Dead flies putrefy the perfumer's ointment, and cause it to give off a foul odor; so does a little folly to one respected for wisdom and honor. ~Ecclesiastes 10:1~
Flies were just a way of life in ancient Israel. No refrigeration, few preservatives--you had to expect something like this to happen. Stinky things were a nasty part of life. Sometimes even in modern life we have to put up with powerful, nasty smells.
But do our lives stink? Whether or not they do depends on how we act. It doesn't take much to have a foul smell emanate from our lives. A little dishonesty or selfishness, and actions that once smelled like perfume instead smell like dead flies.
Some of today's corporate leaders have begun to smell like defunct flies. Their greed has impacted the lives of hundreds--even thousands --of employees and investors. While they've lied about their companies' bottom line, they've impacted the lives of thousands who have lost their jobs and money.
Not only do actions like that stink to us, they stink to God. Those who are found out lose the respect of others and pay a price, It may not consist of jail or unemployment, but it will certainly contain God's disapproval and punishment, Imaging smelling like putrefying flies to God's nose! What could be worse?
The Israelites With Greed
Numbers 11:4-6
4 The rabble with them began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, “If only we had meat to eat! 5 We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost—also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic. 6 But now we have lost our appetite; we never see anything but this manna!”
Numbers 11:31-34
31 Now a wind went out from the Lord and drove quail in from the sea. It scattered them up to two cubits[b] deep all around the camp, as far as a day’s walk in any direction. 32 All that day and night and all the next day the people went out and gathered quail. No one gathered less than ten homers.[c] Then they spread them out all around the camp. 33 But while the meat was still between their teeth and before it could be consumed, the anger of the Lord burned against the people, and he struck them with a severe plague. 34 Therefore the place was named Kibroth Hattaavah,[d] because there they buried the people who had craved other food.
Matthew 26: 14-15
14 Then one of the Twelve—the one called Judas Iscariot—went to the chief priests 15 and asked, “What are you willing to give me if I deliver him over to you?” So they counted out for him thirty pieces of silver. 16 From then on Judas watched for an opportunity to hand him over.
Matthew 27: 3-8
3 When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders. 4 “I have sinned,” he said, “for I have betrayed innocent blood.”
“What is that to us?” they replied. “That’s your responsibility.”
5 So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.
6 The chief priests picked up the coins and said, “It is against the law to put this into the treasury, since it is blood money.” 7 So they decided to use the money to buy the potter’s field as a burial place for foreigners. 8 That is why it has been called the Field of Blood to this day.
2 Peter 2-4
2 But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. 2 Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. 3 In their greed these teachers will exploit you with fabricated stories. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.
4 For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell,[a] putting them in chains of darkness[b] to be held for judgment;
resources: Life Application Bible (NIV) and Everyday Guide To Success
