"Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burned?"
Can one go upon hot coals, and his feet not be burned?" Proverbs 6:27-28
"And you shall know the truth..." John 8:32

Not too long ago, I asked a colleague if he has ever seen a house on fire. He paused for a while and then shared an experience he had in his estate back in Jos, Plateau state, Nigeria. The owner of the house had gone to work on that fateful day, leaving behind his children who had just come back from school. One thing led to another, and the house was on fire. Expectedly, the children ran out of the building shouting, "Fire! Fire!" crying for help at the same time. Their cry, in no time, drew the attention of the neighbors who came rushing towards the house. As some were pouring buckets of water to extinguish the fire; others were throwing sand over the fire. Some of the concerned neighbors made spirited efforts to see what they could secure from the fire. In no time, the situation had gotten out of hand. The firefighters arrived some hours later, but their intervention could not save the day - the damage was already done. The house owner arrived and looked at the horrible sight staring him in the face with tears streaming down his cheeks. His tears moved others to tears. Years of labor had gone with the fire. Achievement of a lifetime had gone down the drain. Certificates, books, clothes, furniture, to mention a few of the valuables, were irretrievably lost in the inferno. From the look on his face, one could figure out what was going on in his mind. Thoughts of "Where do I start from?" must have crossed his mind. Friends and sympathizers who had heard about the unfortunate incident came together and started discussing how to alleviate his pain. It was a terrible sight indeed! Fire is a good servant. Its importance to human life cannot be over-emphasized. It is something that our continued existence depends on. Imagine a world without fire! But fire is also a bad master.

My goal for writing this article is not to deal at length with the natural fire that we are all familiar with but rather to draw our attention to the fire that is potentially more dangerous than natural fire. It is the fire that the wisest of men talked about in the Book of wisdom. That fire has destroyed much more than natural fire has ever done. No man in his right mind plays with natural fire, but we play with this fire because we don't know that it is fire. We don't play with the natural fire because we know it hurts, but we often play with this fire because we don't know it hurts. What we know can mean the difference between life and death,
success and failure, victory and defeat etc.
You may not understand what King Solomon was talking about when he said, "Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burned? Can one go upon hot coals, and his feet not be burned" until you read some verses before. King Solomon had been warning young people about the danger associated with sexual immorality. He had told them what is at stake when they indulge in sexual sin. To further drive his point home, he began to speak metaphorically about sexual immorality. He wanted them to understand the full implications of their actions when they indulge in sexual immorality. He wanted them to see the sin through the eyes of God. Solomon was like saying, "Young man, let me lay it on the line. If only you knew what you are playing with. If only you knew what you are going to be in for. That girl you call Baby Doll, Sweetie, Sweetheart, Angel Eyes, Honey Bunny, Cuddle Bug, Babylicious, Bae, etc is actually a fire that will burn you."

Believe it or not, sexual immorality is a consuming fire. It does not matter what you call it. You may call it youthful indiscretion, youthful exuberance, sowing of wild oats, a love affair, a trick of youth, but it is a consuming fire. Indulging in it amounts to playing with fire. It is not your clothes, shoes, furniture that this fire will destroy but rather your reputation, integrity, body, soul, and destiny. This fire has destroyed many homes and marriages. The story is told of a happily married man who cheated on his wife. He was transferred from his Lagos office to Warri (Nigeria) where he got romantically involved with a demon-possessed lady. He lied to this lady that he was still single. To cut the long story short, he got her pregnant and after about 3 years, he was transferred back to Lagos. The lady eventually found out that he was married with three children, but that did not make her budge an inch. She insisted that he must marry her or she will show him who she truly is, but the man waved her threat aside. Shortly thereafter, his life became a chapter of accidents. He lost his wife and his three children in a ghastly car accident, but he survived it with serious injuries. While in the hospital, the lady paid him a visit and said to him, "You have just started." It was at this point that he opened up and confessed to the leadership of his church what had happened between him and the lady. This man spent almost two years in the hospital, lost his job, and today he is yet to get out of that bondage even after a series of prayer and fasting. The fire of sexual immorality destroyed his wife, children, and reduced him to a piece of bread. Little did he know that he would get more than he bargained for when he embarked on the journey of sexual adventure. He dug his own grave and that of his family for a night of fun.

The world says, "What you don't know won't hurt you." Nothing can be further from the truth. What hurts people in life is what they don't know. It has been rightly said that nothing in the world is more dangerous than ignorance. Ignorance is the number one reason the devil has succeeded and is succeeding in getting many young people to jump at the baits of sexual immorality. The devil has kept the truth about sex under lock and key since time immemorial. He knew that the truth about sex will tip the scale in your favor when you are faced with sexual temptation. It is time to wise up to the fact that sex is not all it's cracked up to be. Sex outside the confines of marriage is an albatross around the neck. It is a game that is not worth the candle. Stop believing the lie that having sex is just like any other sin. The Bible says, "Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body" (1 Corinthians 6:18). No other sin directly affects the body like sexual immorality. In the words of Albert Barnes, "It wastes bodily energies; produces feebleness, weakness, and disease; it impairs the strength, enervates the man, and shortens life." King Lemuel's mother warned him: "Do not give your strength to women, nor your ways to that which destroys kings" (Prov. 31:1-5). Fornication or adultery is a sin that drains men of their mental and bodily strength. Many have sacrificed their future on the altar of sexual immorality. Give it a wide berth so your life can go as it is written of you. Reuben's life did not go as it was written of him on account of this sin (Genesis 49:3, 4). His portion was given to Joseph because he gave in to his sexual appetite. Friend, the price tag of sexual immorality is high.

Be not deceived; sexual immorality will undo God's plan for your life. It will set the stage for the battles generations after you will fight. The men of Israel did not know they were playing with fire when they went after the delectable and enchanting daughters of Moab. In a matter of minutes, that fire consumed 24,000 men (Numbers 25:1-9). King David did not know he was playing with fire when he had it off with Uriah's wife. What was the consequence of his action? Prophet Nathan said to him, "Now therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised Me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife" (2 Samuel By 12:10-11, can you see the generational problem that arises from sex? Samson did not know he was playing with fire when he fell in love with Delilah in the valley of Sorek. Immediately after, he fell in love with her, the Philistines came up to her and said, "Entice him, and find out where his great strength lies, and by what means we may overpower him, that we may bind him to afflict him; and every one of us will give you eleven hundred pieces of silver" (Judges 16:4-5). Little did he know that his sweetheart was a booby trap. Samson ended his journey on a sad note. He died without going the full distance with his divine assignment because he played with the fire of sexual immorality.

The devil knows these truths, and that is why he goes about offering men sex on a platter of gold. He presents the bait but hides the hook. Have you ever wondered why he offered Joseph sex in Potiphar's house? He offered him sex in order to turn his God-given dreams into a mirage. He offered him sex in order to preclude the possibility of him becoming "a man in whom the Spirit of God is" (Genesis 41:38). His place would have been given to another had he overstepped his bounds in the house of his master. Nothing endangers your God-given dreams like sexual immorality. You must avoid it like the plague if you don't want your life to be a warning signal to others. What is at stake when you play with this fire is beyond your wildest imagination. If you play with fire, you are going to get burned.

The good news is that you can break free from the hold of this sin. The blood of Jesus that was shed at the Cross of Calvary is powerful enough to set you free from every form of sexual bondage. All you need to do is accept Jesus as your Savior and Lord. With Jesus in your heart, you can say "No" to the tempter when he comes knocking on the door of your heart. The battle against sexual temptation is either won or lost in the heart. Therefore, keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life (Proverbs 4:23).

Say the following prayer:

Heavenly Father, have mercy on me, a sinner. I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of the living God and that he died on the cross so that I may have forgiveness for my sins and eternal life. I believe in my heart that you, Lord God, raised Him from the dead. Forgive me for every sin I have ever committed and come into my heart as my Savior and Lord today and take full control of my life from this moment on. I pray this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

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