Joshua 24:15 And if it is evil in your eyes to serve
the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers
served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose
land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
To help us understand sin, God gives a story depicting an
event that perfectly describes sin for us. It is the events surrounding the
lives of Adam and Eve (Genesis 3). The focal point of this story is the
questioning of God’s Word. The sin was not committed in the questioning or
discussion about God’s command. The sin was in the action taken as related to
God’s prohibition of eating the forbidden truth. Adam and Eve wrestled with the
questions brought to them by Satan. Their engaging Satan in the discussion
about what should and should not be eaten was not the sin.
Often times we are confronted with a choice that brings a
question to mind about God’s Word. Back and forth we go in our minds about
which decision should be made. We ask ourselves what God meant or what he
prohibits us from doing. The questioning and the struggle are not sin. We must
engage in this debate to find the true course of action. Unlike Adam and Eve,
we need to invite God into the debate. One of their mistakes was to engage in
this discussion between themselves and Satan without allowing God into the
decision process.
They both knew what God had said. Satan knew what God
said. What Satan did was played on their freedom to choose between the right
and the wrong way to obey God. Satan denied God was truthful to them. He caused
them to question God’s goodness in this prohibition. He opened the door to
doubt and led them to act upon their doubts about God.
Sin is acting without faith, living in disobedience to
God’s will for our lives. It can be a subtle move from faith into doubt and
disobedience. The best defense against Satan is to invite God into the decision
process. That will guarantee the right decision is made and sin is defeated.
