Will You Heed the Warnings?
by Shirley D. Tingle
Saying that today’s world is fast paced is a bit of an understatement.
Time seems to move by at break-neck speeds, dragging us along by the
seat of the pants. But along the way, we encounter many warnings to help
us dodge, avoid, or defeat things that would otherwise endanger us.
Many of these warnings are documented for us in some way, so we can
commit them to memory, and not get ourselves in any kind of dangerous
or harmful situations. So, what are some different kinds of warnings that
we should heed?
Warnings from Mother: Think back to your younger years, when you
needed some “basic training” and a few good warnings from your mother.
“Cover your mouth when you cough.” “Look both ways before crossing
the street.” “Don’t eat that—it’s got germs on it!” “Don’t touch the stove
—it’s hot!” And as Ralphie’s mother, (his teacher, and even Santa Claus,
himself), told him about wanting to get a Red Ryder Carbine Action 200-
Shot Range Model Air Rifle: “You’ll shoot your eye out!” Were all these
warnings good advice? Of course, they were! Our mothers had to repeat
them many times, but we finally “got” why we should heed the warnings.
And Ralphie, well, he got his rifle, but he shot it, and the shot came back
and hit him on the cheek. He almost put his eye out! Very close. It’s best
to heed the warnings.
Warnings from drug companies: When our bodies get an illness or a
pain, rest assured that there’s a product designed to help relieve the
symptoms of what ails us. But, at the same time, those over the counter
or prescription “remedies” can cause our bodies to have unpleasant
reactions. Thus—the warning label. A seemingly “innocent” 81mg aspirin
carries a warning for another illness—Reye’s Syndrome. Also, you’re
warned about possible allergic reactions and stomach bleeding. Be
careful—heed the warnings! Bubblegum flavored liquid acetaminophen for
children carries a warning that says severe liver damage may occur if your
child takes more than the maximum daily amount. An OTC medicine for
colds and flu, Coricidin, HBP, also carries a liver warning because of the
acetaminophen, and an allergy alert as well. All the warning labels on OTC
medicines, as well as the print-out sheets that come with prescription
drugs, are meant to be heeded for our health, safety, and well-being. If
we choose not to heed the warnings, we may cause great harm to
ourselves or to others.
Warnings from signs: If we’re able to read, then the warnings on signs
should be acknowledged and heeded. Some signs deal with laws to be
obeyed, while others are letting us know, in very colorful and graphic
ways, that it’s in our best interest, and for our own safety and
preservation to heed them. Watch for “Railroad Crossing” signs,
“Flooding Ahead—Turn Around, Don’t Drown” signs, “No Trespassing”
signs, and “Deer Crossing” signs. Heeding these may prolong your life
and keep you out of jail. Other signs that give us some specific things to
be cautious about are: “Radioactive Materials,” “Danger—High Voltage,”
“Wrong Way,” “Do Not Enter,” and “Biohazard.” These signs make me
want to travel in the opposite direction—and quickly! I’m very willing to
keep “hands off” and heed those warnings.
Warnings from animals: Do you know your snakes? Have you ever
heard this saying: “Red touching black, pat him on the back; red touching
yellow will kill a fellow?” It’s a great way to remember the difference
between the harmless Scarlet Kingsnake and the venomous Eastern Coral
Snake. You really don’t want to get them mixed up! The Scarlet
Kingsnake’s coloring is so similar to the Coral Snake that its warning to us
is: Don’t mess with me—I just might be the poisonous one after all!
That’s okay. I won’t mess with either of them! The Eastern Diamondback
Rattlesnake has a great warning system too. If you get too close, it will
let you know by hissing, shaking its “rattles,” or both. That should be
enough to get you out of there quickly enough. Consider yourself warned.
If a dog’s baring its teeth and growling, that’s warning for you to back off,
go away, don’t approach, or that something is wrong with the situation.
It’s better to be warned than to be a chew toy!
Warnings from God: Now we have the most important warnings of all—
God’s warnings. All four of the previous types of warnings concern the
health, safety, and well-being of our physical selves. God’s warnings are
given to us for the preservation of our eternal souls.
God’s first warning was to Adam and Eve in Genesis 2:16-17, KJV, when
He commanded that they eat of every tree in the garden except one—the
tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He warned that if they broke the
command, they would surely die. Did they heed the warning? Well, we
know by reading Genesis 3:1-6, KJV, that Adam and Eve didn’t heed God’s
warning. Eve allowed Satan to tempt her to sin, and Adam willingly
followed Eve into sin.
Romans 6:23, KJV, tells us, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift
of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” The gift of the
sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross was God’s plan to redeem mankind
from sin from before the beginning of time. The first mention of Christ is
in Genesis 3:15, KJV. God’s plan would be foretold in prophecies
throughout the Old Testament scriptures, and then fulfilled with the
coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ. The record of His birth, His death, and
His resurrection, as well as His teachings and commands, are written for
us in the New Testament scriptures. All who come to Him must become
students of the Word and follow His plan of salvation.
There are so many more examples in the Bible of those who were
warned but didn’t heed the warnings they were given. For example, the
children of Israel were given numerous warnings of what the LORD would
bring upon them if they were disobedient to Him. Deuteronomy, chapter
28:15-68, spells out the description of the types of punishments God said
He would bring upon them. Please turn there and read about these
warnings and think about what it would be like if God were to do some of
those same things today to us for our disobedience. [ I borrowed the
scriptures from www.biblestudytools.com.] Over and over again, the children
of Israel, who had demanded to be ruled by kings, left the
worship of God for idols. By not heeding God’s warnings, many of them
were made captives by other nations, many suffered, and many died.
When God says He’s going to do something, He will. He’s faithful and just.
We must heed His warnings.
We have many “warnings” in the New Testament, given in love for our
eternal souls. In Colossians 2:8, KJV, we’re to: “Beware lest any man spoil
you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after
the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.” I Corinthians 6:9-10,
KJV, warns us not to be deceived about who’s going to inherit the kingdom
of God. Read the list of sins in those verses. Some in Corinth had
previously been doing those things, but had obeyed the gospel, and
turned away from those sins to do them no more. God’s warnings were for
them and for all of us today too.
In Matthew 10:32-33, KJV, we’re taught that if we confess the Lord
before men, He will confess us before His Father in Heaven. Then comes
the warning. If we deny Jesus before men, He’ll deny us before His Father
in Heaven. Confession is an important step unto our salvation. We must
heed His warning and obey it. [Scriptures in this section of the blog were
borrowed from: www.bible-knowing-jesus.com, “54 Bible Verses About
Warning”].
Finally, we have a warning from the account of the Rich Man and
Lazarus, given to us by our Lord, Jesus Christ, in Luke 16:19-31, KJV. Read
the verses until you get to verses, 27-31. The Rich Man wants to warn his
five living brothers about the torment he’s in, so they won’t have to come
there. Abraham tells him that his brothers have Moses and the prophets,
and they can listen to their teachings. The man wanted to return from the
dead to warn his brothers to repent, but Abraham said that if they aren’t
willing to hear Moses and the prophets, nothing is going to persuade them
to repent, not even if a person returned from the dead. You can’t warn
someone from beyond the grave. The time for salvation is now! We’re
commanded to hear, believe, repent, confess, be baptized for the
remission of sins, and live a faithful Christian life until death. And if a
Christian should sin or fall away, the cleansing power of Christ’s blood is
still able to cleanse again through prayer for forgiveness—private prayer
for private sins, or a public prayer with the brethren if the sins are of a
public nature. God loves us all. He wants everyone to be saved. He’s
given us an entire book full of “warnings,” teachings, and commandments
to guide us into doing what’s right, and shunning wrong.
Will you heed the warnings?