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Not
for the Showcase!
One
clear Spring day… a young boy was playing outside in
his yard when he was
bitten by a deadly snake that had
crawled out from under a woodpile. The boy
was
soon unable to breathe and lost consciousness.
By the time he arrived at the emergency room of the
local hospital, he had succumbed to the deadly
toxins.
The parents were told that their only
son... was dead.
Now
just imagine, his father taking this same snake to a
taxidermist and having it stuffed and mounted upon a
pedestal; setting diamonds for its eyes, replacing
many
of its scales with emeralds and rubies and other precious
stones and placing it on display in his home, behind a
glass case, against a background of red velvet
for all his guests to see and admire. He might
remark, “Come, let me show you the snake that has
killed my son! Look at its exquisite
markings; observe its elegant features. Notice
the coiled position – the deadly fangs poised to
strike! Have you ever seen a more beautiful
specimen?”
Could
any of us comprehend doing such a thing? Yet
WE do the very SAME
thing when we "showcase"
SIN
in our OWN lives - SIN that
caused the death of GOD’S only Son! Too often, we
look upon SIN as something glamorous
and appealing; something to be enjoyed and admired;
when in reality…behind the mask, it is terribly
hideous and extremely lethal!
Instead
of "showcasing" SIN in our lives, we need to
shun it! We
need to recognize it for what it is: despicable,
deadly, and causing the death of God’s
Son on the cross.
It is ONLY in the shadow of the cross of Christ
that we understand the
horrible nature of SIN.
For it was because of SIN that Jesus
endured a cruel, torturous death by crucifixion.
He “bore our sins in His own body on the
tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for
righteousness" (1 Peter 2:24).
The
cross of Christ shows us how truly
terrible SIN is, but it also reveals the
magnitude of God’s LOVE!
"But God demonstrates His own love toward
us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died
for us" (Romans 5:8).
On the cross, Jesus paid the price for the
redemption of our sins: "In Him we have
redemption through His BLOOD, the forgiveness of sins,
according to the riches of His grace" (Ephesians
1:7).
In
order to accept Jesus’ offer of redemption... we
must place our faith
in Him (Acts 16:31), repent
of our sins (2 Corinthians 7:9-10), confess
Jesus before men (Romans
10:9-10), and be baptized
(immersed) so that our sins can be washed away
by His BLOOD (Acts 2:38; 22:16).
Then, as long as we CONTINUE to walk “in the
light” of His Word, His blood will CONTINUE to
cleanse us from our sin (1 John 1:7).
Sin
is not for SHOW;
it is for SHAME!
But
thanks be to God for the
salvation from SIN that is found in Jesus Christ!
God bless you.
David A. Sargent
/ W.T.
Allison /
M.
Eddlemon
Church of Christ at Creekwood
1901 Schillinger Rd. S.
Mobile, Alabama 36695
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