Breaking up is hard to do

 Read Proverbs 10

Let’s talk about breaking up.  Well, maybe later we will get to that.

Here’s a new one for you.  There is God’s way and there is everything else.  Ok, maybe you have heard that one once or twice before. 

Consider the Great and Terrible Day of the Lord.  Is it great or is it terrible?  The answer is yes.  It all depends on your relationship with God.

Knowing God, seeking God, desiring his wisdom more than gold or silver gives us hope for today and for the future and for eternity. We know that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of many good things.

The fear of the Lord adds length to life,

    but the years of the wicked are cut short.

The prospect of the righteous is joy,

    but the hopes of the wicked come to nothing.

The way of the Lord is a refuge for the blameless,

    but it is the ruin of those who do evil.

The proverb helps us understand a very familiar verse from Jeremiah.

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

We should understand that the way of the Lord is a double-edged sword.  It cuts both ways.  For the blameless—the righteous—the way of the Lord is a refuge.

For those living in the everything else, the way of the Lord brings men to ruin.  Rejecting the Lord, rebelling against the Lord, mocking God puts us on the path marked by destruction.

Yes, the Day of the Lord will be great and it will be terrible.  We want to enjoy the former and only know of the latter.

Understand that we will sin.  It happens and we give thanks for God’s pardon.  He is faithful and just to forgive, but we must never take his mercy and grace for granted.

We sin and know that we are forgiven but we must not deceive ourselves into thinking that God accepts our sin.  He forgives us, but our sin is still our sin. Our sin rebels against God.

Our hearts must long to live in the way of the Lord.  We don’t long for him to accept our sinful ways.  Or do we?

Life, joy, and refuge come in living in the way of the Lord. Shortened life, shriveled up hopes, and ruin are waiting on us if we desire God to embrace our sin.

We can’t have it both ways.  What do I mean?

We will sin, but don’t ever become comfortable with your sin.  Never let guilt keep you from confession, but don’t become comfortable with your sin. 

God wants you to come boldly before his throne of grace, but you must humble yourself knowing full well that you have fallen short.  We all have fallen short.

We don’t ask God to accept our shortcomings—our sin.  We ask him to accept us and forgive us and give us another chance to run our race of faith and bring glory to his name.

Don’t ever think that our sin is acceptable to God.  We are acceptable to him because of what he has done for us, but we must end the relationship with sin. 

God hates divorce, but he expects us to divorce ourselves from that unsavory partner known as sin.

God loves us.  He detests our sin.  Don’t be deceived into believing that God considers your sin acceptable.  Bring it to him in confession and don’t make up with it later.

Blessings lie in living God’s way not in insisting upon our own way and living in the everything else. We do not petition God to accept our sin and then when we have stopped listening to his Spirit, to embrace our sin.  Our hearts must detest sin to embrace God.

God is love.

God loves you.

God loves you with an everlasting love.

His mercy has forgiven you of your sin.

But sin is still detestable to God and we must end our relationship with it.  It is time to break up with sin once and for all.

Amen.