Have you ever compromised yourself to "fit in"? Are you a Christian but hang out with non-Believers? Are you a business person who conducts business with little or no ethics? Do you have a weakness in your life but you participate in the very activities that cause you problems? When we place ourselves in situations where those around us are not striving to walk with God, all too often we are the ones who compromise our beliefs; not them. And when we do that, we crash and burn. We fall short.
Great people throughout history have placed themselves in situations where the temptations were too great. God gives us a path to follow through His Word, the Bible. When we stay on that path, we walk with Him and grow daily. When we stray from that path, we cut ourselves off from God. Men such as Hezekiah and Solomon were great leaders who walked with God. However, they each shared a weakness - that is, they knew what actions were required of them yet not having the will to do these things caused problems. They fell short and crashed.
Our short lived promises to God, walking with God part time and spending time with God only when convenient lead us off the path and into compromising situations. Compromises lead to temptations. Temptations lead to sin. Notice that the last two statements are in series. That is, temptation is not sin. However, acting on that temptation is sin. Jesus was tempted in the wilderness but He did not act on those temptations and He led a sinless life. That is why it is important when we know we have a weakness we should protect ourselves. Alcoholics should not go to bars and taverns with their friends. People recovering from drug addictions should develop a new circle of friends. People with sexual addictions should not go to clubs where sexual activities take place. There is nothing good that comes of being tempted on purpose. Resisting the temptation promotes pride in that we begin to believe we are strong enough to resist the temptations that led us astray before. Pride leads to downfall - crash and burn.
Mankind has accomplished great things but remains prone to personal crashes - and many times - we do not need much help. But, there is hope. God’s Word tells us that we have ALL sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God. God does not say that a ’few’ have fallen short. God does not say that only those living in a certain part of the world have fallen short. God does not say that those of any particular skin color have fallen short. God says we ALL have fallen short of His Glory. At one point in your life, you have crashed. We ALL have.
Even nations have crashed. Ezekiel described Egypt as a nation that took pride in its strength and beauty. These prideful traits led to Egypt’s ’crashing like a tree’. There is no permanence being apart from God. Like Egypt, we build obstructions between ourselves and God. We build walls with our weaknesses, pride, and sinful ways. But there is hope. God’s Grace can tear down those walls just as a wrecking ball does when it crashes into a building. The operator of the wrecking ball pulls the ball to a certain height and releases the ball. The natural action of gravity accelerates the ball. When the ball strikes the wall, the momentum of the heavy mass is transferred to the wall and the wall is not strong enough to resist such a force. The wall falls down. It crashes. But it can be rebuilt!
Are we any different? The sins of our lives build the walls. God sent Jesus so that the world would not be condemned but could be saved through Him! Jesus is God. The deity of Jesus cannot be denied. Jesus was not "just another prophet". Jesus was not "just another teacher". Jesus can be your personal Savior. Jesus can rebuild your life through Him. Jesus stands ready to help you. Jesus awaits your turning to Him so that He can help you reconstruct your life. We ALL have sinned and fall short of His Glory but none of us have to crash and burn. He waits patiently so that ALL have time to come to Him. Are you ready to have your ’walls’ come crashing down and be rebuilt on a solid foundation? Ask Jesus to help you. He will. He loves to! Ask Jesus to come into your life today!
Papa Joe Mac's Commentary:
Have you ever compromised yourself to "fit in"? Are you a Christian but hang out with non-Believers? Are you a business person who conducts business with little or no ethics? Do you have a weakness in your life but you participate in the very activities that cause you problems? When we place ourselves in situations where those around us are not striving to walk with God, all too often we are the ones who compromise our beliefs; not them. And when we do that, we crash and burn. We fall short.
Great people throughout history have placed themselves in situations where the temptations were too great. God gives us a path to follow through His Word, the Bible. When we stay on that path, we walk with Him and grow daily. When we stray from that path, we cut ourselves off from God. Men such as Hezekiah and Solomon were great leaders who walked with God. However, they each shared a weakness - that is, they knew what actions were required of them yet not having the will to do these things caused problems. They fell short and crashed.
Our short lived promises to God, walking with God part time and spending time with God only when convenient lead us off the path and into compromising situations. Compromises lead to temptations. Temptations lead to sin. Notice that the last two statements are in series. That is, temptation is not sin. However, acting on that temptation is sin. Jesus was tempted in the wilderness but He did not act on those temptations and He led a sinless life. That is why it is important when we know we have a weakness we should protect ourselves. Alcoholics should not go to bars and taverns with their friends. People recovering from drug addictions should develop a new circle of friends. People with sexual addictions should not go to clubs where sexual activities take place. There is nothing good that comes of being tempted on purpose. Resisting the temptation promotes pride in that we begin to believe we are strong enough to resist the temptations that led us astray before. Pride leads to downfall - crash and burn.
Mankind has accomplished great things but remains prone to personal crashes - and many times - we do not need much help. But, there is hope. God’s Word tells us that we have ALL sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God. God does not say that a ’few’ have fallen short. God does not say that only those living in a certain part of the world have fallen short. God does not say that those of any particular skin color have fallen short. God says we ALL have fallen short of His Glory. At one point in your life, you have crashed. We ALL have.
Even nations have crashed. Ezekiel described Egypt as a nation that took pride in its strength and beauty. These prideful traits led to Egypt’s ’crashing like a tree’. There is no permanence being apart from God. Like Egypt, we build obstructions between ourselves and God. We build walls with our weaknesses, pride, and sinful ways. But there is hope. God’s Grace can tear down those walls just as a wrecking ball does when it crashes into a building. The operator of the wrecking ball pulls the ball to a certain height and releases the ball. The natural action of gravity accelerates the ball. When the ball strikes the wall, the momentum of the heavy mass is transferred to the wall and the wall is not strong enough to resist such a force. The wall falls down. It crashes. But it can be rebuilt!
Are we any different? The sins of our lives build the walls. God sent Jesus so that the world would not be condemned but could be saved through Him! Jesus is God. The deity of Jesus cannot be denied. Jesus was not "just another prophet". Jesus was not "just another teacher". Jesus can be your personal Savior. Jesus can rebuild your life through Him. Jesus stands ready to help you. Jesus awaits your turning to Him so that He can help you reconstruct your life. We ALL have sinned and fall short of His Glory but none of us have to crash and burn. He waits patiently so that ALL have time to come to Him. Are you ready to have your ’walls’ come crashing down and be rebuilt on a solid foundation? Ask Jesus to help you. He will. He loves to! Ask Jesus to come into your life today!