Gospel: -
Caution for the Soul
Aby Kuruvilla
Caution is a word that immediately attracts our attention. In this present digital age, the need for exercising caution has become ever so important. An ignorant click here or there could make you susceptible to a plethora of cybercrimes. If we don’t take caution, we’ll end up incurring much loss.
This digital age also makes it easy to access a wide variety of entertainment in a few clicks. Parents try to exercise caution in deciding what their children watch or play in the digital world. But soon they realise their children have figured out how to bypass all guardrails.
Sugar-coated Poison
The digital world is tuned to attract the flesh. The flesh craves instant gratification and is never satisfied. The content we consume gets impressed in the heart and mind. Especially if the content is illicit, the heart and mind are damaged with long-lasting consequences. It is like poison sugar-coated.
The Bible cautions us, “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life” (Prov 4:23). Lord Jesus said, “For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies” (Matt 15:19). Yet, how often we find our hearts compromised to sin!
The flesh or our innate self is plagued by the disease of sin. The Bible shows us that sin is not something that we do because we are taught it, but something that we do by nature. “For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death” (Rom 7:5).
Freedom from Sin
Every sin has a consequence. ‘unto death’ solemnly reminds us of God’s standards in judging sin (Rom 6:23). They who die in their sins will be eternally separated from Him to a place of eternal suffering. Oh, we need freedom from the motions of sins that are leading us to destruction!
God in his love has provided for us deliverance in the Lord Jesus Christ. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).
Jesus died in our stead and paid the price of our sins. He rose again from the dead and is a surety of a victorious life to all those who believe in him. We who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ are freed from the power of sin and are enabled to live a victorious life with the help of His Spirit (Rom 6:18).
Greater Danger
Jesus said, “If ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins” (John 8:24). The danger that looms over our souls is far greater than any loss we can incur in this present life. It’s an eternal loss.
The caution we need to take is this – “To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts” (Heb 3:15). “For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Rom 10:10).
