21 States of Man without God
(Fourth in series)
As we come to the conclusion of our four part series about the 21 states of man without God, we will look at the last five of our conditions that cause us to live apart from God. And it is my hope that each one of us who has listened to the entire series up to now has taken some stock in ourselves and truly examined our relationship with God. Now we need to look clearly at ourselves because time is growing shorter and shorter each passing day, as we do not know when Christ is coming back for His bride, the church. So before He comes back we need to be sure that we will not be like the five foolish virgins that did not have enough oil in their lamps and were unprepared for the return of Christ.
And the question goes out…do you want eternal life with the Father? If the answer is yes then we will need to look within ourselves to determine if we possess any of the 21 states of man without God and if so, make the necessary corrections.
1. Rejecting the truth
a. This is a state of man that refuses to accept the truth of Christ Jesus; having a desire to believe anything other than the good news that Jesus is the savior of mankind.
b. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. ~2 Timothy 4:3-4
c. Truth is rare in a world of lies.
d. I was recently reminded of the following comment on a media article, ‘Everything we have been taught about our Origins is a Lie.’ The comment was a response to a previous comment recommending the Bible as a source of truth. The comment was this: “Wow, how do you manage to shove religion into this? Fictional books hold no answers.”
What a truly deceived, totally indoctrinated person. He just finished an article detailing reasons why what he has been taught is a lie, yet he refuses to even consider any other sources as valid EXCEPT those who already have admitted lying to him.
e. Former vice-President Joe Bidden recently said this: “We choose truth over facts.” In this case he is saying that truth is whatever we tell you it is. The governor Pilot said something similar to Jesus when He said “Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.” To which Pilate responded: “What is truth?” Translation: truth is what I say it is.
f. Look at our media today and you can see rejection of truth in action: calling protests peaceful when buildings are being burned and people injured. Also telling us that everything, literally everything is our Presidents fault.
g. It’s amazing the things we find ourselves believing when we want to live a life apart from God.
i. We end up believing that Christ never died for our sins
ii. We end up believing that there is no hell
iii. We end up believing that the world and man was not created, but evolved from some unknown event
iv. We end up believing that Satan does not exist
v. We end up believing that demons do not exist
vi. We end up believing that angels do not exist
vii. We end up believing that God does not exist
h. So let us stay grounded in the Word of God because the Bible contains:
i. The mind of God
ii. The truth of God
iii. The state of man
iv. The way of salvation and the happiness of the believers
v. The light to direct us
vi. The food to nurture us
vii. The comfort to cheer us
2. Lovers of Self
a. This is the state where everyone does what is right in their own eyes. A state where selfishness abounds and the person is so full of themselves that there is no room for God in them or their lives.
b. But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! ~2 Timothy 3:1-5
c. In these scriptures Paul speaks to the young pastor Timothy, giving him a bit of advice about those of us who hold ourselves higher that anyone or anything else. And notice in the scripture how Paul leads off with the root cause of our life’s troubles “lovers of their own selves”. And in that lay the slippery slope that causes us to become:
i. covetous, thinking that we deserve everything in life;
ii. boasters, trying to let the world know how great we are;
iii. proud, believing we are the greatest thing since buttered bread. And all the way down the line until we are acting as if we love God, but we are full of ourselves, so full that there is no room for Christ in us.
d. In the summer of 1986, two ships collided in the Black Sea off the coast of Russia. Hundreds of passengers died as they were hurled into the icy waters below. News of the disaster was further darkened when an investigation revealed the cause of the accident. It wasn't a technology problem like radar malfunction--or even thick fog. The cause was human stubbornness. Each captain was aware of the other ship's presence nearby. Both could have steered clear, but according to news reports, neither captain wanted to give way to the other. Each was too proud to yield first. By the time they came to their senses, it was too late.
e. Having this greater sense of self causes others to be destroyed along with us. Jesus once told the Pharisees that because they think of themselves so highly, that those that they teach and convert are more bound for hell then themselves. You see the destructive power of loving one’s self? In our desire to be our own god we teach others to be even less godly than ourselves. Such is the state of the atheist, who wants to proclaim that there is no God, captaining their ship of life carrying their passengers, those who fall for their foolish talk, directly into oncoming danger. Here is an illustration of this point.
f. US Ship radioing to an object out in the distance: Please divert your course 0.5 degrees to the south to avoid a collision. Object’s reply: Recommend you divert your course 15 degrees to the South to avoid a collision. US Ship: This is the Captain of a US Navy Ship. I say again, divert your course. Object’s reply: No. I say again, you divert YOUR course! US Ship: THIS IS THE AIRCRAFT CARRIER USS CORAL SEA*, WE ARE A LARGE WARSHIP OF THE US NAVY. DIVERT YOUR COURSE NOW!! Object’s reply: This is a lighthouse. Your call.
g. Although this is not a true incident, it does serve the purpose of showing us that when we think too much of ourselves we find that we are playing a losing battle with God.
h. For this state of man Jesus has some choice words to say:
i. If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. ~Luke 14:26
ii. Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. ~Matthew 16:24
i. Being a lover of one’s self causes us to fall away from God, and in most cases, dragging others with you. In the end will have no part in Christ Jesus.
3. A slave of sin
a. This state of man without God has us being a servant to sin, being a slave to its demands:
b. Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. ~Romans 6:16-17
c. In this state we continually yield to sin as our master and by yielding to sin we walk down a path to death and further separation from God who loves us. But if we look to the saving power of Christ Jesus we can be redeemed from the slave market that sin has us in. Looking to Christ we can have a hope of life eternal united with the Father in heaven. And again scripture is clear on our needing to make a decision on where we are to place our loyalty:
d. No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. ~Matthew 6:24
e. Change your state of being separated from God by acknowledging Him as Lord and master of your life. Take yourself from the slave market of sin by putting yourself into the loving hands of Christ Jesus. He has already paid the price for your freedom, all you have to do is accept that gift.
4. Unconscious of bondage
a. This is a state of man where we are not even aware that we are serving sin as a master.
b. We are in this state because the god of this world has blinded our eyes to the truth that we are sinful by nature, and the only way to freedom is by way of Christ Jesus.
c. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How can You say, ‘You will be made free’?” Jesus answered them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. ~John 8:32-34
d. In this passage Jesus is speaking to new believes in Him. And in this we see that the people are under the belief that they are not under any bondage. Although they are not under any physical bondage they fail to see or even think about the spiritually side of things. And in these scriptures Jesus is warning them as well as us that if we continue to follow the ways of the world, ignoring the commands of God, we to become unconscious to that fact of being under sins command.
e. So let us not try to rationalize our sinful condition, finding reason after reason to justify the things we do that are contrary to God’s Word.
f. Abiding in the Word of Jesus gives us greater knowledge of the truth, the truth that all men are sinners and only through Christ Jesus we can be set free from its bondage. As we continue in His word our eyes start to open to our true state of being apart from God, falling closer and closer to the pit of despair.
g. Believe upon the name of Jesus and change your eternal destination.
5. Unrighteous
a. Here is our state of unrighteousness that keeps us from approaching a holy God. And the dictionary defines righteousness as a state of being morally upright, without guilt or sin. So, then unrighteousness has us not being morally upright, full of guilt and sin.
b. 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, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. ~1 Corinthians 6:9-10
c. In these scriptures we find the full definition of unrighteousness: fornication, idolatry, adultery, homosexuality, prostitution, thievery, greediness, excessive drinking, cheating, and swindling. These are the states that we find ourselves in when we live apart from God’s will for our lives. And in doing these things we set ourselves far from God. But know that we can be different, we can change our state of mind…because scripture tells us that “whosoever believes on Jesus will have everlasting life.” And scripture also tells us that when we decide to believe upon Him that He is able to save us from eternal death we find that we are changed.
d. Many people justify a variety of behaviors by calling them “natural.” Here’s what M. Scott Peck says about that: “Calling it natural does not mean it is essential or beneficial or unchangeable behavior. It is also natural to defecate in our pants and never brush our teeth. Yet we teach ourselves to do the unnatural until the unnatural itself becomes second nature. Indeed, all self-discipline might be defined as teaching ourselves to do the unnatural.”
e. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. ~2 Corinthians 5:17
f. Only through Christ Jesus can our old self pass away and the new self be created.
g. Only through a saving faith in Christ Jesus can we be made whole again.
h. Only through the redemptive power of the blood of Christ can we not fall prey to the states of man that want to keep us from the love of God.
i. Realize the state that you are in and make the necessary corrections before it is too late. Come to Jesus, come to Jesus, come to Jesus right now. He can save you from yourself. Bringing you into the marvelous light of salvation.
j. Therefore lay aside all filthiness and [a]overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. ~James 1:21
