I’ve been thinking about how the world has changed over the last half a century.
Specifically, the changes I have witnessed in both spiritual, moral and secular thinking.
I have come to the conclusion that in this supposedly enlightened and entitled world we live in there are many worrying and alarming trends in both society and the church.
Things that years ago would have been considered wrong for spiritual or moral reasons are now considered normal.
Wrong has become right.
The voice of reason is shouted down because Diversity is meant to be embraced regardless of what it says or the damage it does.
Consider Ephesians 4:17-19
Ephesians 4:17-19 (NLT)
17 With the Lord’s authority I say this: Live no longer as the Gentiles do, for they are hopelessly confused. 18 Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him. 19 They have no sense of shame. They live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity.
Ephesians 4:17-19 (The Message)
And so I insist—and God backs me up on this—that there be no going along with the crowd, the empty-headed, mindless crowd. They’ve refused for so long to deal with God that they’ve lost touch not only with God but with reality itself. They can’t think straight anymore. Feeling no pain, they let themselves go in sexual obsession, addicted to every sort of perversion.
Instead of living according to God’s word, plan or purpose people choose to live in a way that satisfies their wants, needs, desires and preferences.
Sadly, I am not just talking about people who are not Christians.
There are people who say they are believers who cherry-pick the parts of God’s Word that they will follow and deliberately ignore the parts that would cause them to change the way they live.
Be honest – are you living as the Gentiles do, living as the empty-headed, mindless crowd?
Are you living as a disciple of Christ or as a person desensitised to sin?
Is there stuff you are involved in that you have no shame about?
Have you closed your mind and hardened your heart to God?
Think back to when you first repented of your sin and accepted Jesus as your Lord and Saviour – the old you was reborn, you were ransomed, healed, restored and forgiven. You were set free from the burden of your sin because you turned to Christ.
Is Christ still the centre of your life or have you wandered away from Him?
Are you now accepting things that God says are sinful and wrong as normal?
Let me ask the question again:
Are you living as a disciple of Christ or as a person desensitised to sin?
Becoming desensitised to sin can be a slow process – we might not even notice it happening.
Right from the beginning of Creation the devil has played a long-con on humanity, suggesting and seducing people away from the Word of God.
Think back to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden – Genesis 3:1 The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the LORD God had made. One day he asked the woman, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?”
The serpent sowed seeds of doubt, then he sowed seeds of denial Genesis 3:4-5, “You won’t die!” the serpent replied to the woman. 5 “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.”
He convinced Eve with deception in Genesis 3:6, The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too.
Friends, all of the issues and problems we see in the world today trace back to this doubt, denial and deception.
This is the disobedience of God’s command that brought sin, death and destruction into the world.
Are you allowing doubt, denial or deception to make you disobedient to God?
Are you following the crowd or following Christ?
Do you trivialise the serious or the sacred?
Do you dismiss Sin as a mistake, poor choice or bad behaviour rather than disobedience of God?
Do you sanitise the sordid?
The world says -v- The Bible Says
“in a relationship” -v- committing fornication
“having an affair” -v- Committing adultery
“using colourful words” -v- “swearing”
“self-assurance” -v- Arrogance
“making a mistake” -v- “sin”
Sin by any other name is still a sin
The prophet Isaiah put it this way in Isaiah 5:20.
What sorrow for those who say that evil is good and good is evil, that dark is light and light is dark, that bitter is sweet and sweet is bitter.
The Apostle Paul also wrote to the Corinthian Church to give a similar warning to the one he gave to the Ephesian church, listen to 1 Corinthians 5:9-13
When I wrote to you before, I told you not to associate with people who indulge in sexual sin. 10 But I wasn’t talking about unbelievers who indulge in sexual sin, or are greedy, or cheat people, or worship idols. You would have to leave this world to avoid people like that. 11 I meant that you are not to associate with anyone who claims to be a believer yet indulges in sexual sin, or is greedy, or worships idols, or is abusive, or is a drunkard, or cheats people. Don’t even eat with such people.
12 It isn’t my responsibility to judge outsiders, but it certainly is your responsibility to judge those inside the church who are sinning. 13 God will judge those on the outside; but as the Scriptures say, “You must remove the evil person from among you.”
The Apostle Paul’s Warning to the church must be heeded.
We must know and affirm the truth of God’s Word regardless of what the world says is normal.
We must be different in our thoughts, words and actions to demonstrate that we are Disciples of Jesus.
Our focus must be on being Christ-like listen to Ephesians 4:21-24 Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from Him, 22 throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. 23 Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. 24 Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.
How do we put on our new nature? Only through the power of Christ – 1 Peter 1:3-5, All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by His great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, 4 and we have a priceless inheritance - an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. 5 And through your faith, God is protecting you by His power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see.
Let’s return to the question Are you living as a disciple of Christ or as a person desensitised to sin?
If you are not fully living as a disciple of Christ then what ‘normal’ things of the world have got in the way of you walking close to Jesus?
Do you place a higher priority on your hobbies than on spending quality time with God?
Do you accept sin as the new normal or do you stand firm on the word of God?
I will close with the words of the Apostle Paul from Philippians 4:8-9, And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. 9 Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me — everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.
Don’t follow the mindless crowd or popular opinion, live as a disciple of Christ, embrace what God says is normal, embrace what God says is true, honourable, right, pure, lovely and admirable.
Focus your life on Christ, live for Him, tell others about Him, show the difference He has made in your life.
For His honour and glory. Amen
