Hello Dear Listeners, welcome to overcoming temptations. My name is Oyisi Okatahi. Today our topic is titled: Avoid all Extremes. Our Bible reading is taken from Ecclesiastes 7:16-18. It says Do not be over righteous, neither be over wise– why destroy yourself ? 17 Do not be over wicked, and do not be a fool– why die before your time? 18 It is good to grasp the one and not let go of the other. The man who fears God will avoid all extremes.
Wow is there a problem in being over righteous. Is the bible saying that sometimes we should be unrighteous? no. What the bible is saying is that do not over do anything. For instance if you a Pastor and serving God, you spend all the time in the church and do not have time for your wife and children, that is an extreme. You will make your family hate the things of God because they will feel that God has taken their father and husband from them. So you have to balance things. That is an example of being over righteous. How about being over wise. If you believe that everything must have an explanation, then that is being over wise, man is very innovative and creative but he has limitations, for instance one limitation of man is that he must die someday he cannot live forever.
The bible says that the person who fears God will avoid all extremes. Food is good, but too much is gluttony and can lead to obesity. Fasting is good, but too much could lead to sickness. Study is good but too much could lead to confusion. Money is good but too much could lead to indulgence. For instance who are the people who buy cocaine? is it the poor, for sure they cannot afford it, it is the rich. So it is good to do things very well, but if they are done in extreme, then it is wrong.
People who are over religious is also a problem. It is very important to stand for your faith in God, but when you start killing innocent people in the name of religion then that is an extreme and certainly wrong.
So be moderate, it is good to love and defend your love, but too much of love is also bad. There was a story of a woman who loved a man yet she saw him unfaithful and dating other women but he always had an explanation to give such as the other women are just friends and she was the special one. She kept on because she loved him, but of course as expected he broke her heart and moved on. So love that is blind to the truth is an extreme and should be avoided.
Too much of discipline is also wrong. It is good to punish offenders or children when they are wrong but when you over do it the punishment leads to more rebellion than correction. For instance if your child commits an offense and you tie him up remove his clothes and beat him, that is an extreme. He will lose meaning of your correction and take it that you hate him. So whatever you do, do it moderation, balance it, do not over do it. Have a blessed day.
