"Only Evil Continually..."

"...but the way of the wicked shall perish."

     I've always loved the King James Version... I just finished James White's "The King James Only Controversy", and so I freely admit the translation's shortcomings, but will echo him in calling it "venerable".  The title is from Gen 6:5, and describes unrestrained human sin before the time of the Flood.  So God acted justly, and wiped those naughty folks out, right?  And in these enlightened, more wholesome days, we have transcended our origins, completed our 12-step program for sin addiction and cleaned ourselves up.
     Or not... the only difference between the pre-Flood age and ours is that adjective "unrestrained";  since that little shower, God has been pleased to hamper our destructive desires and pursue His plan of redemption, starting with the tower of Babel and running down through history to the preaching of the gospel today.  Which brings us to the point of my post...

"Have you ever prayed that God would protect you... from you?"

     It's an interesting thought, but it's supremely biblical:  when it comes to reasoning and weighing out the enemies of the elect, Satan and the world usually get top billing.  If there is mention of our inner corruption, we often hear terms like "sin nature" or "the flesh".  And while the latter term at least is seen in Scripture, I am concerned that all too often, we deflect the force of what God must overcome to save us... namely, ourselves (Mic 2:1, Matt 12:34-37, Mk 7:20).  I'll explain:  I had the worst dream last night, and the main thing that terrified me about it was the bad guy.  It was me;  I was doing something horrible to someone I loved, without even thinking about it.  Yeah, I know dreams can be hazy and disjointed, just mental leftovers, all mixed together coming out of our subconscious.  Most of my dreams (and likely yours) are like that;  rather benign visions of flying or scenes from home/work that are too good/bad to be true.  

"You've got mail..."

     But it can be very healthy to be reminded of where we come from... sin really isn't something we do, it's who we are and God is actively holding back and protecting every person in the world from what we really want:  to enshrine ourselves and destroy anyone who won't worship us.  I've watched too many post-apocalyptic movies, and so that's how I picture a world without God's handcuffs.  

     So, think about it, and join me in thanking God on your knees that, for some mysterious reason, He decided to stop you in your tracks with His glorious gospel and rescue you from the bad guy... the one you see in the mirror every morning.

Photos courtesy of freefotouk, Rich Man