Anticipated Regret

Read: Isaiah 5:18-30

Woe unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and sin as it were with a cart rope.                                                                                                        Isaiah 5:18

     Did your parents ever promise you something, a gift or a trip, that you spent months looking forward to, only to find out it wasn’t everything you thought it was going to be? You spend all that time in anticipation, and it later turns out to be a huge disappointment. I’ve been in that situation before, and you probably have, too. Things that people dream of one day having are many times better left as just a dream. The anticipation of that dream being fulfilled ends up being the best part of the whole thing.

     The devil’s promises are just like that. He promises you that once you graduate from high school you can go “live the high life.” He says that you can go jump head-first into sin, and that you will enjoy every minute of it. He tells you that you can live in rebellion against authority, and that doing so will really “teach them a lesson for trying to tell you what to do.” He says that living a life for Christ is boring and will bring you no respect. He tries to tell you that greatness can only come to you as you live successfully in the eyes of the world. He convinces the young and old alike that when they finally break off the burden of responsibility to that which is found in the Word of God, they will have finally found true freedom.

     The late Dr. R.G. Lee preached a message he called “Payday Someday” over one thousand times. In that message, he said, “The devil always pays in counterfeit money.” And so he does. He will build up the anticipation of a life lived for self, and when he finally makes it look so good that a young person falls prey to his entrapment, it is revealed that the anticipation was better than the reward. There is no reward in living the life the devil has planned for a person; there is only regret. There is no satisfaction, only remorse.

     There are many more things besides rebellion and freedom that the devil puts in front of young people to try to distract them from God’s proposes in their lives. He will hide alcohol, drugs, smoking, pornography, and myriad other crippling vices under the guise of fun and success. Don’t be fooled by the anticipation of excitement that the devil dangles in front of you, for, when he finally hooks you into his snare, the only thing you can anticipate is regret.

 

Quote of the day: “The path of the world seems pleasant enough if you don’t stop to think where you’re going.”