“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of
God to salvation for everyone who believes . . .. “– Romans 1:16a
“And such were some of you” – 1 Corinthians 6:11
Sexual sins such a pornography, fornication (any and all
sexual interaction outside of marriage), adultery, homosexuality/lesbianism, transgender,
pedophilia, bestiality, et.al. are rampant in our day. So deep is our world in
such sins that governments both national (e.g. the United States) and
international (e.g. United Nations) are actually passing legislation to
legalize and protect those who indulge in such sin. Laws are being passed to
justify those who indulge such sins and prevent people from discriminating
against them. It is socially anathema to speak against those living immoral
lifestyles. Standing for holiness and speaking against such immorality is
becoming more and more of a "criminal" offense. Our world is twisted.
These are days when evil is called good and good is called evil (Isaiah 5:20).
But there is a greater truth. There is a higher reality.
The acceptance of immorality as "good" in our
world today is bad enough, but the greater tragedy is that the world refuses to
see the addictive nature of immorality. Immoral thoughts and actions release
chemically addictive elements in the human body. The images of immorality scar
human memory. And the end result is slavery to the sins of immorality. Sexual
sin affects every aspect of people; body, mind, and spirit. Sexual immorality
is one of the greatest addictive enslavements in our day. But there is a way to
be freed. There is a way out. You can make an exodus.
Sexual sin perverts our view of humanity reducing people to objects
not people created in the image of God. This is literally happening. The
life size sex doll industry is growing fast. Sex robots are proliferating. The
obsession with sex is leading to a dehumanization. Sexual sin ruins
marriages and families. It is frequently the cause of unfaithfulness and
covenant breaking. It wreaks havoc on people financially. People lose homes,
jobs, reputation, everything to feed their sexual appetites. All of this is an
allurement of a spirit of hedonistic "pleasure." That
"pleasure," is far from God's definition of pleasure. Sexual sin
leads to putrid sexuality. God’s better way leads to sexual purity.
In the opening lines of Paul’s letter to the Romans he says,
“I am a debtor” regarding the
sharing of the gospel (1:14). Paul felt the good news of the
gospel of God’s grace and salvation was so incredibly awesome and great, that
it would be criminal to hold it back from anyone. The powerful gracious love of
Christ that he experienced compelled him to share the gospel (2 Corinthians 5:14-15; Romans 5:5). Why did he feel this way? Sin is mercilessly
captivating and enslaving no matter the form it takes. It chokes the life out
of the one it holds in its grips. Sin works a slow death in people. Sin can
work a swift death in people too. But sin always kills, murders, and destroys.
Sin wrecks lives and leaves spent bodies and broken promises in its wake.
Deviating outside the parameters of God’s word of truth and into sin always
carries with it cancerous consequences. But there is a cure; a gracious cure
from God that is good news for the person bending and near breaking under the
weight of sin. The gospel sets sin-captives free and that liberation by God of
the sinner is what Paul was indebted to pass on to all slaves of sin.
What was it that so impressed and moved the apostle Paul and
caused him to feel indebted to write this epistle and share the gospel? There
are four reasons stated by Paul in Romans for his feeling this way and they are
immensely pertinent to anyone caught in a lifestyle of sin.
First Paul says, “For I am not ashamed of
the gospel of Christ” (Romans 1:16a). Paul would not shrink back in shame
because some did not receive the gospel or God’s truth. He was not inhibited by
peer pressure or public denunciations by his enemies. He cared more about
serving God and Christ’s opinions than the opinions and opposition of people.
The philosophy of the world is often presented as one of “tolerance.” But that
tolerance is selective in that only those views that do not challenge the
comfort of those living in sin are tolerated. You have to go with the flow of
the status quo to be tolerated in the world today. Go against that flow and you
will be labeled and libeled and discriminated against in the most intolerable
ways; you will be persecuted. Just as Paul stood and courageously proclaimed in
love the truth of God, no matter what, so should we (1 Corinthians 4; Ephesians
4:15)
Second Paul says, “For it is the power of
God to salvation for everyone” (Romans 1:16b). The good news is that the
gospel of Christ is God’s powerful tool to save people from their sins and
empower them to live righteous lives. That is what makes the gospel worth
sharing. We are saved from the death sentence of sin through the free gift of
eternal life through faith in Christ (Romans 6:23). But not only that, God’s gospel introduces us to a
grace that helps us to overcome sinful lifestyles and habits that on our own we
could not overcome (Romans 5:20; 6:4, 14,22; 7:24-25; 8:1-4, 37; 1 Corinthians
6:9-11). The Gospel introduces us to the Holy Spirit who gives us spiritual
life (Romans 5:5). The Holy Spirit helps us live a holy life. This is all
offered by God as a gift of His grace. The grace of God is able to set the slave
of sin free. That’s one great reason to share the gospel.
Third Paul says, “For in it the
righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith” (Romans
1:17). The gospel of God is received
by faith and lived by faith. “Righteousness” refers to, “the character or
quality of being right or just”; it was formerly spelled “rightwiseness.”
Righteousness refers to the right way things are to be done. Righteousness is
right living. Righteousness is determined by God’s word.
When “righteousness” is used to refer to an
attribute of God it is equated with God’s faithfulness or truthfulness (Romans
3:25-26). God is “righteous” in that He is faithful, consistent with His word,
and keeps His promises.
[1] When we talk about
the righteousness of God, we mean the highest, most holy, just and good
standard of what is right. Since God is the highest and holiest of all, so is
His righteous standard of governing the universe.
Part of the good news of the gospel is the bad news of sin.
Unless a person realizes the bad news of their sinful state, the good news of
God’s gospel will not be worth much to them. In the words of the ancient church
father Jerome:
“You cannot
understand the antidote until you first understand the poison.”
Sin is the poison we need to identify before the antidote of
the gospel can be administered. It is the law of God that is meant to expose
the poison of sin in life. Paul wrote:
·
1 Timothy 1:8-11 - 8 But we know that the law is good if one uses it
lawfully, 9 knowing this: that the law is not made for a righteous
person, but for the lawless and insubordinate, for the ungodly
and for sinners, for the unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers
and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, 10 for fornicators, for
sodomites, for kidnappers, for liars, for perjurers, and if there is any other
thing that is contrary to sound doctrine, 11 according to the
glorious gospel of the blessed God which was committed to my trust.
Two sins that the law exposes ass sinful are “fornicators” and “sodomites” which are sexual sins.
The law of God states that sex outside of marriage is sinful; that is
fornication. Jesus elevated sexual sin beyond the act to the thought or “lust” of
the mind saying:
·
Matthew 5:27-28 - 27 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You
shall not commit adultery.’28 But I say to you that whoever
looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his
heart.
Homosexuality is included under the under the umbrella of
sexual sin:
·
Leviticus 18:22 - 22
You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination.
- Romans 1:18–32 - 18 For
the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and
unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, 19 because
what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it
to them. 20 For since the creation of the world His
invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the
things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that
they are without excuse, 21 because, although they knew
God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became
futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Professing
to be wise, they became fools, 23 and changed the glory of
the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds
and four-footed animals and creeping things. 24 Therefore
God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to
dishonor their bodies among themselves, 25 who exchanged
the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather
than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
26 For this reason God gave them up to vile passions.
For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. 27 Likewise
also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for
one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in
themselves the penalty of their error which was due.
28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their
knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are
not fitting; 29 being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual
immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder,
strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, 30 backbiters,
haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient
to parents, 31 undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving,
unforgiving, unmerciful; 32 who, knowing the righteous judgment
of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do
the same but also approve of those who practice them.
God cannot simply overlook or dismiss sin; to do so would
tarnish and contradict His righteousness and justice. God’s righteousness, His
faithfulness to His word, holds the universe in order. Pagan gods are
capricious; they are not faithful to their word. But the God of the Bible is
righteous and true. You can depend on Him and His word. That is a source of
great security and comfort. And the order of the universe is based on God’s
standard of justice. Murderers will not go unpunished, nor will the greedy, the
covetous or the sexually immoral. All sin will be recompensed justly. It would
be criminal to allow a murderer to go free unpunished. God’s oversight of the
universe does not allow for unpunished criminals so that there is order and
deterrence.
And because all sin is ultimately against God (Psalm 51:4),
no sin is a “little,” or “small” sin. One sin, because it is against God, is
enough to dam a person for eternity. You might respond, “Really?” Yes. We often
categorize sins in terms of little and big. We think of “harmless” white lies
versus big perjuries on a witness stand. But that is a totally inadequate
definition of sin. Let me illustrate. If a person goes outside with their
friends and has a snowball fight hitting each other with some packed together
snow balls is to be accepted and no problem. But what is the mischievous at
heart throws a snowball at a passerby? That’s a little worse because they weren’t
playing. What if a snowball is thrown at an elderly person? That’s bad. What if
a snowball is thrown at a police officer? That’s really bad. What if a snowball
is thrown at the president of the United States? That will result in you being
tackled by secret service agents, taken into custody, and likely lead to some
hard prison time. In each instance a snowball is thrown, but what makes the
action more offensive is the personal target its thrown at. Every one of our
sins is against the “blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of
lords” (1 Timothy 6:15). That’s serious.
There is a penalty, a “wage” for sin that God’s
righteousness has set forth, and that is “death” (Romans 3:23; 6:23;
Jeremiah 2:19). All those
who sin are deserving of death according to God’s standard. The dilemma then
becomes, how can, how does, a
righteous God reconcile sinful humanity to Himself and still maintain His
righteousness, His justice? The answer to that question is found in Christ. By
God’s grace through faith in Jesus, we can be made righteous before Holy God (2
Corinthians 5:21). Salvation is by grace
because salvation is possible only because Holy God is merciful and in love
decided to make a way of salvation for lost humanity. And that salvation is
offered in love at the great expense of the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ.
Truly, “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still
sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). And because of that, “Much more
then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath
through Him” (Romans 5:9). In sin we are helpless and hopeless. On our own we
are the weak prey of predator sin. But the Good Shepherd Jesus came to save His
sheep (e.g. John 10).
Fourth Paul says, “For the wrath of God is
revealed from heaven against all ungodliness unrighteousness” (Romans 1:18). For those who have not received the gospel of Christ by faith, the wrath of God is
revealed and coming against them. God has appointed a day in which He will
judge the world in righteousness (Acts 17:31).
There will be no plea bargaining on that day. Saying you are sorry will not be
enough to gain a dismissal of the charges against you; you should feel sorry
for your sin. No, God is holy and just and His judgment will be fair, just and
proper in accordance with His nature. For those who rebel and persist in
denying God’s word and law and live on in sin, and come to stand before God’s
judgment alone, it will be a time of great fear and doom (Hebrews
10:26-31). This is reason for urgency in
sharing the gospel.
While we would rather preach and teach about the love of
God, the wrath of God is part of God’s character and gospel truth. The holy
justice of God results in the wrath of God on sinful injustices. Without God’s
wrath on sin, God would cease to be holy and loving. A God who condones or
casts a blind eye on sin, is neither loving to the victims or just and powerful
to maintain His law.
Called to Sexual
Purity
For the purpose of this teaching we are focused on a
particular area of sin, sexual sin. Sexual purity is God’s will for all people
as Paul was inspired to write:
·
1 Thessalonians 4:3-8 - 3 For this is the will of God,
your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; 4
that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification
and honor, 5 not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not
know God; 6 that no one should take advantage of and defraud his
brother in this matter, because the Lord is the avenger of all such, as
we also forewarned you and testified. 7 For God did not call us to
uncleanness, but in holiness. 8 Therefore he who rejects this
does not reject man, but God, who has also given us His Holy Spirit.
The bottom line is that everyone, but especially the
Christian should “walk to please God.” (1 Thessalonians 4:1) The Christian is
held to a higher standard. A Christian cannot simply follow the secular
standard or conventional sinful worldly way. A Christian is called to “the will
of God, your sanctification.” (1 Thessalonians 4:3). “Sanctification” refers
to, “holiness,
i.e., dedication to the Lord, and/or dedication to moral
purity (Romans 6:19, 22; 1Corinthians 1:30; 1Thessalonians 4:3, 4, 7; 2
Thessalonians 2:13; 1 Timothy 2:15; Hebrews 12:14; 1 Peter 1:2f.).
[2]
It is interesting that Paul points to a particular area
where the Christian is to be sanctified, and that area is sexual purity.
Looking at this passage we can define such dedication to God and moral purity
in the following ways. Sanctified and acceptable behavior to God consists of:
- Each
person should know how to control their body in a way that dedicates it to
the Lord and is honorable and honoring to the Lord – 4:4
- Passionate
lust is unacceptable because it is the way of those who do not know God –
4:5
- We
should not allow ourselves to be manipulated into sexually compromising
situations and we should not manipulate others into compromising sexual
situations – 4:6
- Remember,
God called us to be pure and separate, not unclean and polluted by the
world. We should guard against adopting worldly standards and compromising
by way of rationalizing so that we are unnecessarily in tempting sexual
situations – 4:7.
- Those
who reject God’s call to sanctification and sexual purity are rejecting
God’s best for them; they are rejecting God and the Holy Spirit who guides
and convicts us in such matters – 4:8.
In light of these words what should we do? We should guard
against putting ourselves in compromising situations and take every precaution
to fulfill God’s call to walk a holy and pure life, especially in the area of
sexuality. For some that will mean cutting off a relationship or relationships.
For others it will mean getting rid of a computer, IPad, or IPhone or some
other device that is a source of sexual temptation. For others it will mean
joining an accountability group to help through the cleansing from sin process.
But for all who want to be freed from sexual sin, purified in heart and mind,
it will mean coming to Jesus and walking closely with Him. It will mean getting
serious about God’s word, fellowship and prayer.
Loophole
Christians
God has promised to not allow us to be tempted beyond what
we are able and that He will make a way of escape so that we can refrain from
sin (1 Corinthians 10:13). That path to purity is not to presume on the grace
of God (Romans 6:1ff). We are not free to
sin, but free not to sin. Grace is
not a free pass on sin. The Roman Catholic church historically used human
temptation as a way to raise funds. They created a system of indulgences where
types of sin were categorized. For instance, if you knew you were going to go
to a party and wanted absolution for certain sins you wanted to indulge in, all
you had to do was pay the priest ahead of time and you were free to indulge. Adultery,
drunkenness, sexual sin, and a long list of other sinful behaviors were put on
a scale and you could buy your way into indulging them. As bad as that sounds,
there are some today who see grace in much the same way. For them they are “eternally
secure” in a way that it doesn’t matter what sin they indulge in God’s “grace”
will cover it. Folks, that is little better than a system of indulgences. Grace
is a preventative to sin not permission to sin.
There are loophole “Christians.” They look for rationales or
exceptions to excuse their decisions to sin. They might define “sex” as only
intercourse in order to make allowance for any and every sexual activity except
intercourse. They might justify their sin by saying, “It doesn’t hurt anybody.”
They may say this regarding the viewing of pornography. But wait a minute. Did
you ever think that that person you are watching perform degrading sex acts is
someone’s daughter or son? How would you feel is that were your daughter or son
and millions of people were gawking at them with lurid eyes? Think of the shame
it would make you feel (if you still have a conscience). Human beings are more
than objects. Human beings are not dolls or sex toys.
We should not be looking for loopholes to justify our
indulgence in sin going as far as we can while still rationalizing our
“holiness” before the Lord. Such an attitude is evidence that one has already
begun the descent down the slippery slope of sin. No, we need to take every
precaution, make every effort, and refrain from every questionable action that
threatens our fulfilling God’s call to holiness (Ephesians 5:1-3).
Practically, this means we need to put aside the attitude
that says, “Others are doing it, why can’t I? God will understand.” This is the
sin of presumption. Presumption is assuming immunity or God’s approval when it
is not there. We need to put the sin of presumption far from us. The only place
sexual contact of any kind is holy and permissible is in the marriage
relationship (between a man and a woman), nowhere else (Hebrews 13:4). Dating,
engagement nor any other state outside of marriage is acceptable for sexual
contact. It is a gigantic mistake to
disregard the cautions of God and His word in regards to any sin. This is
especially the case with sexual sin.
Sexual sin is a more dangerous sin because it strikes to the
heart of the soul. The apostle Paul wrote, “Do you not know that your bodies
are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them
members of a harlot? Certainly not! Or do you not know that he who is joined to
a harlot is one body with her? For ‘The two,’ He says, ‘shall become one flesh.’
But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him. Flee sexual immorality.
Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual
immorality sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is the
temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are
not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore, glorify God in your
body and in your spirit, which are God’s.” (1 Corinthians 6:15-20). These
inspired words tell us that its totally inappropriate to have sexual
relations with a prostitute or someone who sells themselves for sexual use. But this also applies to any sexual intercourse or activity outside of marriage. And
it states that the one who indulges in sexual interaction with someone outside
of marriage actually exposes themselves to joining them. God has designed sin
to have a deeper unifying connecting aspect. That’s good when used in marriage.
Sexual activity in marriage solidifies the marriage bond and is holy and
joyful. But outside of marriage sexual activity creates deeper connections with
others that are deadened when they are entered and exited without that life
commitment of love. Non-Christians enter in and out of sexual interaction
ignorant of the deeper effects of such sexual activity. And each time the
sexual bond is abused it becomes a little less powerful, a little more
calloused. That is what we see in our world today; people entering into and out
of sexual relations because of a deadened God-given connection. Lastly, for
those who have been born again through the Gospel they need to understand that
their bodies are not their own, they have been bought with the precious blood
of Jesus and are now the temple of the Holy Spirit. Think of the sacrilege
Christians commit who indulge in sexual promiscuity and sexual sin. And judging
by the statistics there is an infestation of sexual promiscuity in the church
today. And this would apply to sexual fantasizing too according to Jesus
(Matthew 5:27-30). More on this later.
Protect Your Honor
Each person must “know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor” (1
Thess. 4:4). The word “know” here comes from another Greek word meaning “a
dwelling.” It is a word that can also be translated “edification” or “to build up.”
The point made here is that each person is responsible for their own
body and how it is to be handled and protected so that it remains sanctified
(set apart for God) and honorable. The
word “honor” means, “a value, valuables, of the highest degree, or the
dignity itself . . . honour, precious, price, some.” Your body and its
purity are precious and you should take every precaution to protect yourself
from doing anything that would lessen its value and preciousness. If you are a
Christian, your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, therefore, live in a way
that would not embarrass the Holy Spirit who resides in you (1 Corinthians
6:19-20).
What is Sexual
Immorality?
What is
“sexual
immorality”? “Sexual immorality” is translated from the Greek term
porneia and refers to, “harlotry (
including adultery and
incest)
idolatry . . . fornication.”
[3] During the years of President Clinton’s time
in office and the Monica Lewinsky scandal he justified his interaction with Ms.
Lewinsky by interpreting “sex” as only intercourse and therefore he reasoned
the sexual interaction he indulged in with this young woman was allowable. Many
youths today justify their sexual activities similarly.
The Bible makes no such
distinctions.
Sexual
immorality/fornication is any sexually related contact or interaction
between unmarried people or between married people with those they are not
married to. Sexual immorality/fornication is any activity that arouses
passions and lusts in those outside the holy marriage relationship. Sexual
immorality is closely connected to idolatry because a person who is willing to
disregard God’s commands concerning sexual interaction has made an idol, a god,
of sexualized bodies.
God promises to make a way to escape and overcome
the common temptations that come our way due to our natural desires. The desire
for sexual activity is from God and is good, as long as it is used according to
His plan and will in marriage. When God given sexual desires are provoked
prematurely, purity is pummeled and dirtied.
The book of Proverbs, a book of wisdom, addresses
this issue. Wisdom is the ability to apply practically to life the revealed
truth of God from His word. In Proverbs it states:
- Proverbs 6:27-28 – “Can a man take fire to his
bosom, And his clothes not be burned? Can one go upon hot coals, and his
feet not be burned?”
The context for this verse is a proverbial warning against
the deception and danger of being drawn into sexual sin by a temptress; a
harlot. But there is a broader application here. A modern day translation would
be “If you play with fire, you’ll get burned.” The natural sexual desires that
God has built into the human being to be used in marriage, can be inflamed into
an inappropriate burning lust that burns up our purity. And it doesn’t take
much. A seductive look, a seemingly innocent touch, a caress, a song, a
picture, an image on the screen, words, all of these can provoke passions that
are sinfully lustful and need to be avoided. This is true for both males and
females.
God loves us and He has given us sex as a wonderful
gift. But He has also prescribed certain boundaries for sexual activity,
marriage (between one man and one woman). Don’t have the attitude of, “I can
handle it.” You can’t! You can’t because God never intended you to handle
inflamed sexual passions and lusts. That is not God’s will for you! Your sexual
desires were meant by God to be fulfilled with one person (of the opposite sex)
to whom you have entered into a holy life relationship of love and commitment.
Your sexual purity is a precious gift to give to
the one with whom God has ordained you spend the rest of your life.
Unfortunately, many have cast that precious gift aside prematurely. They have
prematurely entered into sexual relationships with those they
thought they would spend their lives
with only to find that the person was not their God ordained life partner.
There is no room for slipups with your sexual purity. If you relinquish it, it
cannot be regained. You can be forgiven by God, but that precious gift God gave
you to share with the one human you love supremely will have been lost forever.
Don’t take the chance. Submit to God and the words of the Holy Spirit; you
won’t regret it.
Self Worship and
Homosexuality
Romans 1:25
– “who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the
creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.”
The
word “exchanged” is found in 1:23, 25, and 26 (also translated “change”).
This word is translated from the Greek term metalasso and means, “to exchange, change, alter, and
substitute; to exchange by leaving.” Therefore, those who
are being considered here do not merely turn away from God’s truth; they
replace it with a “truth” of their own making, which is no more than a “lie.” The idea here is that they leave
God’s truth and replace it with a “truth” that they feel comfortable with, that
will not convict them or show them to be sinful, a “truth” that they can live
with, a “truth” that is nonetheless a “lie.” Any alternative to God’s
truth is a lie!
But
Paul is speaking of a specific lie as indicated by the article “the.” What is
“the lie”? Notice that the definite article
“the” precedes the word “lie,” and therefore I believe Paul is referring to a
particular “lie.” What might that particular “lie” be? The lie is the belief that man
does not need God; because man is “God,” and in control of his or her own life
and destiny. This was the foundation of
Satan’s initial temptation in heaven and in the Garden of Eden:
- Isaiah
14:12-15 - “How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning!
How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations!13
For you have said in your heart: ‘I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt
my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the
congregation On the farthest sides of the north;14 I will ascend above the
heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.’15 Yet you
shall be brought down to Sheol, To the lowest depths of the Pit.”
- Genesis
3:5 - “For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be
opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
This lie is at the root of all sin. The lie is rooted in
sinful pride and a lust for self-sovereignty, a lust to sin and serve self
regardless how it affects others.
“The
lie” says, “I don’t need God; God does not exist; God is not a factor; what
matters most is ME.” The lie says, “I don’t need
God,” and will try to kill God or remove God from consideration in order to
accomplish the goal of self-rule. That’s exactly what is happening in our world
today! There is a movement to remove God from society.
But almost worse than
substituting self for God is concocting a lie and then attributing it to God.
There is a redacting of God’s truth taking place in society and even some
segments of the church today. What the Bible defines as sinful is being
condoned and even promoted under the misapplied label of “love” and “tolerance.”
True loves speaks God’s truth (Ephesians 4:15; 2 John). Attributing a redacted “truth”
to God is offensive, blasphemous to God. The wrath of God is on these sinners
for misrepresenting God’s truth by attributing their own “truth” (“i.e. “the
lie”) to God. An example of this are those who say, “God accepts me for who I am. He created me as
a homosexual. Therefore, to be a homosexual is okay; even wonderful; to be
celebrated.” This is a perfect example of not only misrepresenting God, but
also trying to insert a falsehood in place of His truth.
In
order to attain the goal of self-rule, the sinner explains away God and His
word. This is attempted in a number of ways. Here Paul points to the elevation of the creature
to godhood, idols made in the image of the creature. Idolatry is foolish (Psalm 115; Isaiah
44:9-20). God is justified in giving
such idolatrous self-worshipers up to their own rebellious preferences.
Vile Passions
Romans 1:26-27 – “For this reason God gave them up to
vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is
against nature.27 Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman,
burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful,
and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due.”
“For this reason,” what reason? Because
they refused to receive God’s revelation truth of Himself (Romans 1:19-24).
They rejected God and not only rejected Him but twisted His truth with their
own warped view of reality. And because of this, “God gave them up to vile
passions.” God allows people to not
choose to worship and thank Him. Here we see the downward spiral
of sin. “Vile passions,” are the natural consequence of rejecting God. Look
around you, what do you see in our post-Christian world? A host of vile
passions. When you reject God, you enter into a warped view of existence that
leads you into all sorts of contorted, mangled, mixed up, hell bent ways of
seeing the world around you. Remove God and expect an anything goes world.
Paul speaks of “For
even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. Likewise
also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, . . . ” When a
person rejects God, their sin leads them to abuse nature and do things that are
actually opposed to nature. One function of sex is procreation. Lesbianism,
Gay, Bi-sexual and Transsexual (LGBT) sexual activity is unnatural; it
contradicts and goes against nature disregarding the procreative purpose of
sex. LGBT lifestyles are a
perversion of natural human desires. Turning from God and His revelation leads to idolatry and the
height of idolatry is worship of
self. LGBT lifestyles are self-worship as people
worship their own gender image in other people, women with women and men with
men.
Then Paul says of these people
that they, “burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what
is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was
due.” This is the only occurrence of this particular word for “burned” here in
the NT. The word “burned” is translated from the Greek term ekkaio and means, “burned out; consumed;
inflame deeply; set ablaze.” The idea here is that so deep is their lustful
burning for one another that they actually burn out and are consumed by their
lustful pursuits. This may allude to physical consequences (e.g. disease),
emotional consequences, and certainly spiritual consequences. Sexually
transmitted diseases are a big problem and a source of much pain and suffering
for those indulging in immoral sexual behavior. Those who live LGBT lifestyles
are notorious for having a myriad of sexual partners. Such can cause a great
deal of emotional burnout.
God created sex
Sex is not sinful. God created sex (i.e. “one flesh” -
Genesis 2:23-25). Sex only
becomes sinful when it is misused outside of God’s ordained parameters. When
sex is misused in ways God never intended, it has the opposite effect of God’s
intended purpose for it. God intended sex to bring two people together as one
in a very wonderful way. When two people enter into sexual activity outside of
marriage, a uniting takes place out of sync with the process God laid out as
right and proper.
Sex unites
Paul warned against adultery and sex outside of marriage
because there is a uniting that occurs between the two parties involved. Paul
was inspired to write:
- 1
Corinthians 6:15-20 – “Do you not know that your bodies are members of
Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them
members of a harlot? Certainly not!16 Or do you not know that he who is
joined to a harlot is one body with her? For “the two,” He
says, “shall become one flesh.”17 But he who is joined to the Lord is one
spirit with Him.18 Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a
man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins
against his own body.19 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of
the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and
you are not your own?20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify
God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.”
Sex is a beautiful part of God’s creation and intended
purpose. Sexuality outside of the marriage covenant makes unholy connections.
It is Satan’s strategy to take what God meant for beauty and loving expression
between two people and turn it into something dirty and shameful. That is what
the downward spiral of sin does.
When I was a boy I enjoyed building models. But as a young
boy I was impatient and didn’t always read the instructions or follow
directions. Nowadays you can buy models that are already painted. But in my day
you had to paint the models and then assemble them. As I would put the models
together I’d sometimes get impatient. The instructions called for me to paint
certain parts in certain areas, let them dry, and then glue them
together. Inevitably my impatience would get the better of me and I’d paint
over areas I was supposed to leave paint-less and try to glue parts together
before the paint was dry. What I found is that the glue never held pieces
together that I impatiently tried to glue when the paint was still wet. Then
I’d try to take the pieces apart to wipe them clean and I’d have a gigantic
gooey mess. When I didn’t follow instructions and acted impatiently, the model
always got sticky and weakly assembled and never lasted very long, (at least as
long as it might have if I had patiently and diligently followed instructions).
The same is true with sex and marriage. If you try to glue two people together
with sex before the Lord prepares the parts properly, your relationship will
wind up weak and likely won’t last.
The contemporary view of the day is for people to enter
into pre-marital sexual activity in order to gauge compatibility. But statistics
show that sexual activity before marriage actually undermines the strength of a
marriage.
It’s
always best to wait on God and follow the instructions of His word (the Bible)
when it comes to marriage and sex, and everything else in life for that matter.
Hope of
Deliverance from Sexual Sin
Sexual sin can be addictive whether it manifests itself in
the actual physical adulterous act or the lustful fantasy of the mind. Trying
to overcome such sin in one’s own strength is futile and frustrating. But there
is hope. As we mentioned earlier, the gospel is powerful and God is able to
deliver the person caught up in sexual sin from that sin. The Bible states:
·
1 Corinthians 6:9-11 - 9 Do you not know that the
unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom
of God? Do not be
deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals,
nor sodomites, 10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor
revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.
11 And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were
sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the
Spirit of our God.
Notice what Paul says, “
But such WERE some of you.” He is
inspired to speak of the sin of the Corinthians in the past tense because it
was a
thing of the past; it had been put behind them.
How were they able to put their sins behind them? Later in the same epistle
Paul writes:
·
1 Corinthians 10:13 - 13 No temptation has overtaken
you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not
allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will
also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
God’s promise is to not allow you to be tempted beyond what you can bear but
will make a way of escape so you can stand and get through it. That’s His
promise and the person caught in sexual sin needs to pray long and hard over
that verse. God is faithful, He will show you the way out of your sinful
lifestyle or addictive habit. That way out starts with turning from your sin to
God and putting your faith in Jesus. You put your faith in Jesus by asking God
to forgive you based on His sacrifice for you on the cross. Receive God’s
forgiveness through faith in Jesus. The Holy Spirit will then give you
spiritual life; eternal life; abundant life.
In another letter of Paul’s, he writes:
·
Philippians 3:13-14 - 13 Brethren, I do not count
myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things
which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14
I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ
Jesus.
It’s time to put your sin behind you and press on with Jesus to His higher
calling for you (see Jeremiah 31:34; Micah 7:18-19; Romans 6:14). That means
leaving your LGBT lifestyle behind or some other sexual sin. And that time is
NOW. It is time to put your faith in Jesus and seek forgiveness for your sin.
That forgiveness is based on the cross work of Jesus. Confess your sins to God.
Believe and accept that Jesus died on the cross for of Jesus. Confess your sins
to God. Believe and accept that Jesus died on the cross for YOU. Ask God to
forgive your sins because Jesus paid your penalty for sin on the cross. Then by
faith receive that forgiveness offered by God through faith in Jesus. Receive
the eternal life and in indwelling of the Holy Spirit God promises in His
gospel. The New Testament puts it like this:
·
Titus 3:4-7 - 4 But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior
toward man appeared, 5 not by works of righteousness which we have
done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of
regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom He poured out
on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 that having been
justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal
life.
A story is told of a man who purchased a white mouse to use as food for his
pet snake. He dropped the unsuspecting mouse into the snake's glass cage, where
the snake was sleeping in a bed of sawdust. The tiny mouse had a serious
problem on his hands. At any moment he could be swallowed alive. Obviously, the
mouse needed to come up with a brilliant plan. What did the terrified creature
do? He quickly set up work covering the snake with sawdust chips until it was
completely buried. With that, the mouse apparently thought he had solved his
problem. But the truth of the situation was that sawdust chips wouldn’t hold
back the snake. The solution to the mouse’s problem came from outside of the
cage. The man looked down at the plight of the mouse and took pity on him
lifting him out. In the same way, no matter how we try to deny our sinful
plight by covering up the truth of our need, in the end the snake of sin will
fatally bite us.
We need help from outside
of our cage. We need Jesus.
A New Heart with New Desires
In the Old Testament God promises a time when people would be able to
receive a “new heart.” We see this in the following verses:
·
Ezekiel 18:30-32 - 30
“Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his
ways,” says the Lord God. “Repent,
and turn from all your transgressions, so that iniquity will not be your ruin. 31
Cast away from you all the transgressions which you have committed, and get
yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. For why should you die, O house of Israel? 32
For I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies,” says the Lord God. “Therefore turn and live!”
·
Ezekiel 36:25-27 - 25 Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be
clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. 26
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the
heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 I
will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you
will keep My judgments and do them.
This promise is referred to in the book of Hebrews where it states:
·
Hebrews 10:12-22 - 12 But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins
forever, sat down at the right hand of God, 13 from that time
waiting till His enemies are made His footstool. 14 For by one
offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified. 15
But the Holy Spirit also witnesses to us; for after He had said before, 16
“This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days,
says the Lord: I will put My
laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write them,” 17
then He adds, “Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.”
18 Now where there is remission of these, there is no longer
an offering for sin. 19 Therefore, brethren, having boldness to
enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way
which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, 21
and having a High Priest over the house of God, 22 let us
draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts
sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.
When we look at these verses in the Old Testament illuminated by the New
Testament we learn that when a person turns away from their sin and to God
(i.e. repents), trusting in “this Man” Jesus God will give them a new heart.
When we trust alone in Jesus’ sacrifice to be the just basis of our forgiveness
before God, He will do heart transplant surgery on us. When we do that God will
wipe our sinful slate clean and He will give us “a true heart in full assurance
of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience.” God has made a
way to give us a new heart, and that heart is filled with the Holy Spirit
(Romans 8:9-11). The Gospel or good news for those caught in sexual sin is that
they can receive a fresh start with a new heart. What are you waiting for?
In Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians he was inspired to speak of how
in a relationship with Jesus we become a “new Creation; old things have passed
away; behold, all things have become new” (2 Corinthians
5:17). That’s what we need to overcome sexual
sin, a fresh start with
a new heart that
will lead us into new holy desires. When
a person turns from their sinful life to God through faith in Jesus, God
promises to give them a new heart that will be receptive to His law and word.
For those who have received a new heart but allowed it to be dirtied and
tarnished once again with sin, there is continuous ongoing cleansing available
from God as we confess our sins to Him honestly and walk on in the light of His
word (1 John 1:7,9). We should always ask God to search our hearts to expose
sin so we can confess it to Him and He can keep us clean (Psalm 139:23-24).
God has revealed His righteous plan of redemption from sin through faith in
Christ and no matter how we try to suppress or hold down the truth that we are
sinners and need a Savior, this truth cannot be denied. The only way to be
saved from sin is to turn to the One outside the cage of this fallen world; God
in Christ by the Spirit. If we continue to reject and hold down God’s truth,
sin will fatally bite us, (Satan the snake is waiting – Genesis 3; Revelation
12:9; 20:2).
If by reading this you are convicted of your sinful state and know you
would be found guilty on God’s righteous judgment day, just turn from your sin
to God (repent) and place your faith in Jesus Christ to save you. This is not
an uncertainty. This is a certainty. You can know you are forgiven and going to
heaven. Below is a simple gospel summary for you to follow. God is reaching out
to you through His Only Son Jesus. He wants to forgive your sin and save you
from it. Don’t let this gracious opportunity of God pass you by.
The Bible states you
can know for sure whether or not you are going to heaven?
·
1 John 5:13 - 13 These things
I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may
know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in
the name of the Son of God.
How can you know for
sure?
- Realize you are a sinner –
·
Romans 3:23
- 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
·
Galatians 3:10 - 10 For as many as are of the works
of the law are under the curse; for it is written, “Cursed is everyone
who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law,
to do them.”
·
James 2:10
- 10 For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in
one point, he is guilty of all.
- Realize there is a price for sin –
·
Romans 6:23a - 23 For the
wages of sin is death,
3.
Realize
Jesus paid the price for you –
·
Romans 5:8 - 8 But God
demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners,
Christ died for us. (Galatians 3:10-13).
·
2 Corinthians 5:21 - 21 For He made Him who knew no sin to
be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
4.
Realize your
salvation is a free gift that requires only a heart decision from you to
receive it –
·
Romans 6:23
- 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is
eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5)
·
Romans 10:10
- 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and
with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
- Realize you must now call upon Jesus to save you –
·
Romans 10:13
- 13 For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
A SALVATION PRAYER:
“Dear God, I know and admit I am a sinner. I repent of my sins. Please forgive
me for my sins. I know that on my own I don’t deserve Your forgiveness. But I
believe Jesus died for me on the cross to pay the penalty for my sins. Please
give me spiritual life. Send Your Holy Spirit to indwell me and help me to live
the life that you have for me. Please make me what I need to be, to do what You
call me to do, for Your glory, until Jesus returns. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
[1]W.E. Vine, Merrill F. Unger
and William White, Vine’s complete expository dictionary of Old and New
Testament words [computer file], electronic ed., Logos Library System,
(Nashville: Thomas Nelson) 1997, c1996.
[2]Swanson, J.
1997.
Dictionary of Biblical Languages with Semantic Domains: Greek (New
Testament) (electronic ed.). Logos Research Systems, Inc.:
Oak Harbor
[3]Strong, J.
1997, c1996.
The new Strong's dictionary of Hebrew and Greek words
(electronic ed.). Thomas Nelson:
Nashville
