The whole nation seemed to be united behind one thing for the past week or so . . . Two people in a spotlight at a Coldplay concert. Now I have a confession . . . I like Coldplay.

I am preaching my way through 2 Timothy and I encountered this verse this week in my deeper dive for my sermon.
2 Timothy 3:9

“But they will not get very far, for their folly will be plain to all, as was that of those two men.”

Scripture warns in various places that a man reaps what he sows and our sins will find us out. I think these truths press into our hearts as substantially universal. When the bad guy in the movie is dispatched in the end, people feel satisfaction. When a sketchy unfaithful man gets caught in his folly at a Coldplay concert, the world rallies behind justice and/or karma. (It helps that he is wealthy because the rich are already the favorite flavor to mock these days.)

But the reality is we can’t hope to get very far in opposition to God. The phrase, “their folly will be plain to all”, ought to be a chilling reminder. Which one of us would be fine having a spotlight on us for our entire lives? Have you ever done something you wouldn’t want to have captured in the spotlight and uploaded to the web? Listen, I am not defending the guy and the woman. They made a colossal mistake in the whole affair! But, what I am saying, is that we see the folly in others much more quickly than we see our own folly! It would be wise for us to do more than laugh at the memes and creative humor over this situation. Instead, we ought to use this as an opportunity to thank God for His grace that doesn’t show off our every dark moment.

We also have an opportunity to reflect on the sheer stupidity of our sins. We are stupid for thinking we can get away with it. We are stupid for choosing the forbidden over the given. We are stupid for standing in the front row of HIS concert while assuming we won’t get caught.

Before the spotlight, this couple thought they were in Paradise. But once the lights landed on them and they stared into the spotlights, it was all yellow . . . But when they saw the screen they knew the clocks were ticking on their marriages. There is certainly a different way to viva la vida.

We are more foolish than we think. God will expose our sins in His way and in His timing (there is no karma, just a divine personal God who is creative and sovereign). And so we ought to confess and repent to God regularly. We ought to keep short accounts, and flee from the sins that will catch up with us if we don’t put them to death.

I confess to laughing at some of the humor surrounding this. And I also confess to trying to learn from the things I see. And this one has captured our attention, because it pulls at our arrogance. How could he be so stupid? And that is close the to the right question . . . “How can WE be so stupid?”