The Way of Bees

Hanging from my house are two containers which attract bees (by bees I mean yellow jackets, not honey bees). Both have similar shape and the exact same contents, but very different purposes. Both offer promises of sweetness, but one gives life while the other brings death. One is sincere, the other a trap. It is interesting that currently there are 4 bees in the trap, but only one at the feeder (note this was not meant to be a bee feeder…) In a manner of speaking, more have been deceived than believed the truth.

Matthew 7:13-15 New American Standard Bible 1995

“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it. Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.”

Romans 16:17-18 New American Standard Bible 1995

Now I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teaching which you learned, and turn away from them. For such men are slaves, not of our Lord Christ but of their own appetites; and by their smooth and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting.

Galatians 6:7-8 New American Standard Bible 1995

Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.

Ephesians 5:5-7 New American Standard Bible 1995

For this you know with certainty, that no immoral or impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater, has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.

Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not be partakers with them;

2 Peter 2:1-3 NASB 1995

But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.

 

Unfortunately, people are often like the bees at my house. They more readily flock to the deception of the world rather than the sweet truth of the gospel. They are deceived, not only by the world, but also by false teachers who preach something other than the truth of the Bible. Their ways seem easy and good. They tell us what we want to hear, but their end is destruction.

 

The world promises happiness, health, wealth and status. It encourages us to live like we have nothing to lose and put ourselves first. It claims to have all we could possibly want. Yet its end is destruction. What it promises is the opposite of what it gives. Nothing of this world satisfies, but only leaves us wanting more, all the while leading us closer and closer to an eternity of torment. It is a trap.

 

Romans 6:23 New American Standard Bible 1995

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

John 6:35 New American Standard Bible 1995

Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst.”

John 11:25-26 New American Standard Bible 1995

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?”

John 14:6 NASB 1995 (emphasis added)

Jesus *said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”

John 17:3 New American Standard Bible 1995

This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.

 

Only Jesus gives true life. Only Jesus gives fulfillment and lasting satisfaction. Only Jesus can save us from inevitable destruction. That is why the world hated Him. In Him is the only truth, and that truth revealed the world’s lies and deceptions for what it is. The world wants to make its own rules rather than live according to Christ. They want their way with His results, but it doesn’t work that way. They reap what they sow: sin to death, or faith to life.

 

The truth of the gospel is hard. It confronts the core of what we most desire and the dark places we want to keep secret. It exposes our sin for what it is and reveals our true nature. It is easy to say, “I believe,” but difficult to live it, even to the point of death. It is completely contrary to our human nature and what the world tells us we should be and believe. Yet that is the only way to life and freedom.

 

Which container are you being drawn to; the feeder or the trap? Who are you believing and what are they saying? Are you on the narrow path or the highway? Ask God to show you the truth of what you hear and believe. Ask Him to help you see where you are heading and what the result of your lifestyle will be. Then be courageous enough to act on what He has shown you, on the truth of the gospel.