“Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savour: so doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honour.” (Eccl. 10:1)
One misstep, one mistake of foolishness of, if you will, allowing the flesh to control our actions in public, whether it be in front of an individual or a group of people, one action of folly and an entire ministry for Christ can be lost.
“Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.” (2nd Cor. 2:11)
Let just one of those darts in and a life devoted to Christ can be damaged. It is the weaker brother, the lost and the wicked that will accuse you, a single curse word will label you a swearer, a slip of the tongue will brand you a hypocrite, a moment of folly will drive them from you. On our toes all the time, always cognizant of our surroundings, engaging our brain before our mouths, we must always be aware.
The world sets those who are born-again on a pedestal only to attempt to knock them off it, doing all they can to bring us down to their moral standards, those the world, and thereby the lusts of it they have set for themselves. They will find great joy in your mistake, you will have dishonored the Lord, and that is the point of our adversary.
“See, you are just like us, now, why don’t you stop pretending and come back to the party. We will welcome you with open arms.”
To be known as the one who has left the world to follow Christ is to be hated by the world, to ostracize yourself for the glory of God is, in their eyes, to dishonor them and the path they have chosen for their lives, the wide path. The people of this world hate us because we do not follow that prescribed path, there is great comradery in sin, there is a fellowship of death, and those who follow it despise those who have chosen the path of life.
All you need to do is trip up once, and you will be reminded of it for the entirety of your life.
“I heard what you did, there is no way you’re a Christian.”
“The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord.” (Matt. 10:24)
And that is how they see us, as ones who believe we are better than them, as above them in our moral values, as “holier than thou.” And so, they will attack us with any means necessary to knock us off that pedestal they have placed us on.
We serve the Lord Jesus Christ in love, and so in love we serve them, and if there is one thing the world hates it is a slave, unless that slave, that servant, fulfills their desires. There is a feeling of inferiority in the wicked when we bring up Christ to them, for what they hear is they are not good enough and never will be to enter into the Kingdom of the Almighty God, and so they see us as believing that we are good enough to.
Like it or not, that is how the wicked think, and so even when the love of Christ for them is revealed to them, even when His sacrifice for them is known to them, even when His grace and mercy is shown to them, they will hate you.
Every step you make must be calculated, every word given grave consideration, every action contemplated.
“Howbeit, because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme, the child also that is born unto thee shall surely die.” (2nd Sam. 12:14) David paid the price for his sin, and the wicked rejoiced.
“When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.” (1st Cor. 13:11)
Folly has no place in the life of those who serve the Lord, the path is narrow, you must pray about every step you take on it.
