To avoid bad habits we must create good ones, be self-controlled and disciplined, and say and do what is right and true. It is like drawing lines in the sand, we must redraw them if the tides of time have covered them over.
In sports, some penalties and fouls are considered more egregious, but all fouls and penalties are against the rules and count against the players. Sports often mirror life. All sins carry with them various consequences. God forgives us, but we often must bear the consequences for quite some time.
May the Lord help us not to tolerate sin, even small ones in our lives. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 11:31-32, “For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world.” Let us seek to please and honor the Lord by holding to our convictions and standing for and on God’s principles. God doesn’t change and neither do His standards and values.
Have a blessed day being on guard against the little sins just like the big ones, setting our sin tolerance level at zero. Stay safe and healthy.
In His unchanging truth,
Dean
Dean Allen's Daily Devotional 