11 If they say, “Come with us, let us lie in wait for blood;
let us ambush the innocent without reason;
12 like Sheol let us swallow them alive,
and whole, like those who go down to the pit;
13 we shall find all precious goods,
we shall fill our houses with plunder;
14 throw in your lot among us;
we will all have one purse”—
15 my son, do not walk in the way with them;
hold back your foot from their paths,
16 for their feet run to evil,
and they make haste to shed blood.
17 For in vain is a net spread
in the sight of any bird,
18 but these men lie in wait for their own blood;
they set an ambush for their own lives.
19 Such are the ways of everyone who is greedy for unjust gain;
it takes away the life of its possessors.1
Many of us go through our daily life seeing the goodness of man everywhere we go. That is indeed a splendid gift, but we must pair with that gift the discernment to realize that sometimes what may seem good can actually be very evil.
Solomon warns us in this passage to not be enticed by sinful people. Now I suppose most of us would agree that most people can easily avoid falling for the gross sins of theft and murder. The problem we face is that all sin is still sin before God’s watchful gaze.
We need to learn to hold back our feet from evil paths. One of the evils in our world that can cause even the strongest among us to fail is the sin of Greed. Greed can cause us to malign others, gossip, lust after material possessions, seek after unjust financial gain, justify a lazy walk before God, and the list could go on and on. Solomon is very clear, in Proverbs 1:19, this greedy attitude doesn’t secure anything, to the contrary, it takes away our very lives if we succumb to it.
Guard your hearts from all forms of sin and evil, especially the sin of Greed. Ask God to show you areas in which you have allowed greed to strip away His life giving grace in your life. Confess and repent of that greed, and walk in the path of righteousness today!
Meditate upon this!
Today's Devotional was contributed by Pastor Wayne Sullivan.
(If you are associated with Ephesus Baptist Church and would like to contribute a devotional to our blog, then send us a devotional of 350 words or less to pastor.ephesusnc@gmail.com)
Read more of our devotions and other articles at our Pastor's Blog!
If you would like to be added to our informational email list, contact us at office.ephesusnc@gmail.com.
Please let us know what you think about today's devotion, or how it has helped you grow spiritually by leaving us a comment on our Facebook page below this devotion. We look forward to hearing from you soon!
Please consider helping Ephesus Baptist Church advance the Gospel and the Kingdom of Christ by donating to the mission at ebcspringhope.com/give.
Avoid Evil and Greed At All Cost!
Weekly Proverbs for Godly Living!
Avoid Evil and Greed At All Cost!
Proverbs 1:10–19
10 My son, if sinners entice you,
do not consent.
11 If they say, “Come with us, let us lie in wait for blood;
let us ambush the innocent without reason;
12 like Sheol let us swallow them alive,
and whole, like those who go down to the pit;
13 we shall find all precious goods,
we shall fill our houses with plunder;
14 throw in your lot among us;
we will all have one purse”—
15 my son, do not walk in the way with them;
hold back your foot from their paths,
16 for their feet run to evil,
and they make haste to shed blood.
17 For in vain is a net spread
in the sight of any bird,
18 but these men lie in wait for their own blood;
they set an ambush for their own lives.
19 Such are the ways of everyone who is greedy for unjust gain;
it takes away the life of its possessors.1
Many of us go through our daily life seeing the goodness of man everywhere we go. That is indeed a splendid gift, but we must pair with that gift the discernment to realize that sometimes what may seem good can actually be very evil.
Solomon warns us in this passage to not be enticed by sinful people. Now I suppose most of us would agree that most people can easily avoid falling for the gross sins of theft and murder. The problem we face is that all sin is still sin before God’s watchful gaze.
We need to learn to hold back our feet from evil paths. One of the evils in our world that can cause even the strongest among us to fail is the sin of Greed. Greed can cause us to malign others, gossip, lust after material possessions, seek after unjust financial gain, justify a lazy walk before God, and the list could go on and on. Solomon is very clear, in Proverbs 1:19, this greedy attitude doesn’t secure anything, to the contrary, it takes away our very lives if we succumb to it.
Guard your hearts from all forms of sin and evil, especially the sin of Greed. Ask God to show you areas in which you have allowed greed to strip away His life giving grace in your life. Confess and repent of that greed, and walk in the path of righteousness today!
Meditate upon this!
Today's Devotional was contributed by Pastor Wayne Sullivan.
(If you are associated with Ephesus Baptist Church and would like to contribute a devotional to our blog, then send us a devotional of 350 words or less to pastor.ephesusnc@gmail.com)
Read more of our devotions and other articles at our Pastor's Blog!
If you would like to be added to our informational email list, contact us at office.ephesusnc@gmail.com.
Please let us know what you think about today's devotion, or how it has helped you grow spiritually by leaving us a comment on our Facebook page below this devotion. We look forward to hearing from you soon!
Please consider helping Ephesus Baptist Church advance the Gospel and the Kingdom of Christ by donating to the mission at ebcspringhope.com/give.
1 The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Proverbs 1:10-19.