Reflections on God's Word

by Victoria Robinson

When I was a little girl I was fascinated with movies that showed old mansions with secret passageways. Even the classic board game, Clue, has a secret passageway. Wouldn’t it be cool in your life if you had an escape passage? When sin is chasing you God has given you a way of escape. Through His very great and precious promises we are able to escape the corruption of this world.

This truth emphasizes the need to know and memorize the Word. Jesus did not have time to search His iPhone Bible for a snappy comeback when He was being tempted to sin. His escape passage was embedded in His heart. Girlfriends, we must be just as ready with the Word as our Lord is. We should be able to deftly handle the word of truth when sin is chasing us.

Dearest girlfriends, lets us run to the escape passageway of the Word when sin is chasing us.

A list of some common sins are listed below along with scripture you can use for an escape passage.

• Adultery — Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral. ~ Hebrews 13:4 NIV
• Anger — A fool gives full vent to anger, but a wise person quietly holds it back. ~ Proverbs 29:11 NLT
• Bitterness — See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. ~ Hebrews 12:15 NIV
• Drunkenness — Wine is a mocker and beer a brawler; whoever is led astray by them is not wise. ~ Proverbs 20:1 NIV
• Envy — A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones. ~ Proverbs 14:30 NIV
• Fear — Strengthen the feeble hands, steady the knees that give way; say to those with fearful hearts, “Be strong, do not fear; your God will come, he will come with vengeance; with divine retribution he will come to save you.” ~ Isaiah 53:3-4 NIV 
• Gluttony — Do not join those who drink too much wine or gorge themselves on meat, for drunkards and gluttons become poor, and drowsiness clothes them in rags. ~ Proverbs 23:20-21 NIV
• Gossip — A gossip goes around revealing secrets, but those who are trustworthy can keep a confidence. ~ Proverbs 11:13 NLT
• Greed — Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” ~ Luke 12:15 NIV 
• Laziness — Lazy people are soon poor; hard workers get rich. ~ Proverbs 10:4 NLT
• Lust — God wants you to be holy, so you should keep clear of all sexual sin. Then each of you will control your body and live in holiness and honor—not in lustful passion as the pagans do, in their ignorance of God and his ways. ~ 1 Thessalonians 4:3-5 NLT
• Selfishness — Turn my heart toward your statutes and not toward selfish gain. ~ Psalm 119:36 NIV
• Unforgiveness — Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. ~ Ephesians 4:32 NIV
• Worry — So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ~ Matthew 6:31-33 NIV

by Victoria Robinson

I would never consider leaving the door to my house unlocked, yet that is what I sometimes allow to happen spiritually. Through the carelessness of sin I allow the “thief” to come right in and take what he wants. Sometimes I even hold the door open for him so he can carry my possessions away. That is a sad thought!

When you sin it is like giving Satan a key to your life. The apostle Paul gave us a clear example of this when he said, “… don’t sin by letting anger gain control over you. Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, for anger gives a mighty foothold to the Devil.” Think of it this way—when someone knocks on your door, do you open it just a little thinking if you do not want them in, you can keep them out? Certainly not! That would be foolish because if their foot could get wedged in, this would give them leverage to push the door open and come right in.

When I accepted Jesus Christ into my heart I not only received the free gift of eternal life, but I received the key to lock the “thief” out. The thief of course is Satan. My sin unlocks the door for him to come pillage my life. Dearest girlfriends, let us stay alert and lock the door so the thief cannot steal from us.