Most Christians understand the concept of Good versus Evil. The story of Adam and Eve was one we easily grasped even in our early days of Sunday School.
The lesson was simple: You trust the serpent over God and you’re going to suffer. The image of Eve biting into that apple in defiance of her Maker is almost self-evident in its meaning.
For most of us Believers, the concept of avoiding “big sins” is elementary enough for us to grasp.
Adultery…Murder…Stealing…
Where we stumble is in believing that as long as we avoid the “big sins” we are good to go. When in fact it is the constant surrender to the “little sins” each day that most threatens to clog the gears of the thriving Godly life we are called to enjoy.
In truth, we constantly allow Eve’s Apple to ooze through the pores of our life in the form of a virtually unrecognizable slow-moving sauce. That is until the day we open up the door to our hearts and applesauce gushes out and we find ourselves in a deep ditch.
6 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 7 If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.”
Gen. 4:6-7
“Ruling over our sin” as commanded by God requires us to be on guard each and every moment of our lives.
This requires us to recognize there is danger in Graceland. That is the place in culture which insists we are to judge no-one, not even ourselves.
In this way grace no longer is a beautiful gift from God and one we can impart on others, but instead becomes an anesthetizing agent, making us numb to the pain of sin in our lives.
This puts us in a place where we cower from our responsibilities to one another to lovingly and humbly point out the “kick me” stickers which continue to pile up on our backs.
In this way, no one has our backs. We are all alone, abandoned by an overly ambitious and wrongfully taught principle of grace.
Most fatally, we deceive ourselves into inaction, each morning gazing into the mirror, chanting “I’m okay…wouldn’t change a thing.”
It’s all based on the gross misconception that God’s laws are some cruel restraint from joy, the punishing hand of an overbearing dictator. Rather, Moses came down the mountain with nurturing prescriptions for a better life for all of us. One in close union with God.
It’s as simple as reading and following the manufacturer’s directions.
Can we honestly look back at any point in our lives when we were drowning in sin and say to ourselves, “Now THAT was the good life”?
Does this mean we are to put on our Pharisee hats, sharpen our fingers to point at others and then flog ourselves daily in hatred of our faults?
No, of course not. That’s the enemy’s distortion and lies about a life obedient to God.
But, there is great wisdom in daily re-centering our lives around God’s instructions for a good life, and keeping a vigilant watch on those areas where we are inch-by-inch surrendering to sin.
The Bible teaches us we will be fighting off the ooze of applesauce the remainder of our lives. It is pressing around us and we must rule over it daily.
But it also teaches there is great joy in following His ways to the best of our abilities, and by this we can be assured a better life now…and forever.
Looking for more from Michael K Reynolds? You might also enjoy The Healing Power of Rain.
Michael K. Reynolds is a writer with more than two decades of experience in crafting fiction, non-fiction, journalism, copywriting and documentary production. He is represented by Janet Kobobel Grant of Books & Such Literary Agency. He is the author of a series of Irish historical novels published by B&H Publishing Group. These highly acclaimed books are available in bookstores and libraries across the nation and beyond.
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