Presented by Lisa Bishop

My intent in our conversation is not to point out the failings of the Church. I love the Church. There is way too much division, backbiting, finger pointing, and blame between believers these days. Rather, my motive is to point our attention to the fact that you and I can be fooled into believing we are beyond temptation and think, “Oh that would never be me.” But when you are not careful and alert, this very thought can lead to being lured into ungodly patterns and actions which have a devastating impact on your life, the lives of others, your witness, and your leadership. In the lines of the well-known worship song, we are all “prone to wander.”

You may be in a place where your relationship with God is thriving, and those you lead are reaping the fruit of your faith being lived out to the fullest. You may find yourself skating on the edge of making ungodly choices. Perhaps you have fallen hook line and sinker into sin, and you don’t know how to get out. I pray this conversation wakes you up, strengthens you, encourages you, and emboldens you to center or recenter your mind, heart, and soul on Jesus.

In 1 Peter 5:8-9a, the apostle warns, Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith.

The Greek word for devour means to destroy or to swallow. The devil wants to shake your faith and make you an ineffective follower and witness of Christ, which is why it is important to be sober and vigilant. The term sober means “free from intoxicating influences.” It means not allowing yourself to be influenced by anything that leads you away from God’s truth and sound judgment.

We are all prone to intoxication! If you think you’re not, that may be a sign you are.

As Proverbs 16:18 says, Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. There is pride in thinking you are not prone to be sucked in by sin. And intoxicating influence comes in many forms.

From a harmless lunch with a coworker that leads to an unhealthy emotional connection, to outbursts of anger that give you a false sense of control; the temptation for power and prestige; fudging the numbers on that report to make yourself look good; dabbling with pornography because you deceive yourself into thinking “It’s not hurting anyone.”

These are not words of condemnation but rather encouragement for you and me to remain vigilant. To be vigilant means “to keep careful watch for possible danger or difficulties.” Vigilance is not passive; it requires action. When you are vigilant, you actively pay attention to what is vying for your affection and impacting your heart and mind. Even those who truly love God are not exempt from the enticing nature of sin.

King David, well known as a man after God’s own heart, demonstrates the rise and fall of leadership. He was a man after God’s heart, but David did not guard his own heart when he fell down the slippery slope of temptation. When we read the account of his adultery with Bathsheba, we see distinct opportunities where David, a married man and a king, could have turned away from the intoxicating influence of his flesh. When he stood on his rooftop and saw Bathsheba bathing David could have made the choice to high tail it out of there, but he chose to look and linger. He didn’t take the way out of sin’s enticement, and it led to him sleeping with another man’s wife, who became pregnant. If you know David’s story, this sin led to more sin. In an attempt to cover up the affair, David orders Bethsheba's husband killed. It sounds crazy that gazing at a beautiful woman led to murder, but sin does that. When we don’t resist temptation and tiptoe close to it, all of a sudden we can find ourselves asking, “How did I get here?” We rarely if ever think we could be susceptible to such a great transgression. As we see from David’s life, sin does not stay contained; our sin impacts others....