11/2/26

: 1 Corinthians 15:56 NASB95: The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.

There is a game that has been played by children for centuries. It is called King of the hill. One child stands on a hill while others attempt to knock them off and take their place. The origin of this game is unknown, but its mechanics come from actual warfare. The person on the hill always had the advantage. They could see further and prepare for the attack. Their weapons gained energy as they went downhill and used gravity to assist them, while the opponents' weapons lost energy as they were forced to fight against gravity.

As long as the king remains on top of the hill, he has the advantage. However, when he heads down the hill, his advantage fails. In the Battle of Hastings in 1066, the King had continually defeated the attackers from the top of the hill, yet when the enemy retreated, many followed along, charging. The momentum of the attack caused the defenders to lose cohesion, and the result was a loss. This happened several times until finally the last group on the hilltop began to descend to attack the retreating army, only to suffer the same results. With the hill now empty, the new King took control.

In the Garden, Adam and Eve had all the power of God, as long as they remained firm on the hill of the law of God. But the moment they stepped slightly to the side, the momentum and gravity took them all the way down to the valley of death. The law of gravity made stopping the momentum difficult. The law of sin = death means the moment you step off of the hilltop of God, the power of sin takes you to the bottom. The initial sting was not the death in the valley but the temptation that was acted on to step off the top of the hill (sin). Sin is the sting of death.

You have heard of people being allergic to bee stings. Well, it is not the sting that they are allergic to. It is the venom the stinger injects that they are allergic to. The venom triggers a response, and the response leads to the allergic reaction. This is the same as our text describes. The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law;

Sin puts us off the top of the hill and heading down. Death is the venom that causes us to lose. The law says don't get stung or stay on top of the Hill.

In the game, when you fall off the hill, you have to fight your way back up and fight to get on top. However, in life, we have the actual Creator of the hill who puts us right back on top, if we will just receive His gift of Grace. Listen to the next two verses. 1 Corinthians 15:57-58: but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.

Praise the Lord Jesus; with Him we always win. However, even though Jesus will keep us on top. We still should strive not to step off the edge!

Many people like to walk the fence, trying not to stumble and step off on Satan's side. What they don't realize is that Satan owns the fence. So just stay away from it.

Lord, I pray we will not play on the side of the hill because we understand that Satan owns it. However, when we fall off the top, Lord, I thank you, Jesus puts us back if we are on His team. Help us to realize, Lord, that life is not a game. Help us realize that sin stings and death is eternal, so we will stay in life once we find it. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Love, Brother Scott