Fools Make A Mock Of Sin

The night was young, and Jim was celebrating.  He had just turned eighteen, and it was a day he had long looked forward to.  Jim had always been rowdy, and his speech was known for its braggadocio.  He had bragged of his many escapades.  And tonight was to be his biggest event yet.  He was 18 years old, and he could legally drink.  He got his lifetime friend, who was a little older, and they made plans to party in a way they had never done before.  They would revel in the right to drink legally.  They went from one tavern to another, proclaiming their new right.  Jim became “high” on drink.  He and his buddy hit the road for the next conquest.  Jim drove.  They approached a sharp right curve on a road they had traveled all their lives.  Something didn’t look right.  He couldn’t focus.  The curve was moving, and they didn’t quite make the turn.  Just a few seconds later, Jim was dead.

In the pride of his superior teenage wisdom, he didn’t think the rules applied to him.  He intended to have a good time, and nothing could go wrong.  In the words of Proverbs 14:9, “Fools make a mock of sin.”

Scripture sternly warns: “But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.  Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.  (James 1:14-15).  Jeremiah describes our human character and the consequences in chapter 17, verses 9-10.  “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?  I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.”

When a person decides to follow his fleshly desires, he becomes trapped in his sinful way.  “His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself, and he shall be holden with the cords of his sins.” (Proverbs 5:22).

A friend has, in the past, trapped wild hogs.  He made a big cage, spread straw and other items on the floor, and mixed grain that hogs like in the straw.  The hogs would come in because of their desire for the grain and then find that they could not get out.  That’s what sin does.  It lures.  It traps.  It brings its own punishment.

God, in love, gave warnings.  “Whoso despiseth the word shall be destroyed: but he that feareth the commandment shall be rewarded.” (Proverbs 13:13).  “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” (Proverbs 14:12).

Modern-day Christianity seems to forget that God is holy.  The word “holy” in the Bible means being sanctified or set apart.  God is the standard of holiness.  Holiness is the most praised of His attributes.  In heaven, the anthem of praise is “Holy, holy, holy, LORD God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.”  (Revelation 4:8).  His holiness inspired admiration, fear, and worship.  (See Isaiah 6:1-5 and Exodus 20:18-21).  Today’s Christendom wants to emphasize God’s love and minimize His holiness.  But while God is a God of love and is characterized by “God is love” (1 John 4:8), the same book teaches “God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.” (1 John 1:5).

For believers to be holy means to be set apart to God and set apart from the world.  God hates sin.  Sin separates us from God.  (Isaiah 59:2).  Sin blinds us to the truth.  (1 John 2:11).  Sin enslaves.  (Romans 6:14-18).  Sin condemns to hell.  (John 3:18-20).  Scripture commanded us to come out from among them (sin, worldliness, and sinful people) and be separate.  (2 Corinthians 6:16-18).  There should be a distinct, identifiable difference between Christians and unbelievers.  1 Peter 1:16 commands, “Be ye holy; for I am holy.”

Don’t make light of sin, whether you are an unbeliever or a believer.  Don’t mock sin.  Don’t joke about your sin.  Sin is sin and will condemn the unbeliever to hell.  Your most urgent need is to repent and trust Jesus as your Savior.  For the Christian, sin ruins your testimony and brings reproach to the name of God.   You need to confess and forsake your sin.  (Proverbs  28:13).  Then present yourself as a living sacrifice unto God.  (Romans 12:1).