Posts by Matthew Holst
H.G. Wells’ 1898 novel, The War of the Worlds opens with these words: "No one would have believed in the last years of the nineteenth century that this world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man's and yet as mortal as his own; that as men busied themselves about their various concerns they were scrutinised and studied… With infinite complacency men went to and fro over this globe about their little affairs … Yet across the gulf of space… intellects vast and cool and unsympathetic, regarded this earth with envious eyes, and slowly and surely drew their plans against us.” This is an apt description of the threat faced by many Christians in the 21st century, especially concerning the area of sexual morality and sin.
The suffering that we endure in this life is not in spite of God's love, but because of it. It is not out of God’s control, but firmly part of His plan. He is giving us all that we need, rather than giving us what we desire in order that we might see our Savior in all His glorious rage, vanquishing our enemies one by one, even death itself. May God grant us grace to see the “the Glory of God," in order that "the Son of God may be glorified” in and through our sufferings.
If our mental diet consists predominantly of the world and its allurements, don't be surprised when we start thinking and living like the world. If, however, we allow the word of God to shape our minds, even when devastating providences accompany our lives, we will be standing safely on good and holy ground.
Perhaps now, more than ever, Christians need wisdom to process the multitude of temptations of sexual sin with which they are confronted. While it is true that sexual sin has always been a problem in the church, there should be little doubt that the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life are a seemingly ubiquitous danger for Christians today. We need biblical principles by which we may guard ourselves from sexual sin.
Proverbs is, at one level, a simple book to understand, and, at another level, a book that equires a great deal of spiritual discernment and wisdom. To get wisdom, we must read wisdom and we must pray for wisdom. As James tell us, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given to him” (James 1:5).
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