Cumulative Sin

Cumulative sin has a way of piling up at a person's front door: wreak havoc in the world, cause strife and discord, and soon enough, you have set up the snare into which you will walk, and unceremoniously then hang by, much to your indignant chagrinned surprise. 

I knew a man that I could not stand, and I am pretty confident he was not at all fond of me, especially when I challenged him. He was a liar, an opportunist, a well dressed silver tongued man about town common criminal, that liked to travel in the rich and famous circles, as a wannabe successful entrepreneur. This man begged, borrowed, and stole from friends and family with one half developed scheme after the next, told and sold as a winner; he drank alcohol with an open throat, mixed with prescribed medications and; he talked the talk of a king in his own self-aggrandized domicile. He did not pay for what he admired and wanted, but used credit to his advantage, knowing he could neither afford, nor would he ever pay, for his purchases. He was dodgy, a dodger, and was loathe to be accountable. Adherence to the commandment, Thou shalt not steal, is not for someone like this man; rather, the twisted thinking goes along the crooked lines of, All money and all things belong to me. This type of parasite is perennially ready to fleece whomever they can, to feather their own stolen nests. I have to chuckle a little here at my metaphors, and offer you this bit of comic relief: 

... the great spotted cuckoo, an opportunistic animal that manipulates other birds into hatching and rearing its young along with their own ... 

This little quote lifted from the internet matches what I describe. Birds can be manipulative, and isn't it shocking, to know how manipulative we humans can be too, in the most obvious of ways, when we are too lazy to take care of ourselves and our offspring, preferring to be provided for from the sweat of the brows of others. That is cuckoo, isn't it?

Perhaps you too, knew or know, someone like this man? Dear reader, I must insert a warning here for anyone living beyond their means: if you can't pay cash for an item you want, then it is beyond you, and must not be put on your account. When we do not pay for what we buy, we become thieves. Credit isn't cash to be mindlessly spread about without a thought of whence it came; credit extended and utilized is debt that must be paid, otherwise we leave holes in other peoples pockets. You do not want to have the kind of reputation of the man I write about, and you certainly do not want to break one of God's commandments, correct? I will add one more crucial element to this point. When we owe money, we are indebted, meaning we do not own what we have, because it still belongs to the one from which we got it. Biblical wisdom is clear on money matters, along with the freedom of choice that goes hand in hand with being a godly steward. Go to The Bible for an education in finances: God never steers his children in the wrong direction, but the devil always does. Unfortunately, for the man that is the subject of this writing, his desire for prestige, fortune, and a position of power over underlings, drove him to say and do all he could to secure a cushy post that did not match his lagging and even non-existent, skill set. Shame on his employers for not diligently vetting when hiring, and for handing him keys to the vault filled with money that he has recklessly, wantonly, spent. 

Update

The man I mention is being featured in the media, in a massively ugly, infamous sort of way. He is now a target of hate, and dear one, hate has a way of wrapping itself around the throat of the one that speaks vile things; their words and the malice hinted at and hidden in them, incite people to anger and sometimes violence. I think of Justin Trudeau, and the videos of Canadians screaming at him, cursing him, while he walked the streets of Canada, with a pasted on fake smile, waving to the crowd that did not adore him but rather, abhorred him. He was flanked by numerous civil servants, willing to take a bullet for him, despite his murderous treatment of Canadian citizens. Trudeau feathered his stolen nest with misappropriated funds, tax dollars thieved at needle point, from unsuspecting citizens that knew not what they were up against. This man that I do not name, has a very bad reputation at this point, and rightly so, because when we do wrongly to family, friends, and employees, eventually, our name will become mired inextricably in mud. 

I will say this ... the tongue can get us into a tangle of tussles - I admit, that was a fun sentence to write - and the man I am thinking of, has managed to make his way into a line of fire, so much so, that all his past will heap up behind him, and he will be spoken of with spitting rage, for all the pain and suffering he has caused people entrusted to his care. And dear reader, he isn't the only one: our cumulative sin, when we do not repent and turn away from it, and toward the One that can save us from ourselves, has a way of catching up with us, and the stench sticks to our being, making us repugnant to one and all. Eventually, people like the one I write of, get their just desserts, because they went to the buffet table too many times, and ran out when it was time to pay up for all they consumed. 

I watch what is happening and I cringe, knowing there is always fallout, not only for the criminal, but for the victims of his crime. This is why salvation is our only godly solution, and while I do not wish this man harm, I do want him stopped. Someone like this ought not to have access to money, or to power, and unfortunately, he has been given both, which goes to show, that Satan holds the reins in many a domain.

If the wretched do not want redemption, then we must pray for them to be held to account for the sake of the vulnerable and exposed. It may look as though a person is getting away with lying, cheating, stealing, and even killing, but you and I know of an assuredly, that God is righteous, and judges righteously according to his infallible law. It is only a matter of time before the grave calls to each of us. Death, the great equalizer, does not suffer silver tongued devils, and cares not what you or I have accumulated in this fading from existence life. This man will pay a price, and it will far exceed what he ever thought possible or probable, because he wasn't thinking at all, of cost, when he ravaged others out of pure greed.

What a shame.

1 Timothy 6:9

But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition

PS: Take note, that the scripture quoted indicates they that will be rich: this they, points to people that no matter the effort required, or cost in collateral damage, strive for riches, sacrificing family, friends, employees, anyone in their path, for their own gain. They fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts that drown them in destruction and perdition, because they can only see the goal they have set for themselves, and care not what happens to others along the way. 

Perdition is a word of warning, meaning: a state of eternal punishment and damnation, into which a sinful and unrepentant person passes, after death. This is what the wicked and wayward, the self-absorbed and self-possessed person, can count on, when they breathe their last.