The Sin Store
(Minute Meditation – September 1999)

Imagine that you are walking down the center aisle in a large mall. Suddenly you see a store that seems packed with people. You go in to see what has attracted so many shoppers. As you approach, you see the name, “The Sin Store” over the door. You know that it is not the type of store you should shop; you tell yourself that you will just look around but do not intend to buy anything.

Inside you find sins attractively packaged on the shelves and as you browse around you see one that really grabs your attention. You gingerly take the package off the shelf just to see how much it costs. The price tag in bold letters says, DEATH. Carefully you replace this sin back on the shelf. You are greatly attracted to it but the price is too high.

Of course sins are attractive to us. We would not want to sin if it was not appealing. God is honest when He tells us that while sin is fun, it just does not last very long. Moses chose to “suffer affliction with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season.”

Continuing to look around the store, you discover another sin that is very appealing so you decide to take it down from the shelf just to check the price. Once again the price tag says, DEATH, so again you carefully replace it on the shelf.

Finally you see a man with the word “Manager” on his name tag so you ask him, “Sir, do you ever have a sale in your store?” He replies, “We never mark down the price of sin, it is always DEATH, but we sometimes throw in 20 years of misery as a bonus.”

Yes, sin is appealing. Yes, we want it. But if only we would stop and consider how much it costs, we would soon lose our interest in it.

Comparison shopping is a technique that bargain hunters use in their effort to determine the best buys. No sin is worth the price. “The wages of sin is death.” There are no bargains; there are no discounts at the Sin Store. If only we would do more comparison shopping we would avoid going to the Sin Store altogether.

We need to say “NO” to sin. We need to keep away from the Sin Store. We must resist temptation by fleeing it. When young Joseph was being tempted to sin, “he left his garment in her hand, and fled, and got him out.”

Paul tells us, “Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry.” James exhorts us to “submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” Paul told young Timothy, “Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.” And again Paul said to Timothy, “But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.”

We need to run out of the Sin Store and flee all its allurements as if our life depended upon it, because it does. “But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.” “The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Robert J. Lloyd