Landmines along the Christian Road
In a war-torn country the enemy plants landmines to trap civilians to massacre or maim. Even so, Christian walk for the citizens of the Kingdom is a battle against a formidable adversary. Unless we are extremely careful we will step on one of these booby traps of the devil, which may even blow up our whole life (1 Tim 3:7). A snare is a hidden device (Prov 1:17). Therefore we don’t realise it until we step on one. If we recognise these traps, it is easier to avoid and reroute our journey (Prov 22:5). Oh, how many Christians are so trapped!
Idolatry
The Lord has outrightly banned idolatrous practices. “You shall not serve their gods ; for that will be a snare to you” (Dt 7:16). But how can there be an escape from this snare when it is all around us? Sometimes when we see non-Christians prosper, especially when we are frustrated due to problems, there is a temptation to think they may be right. Once I visited a Christian home where a child was sick. She said, “I know it is the evil eye. I didn’t like the way the lady in the opposite house was staring at my child.” How easily such beliefs trip God’s children! Before we realise, more and more such heathenic beliefs take roots so deep in us that after some years it will be difficult to uproot them.
Especially in matters of marriage if we intermingle with the idolators they will become thorns and snares for us (Josh 23:12,13; Judg 2:3). We cannot live away from them. We can live with them and be friendly with them. We have to bring them to God’s light. But intimacy with them is dangerous. If we are in possession of images or idols, God says we must destroy them (Dt 7:25, 26). We should not adopt the pagan ways of worship to worship the living God (Dt 12:30-32). The “ephod” sounds Christian. But when Gideon made it and put it up in a common place for public viewing, it eventually led the people to idolatrous practices (Judg 8:27). Let us be cautious. Avoiding rahukalam (bad times) to pay the exam fees, being afraid of “bad omens” like seeing a single raven or hearing the hoot of an owl, beliefs concerning widows are all heathenic. Do not be afraid the way the heathen do. The Lord says, “Let Him be your fear, and let Him be your dread” (Isa 8:12,13). To escape this trap we must always keep the Lord before us like David (Psa 16:8) and not cast Him behind our backs like Jeroboam (1 Ki 14:9).
2. Promises
Careless words of pledge spoken without a second thought about the implications bring us under a bondage and snare (Prov 6:1-5; 22:26,27). The Bible considers the breaking of promises a sin and those who break promises as people not worthy of trust (Rom 1:31; 2 Tim 3:3/covenant-breakers, trucebreakers). Joshua fell for the trickery of the Gibeonites and made a covenant with them and kept it. When Saul out of zeal for the Israelites destroyed them, the Lord sent a famine (2 Sam 21:1,2). So the Lord takes promises seriously.
Before promising small or great things to anyone we need to contemplate on it for a season unless it is an emergency. It would be better to consult someone if need be. Husbands and wives should pull back from making big promises before consulting each other. Even with our children, before giving word we can tell them that we would pray about it and decide. Count the cost before giving word. It is pointless to worry after giving word, for it is not right for an upright man to swear and then change his mind (Psa 15:4). We should be careful in becoming surety for someone and make a fool of ourselves (Prov 17:18). In daily life we make such mistakes and worry. Instead we Landmines along the Christian Road should wait, think and arrive at a decision when we are not emotional, weighing the pros and cons. The expedient thing to do may be, for example, to help for a week and then continue if that’s not difficult; or promise a small amount and then increase if we can. Betrothal is not a covenant but marriage is. So enter marriage with a covenantal commitment.
If you have already given word but find yourself unable to fulfil it, the only way to escape from the snare is to go to the friend, humble yourself and beg him to release you from the pledge (Prov 6:1-5). That's why it is very important for us to regularly pray for wisdom in our words (Prov 18:7; 20:25).
3. Fear of Men
“The fear of man brings a snare. But whoever trusts in the Lord shall be safe” (Prov 29:25). Fear of men is like traffic jam along the Christian road. We get stuck and our progress is hindered. “Fear them not” is an oft-repeated phrase in the Bible to reassure us (Isa 51:7). The chief priests and the elders of the people missed the many blessings of God because they feared the people (Lk 22:2; 20:19). Our trust in the Lord must be absolute, irrespective of threatening forces.
How does fear of men become a snare? Once we start fearing what others will feel or think, the fear of the Lord takes the back seat. It is then that our focus shifts from what God thinks to what man thinks. When our actions are based on what people think we’ll be completely misled. A positive example: Jesus told Simon, “Fear not, from now on you will catch men” (Lk 5:10).
So Simon stood even the most intimidating of circumstances and refused to bow down to the commandment of even the council, not to speak at all nor teach in the Name of Jesus. He replied, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge” (Acts 4:19). Simon (reed) became Peter (rock). No wonder he was a successful soulwinner. Many have stepped on this trap and have become fruitless, paralysed by fear. If we let fear of men dominate our thinking we will be less than optimum in many areas of our lives. Instead, remind yourself of the indomitable force backing you, when fear creeps all over you. Be a Christian with a heart of lion. Conviction without courage is a paper boat. It takes you nowhere.
4. Love of Money
Those who set their hearts on becoming rich will “fall into a snare” (1 Tim 6:9). They cannot carry out the will of God because that will take them away from their riches. There is no one who would not desire a few more currency notes, but we must examine our hearts to find if a craving for more money is corroding us. Do we constantly keep thinking of ways to increase our income? Is that our obsession day and night?
If becoming rich is the directing force of our life, our thinking, planning, involving, everything will take a different direction. We will no doubt be worshipping, fellowshipping, working, even witnessing but we will miss the absolute will of God in our lives. The voice of God will become dull and indiscernible. So we fall into the “many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition.” The greed strays us away from the faith because we step out of the path to grab attractive pathway distractions. Finally we pierce ourselves through with many miseries, caught in the ragged jaws of the trap. Flee these things (1 Tim 6:11). “Better a dinner of herbs” (Prov 15:17). “Better is little” (Prov 16:8). “Better... humble spirit with the lowly” (Prov 16:19). “Better a dry morsel” (Prov 17:1). What do these Bible verses teach us? It is better to be on the average or even less-than-average side (Lk 6:20,21). The rich choke under the pressure of their riches. Avoid extravaganza and follow a simple and austere lifestyle. Live within your means aligning cash income with outflow. Don’t salivate looking at those amassing huge cash hoards. They are painted egg shells. They are silk worms that die of their wealth. Whereas poverty saves thousand times more men than it ruins.
5. Flattery
“A man who flatters his neighbour spreads a net for his feet” (Prov 29:5). There is difference between honest appreciation and flattery. Praise lovers cannot differentiate both and therefore fall into the flatterer’s net. Why is flattery a trap? Because it boosts our ego. Ego is pride and we know the end of it. We must guard ourselves from the trap learning to give all the glory to God. When people come to know that we love epithets they will shower praises on us.
Earlier there was an offer of doctorate for Rs. 50/- from certain Christian organisations. Now it has become still cheaper. It costs just three passport size photographs! And there’s a queue for it! At a time when we should be placing our crowns at the Lord’s feet, we are picking up crowns for our heads from the dust. At a time when we should decrease and He should increase, we want to increase and reduce Christ to a corner. How would John the Baptist or Paul have reacted to such offers? Job says, “...neither let me give flattering titles to man. For I don't know how to give flattering titles” (Job 32:21 KJV). Don't crave for eulogies. There is no faithfulness in the mouth of flatterers. They make you believe you are what you are not! (Psa 5:9). Paul never used flattery as a means to woo the hearts of his congregation (1 Thess 2:4,5).
Flattery of the opposite sex is downright dangerous (Prov 2:16; 6:24; 7:5,21). Finally, flattery is a trap because flatterers flatter you to your face and expose your true self behind your back (Prov 20:19). But true friends will correct you to your face. Truly, when flatterers meet, the devil goes to dinner! See Daniel 11:32 for the contrast between flatterers and the people who know their God.
6. Immorality
If women are virtuous, so much damage to men can be avoided. Solomon speaks of a cheeky woman who is “more bitter than death, whose heart is snares and nets, whose hands are fetters. “He who pleases God shall escape her, but the sinner shall be trapped by her” (Eccl 7:26). This wise man feels it is better to die than fall into her trap. He had experienced the misery of living after dying in her lap, and therefore admonishes us. In his Proverbs he writes that the evil genius would hunt for precious life (Prov 6:26). That’s why a wife warns her husband, “Make haste, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or a young stag” (SS 8:14). How can a man escape such Cleopatras? Not by sitting with her and trying to be good; nor by flitting around her like a grasshopper; but by fleeting away from her like a gazelle, inspite of her flattering tongue and seducive eyelids (Prov 6:24,25), before an arrow strikes his liver (Prov 7:23). There are today many Christians with jaundiced souls because of liver damage! Don’t become one of them.
Women also should not be bewitched by men with eyes full of adultery, who cannot cease from sin, beguiling unstable souls, the men who creep in unawares... turning the grace of God into asciviousness (2 Pet 2:14; Jude 4). The stigma of adultery will stick to you. Even in the hall of faith Rahab is mentioned as “the harlot Rahab!” So don't let men find you an easy woman. Torrid affairs end up cold. If you let your mind reason cogently, the end of such fooling around is agonizingly scandalous. Playboy lifestyle is ultimately unsatisfying. It does not build long-term intimate relationships, rather shatters the one you already enjoy with your spouse.
Be alert!
There are more traps described in the Bible. But God enlarges our path that our feet may not slip, and if that's not enough, He makes our feet like that of the surefooted deer to give us a dual advantage (2 Sam 22:33,34,37). After all this if we get caught in a trap by our carelessness, if we call Him, He breaks the fowler’s snare and plucks our feet out of the net (Psa 124:7; 25:15; 31:4). If we walk by the precepts of God, the Christian Highway is a computerised system; nothing can go wrong. Only those who oppose the truth will fall into the snare of the devil and be taken captive by him to do his will (2 Tim 2:26). Watch where you walk. “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
Surely He shall deliver him from the snare of the fowler” (Psa 91:1-3). Then at the omega of our lives we can turn back to see the road we have traversed and sing of the Amazing Grace—
Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come;
‘Twas grace that brought me safe thus far;
And grace will take me home!
The sins of the tongue are too numerous to enumerate. God’s promotions have largely passed by many because they have neglected to take their tongue seriously. It will do well to identify some sins of the tongue so as to effectively weed them out of our life. Let us wage an unrelenting war on the sins of the tongue. Hold your tongue, if necessary with your hand!
Gossip
It means trifling, often groundless rumour, usually of a personal, sensational or intimate nature. It can also mean a person who habitually talks about other people and their private affairs, especially in a disparaging way. What often happens is that we just talk about what we heard through someone and pass it on to a few more people. Then we come to know it was only one side of the story, more often the wrong side. Then it becomes impossible to proof-correct the passed on information. We have slandered someone wrongly and that’s the end of it. Backbiting may be bracketed within gossip for convenience. Should we pass on some vital information to someone concerned? Melody Green says, “Sharing anything about someone, when the act of sharing is not part of the solution to the person’s problem, is gossip.” “A gossip betrays confidence; so avoid a man who talks too much” (Prov 20:19). (See Prov 11:13; 16:28; 18:8; Lev 19:16; 2 Cor 12:20).
Dr. Lilian Stanley
13 Church Colony
Vellore 632006, India
+91 9843511943
lilianstanley@gmail.com
Blessing Youth Mission
13 Church Colony
Vellore 632006, India
+91-416-2242943, +91-416-2248943
hq@bymonline.org
www.bymonline.org
Click here for more options
To buy books written by Dr. Lilian Stanley, kindly reach to us in the follwing address
Blessing Literature Centre
21/11 West Coovam River Road,
Chintadripet,
Chennai 600 002, India.
+91-44-28450411, 8806270699
blc@bymonline.org
Landmines along the Christian Road
In a war-torn country the enemy plants landmines to trap civilians to massacre or maim. Even so, Christian walk for the citizens of the Kingdom is a battle against a formidable adversary. Unless we are extremely careful we will step on one of these booby traps of the devil, which may even blow up our whole life (1 Tim 3:7). A snare is a hidden device (Prov 1:17). Therefore we don’t realise it until we step on one. If we recognise these traps, it is easier to avoid and reroute our journey (Prov 22:5). Oh, how many Christians are so trapped!
Idolatry
The Lord has outrightly banned idolatrous practices. “You shall not serve their gods ; for that will be a snare to you” (Dt 7:16). But how can there be an escape from this snare when it is all around us? Sometimes when we see non-Christians prosper, especially when we are frustrated due to problems, there is a temptation to think they may be right. Once I visited a Christian home where a child was sick. She said, “I know it is the evil eye. I didn’t like the way the lady in the opposite house was staring at my child.” How easily such beliefs trip God’s children! Before we realise, more and more such heathenic beliefs take roots so deep in us that after some years it will be difficult to uproot them.
Especially in matters of marriage if we intermingle with the idolators they will become thorns and snares for us (Josh 23:12,13; Judg 2:3). We cannot live away from them. We can live with them and be friendly with them. We have to bring them to God’s light. But intimacy with them is dangerous. If we are in possession of images or idols, God says we must destroy them (Dt 7:25, 26). We should not adopt the pagan ways of worship to worship the living God (Dt 12:30-32). The “ephod” sounds Christian. But when Gideon made it and put it up in a common place for public viewing, it eventually led the people to idolatrous practices (Judg 8:27). Let us be cautious. Avoiding rahukalam (bad times) to pay the exam fees, being afraid of “bad omens” like seeing a single raven or hearing the hoot of an owl, beliefs concerning widows are all heathenic. Do not be afraid the way the heathen do. The Lord says, “Let Him be your fear, and let Him be your dread” (Isa 8:12,13). To escape this trap we must always keep the Lord before us like David (Psa 16:8) and not cast Him behind our backs like Jeroboam (1 Ki 14:9).
2. Promises
Careless words of pledge spoken without a second thought about the implications bring us under a bondage and snare (Prov 6:1-5; 22:26,27). The Bible considers the breaking of promises a sin and those who break promises as people not worthy of trust (Rom 1:31; 2 Tim 3:3/covenant-breakers, trucebreakers). Joshua fell for the trickery of the Gibeonites and made a covenant with them and kept it. When Saul out of zeal for the Israelites destroyed them, the Lord sent a famine (2 Sam 21:1,2). So the Lord takes promises seriously.
Before promising small or great things to anyone we need to contemplate on it for a season unless it is an emergency. It would be better to consult someone if need be. Husbands and wives should pull back from making big promises before consulting each other. Even with our children, before giving word we can tell them that we would pray about it and decide. Count the cost before giving word. It is pointless to worry after giving word, for it is not right for an upright man to swear and then change his mind (Psa 15:4). We should be careful in becoming surety for someone and make a fool of ourselves (Prov 17:18). In daily life we make such mistakes and worry. Instead we Landmines along the Christian Road should wait, think and arrive at a decision when we are not emotional, weighing the pros and cons. The expedient thing to do may be, for example, to help for a week and then continue if that’s not difficult; or promise a small amount and then increase if we can. Betrothal is not a covenant but marriage is. So enter marriage with a covenantal commitment.
If you have already given word but find yourself unable to fulfil it, the only way to escape from the snare is to go to the friend, humble yourself and beg him to release you from the pledge (Prov 6:1-5). That's why it is very important for us to regularly pray for wisdom in our words (Prov 18:7; 20:25).
3. Fear of Men
“The fear of man brings a snare. But whoever trusts in the Lord shall be safe” (Prov 29:25). Fear of men is like traffic jam along the Christian road. We get stuck and our progress is hindered. “Fear them not” is an oft-repeated phrase in the Bible to reassure us (Isa 51:7). The chief priests and the elders of the people missed the many blessings of God because they feared the people (Lk 22:2; 20:19). Our trust in the Lord must be absolute, irrespective of threatening forces.
How does fear of men become a snare? Once we start fearing what others will feel or think, the fear of the Lord takes the back seat. It is then that our focus shifts from what God thinks to what man thinks. When our actions are based on what people think we’ll be completely misled. A positive example: Jesus told Simon, “Fear not, from now on you will catch men” (Lk 5:10).
So Simon stood even the most intimidating of circumstances and refused to bow down to the commandment of even the council, not to speak at all nor teach in the Name of Jesus. He replied, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge” (Acts 4:19). Simon (reed) became Peter (rock). No wonder he was a successful soulwinner. Many have stepped on this trap and have become fruitless, paralysed by fear. If we let fear of men dominate our thinking we will be less than optimum in many areas of our lives. Instead, remind yourself of the indomitable force backing you, when fear creeps all over you. Be a Christian with a heart of lion. Conviction without courage is a paper boat. It takes you nowhere.
4. Love of Money
Those who set their hearts on becoming rich will “fall into a snare” (1 Tim 6:9). They cannot carry out the will of God because that will take them away from their riches. There is no one who would not desire a few more currency notes, but we must examine our hearts to find if a craving for more money is corroding us. Do we constantly keep thinking of ways to increase our income? Is that our obsession day and night?
If becoming rich is the directing force of our life, our thinking, planning, involving, everything will take a different direction. We will no doubt be worshipping, fellowshipping, working, even witnessing but we will miss the absolute will of God in our lives. The voice of God will become dull and indiscernible. So we fall into the “many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition.” The greed strays us away from the faith because we step out of the path to grab attractive pathway distractions. Finally we pierce ourselves through with many miseries, caught in the ragged jaws of the trap. Flee these things (1 Tim 6:11). “Better a dinner of herbs” (Prov 15:17). “Better is little” (Prov 16:8). “Better... humble spirit with the lowly” (Prov 16:19). “Better a dry morsel” (Prov 17:1). What do these Bible verses teach us? It is better to be on the average or even less-than-average side (Lk 6:20,21). The rich choke under the pressure of their riches. Avoid extravaganza and follow a simple and austere lifestyle. Live within your means aligning cash income with outflow. Don’t salivate looking at those amassing huge cash hoards. They are painted egg shells. They are silk worms that die of their wealth. Whereas poverty saves thousand times more men than it ruins.
5. Flattery
“A man who flatters his neighbour spreads a net for his feet” (Prov 29:5). There is difference between honest appreciation and flattery. Praise lovers cannot differentiate both and therefore fall into the flatterer’s net. Why is flattery a trap? Because it boosts our ego. Ego is pride and we know the end of it. We must guard ourselves from the trap learning to give all the glory to God. When people come to know that we love epithets they will shower praises on us.
Earlier there was an offer of doctorate for Rs. 50/- from certain Christian organisations. Now it has become still cheaper. It costs just three passport size photographs! And there’s a queue for it! At a time when we should be placing our crowns at the Lord’s feet, we are picking up crowns for our heads from the dust. At a time when we should decrease and He should increase, we want to increase and reduce Christ to a corner. How would John the Baptist or Paul have reacted to such offers? Job says, “...neither let me give flattering titles to man. For I don't know how to give flattering titles” (Job 32:21 KJV). Don't crave for eulogies. There is no faithfulness in the mouth of flatterers. They make you believe you are what you are not! (Psa 5:9). Paul never used flattery as a means to woo the hearts of his congregation (1 Thess 2:4,5).
Flattery of the opposite sex is downright dangerous (Prov 2:16; 6:24; 7:5,21). Finally, flattery is a trap because flatterers flatter you to your face and expose your true self behind your back (Prov 20:19). But true friends will correct you to your face. Truly, when flatterers meet, the devil goes to dinner! See Daniel 11:32 for the contrast between flatterers and the people who know their God.
6. Immorality
If women are virtuous, so much damage to men can be avoided. Solomon speaks of a cheeky woman who is “more bitter than death, whose heart is snares and nets, whose hands are fetters. “He who pleases God shall escape her, but the sinner shall be trapped by her” (Eccl 7:26). This wise man feels it is better to die than fall into her trap. He had experienced the misery of living after dying in her lap, and therefore admonishes us. In his Proverbs he writes that the evil genius would hunt for precious life (Prov 6:26). That’s why a wife warns her husband, “Make haste, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or a young stag” (SS 8:14). How can a man escape such Cleopatras? Not by sitting with her and trying to be good; nor by flitting around her like a grasshopper; but by fleeting away from her like a gazelle, inspite of her flattering tongue and seducive eyelids (Prov 6:24,25), before an arrow strikes his liver (Prov 7:23). There are today many Christians with jaundiced souls because of liver damage! Don’t become one of them.
Women also should not be bewitched by men with eyes full of adultery, who cannot cease from sin, beguiling unstable souls, the men who creep in unawares... turning the grace of God into asciviousness (2 Pet 2:14; Jude 4). The stigma of adultery will stick to you. Even in the hall of faith Rahab is mentioned as “the harlot Rahab!” So don't let men find you an easy woman. Torrid affairs end up cold. If you let your mind reason cogently, the end of such fooling around is agonizingly scandalous. Playboy lifestyle is ultimately unsatisfying. It does not build long-term intimate relationships, rather shatters the one you already enjoy with your spouse.
Be alert!
There are more traps described in the Bible. But God enlarges our path that our feet may not slip, and if that's not enough, He makes our feet like that of the surefooted deer to give us a dual advantage (2 Sam 22:33,34,37). After all this if we get caught in a trap by our carelessness, if we call Him, He breaks the fowler’s snare and plucks our feet out of the net (Psa 124:7; 25:15; 31:4). If we walk by the precepts of God, the Christian Highway is a computerised system; nothing can go wrong. Only those who oppose the truth will fall into the snare of the devil and be taken captive by him to do his will (2 Tim 2:26). Watch where you walk. “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
Surely He shall deliver him from the snare of the fowler” (Psa 91:1-3). Then at the omega of our lives we can turn back to see the road we have traversed and sing of the Amazing Grace—
Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come;
‘Twas grace that brought me safe thus far;
And grace will take me home!
The sins of the tongue are too numerous to enumerate. God’s promotions have largely passed by many because they have neglected to take their tongue seriously. It will do well to identify some sins of the tongue so as to effectively weed them out of our life. Let us wage an unrelenting war on the sins of the tongue. Hold your tongue, if necessary with your hand!
Gossip
It means trifling, often groundless rumour, usually of a personal, sensational or intimate nature. It can also mean a person who habitually talks about other people and their private affairs, especially in a disparaging way. What often happens is that we just talk about what we heard through someone and pass it on to a few more people. Then we come to know it was only one side of the story, more often the wrong side. Then it becomes impossible to proof-correct the passed on information. We have slandered someone wrongly and that’s the end of it. Backbiting may be bracketed within gossip for convenience. Should we pass on some vital information to someone concerned? Melody Green says, “Sharing anything about someone, when the act of sharing is not part of the solution to the person’s problem, is gossip.” “A gossip betrays confidence; so avoid a man who talks too much” (Prov 20:19). (See Prov 11:13; 16:28; 18:8; Lev 19:16; 2 Cor 12:20).
Dr. Lilian Stanley
13 Church Colony
Vellore 632006, India
+91 9843511943
lilianstanley@gmail.com
Blessing Youth Mission
13 Church Colony
Vellore 632006, India
+91-416-2242943, +91-416-2248943
hq@bymonline.org
www.bymonline.org
Click here for more options
To buy books written by Dr. Lilian Stanley, kindly reach to us in the follwing address
Blessing Literature Centre
21/11 West Coovam River Road,
Chintadripet,
Chennai 600 002, India.
+91-44-28450411, Mob:8806270699
blc@bymonline.org
