Sin holds on tight

Scott Spiezio started his career in Major League Baseball with the Oakland A's in 1996. Though he was never a superstar, his career did include playing for World Series Champions with the Anaheim Angels in 2002 and the St. Louis Cardinals in 2006. How many young baseball fans would love to have the opportunity to play in the majors for more than 10 years and win the World Series twice?

Though he was living the dream of many young men, Scott Spiezio had problems. He missed much of the 2007 season because of "substance abuse" issues. The Cardinals placed him on the Restricted List in August, while he went through an outpatient treatment program. He returned after his treatment and played fairly well for the rest of the season.

Spring Training this year brought hope for Mr. Spiezio, according to reports. He was said to have been looking and feeling great. Then, on Tuesday of this week, police in Irvine, CA issued a warrant for Spiezio's arrest. He was being accused of several alcohol-related crimes. The Cardinals released Spiezio from the team on Wednesday.

I don't know Scott Spiezio, so I don't know the circumstances of how he came to develop these problems or how seriously he was trying to conquer them. But I do know this. Scott Spiezio illustrates one of the most dangerous things about sin: it doesn't let go easily.

Some sins, like drug and alcohol abuse, add physical addictions to the equation. But all sin creates a hold on us that is often difficult to break. Sin results when we give in to our desires (James 1:14-15). We do what we want to do and because sin is pleasurable, it's hard to change. Solomon declared, "Good understanding giveth favour: but the way of transgressors is hard" (Proverbs 13:15). The way of transgressors is hard for many reasons: it often brings bad consequences in this life, it always brings bad consequences in the life to come, and it latches on to us and holds on tight.

Reasonable people can look at sin and see easily that it just is not worth it. Why risk the potential difficulties in this life and the certain destruction in the life to come for temporary pleasure that cannot fulfill? But when we get involved in sin, reason often leaves the picture. The pleasure of sin keeps a strong hold on us that is often very difficult to break. So, people continue to make the same mistakes. Whether it is because of physical addictions or not, it's hard to break the habit of sin.

But breaking that habit is possible and necessary. When we become children of God a change must take place. John said, "No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God" (1 John 3:9, ESV). In His parable of the sower, Jesus said, "...the seed is the word of God" (Luke 8:11). To be God's child, we must make God's Word a part of our lives. That word guides us and helps keep us from sin (Psalm 119:105, 11). If we keep on sinning, we show that God's Word really isn't living in us and therefore, we're really not living like children of God are supposed to live.

Scott Spiezio's story is a sad one. But maybe we can learn from it how dangerous all sin is.