The Sweet Allure Of Sin
The Sweet Allure Of Sin
“When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.” – Genesis 3:6
Ah, sin. It’s vile. It’s evil. It’s destructive. It’s…so…attractive.
When satan tempted Eve in the garden, she looks at the forbidden fruit and it seemed good to her.
Good for Food – Eve saw the fruit as beneficial for her. It didn’t look poisonous or rotten. It looked good for food. So often when we face temptation it can look good for us at least in some ways. Of course, Eve didn’t think about how the fruit would be bad for her, destroying her relationship with God and causing her death. She only saw what appeared good.
Pleasing to the Eye – Sin not only can look good for us, but it looks good to us. It’s desirous. It’s the slick sports car, the beautiful woman, the admiration of others, or looking better than everyone else. The sins we fall into rarely look repulsive to us.
Desirable for Gaining Wisdom – Sin can also seem like the smart thing to do. The wisdom of the world is foolishness to God and the wisdom of God foolishness to the world. The world is constantly telling us how wise we are in our sin and we are all experts at rationalizing our sins.
Sin can look good to us. That’s why it’s tempting. However, the truth is that it is destructive, vile, foolish, and leads to death.
After Eve and then Adam disobeyed God, God came to visit with them.
They tried to hide, but they couldn’t. God knew and they were punished for their sin by being kicked out of the Garden of Eden, However, even in their punishment, we already see God’s mercy. He could have just destroyed them. Instead, He let them live and even clothed them.
It is also during the issuing of the punishments that we first hear God’s promise of Jesus, our savior. Immediately, after the sin, God is already showing His great mercy and grace to not only not punish them to the full extent they deserved, but promise to provide a way to be forgiven of the sin and, once again, restore their relationship with Him so they (and we) can live in His presence.
So it is with us.
When we give in to temptation and sin, God is right there drawing us to repentance and offering us forgiveness through Jesus, showing us His great mercy and grace.
Heavenly Father,
I admit that I have looked at sin and thought it looked good. I have given into temptation and sinned against you, but I am sorry. Please forgive me and please renew me to see sin for what it truly is, destructive, repulsive, foolish, and deadly.
Amen.
In Christ’s Service,
Pastor Kurt
