So my son Isaac loves chips. His Grammy got him hooked on Pringles – Extreme Dill Pickle. Unfortunately, it’s one of my favorites too. But that’s beside the point. If you’ve ever spent time around Isaac, you will know that chips are one of his favorite snacks…he can sniff them out in your home – beware! The Easter Bunnies (aka “Isaac’s grandmas”) both got him a can of pickle-chips for Easter. Each day we ration out some chips for Isaac to have (his mean mommy won’t buy them because she will eat them!) This morning, Isaac asked if he could have a chip at breakfast. I told him “No, we’ll wait and have chips at lunch.” He wasn’t too happy with my answer, but I reinforced it with, “we can have more with our lunch than just the one right now.”He went on to play and I cleaned up the kitchen. After some time had passed, Isaac comes bounding into the kitchen trying to divert my attention with overzealous remarks, suggestions about what I should be doing and trying to get me focused on Eva. He then left to go play at his newly built fort in the foyer. When that sequence repeated for the third time…I got suspicious. I followed him (against his will) to see what else was in his fort. Can you guess? The can of Extreme Dill Pickle Pringles…We had a talk about disobedience and the resulting consequence…no pickle-chips for the next two days.
This got me thinking about the sermon this past Sunday. Pastor R was teaching from Colossians 3, specifically pointing out the command in verse 5: “Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.” These are the type of sins that I and others do “in the dark”. We need to sneak around, and we try not to get caught. Like Isaac, we may try to redirect God’s attention or those around us to somewhere or someone else and away from our sin. And we might get away with it for awhile - like Isaac we may get to stuff in one or two chips. But unlike me, it doesn’t take God long to find out what we’re doing. And there are always consequences to our sin.
Yet God’s plan always has so much more for us. I love my son. I want to give him good things. I wanted to share pickle-chips with him at lunchtime (more than one or two!). But he didn’t want to wait. How often do I not trust in the love the Father has for me? How often do I run ahead in these types of sins or others because I cannot wait for the full measure of goodness that He has for me? While we might classify the chip eating much different than the sins listed in Colossians, the bottom line is we are God’s children and our lust, selfishness, impatience and independence is no different than sneaking away with little treat. Both offenses result in ruining the greater reward God holds for us.
In the specific area of sexual sins, God wants the very best for us – a fulfilling marriage, a relationship with our spouse that is free from regret, mistrust, guilt, or false expectations. Refuse to believe the “deceptive philosophy” (Colossians 2:8) of our time that is wrapped up in the old Pringles tagline, “Once pop you can’t stop.” You can stop! You can die to your sin! Christ’s death and resurrection gives us the power! Choose to live in freedom and fullness!
For He (God) has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:13-14
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