THEME: CONSEQUENCES OF SIN
MEMORISE:
The wicked man travaileth with pain all his days, and the number of years is hidden to the oppressor.
Job 15:20
READ: Genesis 3:8-19
8 And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.
9 And the LORD God called umo Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.
11 And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?
12 And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.
13 And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.
14 And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the fleld; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:
15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
16 Umo the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.
17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;
18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the fleld;
19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return umo the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Judges 19, Jeremiah 51:59-52:11
MESSAGE
Sin can bring unimaginable consequences upon the sinner. Some years ago, I visited the maximum security prison at Kirikiri, Lagos, where I met a man who had been condemned to death. For 27 years, he had waited for the day the executioner would come for his head. While we discussed, I trembled at the repercussion of sin. He said to me, ''Even if I am released now, where do I start from, having wasted 27 years of my life?'' Do you expect such a man to be joyful during all that period of waiting? No way! He must have been sad for 27 years! Psalm 16:4 says,
''Their sorrows shall be multiplied that hasten after another god: their drink offerings of blood will I not offer, nor take up their names into my lips.''
According to this scripture, sin and sorrow go hand in hand. If you are living in sin, you cannot be separated from sorrow. If you enjoy sinning, you will be compelled to enjoy sorrow as well. If you are always sorrowful, examine your ways: it is possible your life of sorrow is the product of a sinful life.
Similarly, sin is linked with pain, struggle and tears. Job 15:20 says,
"The wicked man travaileth with pain all his days, and the number of years is hidden to the oppressor.''
This scripture simply means that if you sin and continue in it, get ready to suffer for a long time, possibly throughout life. These repercussions of sin did not just start today; they have been there from the beginning. In today's Bible reading, after Adam and Eve sinned, the serpent was cursed above all other creatures and lost its legs. For the woman, the process of conception and childbirth became an issue of life and death, while the ground was cursed for man's sake. Since then, it has been a struggle for man to enter into his harvest. Before you take out your harvest from the fields, you have to sweat, suffer, weed out what you did not sow, and so on. Are you going through a lot of struggle, pain and tears over your efforts to move to the next level? First crosscheck your life to find out if these are caused by sin. If there is sin, confess it to God, ask for forgiveness and beat a fast retreat. Follow after the path of righteousness, because righteousness will ensure sorrow stays far from your life.
PRAYER POINT:
Father, in any way I have brought sorrow into my life because of sin, have mercy on me and deliver me today.
AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE
HYMN 11:
I HAVE DECIDED TO FOLLOW JESUS
1. I have decided to follow Jesus;
I have decided to follow Jesus;
I have decided to follow Jesus;
No turning back, no turning back.
2. Though none go with me, I still will follow;
Though none go with me, I still will follow;
Though none go with me, I still will follow
No turning back, no turning back.
3. My cross I’ll carry, till I see Jesus;
My cross I’ll carry, till I see Jesus;
My cross I’ll carry, till I see Jesus;
No turning back, no turning back.
4. The world behind me, the cross before me;
The world behind me, the cross before me;
The world behind me, the cross before me;
No turning back, no turning back.
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