Numbers 32:23 But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the LORD : and be sure your sin will find you out.
The Easiest Sin
If I were to ask you, “What is the easiest sin in the world for you to commit?” what would your answer be? I suspect the truth may be different from the answer that comes readily to your mind.
Numbers 32:23 is a familiar verse with a less than familiar story behind it. Moses was speaking to the tribes of Reuben and Gad when he said, “But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the LORD: and be sure your sin will find you out.” Moses told these two tribes that sin was, in this case, not in their doing something but in their failing to do something.
It would be sin for Reuben and Gad not to follow through on what God had commanded them to do. They were ranchers, and there was good ranch country on this side of the Jordan River. God had commanded them to cross over the Jordan, and that’s exactly what they had intended to do for some time. Then, Reuben and Gad came to Moses and said, “Hey, we are ranchers. Can we stay on this side of the river?” Perhaps they did not communicate themselves well, or perhaps Moses did not listen as well as he might have, but Moses was very quickly provoked. He told them, “Be sure your sin will find you out.”
It turns out that they were proposing to get a foothold on one side of the Jordan River before going over to help their brothers get their portions. Moses eventually told them that if they did this, then they would be guiltless before the Lord, but if they didn’t do it, then they should be sure their sin would find them out.
The bottom line is that the easiest sin in the world to commit is the sin of doing nothing. What must a person do to go to hell? Nothing. A person rejects Christ by doing nothing and by not accepting the free gift of salvation. What must a person do for evil to triumph? “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”
What can we do to overcome this sin of doing nothing? First, keep your word. Gad and Reuben made a promise to Moses, and they were to keep their promise. It is easy to break a promise by passivity, doing nothing. God didn’t just put us in this world to do no harm, but to do some good. So, keep you word.
Secondly, help your people. Moses asked Reuben and Gad, “How can you sit here while your brothers pass over the river? Don’t discourage the hearts of the people by staying here.” Like Reuben and Gad, we should actively pursue helping other people. Words need to be followed up with actions.
Finally, follow your leader. The tribes of Gad and Reuben did say to Moses, “Thy servants will do as my lord commandeth.” As God leads, we are to follow.
Keep your word. Help your people. Follow your leader.