The common reed is an invasive plant that can choke waterways, threatening local fish and bird habitats.
One of the biggest problems with the reed is the rate at which it spreads. Once it becomes established in a waterway, it becomes prolific, and it is difficult to eradicate.
It even hinders swimming and boating in recreational waters.
What enables the common reed to create such disaster? It is the number of seeds it produces. This reproductive profusion allows the plant to spread rapidly over large areas.
In the Great Lakes, the common reed, along with several other non-native species, has wreaked havoc on local ecosystems, creating in essence a dead zone occupied only by the invasive reed. In the St. Lawrence River, the spread of the common reed has been exacerbated by boat propellers dispersing seeds up and down the river.
How can we live among the reeds? That is a question the EPA is only beginning to answer.
We have spiritual reeds that are as invasive to the Church as any reed in our American waterways. They spread in exactly the same way, doing exactly the same damage. We call these reeds sin.
1 Corinthians 6:9 tells us the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God.
1 Thessalonians 4:3, Jude 1:7, and Revelation 21:8 all remind us that sexual immorality will choke out our connection with the Father.
Ephesians 5:3 admonishes us that we must not even name sexual immorality, or any impurity or covetousness, for it is improper to do so among the saints.
Why is the Word so stringent in these matters? Look back to the common reed. It grows prolifically, and once established, it is difficult to eradicate. In addition, it hinders all other activities, soon creating a dead zone where nothing else can live.
Sin destroys all that is good and proper in our lives, and our relationship with Christ begins to fail when sin fills us up. We become so congested with the invasive species that we can no longer move the way God wants us to.
The EPA has no ready solution for the devastation brought on by the common reed. However, the Bible has an answer for the devastation brought on by the invasive nature of sin.
1 Peter 2:24 tells us, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.”
When we turn to Christ, we will be set free.
Jesus has the key, and he casts all our sinful chains aside.
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