Stumbling Blocks that Bring About Sins
Many people would be surprised to find out what causes us to be tripped up and fall into sins. I believe a lot of us would think it is the pain and difficulties of life that lead us to sin. That can happen, but it is not the main cause. In fact, pain and troubles can lead us to turn to God and trust Him, so we do not sin as much. The big culprit that brings about sins in our life is the stumbling block of silver and gold and the pleasures of a good life. These things trip us up, because we think we are doing well. We are proud of ourselves, and we fail to follow the Lord. We do things our way, and the devil can always defeat us if we fight in our own power. This was God's message to Ezekiel. (Ezekiel 7:19) God was going to bring disaster on Jerusalem when the Babylonians surrounded the city and then destroyed it. They cut off all the food, so the people just threw their silver into the streets, and their gold seemed like something filthy, because they would not satisfy their appetites or fill their stomachs. He did it this way since their wealth was the stumbling block that brought about their iniquities. I pray we will all learn this lesson well, so we can live holy lives before the Lord.
It is nice to have plenty of money. Yes, it is better than being in poverty and being hungry and needy all the time. However, the love of money is the root cause of all kinds of evil. (I Timothy 6:10) When we want more and more money, we will do sinful things to get more of it. We will become uncaring toward others, and become greedy. We will trust in our money to get us satisfaction and happiness. This leads us from depending on the Lord to be our Source of all we need. Then, our flesh is tempted to have more and more pleasure when what God wants for us is to have His joy and peace. These are the only things that really satisfy. Therefore, we must always keep money and pleasure in its place. We must never start allowing them to be a stumbling block that brings about sins. Then, we can really focus on the Lord and live for Him, which is so satisfying in every way.
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Tomorrow, I intend to read Ezekiel 9-11.