the Bible consistently addresses the issue of laziness with a critical tone especially within the old testament's wisdom literature and the new testament's teachings Proverbs frequently castigates the sluggard and uses the diligent ant as a metaphor for the virtue of hard work cautioning against the poverty and lack that come from idleness the consequences of laziness are not just material but also moral as the Bible suggests that a lack of diligence can lead to an unfulfilled potential IAL and neglected responsibilities in the New Testament Jesus's parable of the talents serves as an admonition against sloth illustrating the
importance of employing one's gifts and time wisely similarly Paul's Epistles reinforce this ethos notably in 2 Thessalonians 3:10 which bluntly states that those unwilling to work should not eat thereby affirming a robust work ethic as an expression of Faith the biblical critique of laziness applies to all there's a pronounced focus on men men are not to be lazy the biblical archetype of a Christian man is anchored in the virtues of diligence and industriousness the portrait painted by scripture is one where Christian men are Dynamic and active participants in their faith their families and their communities
the teachings of the Bible go beyond mere rebuke of laziness they establish an expectation that a man's faith is intrinsic linked to his work ethic this connection between belief and labor underscores a broader spiritual principle that faith is demonstrated through action the ideal Christian man therefore is not one who is Idle or content with mediocrity but is instead consistently engaged in meaningful work contributing to the welfare of those around him and fulfilling his Divine mandate furthermore the Proverbs Slugger is not a representation of the Christian man instead Christian men are called to model themselves after
the industrious ant tirelessly working not just for personal gain but in service to a greater good the New Testament strengthens this call to action portraying Jesus himself as a figure of ceaseless service and Paul as an apostle who labored with his hands in this light to be a Christian man is to be the antithesis of lazy it is to be energetically involved in the labor of Life ensuring that faith is lived out in the everyday acts of work charity and stewardship this active approach to Faith ensures that a Christian man's life is marked by productivity
and purpose honoring the God who calls all believers to a life of fruitful engagement with the world God has expectations for a Christian and one of the many expectations for a Christian man is to provide for his own family 1 Timothy 58 anyone who does not provide for their Rel relatives and especially for their own household has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever in other words those who can provide for their families are obligated to do so if we read all of 1 Timothy 5 we see that Paul is mainly speaking about
caring for women who are truly widows meaning those who have no children to rely on for assistance although this chapter also speaks about the relatives in a man's household the main focus is about widows however today rather than focusing on widows we are going to focus on relatives in a man's household before we proceed it is important to note that the Apostle Paul in this chapter states that a true Widow who needs financial assistance from the church is one who has no children or grandchildren the reason being is that if a widow has children or
grandchildren it is their obligation to look after the widows in their family whe whether it is monetarily or anything else they may require this is not a command for anyone to provide for relatives who are supposed to be providing for themselves as this would make you an enabler of the sin of slothfulness also known as laziness but rather this is a command to look after those who are truly in need family is the first line of care as a result this will free up resources of the local church for those with no family support I.E
children or grandchildren to support them God made us to work and to provide for ourselves and those in our household even unbelievers do this Paul intentionally called a Christian who doesn't look after his own worse than an unbeliever intentionally this is a purposeful provoking statement to highlight a person cannot call themselves a Christian man whilst being cold and uncaring towards the members of his own household this is not referring to a person who cannot look after his own for reasons outside of his own control for example health reasons no this is directed to a man
who is intentionally not looking after his own responsibilities God calls men to look after their responsibilities God calls men to honor their commitments God calls men to have a sense of Duty and Ladies If you have a husband who goes to work and comes home and pays this bill and pays that Bill thank God for him a Christian man is not a lazy man in our world today we are quick to judge sins like drunkenness we are quick to judge adulterers fornicators and thieves but very rarely do you hear a sermon against laziness and this
is not applicable to all men because there are men who are on the other side of the spectrum who work too much and do not have time for leisure and rest and that itself presents issues do not work yourself self to an early grave rest is a necessity however that is a message for another day today we are focusing on laziness nobody talks about slothfulness anymore the Bible does not encourage slothfulness look at our Lord Jesus Christ he was motivated and active whilst he was on this Earth John 94 I must work the works of
him that sent me while it is day the night cometh when no man can work Luke 2:49 and he said to them why did you seek me did you not know that I must be about my father's business slothfulness is the opposite of being hardworking sloth is when you have something that you've got to do or something that you should be doing but you don't do it because of the physical effort that is required to do it hard work and dedication hard work and dedication do it it if you feel like it do it if
you don't feel like it do it laziness this is something that is seldomly preached nowadays in our microwave generation hard work and dedication is becoming a dying principle people look at the task at hand and say I can't be bothered or they start the task and after a while they say that will do or that's enough every time you hear those three words that will do or or that's enough you are in the presence of a slothful person God does not tolerate laziness the lazier you become the weaker you become laziness is a cycle it
is a hole that will drag you deeper and deeper and deeper there is a tremendous amount of hardworking men who don't sleep enough who need to sleep more often but there are some men who make sleeping the objective of their day apart from the time of relax relaxing resting or taking a nap as a result of tiredness too much sleeping makes you weak and too much sleeping is caused by laziness the Bible talked against sleeping too much because it will result in poverty Proverbs 2433 and 34 yet a little sleep a little Slumber a little
folding of the hands to sleep so shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth and thy want as an armed man this is how a lazy man rationalizes his neglect of Duty a little sleep causes no harm surely we all need a little Slumber the problem isn't the sleep of the lazy man it is his neglect of Duty sleep was created by God but God did not create sleep for you to neglect your responsibilities I remember my football coach used to have a saying and it has stuck with me till this day he used to
say treat laziness like the disease it is if you have a family to look after look after them if you have children to feed do it thank God for fathers real fathers fathers that look after their own fundamentally God hates laziness it is a sin how is laziness a sin James 4:17 therefore to him that knoweth to do good and doeth it not to him it is sin this is simp Le to understand if there are things you ought to do and refuse to do them because of laziness there is no other word for it
but sin this is not about judging you this is about the Bible talking about being lazy and not doing the right thing Jesus called people like this wicked laziness is also wickedness laziness is also wickedness anyone who is called wicked in the Bible is referred to as the en of God from the parable of Jesus about the three servants who were given money to invest by their Master the first who received five bags of gold went at once and put his money to work and gained five bags more the second was given two bags of
gold and he worked and gained two more the third servant one we can call Lazy because of his inability to work he knew what he should do with the gold he knew what was right but he refused to do it and that is a sin according to the Bible God does not look kindly towards laziness but our society somewhat encourages it this is against the will of God laziness travels into different areas of your life everything affects everything else you can't be lazy in this area and hardworking in another no laziness contaminates other areas of
your life fundamentally men of God are not lazy God calls men to look after their responsibility God calls men to honor their commitments God calls men to have a sense of Duty What's Done in the Dark must come to light as I was watching the recent news coverage about the embattled hipop Mogul sha Diddy comes I couldn't help but reflect on a powerful biblical truth this well-known figure has been arrested in New York City the arrest comes after Federal raids on two of his properties in Los Angeles and Miami earlier this year in connection with
an ongoing investigation into allegations of sex trafficking while the world watches this shocking turn of events one scripture immediately came to my mind Luke 12 veres 2 to3 where Jesus teaches there is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed or hidden that will not be made known what you have said in the dark will be heard in the daylight and what you have whispered in the ear in the Inner Room will be proclaimed from the roofs this truth resonates with all of us it reminds us that what is done in secret will ultimately be revealed
this can happen in two ways either our deeds will be exposed in this life as we see happening with this rapper or they will be revealed on Judgment Day when we stand before God and this message is not just for celebrities public figures or people in power it is a message for every one of us while we may not be involved in the same sins as this Hip-Hop star we all Wrestle with sin and we are all in danger of having our hidden sins come to light sin is a dangerous enemy a destroyer of lives
and numbers 32 23 warns us be sure your sin will find you out there is no hiding from it no matter how carefully we conceal our wrongdoings they will eventually be exposed the Bible teaches us that sin has a way of creeping into our lives and leading us to live in deception one of the most common results of indulging in sin is the creation of a double life a public Persona that is very different from who we are in private we've all seen it and some of us may even be living it it is possible
to present ourselves as righteous and respectable while secretly indulging in sinful behaviors that we think no one knows about but the truth is sin always finds a way to reveal itself let's consider this there are countless men who outwardly live as devoted husbands usbands yet they are secretly involved in affairs with other women these men have mastered the art of deception managing to maintain a respectable Public Image while living in sin behind closed doors they think they are safe because they haven't been caught yet but scripture is clear what is done in the dark will
be brought to the light you may think you're hiding it well but sin has a way of making itself known it's not just men who struggle with this there are women who outwardly seem supportive and kind but are gossip in about others behind their backs they think their words spoken in secret will never be revealed but gossip is just as much a sin as any other and it will also be exposed we live in a culture that encourages people to engage in secret sins look at the website Ashley Madison this site's very purpose is to
facilitate extramarital Affairs and its slogan life is short have an affair boldly promotes infidelity it's alarming to see how normalized secret sins have become we are living in a generation where deceit lying and living double lives are celebrated rather than condemned but the Bible warns us repeatedly about the dangers of living in secrecy in Ephesians 5: 11-13 Paul instructs have nothing to do with the fruitless Deeds of Darkness but rather expose them it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret but everything exposed By the Light becomes visible and everything that is
illuminated becomes a light the deception of living a double life is that you believe you are getting away with it but sooner or later everything will be revealed sin entices us to live one way in public and another in private but the truth is we cannot live in sin without facing the consequences and those consequences may come sooner than we think one of the most frightening aspects of sin is how it behaves the Bible describes sin as an entity that actively pursues us it's not passive it's alive and it's deadly in Genesis 4 7 God
warns Cain sin is crouching at your door it desires to have you but you must rule over it this paints a vivid picture of sin as a predator waiting for the right moment to strike it is constantly looking for an opportunity to drag us away from God sin is not something we can control once we give into it it takes over like a wildfire sin spreads quickly and consumes everything in its path at first sin may seem harmless it presents itself as something small something we can manage but before we know it sin has grown
into a destructive force that ruins our lives James describes the process of sin in James 1 vers 14 and 15 each person is tempted when they are dragged Away by their own evil desire and enticed then after desire has conceived it gives birth to sin and sin when it is full grown gives birth birth to death this progression is a warning to all of us sin starts with temptation but if we give into it it leads to death and this death is not just physical it is spiritual sin separates us from God and if we
continue to live in it without repentance it will lead us to Eternal separation from him this is why sin is so dangerous it doesn't just affect us in the moment it has lasting consequences every time we give into sin we are allowing it to grow and take root in our lives and the more we sin the harder it becomes to break free from its grip sin is deceitful it promises pleasure and satisfaction but it only delivers destruction it lures Us in with the promise of temporary gratification but it never tells us the price we will
pay and the price is always greater than we expect sin will cost you your peace your joy your relationships and ultimately your soul the statement in numbers 3223 be sure your sin will find you out reveals the terrifying reality of sin whether or not others discover your sin it will always catch up with you sin carries within it the power to pay you back and its payback is severe many people live their lives thinking they can get away with sin but the truth is you cannot outrun the consequences sin has a way of turning on
you and when it does it brings destruction you may be able to hide your sin from others for a time but you cannot hide it from God and eventually it will find you out the Bible is clear about the consequences of sin in Romans 6:23 we are told the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our lord sin leads to death it doesn't just affect us temporarily it has Eternal consequences hell is the ultimate payback for sin it is a place of Eternal separation from God where
the sinner pays the price for their Rebellion but here's the frightening part sin doesn't just affect those who are outwardly Wicked there are people sitting in church pews today who are living in secret sin they may look righteous on the outside but inside they are full of hypocrisy and deceit they think they are safe because no one knows about their sins but they are deceived their sin will find them out and the consequences will be devastating think about the Hip-Hop star we mentioned earlier whatever he did in secret is now being brought into the light
his career his reput ation and his future are all being destroyed because of the consequences of sin this is a warning to all of us we may think we can hide our sins but eventually they will catch up with us there are people here today who have been living in secret sin for years maybe it's an affair maybe it's an addiction to pornography maybe it's lying stealing or cheating whatever it is you've been living in the dark thinking no one will ever find out but I am here to tell you that your sin will find
you out what is done in the dark will be brought to light the consequences of sin are inevitable and they are severe you may think you are safe but sin always finds a way to expose itself the Bible is clear be sure your sin will find you out sha Diddy Combs a man who has built a billion dooll Empire and achieved success and fame beyond what many could dream of now faces the possibility of spending years behind bars despite his wealth his influence and his seemingly Untouchable status sin has caught up with him his story
serves as a reminder that no matter how high We rise in the world sin has the power to bring us down Diddy a man admired by millions is now facing the harsh reality that sin doesn't discriminate it will destroy anyone who lets it into their life there are countless others who like Diddy have found themselves in jail because of sin their lives have been destroyed families torn apart and Futures lost it's not just the rich and famous people from all walks of life find themselves ens snared by sin's deadly grip the consequences are devastating lives
ruined reputations shattered and freedom lost sin promises pleasure but it only delivers pain and imprisonment both in a physical and spiritual sense this is why we must take sin seriously if a billionaire like Diddy with all his resources cannot escape the consequences of sin how much more should we be on guard sin doesn't just affect the body it destroys the soul lives are in ruin today because of the deceit of sin but through repentance and the grace of God we can escape sin's Ultimate Destruction but there is hope while the consequences of sin are real
there is also a way to escape them and that way is through Jesus Christ the good news is that Jesus came to set us free from the power of sin in John 8:36 Jesus says so if the sun sets you free you will be free indeed no matter how deep your sin no matter how long you've been living in darkness Jesus can set you free he can break the chains of sin and deliver you from its consequences but here's the key you must be willing to confess your sins and bring them into the light 1
John 1 nine tells us if we confess our sins he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness this is the grace of God he is offering you forgiveness but you must be willing to step out of the shadows and into the light today you have a choice you can continue to live in secret sin hoping no one will find out or you can confess your sins repent and receive the forgiveness and freedom that Jesus offers don't wait until it's too late don't wait for your sin to
find you out out Bring It To The Cross today and let Jesus set you free what is done in the dark will be brought into the light you cannot hide from your sin forever it will either be exposed in this life or on Judgment day but you don't have to live in fear of that exposure you can bring your sins to Jesus and he will forgive you and cleanse you today is the day to repent today is the day to step out of the shadows and into the light don't wait for your sin to catch
up with you confess it now and receive the grace and forgiveness that only Jesus can offer
