Playing with Fire

“An oracle is within my heart concerning the sinfulness of the wicked: There is no fear of God before his eyes. For in his own eyes he flatters himself too much to detect or hate his sin. The words of his mouth are wicked and deceitful; he has ceased to be wise and to do good. Even on his bed he plots evil; he commits himself to a sinful course and does not reject what is wrong.” (Ps 36:1-4 NIV emphasis mine).




The Message renders these verses, "The God-rebel tunes in to sedition— all ears, eager to sin. He has no regard for God, he stands insolent before him.  He has smooth-talked himself into believing That his evil will never be noticed. Words gutter from his mouth, dishwater dirty. Can’t remember when he did anything decent.  Every time he goes to bed, he fathers another evil plot. When he’s loose on the streets, nobody’s safe. He plays with fire and doesn’t care who gets burned.”



Not a particularly pleasant thought for a daily devotional, but an unfortunately practical one.



David begins this particular Psalm with these words, “An oracle is within my heart concerning the sinfulness of the wicked . . . .” His mind is contemplating the problem of evil as it relates to men. We’ve all done it. We wonder how certain people can be so spiritually stupid–our text answers that, “For in his own eyes he flatters himself too much to detect or hate his sin. . . he has ceased to be wise.”



One of the sad realities of sin is the deeper it is the less we recognize it. The heart of the problem of those suffering from addiction is not ultimately the substance itself but the heart of the addict him or her self. Only Christ can change that. Someone once observed, “You can take the bum out of the slum, but you can’t take the slum out of the bum.” Social change is not enough; we need Christ. The sinner “commits himself to a sinful course and does not reject what is wrong.” It is a choice. We are not simply “products of our environment.” I know people who have had a wonderful home environment and are rotten. On the other hand I also know people who have had a rotten home environment and are wonderful. The difference? Choice. No one has the power to make you what you are; you choose to be what you are. The sad thing is, when sin is factored into that equation, our tendency is to become blind to that particular truth. We cry in our milk, lament our lot in life, commit ourselves to continuing the downward slide and never recognize what is happening! The one who plays with fire may burn other people, but eventually they will get burnt themselves. The fact that hell is described as a place of burning is poetic justice at its best.



Thankfully, God has made a way out for anyone who will respond in faith to Christ. But just as the road to ruin is traveled by committed people, so the road to redemption must be traveled by committed people. It is not a one time decision and I’m off the hook. It is a daily walk. Jesus said, “Knowing the correct password—saying ‘Master, Master,’ for instance—isn’t going to get you anywhere with me. What is required is serious obedience—doing what my Father wills.” (Matthew 7:21 MSG).