Why, when warned of danger, do I want to proceed anyhow? The recklessness of the sinful human soul is thereby exposed. "Don't tell me what to do or not to do" is a refrain on our lips from early childhood! Yes? Recognizing the inclination I must double my efforts to heed God's many warnings, like Romans 13:14: "But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires." The Word of God instructs us to even take a precautionary step before the big step of saying "no" to temptation. It is imperative to err on the side of caution because the innate sinfulness of all of us is too combustible close to the fires of temptation. Now for the proverb. Proverbs 14:16 says: "A wise man is cautious and turns away from evil, but a fool is arrogant and careless."
In fact, we are so reckless with clearly posted warnings that too often we don't take them seriously, at least not until after we've suffered for ignoring them. In a greasy spoon, a downhearted man asked the waitress for meatloaf and some kind words. She brought the meatloaf but didn't say a thing. "Hey," he said, "what about my kind words?" She replied, "Don't eat the meatloaf!"
Better alarmed than harmed,
Better fearful than tearful,
Better warned than mourned.
-rdc
In fact, we are so reckless with clearly posted warnings that too often we don't take them seriously, at least not until after we've suffered for ignoring them. In a greasy spoon, a downhearted man asked the waitress for meatloaf and some kind words. She brought the meatloaf but didn't say a thing. "Hey," he said, "what about my kind words?" She replied, "Don't eat the meatloaf!"
Better alarmed than harmed,
Better fearful than tearful,
Better warned than mourned.
-rdc
