Foolishness?
What would you think of a man who, instead of turning off the gas stove after cooking supper, merely blew out the flame?
Your estimation of his being a fool would be confirmed when he woke later, choking from the fumes, and instead of opening the window and turning off the gas, he got out a bottle of perfume and sprayed himself and the room.
Of course, the foolish idea of trying to cover the smell and overcome the poison of the gas with perfume wouldn’t work, and the next day a corpse would prove the hopelessness of the effort.
Before we condemn the man as a complete fool, however, we should examine some of our own reactions.
Do we try to COVER OUR SIN with EXCUSES?
What a fool!
Do we call SIN by another name?
Do we excuse it as an accident?
Do we excuse it as human nature?
Do we say it is only a “little” lie?
Or does “Everyone does it!” make it appear right?
Do we steal someone’s reputation by gossiping?
Do we retaliate, saying “he deserved it anyway”?
Do we dodge paying taxes?
Do we steal goods or time from our employer?
The list of ways to try to “cover” our sin is endless.
True, we might fool some PEOPLE
but we can NEVER fool GOD.
perfume
Trying to COVER our SIN works just as effectively as the perfume on the gas. Sometimes, it just might succeed in a “cover up” – that is, enough perfume might cover the smell of the gas – but the EFFECT will be the same.
Covered-over sin is still sin – and nothing can be hidden from God.
The EFFECT of sin – the RESULT of sin – NEVER varies.
Sin is sin, is sin, is sin, is sin . . .
called by any other name, it is still SIN!
Of course, for those who have been adopted into the family of God through faith in Christ, there IS a covering for sin. The blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin – a perfect cleansing which makes us “just-as-if-I’d” never sinned – but let us remember that applies to sin which has been acknowledged and repented of.
MEETING IN THE CLOUDS 
There’s nothing like a good long scriptural look in the mirror to drive us to the
shining radiant goodness of our one Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
‘Deliver us from evil’ Lord, and may He grant us eyes to see the true state of our souls, rather than the gilded version we’d prefer.
I too await that glorious meeting in the clouds, come Lord, come!
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We will never see perfection when we look into that mirror, but we SHOULD be able to see a closer and closer and closer resemblance to Christ. [Ephesians 4:13]
When we meet our Saviour face to face, we WILL BE LIKE HIM [1 John 3:2]
What a Saviour!!!
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How easy it is to see the foolishness in the lives of others, but it is so hard to see our own foolishness. The same can be said for sin. This is the exaxct idea that the Lord brought out when he said in Matt 7:3 “And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?”
My prayer is that the Lord would show all of us our sin and foolishness… just as you say trying to ignore or cover these only results in our eternal spiritual death (separation for God in lake of fire).
May the Lord bless
Rob
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We all do foolish things sometimes, but attempting to excuse our sin or to cover it up has to be the most foolish of all.
As Mr Anon says:
The sins we EXCUSE will return to ACCUSE.
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Interesting. I actually once did a survey on a bungalow which need re-building after just what you describe happened.
Apparently the old couple regularly blew out the gas, but one night there was huge explosion which literally blew off the roof!
Incredibly the couple survived virtually unharmed. There was big wrangle about whether the insurers should pay to rebuild the house, and eventually they did….but not before the siblings agreed it was best for their folks to be put into a care home!
Oh, and I did get the order for new materials.
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Fancy that!
I’d have to agree it was time for a care home. I know someone who is just starting to do some weird things – one of the concerns about getting old.
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Hi Angela,
Just a short while ago, I was reading another blog, and the topic was sin. One part of the blog said, “Sin is deceptive. It entices its victims with lies, lures them away from safety, and kills them.” Absolutely true! No matter how well disguised, sin is sin! Thanks be to God, through Christ Jesus, we have the remedy, the antidote for sin, which is the precious blood of Jesus Christ! Praise God!
Blessings to you,
Paulette
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AMEN!!!!!
What a wonderful Saviour!
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“Sin is sin, is sin, is sin, is sin . . .
called by any other name, it is still SIN!”
Amen.
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It surely is still sin – but the wonderful part?
That sin is completely wiped out – completely gone – as far as the east is from the west – when confessed and repented of. The blood of Jesus Christ cleanses from ALL such sin!
What a wonderful Saviour!
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