Consent Not
Proverbs 1:10
“My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not.”
Sin’s enticement is always hard to overcome. The picture that sin paints is always a pretty picture, and it almost seems too good to be true. The fact is it is too good to be true. Sin promises knowledge, but it only gives foolishness. Sin promises pleasure, but it only gives heartache. Sin promises freedom, but it only gives bondage. Sin promises secrecy, but it only gives humiliation. Everything that sin offers is a lie.
In the verse above, a father is talking to his son about sin’s offer. He warns the son about sin’s allure and appeal. He tells the son when the servants of sin come to entice him into following their actions, that he was not to consent. The word “consent” means, “permission for something to happen or agreement to do something.” In other words, this father was warning the son not to give permission or even agree to sin’s invitation.
Friend, if you have been saved for any length of time, you will know that sin will not give you what it offers. You have seen those who accepted sin’s offer and the result it brought to their life. I want to challenge you that when sin comes knocking at your door not to consent to its invitation. Let me show you three ways not to consent.
First, be emphatic about your refusal to sin. Don’t make it sound like you might reconsider the offer if it is presented in another way. You should not be concerned with the hurting someone’s feelings by telling them “no.” They should not have offered sin to you in the first place.
I think of Balaam who was not emphatic with sin’s enticement, and they came back and eventually lured him into sin. On the other hand, I look at Jesus in the wilderness when He faced Satan’s temptation. Jesus was very emphatic with Satan in refusing his offer to sin. If you don’t want sin to come back with another offer, then you must be very emphatic about how you reject its offer.
Second, never contemplate the sinner’s invitation. Contemplation of sin will only lead to sin. You can justify sin very easily, but that still doesn’t make it right. When sin comes and gives an invitation, don’t allow yourself to contemplate how you can justify doing it. Your immediate response to sin should always be to reject it. Contemplation of sin will give the Devil time to rework his offer. Always train yourself to immediately reject sin and not to give yourself time to contemplate.
Third, always find the positive side of refusing sin. Sin will tell you that you are making the biggest mistake of your life when you refuse it. That is why you need to find the positive side of refusing sin. There is a positive side, and you must find it. When you find the positive side of refusing sin, then that is what you should focus on. Doing right always brings positive results in the long run. Be sure to look at the positive side of refusing sin.
Like the father in the verse above, I come to you and challenge you not to consent to sin’s invitation. It will come, and when it does you should never give it a moments thought. Doing right isn’t always easy, but it is always right and always brings the biggest dividends.