The Wrong Way: The Way That Seems Right

ALL THROUGH THE BIBLE ... THERE ARE STATEMENTS DESIGNED TO MAKE US AWARE OF POTENTIAL DANGER. The Lord reveals to us those things; knowing what is best for us and what can hurt our relationship to Him.

We are often informed of wrong choices, and told of the expected consequences. We need to be aware of the many times where we are warned and listen to those warnings because we don’t know what is best for us as the Lord does.

One such warning is in Proverbs 14:12

"There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death."

What can we learn from this warning that the Lord gives us? There are four observations I want to make considering this verse.

First of all:

1. SOME THINGS ARE NOT WHAT THEY SEEM!!

Appearances and first impressions are not always accurate!

Just a couple of examples to show this:

When I make dinner, one of my favorite meals to make is pepperoni pizza with extra cheese. At first glance when it comes out of the oven, It looks so good. To me, it looks so healthy also. It has almost every major food group in one meal! It’s gotta be good for you, right? Some things just are not what they seem! Not all pizza is good for you, especially the kind I like.

Have you ever tried to pet a dog that looked so friendly but when you got near to it, it wanted to bite your hand off?

These aren’t the greatest of examples. I’m sure you can probably think of better ones yourself.

The fact that some things aren’t always what they seem to be is something we must bear in mind, especially regarding our relationship with the Lord and what we seem to think is right or good for us and the church. Some practice may seem to be right; it may look like it will accomplish some good, it may feel like within ourselves that it is the right thing to do; but if the Lord doesn’t tell us that that practice is something that he wants us to do, it could be harmful or detrimental to our relationship with Him!

1 Samuel 15

1 Samuel 15:13 Samuel came to Saul, and Saul said to him, "Blessed are you of the LORD! I have carried out the command of the LORD."

It seemed to Saul and the people that they were obeying the Lord, but they were not.

They had not killed Agag and had kept the best cattle and sheep. Though Samuel questioned Saul and told him of the Lord’s desire for obedience, Saul still said to Samuel that he had obeyed the Lord.

1 Samuel 15:20 Then Saul said to Samuel, "I did obey the voice of the LORD, and went on the mission on which the LORD sent me, and have brought back Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.

It may have seemed that they had obeyed the Lord, but they really did not.

There are so many religious groups today that do things that the Lord doesn’t command just because on the surface it seems like some kind of good can come out of it. And sometimes it may seem that much good does come out of it.

A religious practice may have the endorsement and approval of the majority.... all the appearances may lend themselves to acceptance.... but, when you really study the matter and check the Scriptures, IT’S THE WRONG WAY if the Lord does not authorize it. If the Lord does not command us to do it, It’s the wrong way no matter how good it seems.

2 John 1:9 Whoever goes onward and abides not in the teaching of Christ, has not God: he that abides in the teaching, the same hath both the Father and the Son.

Some pathway may look like a smooth garden-path, winding among flower-beds; it may be attractive, appealing and agreeable. But - in the end, it's the way of death! The way leading to destruction is usually not accompanied by A HUGE NEON SIGN that says "DESTUCTION, THIS WAY!" Some things are not what they seem.

We need to look beyond appearances! Just because it seems good, doesn’t mean that it is good! We need to "Test all things” with the scriptures! And “hold fast what is good," (2 Thess. 5:21). FOR, "there is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death."

We need to be careful, because I’m sure some of us have been guilty at some time in the past as saying “It doesn’t seem fair” when it comes to God’s will for someone or us. God’s ways are good and right, and we shouldn’t question them no matter what our opinions are. Just because we may hold opinion on something does not mean that the Lord agrees with us.