As a snail which melteth,
let every one of them pass away: like the untimely birth of a woman, that they
may not see the sun. (Psalms
58:8)
6 Go to the ant, thou
sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: 7 Which
having no guide, overseer, or ruler, 8 Provideth
her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest. 9 How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard? when wilt
thou arise out of thy sleep? 10 Yet a
little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: 11 So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth,
and thy want as an armed man. (Prov
6:6-11)
The term ‘sluggard’ derives from the Swedish word, ‘slogga,’ meaning
slow and lazy. Because of that nature described, it is also a term used to
designate a snail. The sluggard is very much like the snail. He is lazy,
he is slimy, he sleeps all the day long, he loves going out at night, he
doesn’t work but rather lives off the labor of others, and he hates the Light
of Wisdom. Proverbs 6 contrast the ant with the snail. The ant is industrious
and stores up food for the months of famine and cold. The sluggard, like
Aesop’s grasshopper, fiddles around all summer and lifts not a finger to
prepare for the coming winter. Proverbs 12:24 & 27 describes the slothful
sluggard as not caring for his responsibilities. He lacks wisdom, for the
wisdom of the ant compels it to make preparation always for the future.
During my many years of military experience, I have known a great host of
sluggards and snails. They are the malingerers who are constantly on sick
call. They constantly make excuses as to why a task cannot be performed. They
apply little effort to remove obstacles while they allow their comrades to lift
the heavy loads. During the Revolutionary War, there was a caisson that became
stuck in the mire near Valley Forge. The caisson had been entrusted to a
private soldier and a corporal. The corporal was supervising the private’s
super human efforts to push the caisson from the muddy ruts in the road, but
offering no physical assistance. At that time, a stranger road up and dismounted. He lowered
his shoulder beside the private and, together, they pushed the caisson onto
solid ground. The gentleman then remounted and told the corporal, “Next time,
you help your fellow soldier to accomplish the task.” The corporal indignantly
responded, “And who are you?” to which the mounted figure responded, “General
George Washington!” It is this quality of enterprise and mutual reliance that
built America into the nation that it once was. Today, however, we are
over-populated by snails.
So why does God use the terms He does in describing the snail in Psalm 58? What
is the nature of the snail? The snail loves dark places. He cannot, in fact,
tolerate the light of the sun. He is a creature of DARKNESS just as is the
sinner. “19 And this is the
condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather
than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither
cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. 21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his
deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God. (John
3:19-21) The snail is just like the reprobate sinner. If a snail were human, he
would probably belong to the ACLU! “4 But ye, brethren, are not
in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. 5 Ye are all the children of
light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.” (1
Thess 5:4-5)
Snails hate light! When the first rays of the sun peep over the horizon, you
will find the snail making its way to some dark sanctuary. They love large
rocks under which to hide. Why do these slothful creatures love darkness and
hate light? It is because they are thieves. They love to come out in the
darkness and eat the garden labors of others unseen. They also hate the light
of the sun because the sun actually melts them away just as public light on
politicians, or the sinner, causes them to shrink from unbounded corruption and
wicked deeds. Sinners hate light with equal vigor. If you place a snail on the
side walk at noonday, that is where he shall remain, and that is where he will
be buried. Sin hates light. How does this relate to our character as
Christians? Jesus told us: “Ye are the light
of the world.” (Matt 5:14) If we bear our testimonies
daily as we are called to do, the sinner will shrink from the public arena. I
do not believe we have lived up to this standard in America for many decades.
Snails leave tracks! What is another mark of the snail? Like sin, the snail
leaves tracks of slime everywhere he goes. Sin cannot be hidden – it is always
revealed by the slimy tracks of the sinner. If I go out in the early morning, I
can see exactly where the snail has been on my driveway, because there will be
silvery tracks of slime there. The sinner may present a figure of honor and
good works for half a day, then his true colors are lifted in the afternoon.
Character is revealed in light.
Snails are parasites! They only devour and destroy the garden crop for which
the gardener has labored. Sin does the same. In virtuous society, all labors
are rewarded, but when the thief sneaks in, an unequal measure and balance are
found.
Snails hate salt! Sprinkle a few grains of table salt on a snail and he will
melt away before your very eyes. The sinner, too, hates the salt of God’s
people. They are constantly trying to remove moral standards from society, to
prohibit public prayer and bible reading, and encourage immodest dress. “Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost
his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing,
but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.” (Matt
5:13) Salt is a
compound of Sodium and Chlorine Gas - NaCL. But sodium (man) is never found in
his pure state as a element in nature. He will, like sodium, always be joined
to some other element of the world. But when man is joined to God
(Chlorine Gas) he becomes something essential for life and health. Both
elements, Sodium and Chlorine, are poisons when not joined together. When we take
a bag of salt and place it on the ground for a prolonged period, what happens?
The sodium begins to release its bonding to the chlorine and then to absorb
other elements of the soil such as carbon, hydrogen, etc. That is what happens
to the salt of a Christian when he comes in too close contact with the world.
He begins to lose his virtue and Christian character and attains those things
of the world with which he has been in long contact.
Snails are insidious in their motion! They crawl slowly, but surely, to the
cover of darkness, or to the midnight garden. Sinners are the same. Sinners
avoid quick movements that may reveal their positions and expose their deeds.
They slowly embezzle the funds from the store’s treasury. They slowly seduce
the young virgin with subtle charms. When the consequences of their sins are
manifested, they slowly slink into the shadows from whence they came.
Snails, like sinners, have no backbone! As a matter of fact, snails have no
unyielding character at all. Sinful man lacks courage and backbone. Even our
pulpits lack backbone when sins proliferate and the pulpit remains silent –
fearing to call a sin a sin and hiding behind the false interpretation of the
counsel of Christ: “Judge not that ye be not
judged.” In avoiding strong judgment in the Church, they love to
quote that verse, but not the one following; or that counsel of Christ found in
the Gospel of John: “ Judge not
according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.” (John
7:24) I believe,
unless I failed my elementary English class, that Jesus is telling us that we
MUST judge – “. . judge righteous
judgment.” What is righteous judgment? It is calling ungodly
behavior what God has called it – SIN! When we judge with righteous judgment,
we do not judge out of our own opinions or desires, but we judge behaviors in
the same way the Holy Bible judges them. If we say that a practicing homosexual
is a sinner, we are simply echoing the judgment of God. It is not a sin because
WE say it is; it is a sin because GOD says it is. The same is true of abortion,
of adultery, and of the immoral use of mind-altering drugs.
We need to often examine our souls to see if we find any snail-tracks there. Do
we hate the Counsel of God’s Word (Light) when we are trying to compromise with
the world? Do we seek reward for the labors of others? Do we love
to “mix it up” with the world and attempt to bring the things of the world into
the Church instead of carrying the Gospel Christ has given us into the world?
Are we good salt that keeps away from contact with the soil of the world? Or do
we lose our savor as well as our bonding with God by adopting the world’s
dress, the world’s music, the world’s entertainments, or the world’s behavior?
Do you find that you are trying to hide your sins previously committed from
others while you yet linger in them – leaving those unsightly tracks? Do you
fail to note sin in others by attempting to justify it with failure to judge by
God’s Word? Has your light grown dim, or does it burn brilliantly from
high ground? Have you looked into the mirror of God’s Word and discovered a man
or a woman that does not live up to their testimony in the Lord? If so, the
Lord is kind and patient to forgive and restore if we hurry to His Mercy Seat.
