Are Secret Sins Worth The Cost? by PJ
Shir-HaShirim / Song Of Solomon 2:15 AMP "[My heart was touched and I fervently sang to him my desire] Take for us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the vineyards [of our love], for our vineyards are in blossom."
Yochanan/John 15:1-10 AMP "I am the True Vine, and My Father is the Vinedresser. Any branch in Me that does not bear fruit [that stops bearing] He cuts away (trims off, takes away); and He cleanses and repeatedly prunes every branch that continues to bear fruit, to make it bear more and richer and more excellent fruit. You are cleansed and pruned, already, because of the work which I have given you [the teachings I have discussed with you]. Dwell in Me, and I will dwell in you. [Live in Me, and I will live in you.] Just as no branch can bear fruit of itself without abiding in (being vitally united to) the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you abide in Me. I am the Vine; you are the branches. Whoever lives in Me and I in him bears much (abundant) fruit. However, apart from Me (cut off from vital union with Me) you can do nothing. If a person does not dwell in Me, he is thrown out like a [broken-off] branch, and withers; such branches are gathered up and thrown into the fire, and they are burned. If you live in Me [abide vitally united to Me] and My words remain in you and continue to live in your hearts, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you. When you bear (produce) much fruit, My Father is honored and glorified, and you show and prove yourselves to be true followers of Mine. I have loved you, (just) as the Father has loved Me; abide in My love (continue in His love with Me). If you keep My commandments [if you continue to obey My instructions], you will abide in My love and live on in it, just as I have obeyed My Father's commandments and live on in His love."
Yeshua is the True Vine. ADONAI is the Vinedresser. The followers of Yeshua are the branches. The branches are to bear fruits of the Ruach HaKodesh. And according to Yeshua, if we don't live as branches connected to Him, we wither and are burned. The little foxes that spoil the vineyards are sins of the spirit.
There are sins of the flesh and sins of the spirit. Sins of the flesh are those we commit in the natural realm such as adultery, fornication, blasphemy, etc. The sins of the spirit are a little more difficult to spot. These kinds of sins come in almost undetected.
Sins of the spirit are secret sins.....sins of the heart such as covetousness, jealousy, impurity, pride and sins of the lips such as lying and gossiping. Operating with unclean motivations and unkind treatment of others are also sins of the spirit. Sins of the spirit are not always apparent to others but G-d sees them clearly.
How many times have you lied to your friend to cover for yourself? How many times have you been jealous when someone gets to live in that huge mansion when you live in an apartment? How many times have you sought to do something without the counsel of G-d and were operating in your own wisdom? "Oh but if I tell my friend the truth, I'll be rejected or embarrassed!" "I am not really jealous...I just wish I could have their lives but G-d blessed them and hasn't me." "Well I am taking care of my family and I know what is right!" And it can look good on surface appearance, but G-d sees it as it really is.
Oh how these little foxes spoil the vines. The branches will be producing the fruit......and here come the little sins of the spirit...... The foxes gnaw at the branches until they're broken and cut off from the main vine.
Are the sins that nobody really sees but you worth the cost? Selah.
I was recently teaching my congregation about one of these little foxes named "covetousness". There's a parable of Yeshua in Ur/Luke 12 about a rich man whose great bounty had exceeded his ability to store it. He had no more room to store his blessings. He asked himself a question about what he should do and indeed it was a good question but he made a wrong decision. He chose to tear down his barns to build bigger ones so he could store up more for himself because he never thought about anyone but himself. But he had a much bigger spiritual problem than just selfishness. He never sought the L-rd and he acted in his own idea of wisdom. The scriptures call him "foolish."
Personally I believe there is no bigger fool than the person who fails to seek the L-rd and do things His way. I have yet to meet a human or encounter a human idea that is even remotely as wise as G-d or a G-d idea. And unfortunately, there is not one of us who has not acted as a fool at some point in our lives. All have sinned and fallen short. In this rich man's case, he chose to be covetous and it separated him from the True Vine and he lost his protection and also his life.
T'hillim / Psalm 14:1 AMP says, "The [empty-headed] fool has said in his heart, There is no God."This is the problem with being a "fool." Operating in our own wisdom pushes away the Spirit of G-d and opens the door for ha'satan to wreak all kinds of evil. If a person believes there is no G-d, then that person is also going to believe there is no adversary. Perilous mistake.
Sins of the spirit are foolishness. The little foxes are deadly indeed. There's only one way to deal with
the little foxes and it's written in Galatians 5:25 AMP, "If we live by the [Holy] Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit, [If by the Holy Spirit we have our life in God, let us go forward walking in line, our conduct controlled by the Spirit.] In other words, we must allow the Spirit of G-d to control our conduct.
I have heard many people talk about how others should control their conduct, but their conditions are always by operating in their own abilities, not G-d's. G-d wants us to allow His Spirit to control our conduct. As written in Galatians 5, when we live by the Spirit of G-d, we won't gratify the desires of the sinful nature. It's only by the Spirit of G-d that we can stop the robbery and destruction of the fruit of the branches.
Being a fool is dangerous.....in fact it's separation from G-d Almighty. It's time to get rid of secret sin and to allow the Spirit of G-d to control our conduct. We must learn to have greater fear of offending ADONAI than our concern for what men think. There are no mitzvahs and no man-made doctrines that are going to relieve you of the responsibility of obeying G-d.
If you have been besieged by the little foxes, it's time to repent and seek the L-rd and to allow His Spirit to control you. Yield to Ruach HaKodesh and allow Him to have His way in your life.
“Scripture quotations taken from the Amplified Bible."
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