ESTHER 7:8-10 : When the king returned from the palace garden to the place of the banquet of wine,
Haman had fallen across the couch where Esther was. Then the king said, “Will he also assault the
queen while I am in the house?” As the word left the king’s mouth, they covered Haman’s face. Now
Harbonah, one of the eunuchs, said to the king, “Look! The gallows, fifty cubits high, which Haman
made for Mordecai, who spoke good on the king’s behalf, is standing at the house of Haman.” Then
the king said, “Hang him on it!”
So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. Then the king’s wrath
subsided.
The fastest speed for a cross-country skier was set by Aleksey Prokurorov of Russia on March 19,
1994. Mr. Prokurorov maintained an average speed of 16.24 miles per hour for 50 kilometers.
On the other hand, the speed record for downhill skiing belongs to Philippe Goitschel of France, who,
on April 21, 1993, whizzed down the hill at 145.161 miles per hour. The drastic difference, of course,
is caused by the slope.
Sin is also a slippery slope. In Psalm 73, the psalmist says about the wicked, “Then I understood their
end. Surely You set them in slippery places; You cast them down to destruction” (vv, 17-18).
When Haman plotted to destroy the Jews, he placed his feet on a slippery slope. Then, like a downhill
skier out of control, he careened first through exposure, then condemnation and finally death.
Sin still operates that way today. Most people begin with small transgressions. Perhaps they shoplift a
candy bar or rent an X-rated video. These sins seem rather small compared to bank robbery or rape.
Yet they set the person’s feet on the edge of a very slippery slope.
If Satan whispers in your ear, “Go ahead. It’s only a little sin,” tell him you know better. If you refuse to
take lightly the minor transgressions, you’ll be sure to avoid the major ones.
THE BEST WAY TO AVOID GOING DOWNHILL IS TO STAY OFF THE SLOPE.