As a boy, Bill liked to climb trees. He would find the tallest tree in the neighborhood and climb to the top of it, not thinking about the danger.
When Bill got a little older, he built tree houses, anchoring them to two large tree branches. These tree houses had railings or walls for safety, and one even had a roof. But one unsafe feature was the ladders that were necessary to climb up to the tree houses. These ladders were made of short boards nailed to the tree trunk, and these boards often worked loose.
One day a neighbor boy slipped on a loose board and fell, fracturing both his wrists. Bill felt really sorry for his injured friend, and that was the end of his tree house building.
Bill grew up and got married and had a family. He began to build houses in his spare time. There he was, again climbing up ladders onto roofs and stepping across open rafters and not thinking about the danger.
Some of us have known and worked with people who are climbing different kinds of ladders. These are ladders for riches, power and pleasure. Their whole purpose in life is to make a name for themselves, not thinking about the fact that God says this world is full of sin and one day He will destroy it. God asks each one of us the question, “What shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” (Mark 8:3636For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? (Mark 8:36)). Have you thought about it?
It wasn’t until Bill was older that his fearlessness of heights caught up with him while helping his son build his house. Bill was on a ladder that was placed on a ridge beam twelve feet high. He was nailing the tops of the rafters to the beam while his son was nailing the bottoms of the rafters to the wall. The next rafter to be nailed was lying beyond Bill’s reach. He foolishly took one foot off the ladder and kneeled on the beam to reach over to get hold of the rafter. The next thing he knew was that he was falling, and he landed on his back on the floor and on the edge of the fireplace opening. The wind was knocked out of him, and when he could breathe again, he sat up . . . and then felt the pain.
Bill ended up in the hospital with two broken bones in his spine, but, being a Christian, he thanked the Lord that he was not paralyzed. “Great are Thy tender mercies, O Lord” (Psalm 119:156156Great are thy tender mercies, O Lord: quicken me according to thy judgments. (Psalm 119:156)).
Bill was on a course that finally led to his downfall. You know, Satan loves to lead a child of God on a course of bad habits or bad companions that will lead to his fall. “Let him that [thinks] he [stands] take heed lest he fall” (1 Corinthians 10:1212Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall. (1 Corinthians 10:12)). This verse is intended to warn Christians of the temptations of Satan and where they can lead.
And to those of you who are seeking for pleasures and success in this world only, you will never be satisfied. The pleasures of this world are here today and gone tomorrow. Stop and think of the love of God who sent His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, into this sinful world so that you may have eternal life. God placed on His beloved Son the sins of every person who would trust in Him. Today He sits in heaven at His Father’s right hand. He is saying to you today, “Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:2828Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28)).
ML-06/22/2003