One Leak Will Sink A Ship, So Don’t Be Lenient Toward SinParaugs

Consequences Of Being Soft On Sin 

There is no happy ending to Eli’s story. God’s judgment came to pass: He used a pagan army as His instrument of wrath to put Eli’s sons to death—along with thirty thousand Israelite soldiers. Then Eli collapsed and died when he heard news of the carnage 

By failing to act in accordance with love, by doing nothing to restrain or train his sons, Eli not only lost them but also brought God’s condemnation on himself.

It is the capture of the Ark that kills Eli; the shock, the realization of what he has allowed to happen; the way he has NOT taken responsibility. 

Eli’s ending is a sorry one – for a man who did love the LORD at one level, who did bring up Samuel and seeing him grow into a man of God who accepted the consequences of his actions and the rebukes God gave him. He knew what God wanted, the right thing to do. He just didn’t have the courage to do it!

Eli was essentially a weak man—a man who wouldn’t stand up against his sons. A man who chose the easy life, the soft option; a man who’d prefer to avoid conflict and keep the peace rather than rock the boat and make peace. 

Being intolerant of sin might make us unpopular— a risk Eli wasn’t prepared to take. The consequences were much greater than he could have known. 

Isn’t it interesting that cowardice has consequences as well as courage? We don’t know the consequences of our actions – but God does. God sees. And picking a side – his side; standing our ground – his ground; being as faithful as we know how has an impact through eternity even though we may not know it and see it on earth.

Sin is always destructive, but repentance is always constructive. Sin has an effect, not only on the individual, but on others as well.  Confession is the only thing that can bring us back into alignment with Jesus. Therefore, it is vital that that the leaks of sin are plugged through confession.

 Quote: One leak will sink a ship: and one sin will destroy a sinner. - John Bunyan

 

Prayer: Lord, knowing the consequences of sin, help me to plug the leaks in my life. Amen