Before you taste the apple, have you thought it through? It would have been nice if there had been some other person in the garden of Eden that day who would have piped-up just before Eve took a bite of the fruit and gave some to Adam. “Hey Eve, slow down a bit, have you really thought this through?” Well, it did not happen that way. The echo of God’s word was hovering in Adam and Eve’s consciousness and was saying plainly not to eat the fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Gen 2:16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou may freely eat: 17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eat thereof thou shalt surely die.
The Lord admonishes us to test the spirit in any situation that might be complex and to let His peace be our guide and beacon for knowing the will of God. 1 John 4:1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God. For many false prophets have gone out into the world.
Before you go ahead and taste that apple, test the result of the fallout from its fruit and let God’s peace direct your path. Phil 4:7 And the peace of God, surpassing all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Saying, “It seemed like a good idea at the time,” just won’t cut it when you are knee deep in the misery of the poor choice that was made. Prov. 13:16 Wise people think before they act; fools don’t—and even brag about their foolishness.
Maybe sin and transgressions should come with labels that say, “Before you taste this, have you considered its effect?” Oh ya, that’s right, there already is a book full of labels and directions for overcoming sin and becoming clean – the word of God. John 15:3 Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.
We are living in a time of multiple views and messages that can change on an hourly basis. The speed and volume of information coming at us in mega amounts may be overloading our senses and can make us feel traumatic and confused. More than ever we need an anchor or a solid rock in the storms of life to steady our souls. Building our lives on the rock is the first step. Matt. 7:24 Therefore whosoever hears these sayings of mine, and does them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock.
Jesus warned us that in the end times there would be false Christs or a lot of false beliefs. These pretenders would be responsible for all kinds of deceptions within society. Matt. 24:24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
Jesus comforts us with the fact that we will be able to discern the lies of these false teachers because the Holy Spirit would guide us into truth. So before you act on something that you are not sure about, think of the words of our Lord and ask Him for direction. Prov. 3:6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
Our Lord Jesus will never leave us nor forsake us. He will never lead us toward deception or sin but rather in the opposite direction to the Father’s arms. He can be counted on to shepherd us throughout our life and be that still small voice that pipes-up and says, “Before you taste that apple, have you considered the word of God?” Thank you, Lord, for being there for us at all times. Deut. 31:6 Be determined and confident. Do not be afraid of them. Your God, the LORD himself, will be with you. He will not fail you or abandon you.
Well said!
Sir Norm;
This is excellent!!
There is so many things we have learned but we need to re-visit our actions as the world and our age changes.
Good solid advice – may we be wise as His Own.