Avoiding the Trap of Sin

Sin sneaks into our lives if we allow it to. Small choices can have great consequences.

Clearly concerned, she asked me, “And how does it get us?”

The question first reveals purity, but it also reveals a concern for how to avoid involvement with sin.

For her to understand more clearly, I used the natural elements we had around us as an illustration. Continuing down our path, we found by the side of a barbed-wire fence a stone post of considerable size; it was a heavy structure with flowers, bushes, and little trees growing around it. Over time these plants would become bigger than the post itself.

I remembered that a little farther down the path, we would find another post that had already been taken over little by little, almost unnoticed, by the vegetation that grew around it. I imagine that a post would not perceive that, despite its strength, it could be encompassed and destroyed by fragile plants. The post would have thought, “No problem. I am strong and big, and this small plant will do me no harm.”

So as a nearby tree grows bigger, the post does not notice at first; then the post starts enjoying the shade the tree provides. But the tree continues to grow, and it encircles the post with two branches that at first seem fragile but that in time intertwine and surround the post.

Still the post does not realize what is happening.

Soon, in our walk, we found the proverbial post. It had been plucked out from the ground. My little granddaughter looked impressed and asked me, “Grandpa, is this the tree of sin?”

I then explained to her that it was only a symbol, or an example, of how sin gets us.

What may appear to be of little importance, such as going to bed late, not praying for a day, skipping fasting, or breaking the Sabbath – such little slips – will make us lose sensitivity little by little, allowing us to do worse things.

Often, becoming prey to sin starts with someone choosing friends whose standards are not consistent with the gospel; and in order to be popular or to be accepted by peers, the person then compromises gospel principles and laws, going down a path that will bring only pain and sadness to this person and to his or her loved ones.

The fruit of carnal pleasure is bitterness and sadness. The fruit of obedience and sacrifice is sweetness and everlasting joy.

Decisions about standards to follow must be made in advance, not when temptation appears. Our parameters must be:

• This I will do because it is right, it comes from the Lord, and it will bring me happiness.
• This I will not do because it will drag me away from truth, from the Lord, and from the eternal happiness He promises to the faithful and obedient.

  If we sin, we must look for help quickly because alone we cannot escape sin’s trap, just as the proverbial fence post cannot free itself. Someone must help us get rid of the deadly embrace.