Sin Bugs
SIN BUGS
Read Matthew 25:41-45.
As Hannah turned a rock over in the backyard, she jumped back. “Yuck, Mom! Look at all these icky bugs hiding under this rock!”
Mom watched the bugs scurry around. “Those are pill bugs,” she said.
“They don’t seem to like the sun. I think they’re looking for a dark place to hide,” observed Hannah.
“They’re a little like us then, aren’t they?” Mom said thoughtfully.
Hannah glanced at her mother in surprise. “Huh?”
“Well, just as these bugs are scrambling for hiding places, we sometimes scramble to find hiding places for the sin in our hearts,” explained Mom. “We try to keep it in the dark, but God sees it.”
“My Sunday school teacher was talking about sin last week. She says there are two kinds, sins of commission and sins of omission.”
“And do you know what that means?” asked Mom, smiling.
“The sins of commission are the bad things we think or do,” answered Hannah. “It’s a sin to lie or say something to hurt somebody.”
“That’s right,” said Mom, nodding. “And what are the sins of omission?”
“That’s when we don’t do things we should do,” answered Hannah, “like not calling a friend when we know she’s sad.”
“Good for you!” said Mom. “You remembered that lesson very well. It’s even more important to remember that God sees every sin.”
Hannah nodded as she watched the last of the insects disappear. “I’ll think of these as sin bugs from now on.” She shuddered. “They’ll be a reminder that I don’t want sin in my heart.”
HOW ABOUT YOU?
Are sins of commission and sins of omission new terms to you? It’s sometimes easy to recognize the things we do wrong, but it’s harder to realize that not doing something may be a sin too.
TO MEMORIZE:
Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.
James 4:17
DO WHAT YOU SHOULD.
From the book
