Rufusing To Know Him

I must apologize as I forget this, and therefore it is out of order.


DEVOTION

ROMANS

REFUSING TO KNOW HIM

Rom 1:24-32

24 Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25 They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator — who is forever praised. Amen.

26 Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. 27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.

28 Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. 29 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, 30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; 31 they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 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.
NIV

Here we must lump all this bad, godless behavior in one terrible grouping. Now It would certainly appear on the surface that I and my fellow believers I call friends are not involved in any sort of horrific acts such as these listed and therefore have, in fact, been given over to them by our God. So what must I do with this passage, see it in the light of history? Observing the response of God toward those who drive out the knowledge of him by such horrendous acts seems to be the only logical thing to do. However, I must also see this as warnings by my God, to remain so close to him, I would not ever entertain the smallest temptation to begin my path in that direction. According to James, we can see the temptation alone is not the sin, but it is when we entertain, consider, contemplate, wonder, and such upon what it would be like, the process begins. Oh, I know I certainly would never even allow myself to think such things, yet included in this list of lustful behaviors, are boastful senseless, heartless, envy, strife, and gossips. Do I entertain these? Am I proud of my righteousness, boasting, if not only to myself, of how godly I am? Am I without feelings and heart felt concern for the poor and down trodden of this world or those of my own group who are in need of a visit, a prayer, or even a hug? Do I look at others and wish, in some way, I could have the same things or position in life they do? Do I, by either my words, or non verbal communication cause strife between others? Do I wait with eagerness the opportunity to share about another believer’s fault?

It is so easy to believe how those ugly sinful people of the past and the present who do such great sins are going to be subject to the wrath of God and overlook myself and the sin I can be capable of.

Lord, search my heart, and see if there is any wrong, forgive me and give me the spiritual strength to resist such behaviors.