“Then he asked, “What pledge do you want me to give you?” “Your signet ring, cord, and the staff in your hand,” she suggested. So he gave them to her, had sex with her, and she became pregnant by him." -Genesis 38:18 (ISV)
I remember reading a short story about a well dressed man who entered a building. This man approached a woman sitting in the lobby and asked if she would sleep with him for 1 million dollars. The woman answered "Yes". The man went on.. "how about for twenty bucks?" Now being insulted the woman exclaimed "What do you think I am.. a prostitute?" The man responded by saying "Oh we've already established that now I'm just trying to negotiate a price."
In Genesis 38 we take a detour from the life of Joseph to look at the life of Judah and the mistakes he made while away from home and among the Canaanites. In this particular instance Judah a recent widower was out looking to solicit the services of someone he perceived to be a local prostitute. By looking at this sexual exchange we can see a secondary spiritual application. Let me explain further. Judah wanted sex but he had no money or anything to really give so he offers this woman an "I Owe You" by telling her he'll bring her a goat later on. The woman (Tamar) asks for 3 personal items as collateral from him; his signet ring, his cord, and his staff. In modern terms this would be sort of like him leaving his ID, house keys, and credit card with her. You see the signet ring was his personal stamp of approval, it was unique to him and only him. The cord was probably holding the ring on his neck and it speaks of possession. The staff was unique as well and it spoke of position, considering that he came from a wealthy family and he was probably a ruler at the time. Likewise the cost of sexual sin is your possessions, position, and eventually your person! When we engage in sexual sin we are gambling with our lives and we forfeit our value to something so short, temporary and costly.
Pornography for example changes the way you think as a person. The more you watch it the more you train your brain to not be satisfied with the affections of one woman/man, be it your spouse or future spouse if single.
A prominent pastor with one of the biggest churches in the U.S. (31,000 est.) made this mistake, first with pornography and then with the actual act of adultery itself. He might of kept his family, but he lost his position as a pastor, (livelihood) and he lost his person/character before many believers that looked to him for direction.
Let us count the cost before engaging in something that could cost us our jobs, our character, and even our marriage and children. Because sexual sin will take from you what you have, where you stand, and who you are! Paul said in Galatians 6:8 "he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life."
In Genesis 38 we take a detour from the life of Joseph to look at the life of Judah and the mistakes he made while away from home and among the Canaanites. In this particular instance Judah a recent widower was out looking to solicit the services of someone he perceived to be a local prostitute. By looking at this sexual exchange we can see a secondary spiritual application. Let me explain further. Judah wanted sex but he had no money or anything to really give so he offers this woman an "I Owe You" by telling her he'll bring her a goat later on. The woman (Tamar) asks for 3 personal items as collateral from him; his signet ring, his cord, and his staff. In modern terms this would be sort of like him leaving his ID, house keys, and credit card with her. You see the signet ring was his personal stamp of approval, it was unique to him and only him. The cord was probably holding the ring on his neck and it speaks of possession. The staff was unique as well and it spoke of position, considering that he came from a wealthy family and he was probably a ruler at the time. Likewise the cost of sexual sin is your possessions, position, and eventually your person! When we engage in sexual sin we are gambling with our lives and we forfeit our value to something so short, temporary and costly.
Pornography for example changes the way you think as a person. The more you watch it the more you train your brain to not be satisfied with the affections of one woman/man, be it your spouse or future spouse if single.
A prominent pastor with one of the biggest churches in the U.S. (31,000 est.) made this mistake, first with pornography and then with the actual act of adultery itself. He might of kept his family, but he lost his position as a pastor, (livelihood) and he lost his person/character before many believers that looked to him for direction.
Let us count the cost before engaging in something that could cost us our jobs, our character, and even our marriage and children. Because sexual sin will take from you what you have, where you stand, and who you are! Paul said in Galatians 6:8 "he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life."
- CONTRAST JUDAH IN CHAPTER 38 WITH JOSEPH IN CHAPTER 39. HOW DO THEIR DECISIONS DIFFER WHEN IT COMES TO THE OPPOSITE SEX?
- “Until God is your chief concern — until sinning against him is what makes your heart break — you will never turn the corner.” -Heath Lambert