God Will Not Be Mocked
Posted by Jeffrey K Radt ("JRed") | Posted in America In Prophecy , Bible Study , How Close Are We? , Moral Decline , Prophecy Basics , Spiritual Deception , Spiritual Growth , Why Study Prophecy? | Posted on Wednesday, January 13, 2010
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Hosea 10:12-15 (KJV) Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you. Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity; ye have eaten the fruit of lies: because thou didst trust in thy way, in the multitude of thy mighty men. Therefore shall a tumult arise among thy people, and all thy fortresses shall be spoiled, as Shalman spoiled Betharbel in the day of battle: the mother was dashed in pieces upon her children. So shall Bethel do unto you because of your great wickedness: in a morning shall the king of Israel utterly be cut off.
By listening to the sensually appealing but iniquitous advice of "authoritative" individuals, our people have fallen prey to the lustful desires of human nature.
Humanistic Psychologists and Psychiatrists (and Pop Psychology/Self-Help Pastors) urge people in the measured tones of academia that sin is passé and that we should not concern ourselves with remaining faithful or virgin.
Ministers back away from the Bible's authority by seeming to respect it no more than a mere writing of men. Sex gurus such as Alex Comfort, author of The Joy of Sex, once said of sex, "There is nothing to be afraid of and never was." For decades Hugh Hefner has propounded his insidious "Playboy Philosophy" in his magazine, setting the tone for contemporary moral standards. We cannot forget the political figures whose sexual escapades, once only whispered about, are now openly discussed. Yet many are re-elected, indicating the public's approval or unconcern.
People are persuaded, even though the statistics indicate an ever-increasing rise in sexually transmitted diseases and a steady divorce rate. Because God's law may not exact an immediate penalty (Ecclesiastes 8:11), the hucksters of hedonism cry, "There is no penalty!"
But because God is faithful, the penalty always falls. Moreover, the penalties are mounting, bringing great sorrow and becoming visible for all who care to see. How much easier it is to learn wisdom through obeying God rather than through the harsh experiences of human nature!
When we look at the world around us I pray that we see it for what it truly is -- depraved and fallen. May we never be enticed to indulge in our base passions, which we know are inconsistent with living a life in obedience to God.
I, for one, have been convicted lately (not so much in the area of past sexual sins of the heart and mind), but of a much different nature and in ways I've never experienced before. I know that as we continue moving closer to the end that it's only going to get worse.
Lord, please help me to have a healthy fear of You so that I respect your Word and honor it by not foolishly falling into Satan's trap by thinking that because I am saved I somehow have a license to sin.
Correction: as we move towards the end it gets BETTER. The cleansing of conviction hurts, no question, but if you think about it as being scrubbed with strong soap and think ahead, it seems more purposeful.
Re. mounting sin, it can't be an accident that our financial debt is piling up also. God works often in allegories and that one is at least one way that people can understand the analogy. Even if someone else is paying (as Jesus did on the cross), he bill eventually comes due and the tab must stop running up.
Amen!
God has been moving in such righteous ways to wake up His people from their slumberous fleshly desires. And it's like you said, not just regarding sex. It's about everything. We have forgotten where our hope and our faith should be.
I've mentioned this before, but it's almost sinister how it creeps in and steals our attentions from God. What begins as an hour of "me-time" can quickly turn into hours and hours and days and days of neglect from our personal ministries--our families. Me-time does not truly cultivate peace, it cultivates the craving for more alone time. And it separates us, but not from the world, rather from our God in ways that we cannot begin to understand.
That's just one non-sexual example that is going on. We need more than ever to keep our focus on the Lord and His ways so that we can not be deceived. We need to pray for our families and show them the love of God now, before they too go any further down those paths.