90 Days in Scripture

In these first couple days of reading, I was struck by the effect that a person’s sin (particularly a lie) had and the unintentional consequences there were for others.  In three separate instances two of the patriarchs, twice by Abraham and once by Isaac, pretended their wives were their sisters, which nearly caused curses to be brought down on unwitting people (Genesis 12, 20, 26).  They were afraid they would be harmed, because they were strangers in the land with beautiful wives.  The local people acted to them as they normally would, given the information that they had.  These people had done nothing wrong, yet they were going to suffer God’s wrath, because of the lies of Abraham and Isaac. 

These Scriptures for me show that we do not sin in a vacuum.  Even something you do for your own self preservation may have unintended consequences for someone else.  As a pastor, there are times when lying can get us out of a difficult situation.  It would just be so easy.  No one would likely even know that we lied.  Yet, we can’t predict what kind of effect there will be, some unforeseen consequence for someone who believed our lie. 

Father, forgive me for the times I have taken the easy way out of a situation and for consequences that may have befallen someone else.

Henry