Saturday, April 11, 2009
Forsake It
(Proverbs 28)
Easy money, effortless prosperity, instant gratification—these are the concepts that have brought our nation to its knees. Inherent with these concepts is an attitude of carelessness about sin. Some time ago, I spoke to a man who was involved in perpetrating a real estate scam. He justified his actions by claiming that his victims were “rich anyway.” In other words, character did not count as long as there was a dollar to be made.
What does the Bible say? “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper” (13). Apparent prosperity built upon sinfulness always dissipates, leaving poverty and misery in its wake. Nothing good can be built on a faulty foundation. (By the way, the man mentioned above has come to utter financial ruin. In addition, his marriage has dissolved.)
Rather than cover our sins, Christians should willingly confess and forsake them. Most of us are familiar with confession as mentioned in I John 1:9. But confession is only half of the equation. In order to receive God’s mercy, we must both confess and forsake our sin (13b). Confession can become almost mechanical; forsaking can not.
The word “forsake” literally means to “cast aside as worthless and unwanted.” It involves both an attitude and an action. The attitude of forsaking sin is abhorrence. The action of forsaking sin is refusal—an unwillingness to be involved in the sinful action again. Only when both confession and forsaking are real can mercy—and revival—be ours!
