Let’s face it, there is not one person on earth that has reached the apex of perfection that has not broken the cardinal rule of which other matters hinge. There is no doubt in my mind that every person born will at some time in their life break one or more of the Ten Commandments. How do I know this? The Bible says that all have sinned.
The only person that does not fall in this category is Jesus Christ. He was God incarnated in human form who walked among mankind and did not sin, because God cannot sin.
Personally, I strive every day to do right by people and try to remain blameless in all things, especially in business dealings as a building contractor. Refusing to do anything shady or devious to bring shame upon me, my family, and most of all the Lord Jesus Christ, is most important to me.
Now that I am a Christian, challenges that come are much easier to face, because I know that God is attentive to my needs and will never leave or forsake me. I make every effort to consciously remain true with regards to my responsibility of not offending God or allowing my desires to override good judgment.
I must admit, there are times, though, when I find myself in situations that I ask, “How did I get here?” I call it blind innocence…doing something with no malice in mind or ill-conceived notions of deceiving or misrepresenting the truth in any way.
Sometimes things just happen, because of being naïve to what is about to take place and not realizing the consequences that entering such traps may bring. Remember, Satan is out to get us by hook or by crook.
A person has everything to lose and little to gain by doing wrong when they know better. But I am talking about those times that common sense or good judgment is not at work in the unsuspecting mind, like innocently saying the wrong thing at the wrong time and wishing you had kept your mouth shut; wishing you could take it all back, but the damage was already done.
When I feel trapped through careless behavior, I ask myself, “Why did that happen?” I believe things sometimes take place to help us grow in grace to teach how to become more astute in our thinking and not take everything at face value. Allowing one’s mind to focus more closely on situations rather than jumping in with both feet and regretting it later is a learning process for sure. I remember the saying, “You’ve got to crawl before you can walk.”
Oft times I receive change at a checkout and fail to count it. One time I counted the change at my car and realized that I had been given too much money. It was not my fault that the clerk gave me too much, after all, I was the innocent shopper and was in a hurry to get to my next destination. It sounds like I was trying to justify not going back in, doesn’t it?
Was it a lot of money, you might be wondering? No. My point is this. It has nothing to do with the amount of money that was mistakenly given to me; it has everything to do with what I do with the knowledge I now have regarding the money that is not mine.
Trying to justify the situation even further, I said to myself, “It’s only a dime. Does it really matter that much? Would anyone know or care one way or the other?” But I knew! A small voice then spoke to my subconscious, “What’s the difference between ten cents or ten dollars? Is it yours?”
Well, do you know what I did? I took the dime back to the cashier and went on my way feeling good about what I had done. Though blind innocence visited me that day, I felt that God was pleased with my resolve.
As you read these last four paragraphs you might be thinking, “This is silly.” But I ask you, was the ten cents mine to keep? No. Did I leave the store justified that I did the right thing? Yes. Did I turn my blind innocence into a lesson learned? Yes. I rest my case. I want to always do everything in this flesh to please my Maker.
“But it was only a dime,” you might exclaim! Where does sin begin and where does it end? At what point does blind innocence turn into something else? Sin is sin anyway you look at it. I am only trying to point out the beauty of doing what is right when placed in a situation where blind innocence is at play.
We can shrug our shoulders and justify our actions of not listening to the Holy Spirit as He speaks to our heart by allowing our actions to say that it doesn’t bother me, or we can do the right thing in the presence of God…whatever we are dealing with. It really does matter in the long run.
God wants us to grow in grace and get out of the crawling stage of life to be more mature to recognize pitfalls and dangers that lie in our pathway. The decisions we make distinguish whether we are a conscientious person of character or a not so caring person. This is my take on it anyway.
To willfully do wrong is not blind innocence. This nature is not in the same ballpark as innocence. It is an offence against God who will deal with it as He sees fit.
In my opinion, blind innocence is being naïve regarding questionable encounters like attitude or lack of concern for others, or simply put, having one’s head in the clouds and not taking thought of what affect our words and actions have on other people or oneself. I call it tunnel vision.
At the opposite end of the spectrum from blind innocence is another type of personality, which is the “me syndrome.” It is all about them and what they want no matter who gets hurt. If a person is this hellbent on being a scoundrel that lacks moral and ethical behavior, this type of attitude is not spoken of in the same sentence as blind innocence.
These outcasts of society will no doubt have their day in court one day. They will also have their day of judgment, while standing in front of a holy God if they do not change their ways and ask God to forgive them of their sins. By this I mean, God will have the final say at the judgment seat of heaven concerning their fate.
“All this because I didn’t take back a dime to the cashier,” you might ask? Perhaps you missed my thought. Where does a person draw the line when it comes to wrongdoing ruling their life at whatever level it may be? God abhors sin. I am trying to draw somewhat of an intersecting difference between blind innocence and willful, premeditated wrongdoing.
Being filled with guile or corrupt thinking is not on the same page or level as accidently finding oneself in a compromising situation, because they are lacking good horse sense, as my granddad would say. I believe that these times of lapsed thinking or using poor judgment are taken into consideration by God. After all, He sees the intent of the heart.
I know the law of our land says, “Ignorance of the law is no excuse.” I guess this, for the most part, is the moral compass and heartbeat of man’s laws. I do not think or believe that blind innocence always falls in the same category as the quote above.
I am reminded of when my youngest child was learning to crawl, while exploring the wonderous surroundings of the living room in our home. The little guy would lift himself up on his arms and thrust himself forward, thus, moving that much closer to what he had spied.
As any good parent would do, I scanned the carpet for any small objects that might find their way into his mouth. I then sat back to enjoy watching him explore new and exciting pursuits as he propelled himself across the room under my watchful eye.
On the north side of the room was our fireplace with a raised, brick hearth in front. As it would happen, our precious son was headed straight for it. He was not aware of the potential danger that lie ahead, but I was. This case of blind innocence on his part was happening quickly.
I watched him draw closer and closer to the hearth, waiting for a change of direction, but he was determined to make that hearth his soul purpose for living, or perhaps it was the little statuettes and doodads that my wife had placed there that caught his eye.
Thoughts raced through my mind like, He will learn a valuable lesson not to crawl there anymore if he bumps his head on the hearth; maybe he will see the bricks in time and not hurt himself. I also realized how tired I was from the hard day at work, as I relaxed in my easy chair.
Recognizing the situation and the grief that was about to happen, I jumped up at the last moment and moved my little munchkin away from danger to another location. Blind innocence was recognized by his father and action was taken to protect him, because of love.
I sat back down as God spoke to my heart. “This is what I do for you.” I realized, though I may not be aware of dangers ahead, God is always mindful of my situations and acts accordingly, because He loves me. He does not want to see His precious son hurt in any way.
Sometimes I wonder how many times God has intervened on my behalf, preventing physical, mental, or spiritual injuries that would have occurred had He not. Unbeknownst to me of the dangers, the watchful eyes of God are always on the lookout, watching my every step, because of His great love for me—agape love as it is known.
(Psalm 37:23) “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord.”
The enemy of our soul, the devil, is going about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. He sets snares and traps for innocent people like you and me to stumble into, but God protects us, because we are precious in His sight.
On occasion, I look back and can see the hand of God directing me, while I was walking in blind innocence. Potential misery is revealed and how close I was to falling for Satan’s lies and schemes or the pit he had dug for my demise. But God had other plans when He relocated me to a safe environment where protection is provided for those walking in blind innocence.
I envision my Father in heaven watching me, waiting to see if I turn in another direction or come to my senses, but when the danger is imminent, He scoops me up in His loving arms and rescues me from another attempt by the devil to hurt one of His children.
Even the times I willfully wanted my own way, God, in love, protected me. In our curiosity, blind innocence sometimes takes flight and is not blind or innocent at all. When we toy with sin, chastisement with a swat on the behind from God, figuratively speaking, helps us remember next time when we are tempted to stray like sheep.
When I was watching my child learn to crawl, did I reprimand and punish him for not seeing the danger ahead? Of course not! I had compassion, just as our Father in heaven has compassion on us as we learn how to crawl and then walk in His strength.
God is never too tired or too busy to meet our needs. He is there for us, watching and caring what happens just as a good parent nurtures and cares for the gift of life that God has entrusted to them.
(Matthew 7:9-11) “Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?” Vs. 10 “Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent?” Vs. 11 “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!”
I would rather that blind innocence be said of me rather than blind stupidity. Perfect I am not, but loved by God, I am. I am His child that He will never leave or forsake.
(Deuteronomy 31:8) “And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you; He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.”
God cherishes humanity, but to bring it closer to home, God loves you and me with a never-ending love. It is as simple as that. Do not believe any lie from Satan that says otherwise.
Though blind innocence occurs, God is longsuffering and patient with His children so much that He wants to spend eternity with us, so He gave His precious Son to die on a cross for our sins.
(John 3:16) “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
The way to heaven is through Jesus Christ, and only Him. There is no other way to make heaven our home after leaving this body. Jesus paid the full price for our sins, whereby, accepting Him as Lord brings us to a Father/son, Father/daughter relationship with Almighty God—the I Am that I Am.
Written by,
Papa Boyd
