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“For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me. Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good. Has then what is good become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, that it might appear sin, was producing death in me through what is good, so that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful.” (Romans 7.11-13).

Some things are just not nice; sin is one of them. In fact, nothing about sin is nice. Paul speaks of sin in the focus text as though it were a living entity, one with specific intent and personality. Sin’s modus operandi is well known. It sets up camp in anticipation of defeating its foe; this is the meaning of the phrase “taking occasion.” Sin deceives its victims. Like many forms of traps, sin has bait as well as a snare to entrap. It depends entirely upon deceit; without being able to conceal the ultimate fate of those who foolishly approach sin’s bait, it would have no victims. In other words, if the final destiny of those deceived by sin was viewable at the time of the temptation, far, far fewer victims would be captured by its snare. And as a final act of mockery against its victims and against God, sin slays all who dare to enter its trap. Today’s devotional will speak further of this modus operandi and why sin can never be trusted.

Satan is a liar (John 8.44) and therefore must not be trusted. He depends upon his craftiness as a means to win his sinister battles. He began his career by deceiving Eve (Genesis 3.1-9) and has never changed significantly from that ploy. At the heart of every temptation is his cold and calculating lie. “You will not surely die!” Never was there a bigger lie than this! His words stood in direct contradiction with the words of Almighty God. It almost seems that he would have been a bit ashamed to take God on, but not so with Satan. His brash behavior is but reflective of the inflated and unrealistic image that he has of himself. Timidity and shame are unknown in his arsenal. Broken promises are fundamental in all his operations.

Consider the fact that God needed to help man see the horrific character of sin and He did this through the law. Paul stated it this way: The law was given so that “…sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful.” Modern man can argue about the theories of punishment and whether or not it is a deterrent to crime/sin, but God’s intent was clear in the giving of the law; He was committed to helping mankind to see beyond Satan’s tricks and peer directly into truth. This truth he delivered by the scores of prophets, but that not without notice being taken by the devil. He even picked out one saint by name and attempted to taunt him to sin, even bringing an accusation against God in so doing (see the book of Job).

Hell is a real place prepared for the devil and his angels (see Matthew 25.41). It is a fit place for him because of his depraved nature and his despicable intent for all of humanity. In delivering the law and the ancillary truths associated with it, God revealed to man a chilling picture of the final results of sin; God made sin appear exceedingly sinful. The law was never intended to save man from sin, but it was given so that man could realize his hopelessness through a system that depended upon commandment keeping! As time wore on, discerning people came to see that apart from some other means, they had no hope!

Jesus was that other means; such is the thrust of the book of Romans! The gospel is THE power of God unto salvation.

Questions:

1. Why did God want to make sin appear exceedingly sinful?

2. How did God go about enabling man to see that there was no hope under the law?

3. Why must the devil depend on deceit in order to ensnare any one?

4. When was the gospel given (read Galatians 4.1-6)?

"Today's Little Lift" from Jim Bullington

Comfort in Isaiah II (12-14-10)