Steering Clear From Sin
Proverbs 7:1-5 NLT
1 Follow my advice, my son;
always treasure my commands.
2 Obey my commands and live!
Guard my instructions as you guard your own eyes.
3 Tie them on your fingers as a reminder.
Write them deep within your heart.
4 Love wisdom like a sister;
make insight a beloved member of your family.
5 Let them protect you from an affair with an immoral woman,
from listening to the flattery of a promiscuous woman.
I don’t believe this proverb is an indictment against immoral women alone. I do believe immoral women and men are to be avoided. But I also believe we can look at these instructions and gain insight as to how to steer clear of sin.
To steer clear, we have to go in a different direction. How we receive God’s Word is instrumental in avoiding sin. When we receive God’s wisdom and treat it as valuable, it makes us aware of what to do and what not to do. And Solomon was emphatic: we cannot be casual.
Guard God’s Word as you would guard your eyes. All of us know the reflex action that takes place when something approaches our eyes. There used to be a machine at the optometrist’s office that sent a puff of air into your open eye. Just a puff, but I hated that machine. We guard our eyes, and we, in the same manner, guard God’s wisdom.
Tying on our fingers and writing on our heart again illustrates our approach to God’s Word. We are doing what needs to be done to keep His wisdom within us. Years ago, people would tie a string around their fingers to remind them to do something. Now our phones remind us. But the principle is: don’t forget.
Treating God’s Word as we would a well-loved family member speaks to value. We treat family differently. The idea is that we treat family and close friends better than anyone else. At least that’s the plan. But there are things we’ll do for family and best friends that we do not do for anyone else. And we listen to God’s Word closer than we do any other voice. God’s Word and wisdom are high value in our hearts and minds.
Adhering to God’s wisdom, through His Word and Spirit, keeps us from immoral women, men, and immoral acts. The more we value and hold on to what God has said, the further away from sin we go. Verse eight speaks of the young man who went near the house of the immoral woman. That was the problem; he went near. One of the main ways we are entrapped by sin is that we go near; we’re too close in our mind, thoughts, feelings, and actions. The best way to diet is to not have unhealthy food in the fridge and pantry. The best way to steer clear of sin is to have the healthy food of God’s Word in our heart and not go near the sin that trips us up. Much easier to fight temptation when we are not close to it or aware of it.
So steer clear of sin, not by sheer willpower, but by steering toward God’s Word and making it a priority in life.