Walking with the Wise #116: Good Sense

“A man is commended according to his good sense,

but one of twisted mind is despised.” 

—Proverbs 12:8 

The more that we continue in sin, the worse we become. God will try and get our attention in thousands of ways, some obvious, others subtle. Overtly, He will send sermons, testimonies, circumstances of life, etc. Subtly, He will have us see open Bibles, hear holiday greetings, the conversation with a coworker, a child’s question, a Scripture reference at a football game, etc. God’s ways are multitudinous. But one thing is for sure: if were to continue to reject God’s prompts, if we ignore His Word and reject His authority, He will give us over to what it is we want—our sin. And we will suffer the consequences for our sin. Paul captured this idea in his letter to the Romans when he wrote, 

“And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God's righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them”—Romans 1:28-32.

God gives us the ability to reason, and whenever we operate with common sense, we are commended, but whenever we continually give ourselves over to sin, we are despised. Does not our world teach that? Think about a man who makes good decisions that benefit not only him, but those around him. Is he not commended for such prudent behavior? But for those who give themselves over to sin, they hurt not only themselves in the long run, but all of those around them. Consider an alcoholic. If he continues to drink, he hurts himself by his behavior, but there comes a point in time when his behavior hurts others. What if he decides to drive after drinking? Is anyone going to be commended for that? Of course not!

God wants us to use our heads and do what He has directed us to do in His Word. Quit making a place for sin in your life! Don’t think that you can continue in sin and not suffer the consequences! God has made it so that all sin has a consequence! You may believe what you are doing in secret will not affect anyone else, but it does! And God will make it plain one day! Don’t hold on to it, confess it and repent!

O Father, do not allow us to hold on to our sin! Help us to despise it and to see it for what it is, rebellion in Your sight! May we behold once again Your Son on the cross, and may we confess and repent of our sin and then live in the new life Your Son’s resurrection made available to us. And may Your name receive glory because of it! Amen.