Beech Tree News Network

Pride touched Naaman, the Syrian general, and made him revolt at Elisha’s command to dip seven times in the Jordan River (II Kings 5:11-12).

 Self-Righteousness touched the Pharisee and blinded him to his own corruption and the publican’s virtues when they were praying in the Temple (Lk. 11:12).

 Worldly Ambitions touched the eyes of the young ruler and blacked out the possibility of an eternal crown because He refused to obey the Lord (Lk. 18:23).

 Love of This Present World touched the heart of Demas and led him away from Paul and a faithful life (II Tim. 4:10).

 Covetousness touched Balaam and blinded him to the tragedy of loving the wages of unrighteousness rather than pleasing the God of Heaven (II Pet. 2:15).

 Self-Will touched the vision of Saul and blinded him to the practice and consequence of presumption when he refused to slay the Amalekites (I Sam. 15:22).

 Enticement Of Women finally put out Samson’s eyes and sent him to grind in a Philistine mill (Judges 16).

 Human Traditions blinded Jerusalem so that she could not see her Christ but instead condemned Him to the cross (Mk. 7:7-9).

 Beware! “Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; but exhort one another daily, while it is called ‘Today,’ lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin” (Heb. 3:12, 13).

An anonymous source wrote the above short article. This person has done an excellent job of describing the harmful effects of sin in the lives of people in the Bible. Let us remember that sin was not a “joke,” “cute,” or “harmless fun” then, and it is not that way today! The Holy Spirit inspired Solomon to write, “Fools make a mock at sin...” (Prov. 14:9). Are we listening?

Take a good look at the sins listed above. Do these look familiar? Are we not fighting with these same issues today? Indeed, we are! “There is no new thing under the sun” (Ecc. 1:9)! Look again at the people listed above and see how their lives were harmed by sin. In like manner, let us understand that sin devastates and harms men today (Rom. 6:23; Jas. 1:14-15). Men sin daily and must face the harmful consequences (Rom. 6:23: Jas. 1:15)!

The sad part is that many of those who are in the midst of sin are the ones so blinded to it, that they don’t even know that they are in danger! How we need to wake up to the reality of sin (Rom. 13:11), get our lives right with God (Mk. 16:16), and then labor to help others who are in sin out of sin (Matt. 7:5).

Let us never become callous and unfeeling to sin and its consequences. Sadly, the world tries to get us to be this way! Sin blinds people to the spiritual reality around them, for sin results in spiritual death (Ezek. 18:4, 20; Jas. 1:14-15). Sin destroys people, and we need to make sure that the devices of Satan do not blind us. Yes, beware of sin’s blinding touch!

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You are invited to visit with the Caneyville church of Christ. Times of services: Sun.: 10:00 am, 10:45 am, 5:00 pm; Wed.: 7:00 pm. Website: http://caneyvillechurchofchrist.com Tune in to our radio program 101.5 FM at 5:30 am, Mon-Fri. Questions? Call: (270) 589-4167