GOD GAVE THEM UP


And even as they did not like to retain God in [their] knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient; Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them. (Romans 1:28-32)

Without doubt, today's world is brimming with utter contempt and derision towards Christians, the Bible as the Word of God, and even against the very Existence of God Himself. This may seem justifiable considering the immeasurable sins, moral failures and hypocrisies frequently displayed by so many who claim to follow Christ, especially in recent decades. Indeed, vast numbers of degenerate and worldly professing Christians have turned Christ and Christianity into a dark caricature highly unrelated to the genuine article, of which God is not ignorant nor will He long abide.

To be sure, the sins of those who claim to be God's people provide opportunity for scoffers to freely blaspheme His Name. This is so even when true believers fall into grievous sin. We see this in the Bible where King David, a true child of God, committed adultery with Bathsheba and later arranged for her husband, Uriah, to be killed in battle when she became pregnant with his child. David schemed for everyone to think that the child was Uriah's, and how sad that he valiantly perished in the heat of battle at such a time.

God did not just overlook this series of transgressions. He brought David down to the dust through intense rebuke and imposed severe consequences on him, not only because of the wickedness of his sins, but also because of the great damage done to God's Holy Name by someone who was truly, as a type of Christ, after God's own heart:

Why have you despised the commandment of the LORD to do evil in his sight? You have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword and have taken his wife [to be] your wife, and have slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon. Now, therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house; because you have despised me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife. Thus says the LORD, Behold, I will raise up evil against you out of your own house, and I will take your wives before your eyes and give [them] unto your neighbour, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun. For you did [it] secretly: but I will do this thing before all Israel and before the sun. And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the LORD. And Nathan said unto David, The LORD also has put away your sin; you shalt not die. Howbeit because by this deed you have given great occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme, the child also [that is] born unto you shall surely die. (2 Samuel 12:9-14)

Likewise, those associated with the Christ's holy Name must lament our sinful actions and repent in dust and ashes lest we be swept into eternal condemnation with the broader world if we prove to be deceived castaways in the end. Our first order of business with God should be to recognize our own depravity and wrongful behavior through our own vices and negligence toward Him, especially given the fearful state of our world today. But it is far, far worse to be a Judas, feasting at Christ's table to serve themselves and to eventually betray Him. As Christ Himself said,

The Son of man indeed goes as it is written of Him: but woe to that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! good were it for that man if he had never been born. (Mark 14:21)

The dismal treachery of these imposters greatly exacerbates the scorn of the world toward all things related to the Bible and Christ. But, ultimately, it does not provide them justification. Why? Because every living being is personally accountable to God Himself, our accountability is not reduced or eliminated in the slightest based upon what someone else has done, regardless of how shamefully they may have dishonored and misrepresented Christ as His people. God knows all.

Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things [are] naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do. (Hebrews 4:13)

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things [done] in [his] body, according to that he has done, whether [it be] good or bad. (2 Corinthians 5:10)

God has declared that the natural law of conscience and the light of creation provide enough evidence and testimony to the goodness of God that no one is absolved of their own sins against the Law of God. That is, all are nevertheless guilty before God and have the same duty to seek Him in the face of Jesus Christ through the Gospel of the Bible, regardless of the miserable failures of unfaithful witnesses who falsely come in His Name.

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold [back] the truth in unrighteousness; Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God has showed [it] unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, [even] his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified [him] not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations and their foolish heart was darkened. (Romans 1:18-21)

The human race will use any justification to hide the knowledge of God in order to pursue self(ish)-determination, apart from and against God's order in this deeply fallen world. The fact that there are so many dishonest Christians only confirms the grim spiritual condition of the human race. We are all profoundly sinful people. According to the first verse from Romans chapter 1 that was cited above, God eventually abandons the unredeemed human race to its shameful ways, allowing them to destroy themselves.

Sadly, though, this is what people actually desire. Despite how infinitely marvelous and incomprehensible the Gospel of Christ is and the possibility of eternal life through His redemption of sinners, they do not desire God and insist on maintaining their own temporary lifestyles, customs, manners, and values even unto death. God thus permits them to live according to their desolate ways, eventually sending persuasive delusions of comfort and success in their life endeavors even though this leads to eternal darkness.

Many criticize the Scriptures as fictional and cite Karl Marx's statement that "Religion is the opium of the people (or, of the masses)". Nothing could be more false when it comes to the True Gospel of Christ. However, it is true of every false path under the sun developed by humanity, whether religious or nonreligious. The genuine opiate of the people is the lust of the flesh and the pride of life, anything and everything in this world that advances the dark aspirations of the human race against God offers a counterfeit solution that merely leads to death:

Love not the world, neither the things [that are] in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that [is] in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world passes away, and the lust thereof: but he that does the will of God abides forever. (1 John 2:15-17)

People throughout the world construct every false path imaginable for themselves ultimately out of the lust and pride of life. And by so doing, they entirely obstruct the light of God's Truth and the eternal consequences of their actions in favor of everyday, fleeting pleasure. Sin enslaves its victims in an iron grasp of growing servitude, like a self-destructive addiction, and creates a cycle of reliance where there is no escape from destruction. Without God's compassionate, patient, and tenacious heart-intervention through genuine faith in Christ, it is impossible to avoid sin's clutches; and even for the redeemed the humiliation and consequences of past sins never fully subside in this life.

You may boldly assert, "Ah, but I'm doing very well for myself." Yes, you very well may be viewed from your or the world's perspective. But be aware that nothing outside of Christ's righteousness on behalf of His regenerate followers will ever will resolve the certainty of eternal death. Your conscience may be at peace, knowing that you have done what is right for yourself and others, yet it will be discovered woefully lacking in comparison to Christ's complete righteousness.

There is a way that seems right to a man, but the end thereof [are] the ways of death. (Proverbs 15:12; 16:25)

Our tainted personal perception of what is right and good naturally blinds us from this because it is based on our infinitesimal earthly existence which is utterly separated from the everlasting counsels and wisdom of God.

"Life is short," is often the swan song of those who gladly serve themselves while irreverently gambling against accountability hereafter; even though in suppressed subconscience we instinctively know better. "Life is short, so just do it."

True, we are painfully aware that life indeed passes by like a vapor in time:

Whereas you [all] know not what [shall be] on the morrow. For what [is] your life? It is even a vapour that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. (James 4:14)

Man [that is, the human race] is like to vanity: his days [are] as a shadow that passes away. (Psalm 144:4)

Therefore they [the human race] shall be as the morning cloud, and as the early dew that passes away, as the chaff [that] is driven with the whirlwind out of the floor, and as the smoke out of the chimney. (Hosea 13:3)

This brevity of life is the irrational defense for making life what we will out of our own design: You only life once. However, while this present life is indeed short for everyone, ultimately life itself is only short for the unredeemed who spurn God. The wicked are here but for a moment and then gone forever:

Do you not know this of old, since man [that is, the human race] was placed upon earth, That the triumphing of the wicked [is] short, and the joy of the hypocrite [but] for a moment? Though his excellency mount up to the heavens, and his head reach unto the clouds; [Yet] he shall perish for ever like his own dung: they which have seen him shall say, Where [is] he? (Job 20:4-7)

Some may leave for themselves a fantastic legacy in this world at death. But that will eventually fade away and be forgotten. It will certainly not be of any personal benefit to themselves. So this mindset to make of life what we will since it's so short is illogical.

This life is indeed short, it is a vapor. So all the more should we seek the remedy from eternal death through Christ's redemptive work rather than blowing it all on temporary satisfaction for a few vain years until we rot in profound darkness, isolation, obscurity and distress in perpetuity.

To block the conscience from God's Truth in order to satisfy our own desires for a fleeting moment in time against all eternity is the greatest opiate delusion. To phrase it another way, burying the issues of eternity with the ostrich head of immediate gratification is insanity. Why are we so incapable and slow to comprehend this? Moses long ago came to this realization while forgoing a life of luxury and ease to serve God with any afflictions that came with it:

By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter; Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward. (Hebrews 11:24-26)

To reject and resist God's infinite righteousness and to refuse against ourselves our greatest interest in Him is to our disgrace and peril. But the human race nevertheless pursues the instant gratification that leads to eternal darkness, come what may.

Given the spiritual climate of the world today, it's not hopeful there will be spiritual rehabilitation in society across the globe. In fact, expecting that the evil of this present time will pass unanswered from God would be an insult to His justice. According to the Bible, God will not be mocked. Of course, He is repeatedly mocked for the moment, but eventually that will be brought into submission:

And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of his saints, To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard [speeches] which ungodly sinners have spoken against him. (Jude 14-15)

The time has long passed to acknowledge that this country and the world at large are in full spiritual decomposition. Things are not just "getting more wicked each day" any longer. It is not falling, but fallen. It is not decaying, but spoiled and putrid. God has abandoned the world to its own lustful impulses as it consumes the spirit of delusion. Thus, the world's brazen and proud wickedness is continually on full display. God will sooner wrap up this present creation for His honor and glory unto a glorious eternity where only His righteousness in Christ will dwell. Obviously, human effort cannot bring this to pass. All we can do is patiently and prayerfully await the triumph of Christ in all His radiance. In your patience, possess ye your souls.

Romans 1 asserts this on the authority of the Bible. There, God describes in great detail the traits of the human race once they have succumbed to their lusts and delusion. To be given over entails sinning against one's own inherent light as well as the light of creation, that which is even against nature itself.

It should come as no surprise that the world is filled with scoffers who abhor God's Word, His righteousness, and anything else connected to or affiliated with His holy Name. Just remember that God is patiently waiting for the fulfillment of His plan until He brings about the final destruction of this present creation and everything in it to recreate it anew. At that time, those who are redeemed will stand in the lot of our inheritance, which was purchased by Christ on our behalf.

Those who have been reconciled to God through Christ, of course, continue to rejoice in Him, to pray, and to share their faith whenever possible. However, it is clear that the nations have, at the last, rejected God's goodness and it is now just a matter of His time until He completes the spiritual ark in which His people will be saved from the final destruction of the world.

But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise and the elements shall melt with fervent heat. The earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. [Seeing] then [that] all these things shall be dissolved, what manner [of persons] ought ye to be in [all] holy conversation and godliness, Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth wherein dwells righteousness. Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless. And account [that] the longsuffering of our Lord [is] salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him has written to you; (2 Peter 3:10-15)


7.4.2023