Can I pray for you in any way?
Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com
In Christ, Mark
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk
** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn
** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
“Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.”
Romans 1:28-32
This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Every person has a choice to make. They can accept God into their lives and allow His will to lead and guide them or they can reject God and chase after their own desires. It’s really as simple as that.
Receiving God in one’s life leads to right and righteous living. It also leads one to salvation because God will always direct a believer to His Son Jesus and the salvation He offers through Him. Surrendering to God places a spotlight on a person’s utter depravity before Him and reveals the need for a Savior.
Conversely, anyone who ignores God and decides to follow their own ways will immerse themselves in sinful ways. As we saw in yesterday’s message, they live with the false impression that they are wise as they worship and revere created things instead of the God who created them. It was true in New Testament days as Paul wrote to the people in Rome and unfortunately it’s still true today.
So what does God do in the case of the latter?
He allows people to suffer the consequences that come with turning away from Him.
As we read from the scriptures yesterday, one of the sins born from a godless life was (and still is) sexual immorality. The example Paul used, and it’s obvious this was happening in Rome, was women and men having sexual relations with the same sex. Women entered into what the Bible calls “unnatural” sexual trysts with other women. The men followed suit with each other. The Bible calls such behavior shameful and promises judgment on the perpetrators saying they will receive “the due penalty for their error”.
Well, sexual immorality was just one of the byproducts of living a life minus God. As we see in today’s passage, there were plenty of other iniquities associated with refusing to receive the knowledge of God, a decision that leads to a person developing a “depraved mind”. This results in a person doing what shouldn’t be done which is code of saying they sin and as we look back to our passage for today, there is a laundry list of transgressions connected to godlessness:
“They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy.” Romans 1:29-31
All these acts are evil and wicked by nature because they defy God’s commandments. Sin leads a person down the road of depravity, the wide pathway that Jesus talked about, the pathway that leads to destruction. Paul puts more definition on actions that indicate someone is on the wrong path.
If you’re greedy or envious of others, you’re going the wrong way.
If you’re one who causes likes to cause strife which includes slandering and gossiping about others, then you’re on the wrong path.
If you deceive others, you’re walking a way separate from God.
If you’re insolent, arrogant, and boastful, turn around because you’re far from the humble state God expects.
If you’re disobedient to your parents, you’re violating God’s command to honor them.
And if you hate God or commit murder, you’re definitely far off the course God wants you on.
All this should tell you that it’s not heard to recognize a godless person. There are plenty of wicked indications and even the ones mentioned aren’t enough because the scriptures tell us that sinners are always inventing new ways to be evil. Ultimately, they lack fidelity, understanding, love, and mercy.
Why?
Because they lack God and we see in the scriptures that there are consequences when this happens. Godlessness begets wickedness. It was true in biblical times and it’s still true here in present days.
And so the question is this:
Do your behaviors match up with any of these indicators of depravity?
If so, it’s time to come back to God, confess your sins, and let Him lead you back to where He wants you to be, to a place far from sin and iniquity, to a narrow path that will lead you to a godly life now and forever.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Feel free to leave a
comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com
No comments:
Post a Comment