“I’m Warning You”

by Bryan Gibson

The Bible is filled with warnings, some very direct and explicit (“beware of false prophets”—Matthew 7:15), and some implied. Some of these implied warnings come from the stories told in the Scriptures. Let’s look at some of these warnings and the stories that illustrate them.

Be careful where you “pitch your tent” (the story of Lot: Genesis 13-19). Lot “pitched his tent toward Sodom” (Genesis 13:12), exposing his family to people who “were exceedingly wicked and sinful against the Lord” (Genesis 13:13). It turned out to be a disastrous decision. Go and read the details—if you’re not already familiar with them.

Do not commit sexual immorality of any kind, including homosexuality (the story of Sodom and Gomorrah’s destruction: Genesis 19). If there is any doubt that these cities serve as a warning to us today, look at what Jude 1:7 says: “as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them in a similar manner to these, having given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh, are set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.”

Be careful who you marry (the story of Solomon: 1 Kings 11:1-4). The law of Moses contained explicit warnings about marrying foreigners who served other gods (Deuteronomy 7:3-4). Solomon ignored these warnings and here’s what happened: “his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father David” (1 Kings 11:4). Marry someone who will help you get to heaven, not someone who will stand in your way.

Do not rebel against authority (the story of Korah: Numbers 16). Korah, joined by Dathan and Abiram, rebelled against the authority of Moses and Aaron, which, in effect, was rebellion against the Lord (Numbers 16:30). It didn’t take them long to wish they hadn’t. “The ground split apart under them, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up...they and all those with them went down alive into the pit; the earth closed over them, and they perished from among the assembly. Numbers 26:10 says that they “became a warning”—not just to the people then, but also to us today.

When it comes to the worship of God, do not act without His authority (the story of Nadab and Abihu: Leviticus 10:1-3). They erred the same way many do today—they offered something to the Lord “which He had not commanded them” (Leviticus 10:1). And they paid for it with their lives—“fire went out from the Lord and devoured them, and they died before the Lord” (Leviticus 10:2). Granted, we’re under a different covenant today, but the need for authority is just as vital (Colossians 3:17; 2 John 1:9; Matthew 15:7-9).

Do not wait for a convenient time to obey the gospel, to become a Christian (the story of Felix: Acts 24:22-27). Felix was moved when he heard the gospel, but he said to Paul, “Go away for now; when I have a convenient time I will call for you” (Acts 24:25). To the best of our knowledge, that convenient time never came for Felix and so he died outside the Lord. Please don’t let that happen to you. Heed the warning!