The Plague of Sin
Leviticus 13:45-46
"And the leper in whom the plague is, his clothes shall be rent, and his head bare, and he shall put a covering upon his upper lip, and shall cry, Unclean, unclean. All the days wherein the plague shall be in him he shall be defiled; he is unclean: he shall dwell alone; without the camp shall his habitation be."
God spent much time and detail telling the children of Israel how to deal with the plague of leprosy. Leprosy was a very infectious disease in those days, and they had no cure for it. Leprosy was a disease that would literally rot the body. Those who had it knew that their life was short because nobody could survive it because there was no cure, God told Moses that those who had leprosy must be taken without the camp and dwell alone for the rest of their life. The affects of leprosy on a person's life were very tragic.
In the Scriptures, leprosy is a type of sin. When you look at what leprosy did to a person's body, you will find that sin will have the exact same affect on a person's life. With leprosy being a type of sin, the verse above shows us the lasting effects that sin will have on a person's life.
First, sin will make you sick that you have committed it. You may think that sin will be fun, but it is only fun for a time and afterwards there is regret. Certainly sin can offer a great time, but it never tells you how it will leave you. Don't fall for the lie of sin. Sin will leave you feeling sick, and you will regret the moment that you accepted its invitation.
Second, sin will change your appearance. Leprosy changed the appearance of an individual in many ways. One of the ways it changed their appearance was when their limbs would fall off. Another way it changed one's appearance was that they had to cover their upper lip so that people knew to stay away from them. It is amazing to me to see how sin ages those who live its life. You look at those who lived right and you will see a stark difference from those who've lived a life of sin. You may enjoy your appearance now, but if you choose to live a life of sin it will change that innocent young look to a hardened old look. The best way to look young is to live a right life, for a life of sin will age anyone.
Third, sin will make you an outcast. Those who had leprosy had to be placed without the camp and cry, "Unclean." Whether or not we like it, sin always leaves a mark on one's life that will cause them to be an outcast. I know, Christians are to be in the restoration business, but the fact is that many who chose sin's offer live the rest of their lives feeling like an outcast.
Fourth, sin will leave you all alone. Those who had leprosy lived without the camp for the rest of their life. Christian, sin will always leave you lonely. Those who lured you into sin will leave you when you have nothing more to offer. Sin has lonely effects. If you want to grow old and be happy, then you would be wise to live a right life, for if you don't you will find yourself all alone.
I cannot caution you enough about sin. Many times it seems that as a preacher I am preaching to the wind as some won't listen and think that they can live in sin and it affecting them. You are no different than anyone else. Sin is a plague that will dig deep and without damage your spiritual and physical life. Don't listen to sin! Heed God's warnings and do right so that you can avoid the loneliness and heartache of sin.