Sin is Crouching at Your Door...

You must master it, and God gives you the means to do so.

Sometimes I am guilty of being lazy. I don’t mean the just having a rest day lazy. I mean the knowing what needs to be done but not bothering to make the effort to do it kind of lazy.

Did you know the scriptures name laziness as a sin? Ouch! On the list also are jealousy, envy, and folly. There are, of course, the more obvious sins but it’s just hard to accept that my momentary flash of jealousy of my friend’s neat as a pin, fabulously decorated home is an actual sin.

Have you noticed that people don’t talk about sin much these days? The news is filled with reports of sinful deeds every day and that word is not used. Folks wonder out loud how people can do such awful things.

“Remember, everyone is born with a propensity to sin.” So I was reminded by a pastor I spoke with recently. It all started with that little forbidden fruit incident with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. They let their guard down and went ahead and ate the fruit. The result is, now everyone is born with a heart leaning toward sinfulness and needing a Redeemer. Sin is not so much about our behavior. It is more a matter of the condition of our hearts. I won’t mention names, but I have a grandchild who loves to find the opportunity to crouch behind the wall in a doorway in order to jump up and surprise (umm, scare?) me when I come through. The higher I jump and the louder I whoop, the more satisfying it is for this little jester. Though I try to stay on my guard and on the alert for the impending disturbance, I still seem to get surprised quite often. And though I look for my own chances to be the croucher in this game, I haven’t had much success.

Genesis 4 informs us that it is not only crouching grandchildren we need to anticipate. Let’s look at verses 3 through 7.

“So it came about in the course of time that Cain brought an offering to the Lord of the fruit of the ground. Abel, on his part also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and for his offering; but for Cain and for his offering He had no regard. So Cain became very angry and his countenance fell. Then the Lord said to Cain, ‘Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it.’” (NASB)

Sin’s desire is to capture us, to enslave us. Sin lies in wait to take advantage of our weaknesses. Sin damages our relationship with God. It interferes with our healthy relationships with others. Sin has the power to deceive us. In case you didn’t ever read this story, Cain did not obey God, he did not “do well”. Cain let his jealousy and anger grow and he ended up committed the sin of murdering his brother, Abel.

Look what God said, “…but you must master it.” It seems that God expects us to be able to overcome sin, with His help, of course. It’s a simple example, but in the case of my friend and her great home, the sin of jealousy was crouching at the door of my heart. It could have damaged our relationship. I had to make a choice. I was able to capture my thoughts, compliment her sincerely and rejoice with her in her accomplishments. (And thank God for the lovely home He has given me!) That is what is meant by doing well and lifting your countenance. The path to stopping sin in it’s tracks and overcoming it.

Sin is a big deal. Sins, whether we consider them big or small, always come with regretful consequences. Sin is the real explanation for people’s awful actions. However, there is hope. Sin is a problem for which God is our only hope. Jesus, God’s Son, our Redeemer, paid the price for everyone’s sin when He died on the Cross.

I share David’s plea to our Father in Psalm 19:12 & 13.

“None of us can see our own errors; deliver me, Lord from hidden faults! Keep me safe, also, from willful sins; don't let them rule over me. Then I shall be perfect and free from the evil of sin.” I am not advocating that it would be right to begin mentioning everyone’s sins. Let’s pray for an awareness of our own sin, in our own hearts. Let us recognize that sin with deep sorrow and genuine repentance. Let’s work at developing a zeal for holiness in our personal lives. Let’s stay attentive to whatever sin is crouching in our path, do well and lift our countenance up to the One who loves us and is our hope for salvation and redemption. Love you all! May God’s presence give you great comfort today. Watch out for those doorways! Romans 3:23; 6:23 Galatians 5:19-21 Mark 7:20-23 Colossians 3:5-6