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Did Jesus come to judge the world or save the world? Context, context, context

Posted on by elizabethprata

A favorite tactic for those who take verses out of context, is to read only part of the verse. Or, as in today’s case, to take a complete verse as the statement or their defense, but forego the next verse, which is obviously attached to the former. Here is the example.

As for anyone who hears My words and does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I have not come to judge the world, but to save the world. (John 12:47)

It’s popular for many people to rely on that verse as their defense in saying not to point our error or to name false teachers. “Stop judging!” people say. “The Bible says not to judge, even Jesus didn’t come to judge!”

However, the verse 47 continues the thought into verse 48.

There is a judge for the one who rejects Me and does not receive My words: The word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day.

So people WILL be judged. Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible says of John 12:47-48,

and receiveth not my words; the doctrines of the Gospel, but disbelieves them, and denies them to be true, looking upon them as the doctrines of a mere man, and an impostor:

hath one that judgeth him; let not such an one think that he shall escape righteous judgment; though Christ does not judge him now, there is one that judges him, yea, even now; and declares, that he that believeth not shall be damned, and that he is condemned already

the word that I have spoken unto you the same shall judge him in the last day; according to the different dispensations wicked men are under in this world, will be the rule of their judgment hereafter: such who are only under the law of nature, will be judged according to that, that will accuse them, convict them, and condemn them: such who have been under the law of Moses, or the written law, will be arraigned, proved, and pronounced guilty, and punished by, and according to that law; and such who have been under the Gospel dispensation, and have been favoured with the revelation of the Gospel, but have condemned and denied it, that will judge them at the last day. The judge will act by its present declaration, and according to that proceed, as it stands in Mark 16:16. It will rise up in judgment against such persons, and be an aggravation of their condemnation.

Part of what we mean when we say don’t take verses out of context is first, read the whole verse, not just part of it. Second, read the verses around the verse you want to quote. As a matter of fact, it’s good to read the entire passage, page, or even chapter. You will get a better idea of the flow and the points raised and settled. If realtors’ mantra expression is: “There are three things that matter in property: location, location, location,” then the Bible student’s mantra should be “There are three things that matter in Bible study- context, context, context.”

context

 

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What makes a false religion, false?

Posted on by elizabethprata
Left, a Muslim woman in a hijab. Right, Catholic nun in her habit.

If it’s not one false religion, it’s another. False religion has been with us since the Garden. It’s nothing new. When Jesus returns, He mused whether He will even find faith upon the earth. (Luke 18:8)

The question of the day is, what makes a religion false?

Humans have an innate sense of worship. We don’t worship who God wants us to worship. We don’t worship in the way He wants us to worship. We don’t worship for the right reasons.

Examples of these are of course, Adam and Eve, who were tempted into worshiping themselves (“you will be like God”.) Cain did not worship in the right way. (Genesis 4:3-5). But there is a right way to worship and a wrong way to worship. Neither did Nadab and Abihu. (Leviticus 10:1). Many in the days of the Incarnation did not worship Jesus for the right reasons. They preferred the glory of men to the glory of God. (John 12:43).

I’ve spoken with non-saved people who think that God was being too harsh for preferring Abel’s blood offering and by rejecting Cain’s offering of the fruit of the ground. As if God is someone who should be happy with whatever worship we throw at Him. As in our own earthly lives, there are standards. Even unsaved people know that. Parents have standards for children’s behavior, bosses have standards for evaluating their employees, factories have standards of production to ensure a quality product. When it comes to God though, people think that no standards is the more “loving” way.

Not so. There was a spy spoof TV program in the 1960s called Get Smart. Max the bumbling, incompetent spy used to say “Missed it by that much.”

Obviously, this phrase was used when someone, usually Max,
was just a little bit off in his aim, guess, or goal.
Missed it by that much!

And because the path is narrow, it is easy to miss the mark.

However when it comes to faith and worship, missing it even by that much means the wrong eternity. Jesus said the path is narrow. (Matthew 7:13). Though we can never fall off the path once we are on, those who are not saved concoct all manner of methods to save themselves.

For example, in Japan, we learn that it was thought if you crawled through a volcanic “womb cave” you would be reborn.

For centuries, religious devotees, or ascetics, looked towards Mount Fuji as a place of worship, trekking up the mountainside to reap its spiritual powers. The mysterious lava caves were thought of as “human wombs,” and those who journeyed through the dark passageways could experience rebirth. … The cave known as Tainai, which translates to “womb,” is said to be the birthplace of Sengen, the deity of Mount Fuji.  It was common for the religious followers of the Mount Fuji cult to associate terrestrial features of the mountain with parts of the human anatomy. 

I won’t go further into detail, though the articles does. Suffice to say that anyone passing through the womb caves of Mt Fuji and performing the rites there did not save themselves, nor did they cause their own rebirth.

In Catholicism, there are made-up salvation methods such as the Treasury of Merit and Indulgences. From his online class “Justification By Faith Alone,” RC Sproul explains,

The treasury of merit exists so that people can get into heaven. Very few people die and go directly to heaven, according to the Roman Catholic view. The majority of people who die go to purgatory to have their impurities purged. Purgatory is not hell; it is not a place of punishment. People in purgatory do not have sufficient merit to get them directly into heaven. The few who go directly to heaven have sufficient merit as well as supererogatory merit. Works that go beyond the call of duty produce supererogatory merit. Supererogatory merit is more than is required to get into heaven, allowing for the excess to be deposited into the Treasury of Merit. When indulgences are purchased, withdrawals are made from the treasury of merit for those in purgatory.

Purgatory and Indulgences are weird. All that is just as weird as the volcanic womb tunnels.

There are many other weird methods to save one’s self in many other false religions that we could go into but they are all complicated, weird, wrong, and bad.

The truth is so much simpler.

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9).

So what makes a religion untrue, or what makes Christianity true? There are some doctrines that the Bible declares as essential for true faith.

The Bible itself reveals those doctrines that are essential to the Christian faith.  They are 

1) the Deity of Christ, 2) Salvation by Grace, 3) Resurrection of Christ, 4) the gospel, and 5) monotheism. These are the doctrines the Bible says are necessary.  Though there are many other important doctrines, these five are the ones that are declared by Scripture to be essential. A non-regenerate person (i.e., Mormon or Jehovah’s Witness, atheist, Muslim), will deny one or more of these essential doctrines. Please note that there are other derivative doctrines of scripture that become necessary also and the Trinity being one.

Also note that bedsides denying essential doctrines, a non-regenerate person may use the same terms as a Christian, saying things like “I have faith.” Or, “I believe.” They have adopted Christian terms but have through use or intent, redefined them to something they are not. Mormons for example, believe that Jesus is a god, so a superficial look at the essential doctrine that the deity of Christ is essential in that case would seem to satisfy. However, they believe Jesus is a created god, not THE Eternal, self-existent Father. So they deny the Deity of Christ even though they call Him a god. Therefore Mormonism is a false religion.

Catholics even use the term ‘justification by faith’ as born again believers in the true faith do, which is essentially what the Ephesians verse states. However, Catholics disbelieve the source of the necessary righteousness that justifies us is solely from God, but stems from an inner righteousness humans already possess or generate thought works.

Imputation has always been the one thing that has caused the many attempts to resolve the theological conflict of the Reformation to fail. Rome has always rejected the idea that we are justified on the basis of an imputed righteousness. The Roman view would be that the meritorious cause for God to declare a person righteous is because that person is righteous. The Reformed view would be that the meritorious cause for God to declare a person righteous is because Christ is righteous. (RC Sproul, online course “Justified by faith alone”. 

The essential doctrines are expounded upon at the link above. Here it is again. Those are the doctrines the Word of God declare are necessary for faith. If there is any religion which alter those or are absent any of them, it is a false religion.

How can a Christian determine which doctrines are essential and which are not? Here are two bullet points from a short essay by John MacArthur

I. All Fundamental Articles of Faith Must Be Drawn from the Scriptures
II. The Fundamentals Are Clear in Scripture

Any religion which deviates from the essential doctrines, alters them, or puts forth doctrines that are not from scripture or are unclear, is not a true faith. ALL religions which rely on anything other than the word of God and which draws its essentials from the word are false.

Another way to determine if a religion is false is to see how it handles the Bible. False religions may or may not use the Bible as their basis. Jehovah’s Witnesses use the Bible but they’ve re-written it. Mormons use the Bible but have added to it with their Doctrine and Covenants and Pearl of Great Price philosophies. Islam and Hinduism don’t use the Bible at all.

Christianity is revealed to us through the Bible. It’s one book, divided into 66 books, written over 1,500 years but is a unified, cohesive tome with a sole author. I’d encourage you to check out the link at CARM above which outlines the essential doctrines with the verses and explanations.

You might not have thought about it this way, but ALL OTHER religions have a sole author, too. Satan. He wrote the precepts of Mormonism, Catholicism, Hinduism, Jainism, Atheism, Buddhism, Islam, Wicca, and the rest. If a religion is not of God, it is of the devil. (Matthew 12:30). There are two paths, the broad and the narrow. There is either one or the other. (1 Corinthians 10:21, Matthew 6:24). Any religion that isn’t Christianity is opposed to Jesus and therefore it is of the devil. Even religions like Catholicism, which miss it by that much.

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The glory of men versus the glory of God

Posted on by elizabethprata

Nevertheless, many even of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God. (John 12:42-43)

Isn’t that such a sad statement. The verse in context is speaking of Jesus and the wonderful things He had been doing. He had performed signs and wonders in the presence of the Jewish rulers, yet many did not believe. Others believed, yet did not confess it because they coveted man’s glory more than God’s.

It’s interesting about the word glory here. Strong’s Concordance says of the word glory/doksa, Continue reading “The glory of men versus the glory of God” →

Posted in 2012 prophecy, Uncategorized

Christians losing their minds over the Presidential campaign & election, part 2

Posted on by elizabethprata

Yesterday in part 1 I wrote of how this world is temporary. Pagans put their hopes in a human savior, usually in the form of a President or Prime minister, or some sort of high leader. Others pursue “social justice”, or the “prosperity gospel’, or the “Gnostic mystics.” All those are different gospels. Christians know that our supreme leader is Jesus and our hopes should be on Him. He raises up leaders and ordains their time and even ordains the length of time each nation exists.

Yet, as Christians are painted into a corner regarding our current Presidential choices, hysteria is starting to rise. It seems that many have lost their minds regarding the election. I reminded us that voting is an activity. It’s not a solution. Continue reading “Christians losing their minds over the Presidential campaign & election, part 2” →

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Christians losing their minds over the Presidential campaign & election. Part 1

Posted on by elizabethprata

Part 2 here

First, Christine Caine’s social justice foundation mission statement:

Christine and her husband Nick founded A21, an anti-human trafficking organization dedicated to abolishing injustice in the 21st century.

Next, Martyn Lloyd-Jones, on the futility of seeking social justice in this world:

Jesus’ message is not intended to reform the world or improve it or to banish war or to make it better. The exact opposite. Our Lord never said that. He never said He’d banish war. He never said He’d make the world better. Never. Indeed, He said this: Continue reading “Christians losing their minds over the Presidential campaign & election. Part 1” →

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Peter didn’t know what he was saying

Posted on by elizabethprata

1. He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. (Matthew 16:15-17).

2. From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! (Matthew 16:21-23a)

3. And as the men were parting from him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good that we are here. Let us make three tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah”—not knowing what he said. (Luke 9:33)

1. In the first case, as Jesus and the Disciples came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, Jesus asked the men a question. “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”

They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

Jesus pressed them, asking a second time, “But who do you say that I am?”

This time Peter answered and it was the correct answer. “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Continue reading “Peter didn’t know what he was saying” →

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“Communion with God ennobles the whole man”- The Transfiguration

Posted on by elizabethprata

I listened to S. Lewis Johnson preach on the Transfiguration of Christ last Saturday on Expositor.fm, the 24-hour expository preaching station. It was an astounding and convicting and beautiful sermon expounding on the moments when Jesus was transfigured into His glory on top of the mountain in front of Peter, John, and James, and was seen talking with Moses and Elijah. Johnson said that he was surprised to learn that though there are many sermons about Jesus’ life, including His birth, His Baptism, His Temptation, His crucifixion, and His Ascension, but not His Transfiguration. It is a greatly neglected moment in Jesus’ life, he said. Johnson opened his sermon, **The Transfiguration of Christ, this way

One of the most astonishing of our Lord’s experiences, the one occasion in which the bright beams of his glory blaze through the sack cloth covering of his humanity, is the transfiguration of Jesus Christ.

In this next portion of the sermon, Johnson stresses the change on the inward man when communing with Jesus.

Matthew’s account stresses the inward. For the word, metamorphoo, which is the word that is used here—we get the English word metamorphosis from it—is a word that refers to the transformation of the essential character or essential being of a person. And the text says, he was transfigured before them. So I think that what is involved here is a glorification of the Son in anticipation of the historical glorification of the Son. In other words, in the way he was transfigured, there is a transfiguration not only of the outward but also of the inward. And you’ll notice, too, that it says his face shone like the sun and his raiment was white as the light. Isn’t that striking? Even his garments took on a different look.

Now I think we all know that when a person is in the presence of God, transformation takes place in that person. Moses was in the mount receiving the law and when he came out his face so shone before the children of Israel that they feared to approach him. And you’ll remember that he had to put a veil on his face, which he took off when he went in again before the Lord. And after he finished speaking with the children of Israel giving the message, he put on the veil again. They were afraid to approach him.

Stephen, who was communing with the Lord even in his death when they were stoning him to death, had a face so they said that looked like the face of an angel. In other words, communion with the Lord Jesus transforms a man’s not only outward look but even his inward being. Paul puts its doctrinally when he says, we all with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord are changed into the same image and from glory to glory. It is true that communion with the Lord Jesus ennobles the whole man, ennobles his soul, ennobles his appearance, ennobles his gestures, ennobles his habits.

My Prayer:

Lord let our eyes be be transfixed on Jesus always, reading Your word and praying diligently,

Lord, let our inward and outward man be transfigured into His likeness, which is beauty personified, holiness and goodness,

Then let us be translated into glory at Your timing,

Forever to transcend sin, death, and hell, to dwell in eternity with You and Your angels, the Spirit, and the Father.

**Note: the sermon to which I’ve linked is not the exact same sermon of which I had heard. That sermon was called The Son is Transfigured. However I was unable to find that exact sermon, which went into other details I enjoyed hearing about. I emailed and the reply was that sometimes the radio stations RefNet and Expositor.fm have access to some sermons that have not been made public and it’s likely that was one of the sermons I’d heard. For all intents and purposes though, the point remains the same- there are not many sermons on the subject of the Transfiguration, this is a good one, and I urge you to study it from a good and credible preacher and to read the passages yourself and enjoy the insights the Spirit will bring to mind. 🙂

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Kay Cude: Paul and the scales on our eyes

Posted on by elizabethprata

Kay Cude poetry. Used with permission. Click to enlarge. Artist’s Statement:

There is not one of the Apostles of Christ whom I do not love, and I am so grateful for their love and dedication to Christ, as well as to us the redeemed who have loved the truth of their teachings about our Lord and Saviour.

But there is one Apostle whose enduring love and willingness to give of himself to us, beyond measure, the profound greatness of Christ’s love and the Sovereign, loving heart of God to forgive and reconcile mankind (and me!) to Him, brings my heart to bow and praise God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Paul.

And then there is C.H. Spurgeon, although not an Apostle, reminds me of Paul by his intellect and abiding love of Christ and his desire that all mankind receive Christ as Lord and Master. When I began composing, I kept returning to how blind we can be, even when access to God’s Word is so easily accomplished–there are Bibles everywhere! (At least at present; I’m not sure when the government of this nation will ban the Bible as “hate” material, but surely it will.)

Then my thoughts jumped to those many false teachers, preachers and prophets who give false instruction and promote their vain imaginings to the lost, the deceived and the spiritually immature–to those with “scales” over their eyes. This is a burdensome ache in the hearts of those who have allowed Christ to remove the blindness, to witness “those” who name Christ as their “Lord,” when He is not, while they spout heresies about Him, His Nature, His Will and He and The Father’s predetermined plan to rescue mankind eternally.

This present age now witnesses the too many evangelical churches that are led and taught by preachers and teachers accepting the “imaginings” of false doctrine to be valid; they promote “another” gospel without recognizing that “another” gospel is man’s vanity (self). These deceptions are cleverly intertwined with “some” Scripture, but manipulated by “add-to’s and “removed from’s.” This is confusion and the unwary can be easily deceived. “Personal” interpretations abound, yet they are without the evidence of God’s Breathed Word, His Holy Word.

I’ve added Spurgeon’s “Scales Taken From the Eyes,” No. 3205, Vol. 56 (www.spurgeongems.org) as a reference source. This sermon is so to-the-point and packed so tightly with truth that I cannot imagine anyone reading it and not experiencing a shouting of “Amen” within their spirit, or a change in attitude, even a correction in one’s life-style and heart-thoughts. It surely affected me…

THE MATTER OF THE EVIDENCE
THE MATTER OF THE EVIDENCE
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John Piper and his companions of fools

Posted on by elizabethprata

Who we choose to hang around with, learn from, and be yoked in fellowship with is important. You know that. But lest we attempt to diminish our personal and professional associations into mere “the verses are just a warming about possible temptation but I’m strong enough to handle it” territory, in fact, we have a biblical duty to separate from false teachers and from repeatedly disobedient brethren. (Romans 16:17; 1 Corinthians 16:22; Galatians 1:8-9; 2 John 7-11, 2 Thessalonians 3:14-15; 1 Corinthians 5:11- source). Here is a good verse and then a commentary on the subject.

Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm. (Proverbs 13:20)

Matthew Henry says of this Proverbs verse, Continue reading “John Piper and his companions of fools” →

Posted in prophecy, Uncategorized

UN creates global gay watchdog post

Posted on by elizabethprata

The United Nations took action last week to protect global homosexual and transgender activity by appointing a “czar” to investigate discrimination and violence against them.

Vitit Muntarbhorn Appointed First UN Investigator on LGBT Violence and Discrimination

UNITED NATIONS — The Human Rights Council (HRC) has appointed international human rights expert Vitit Muntarbhorn as the first U.N. independent expert charged with investigating violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. John Fisher, Geneva director of Human Rights Watch, said his appointment on Friday “made history” and “will bring much-needed attention to human rights violations against LGBT people in all regions of the world.”

The Washington Blade, which describes itself as “America’s Leading LGBT News Source”, reported similarly-

U.N. appoints first-ever LGBT rights watchdog

The U.N. Human Rights Council (HRC) on Friday announced it has appointed the U.N.’s first-ever independent expert who will specifically investigate anti-LGBT discrimination and violence around the world. Vitit Muntarbhorn is an international law professor at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok. … The vote is the first time the U.N. has approved a resolution that specifically deals with issues related to sexual orientation and gender identity. The U.N. Human Rights Council on June 30 approved a resolution that created Muntarbhorn’s position. The event was the highest-level meeting on LGBT rights that has ever taken place at the U.N.

Saudi Arabia, a nation in which homosexuals are murdered, other Muslim countries, and Russia were disapproving of the creation of a LBGT Investigator. The said they will not cooperate. The United Sttes, however, was effusive n its approval. US Secretary of State John Kerry, US Ambassador to the UN and the Director of Human Rights Global were approving of the measure.

The Bangkok Post reports on the reaction to the installation of a LGBT “Czar”

The appointment of renowned human rights expert and social commentator Vitit Muntarbhorn as the UN’s first independent expert to investigate violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity has won widespread approval around the world. … Ty Cobb, director of Human Rights Campaign Global, was quoted on washingtonblade.com as saying Mr Muntarbhorn’s appointment was “a huge step forward for LGBTI human rights worldwide”.

Mr Muntarbhorn’s duties will include

assess the state of LGBTQ human rights, liaise with LGBTQ advocates and allies around the world and engage with governments and civil society to make recommendations for combating violence and discrimination against LGBTQ people. In addition, the expert will serve as a bridge between the U.N. Human Rights Council and the organization’s General Assembly, and be empowered to issue private communications to governments, including in emergency situations.

One might imagine an “emergency situation” similar to the incident that occurred in Orlando Florida where a gunman had targeted homosexuals in the nightclub Pulse, and killed many attendees there. As a matter of fact, it was in reaction to that specific articular event that the United States called on the UN to

not only condemn the terrorism that resulted in the mass killing of 49 people at a gay nightclub in Florida over the weekend, [June 12, 2016] but also to protect gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people from such attacks. … Deputy U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. David Pressman, speaking at the election of Fiji Ambassador Peter Thomson to the post of 71st General Assembly president, said protecting the dignity of all human beings should be at the heart of the General Assembly’s work going forward. He said outrage at the killing should be directed at protecting members of the LGBT community “not just around condemning the terrorists who kill them.”

The matter was referred to the Human Rights Council (HRC) of the United Nations on July 1, the next day after the shooting, and after four hours of debate, the HRC voted to create the position. Muntarbhorn was tapped and his three-year term began September 1.

HRC member countries voting YES on the resolution to create a Gay Czar were-

Albania, Belgium, Bolivia, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, France, Georgia, Germany, Latvia, Mexico, Mongolia, the Netherlands, Panama, Paraguay, Portugal, South Korea, Slovenia, Switzerland, Macedonia, the U.K., Venezuela and Vietnam. (23)

Countries voting NO on the resolution were-

Algeria, Bangladesh, Burundi, China, Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Maldives, Morocco, Nigeria, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Togo and the United Arab Emirates. (18)

Countries abstaining on voting the resolution were-

Botswana, Ghana, India, Namibia, the Philippines and South Africa. (6) Even though South Africa has strong constitutional protections for homosexuals, so strong that are dubbed “The Rainbow nation”, their abstention was on the basis that the HRC was moving “too fast”.

Countries which co-sponsored the resolution were-

Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico and Uruguay.

The NY Times reported that the move was a “a bold step toward recognizing that gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people fighting for equality are pursuing fundamental human rights.”

The world believes that L(esbian), G(ay), B(isexual), T(ransgender), I(ntersex), Q(uestioning) or whatever alphabet letter you want to include in the ever-growing list, is a basic right. As far as it is a basic right to sin, they are correct. Homosexuality is a sin, as the Bible makes clear. (Genesis 19:1-13; Leviticus 18:22; 20:13; Romans 1:26-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9). If homosexuals want to sin with impunity, that is their basic right, but there is a dire consequence individually (hell upon death) and collectively (judgement upon a nation, Romans 1:26-27). The Romans passages tell us that specifically that homosexuality is a result of denying and disobeying God. When a nation has been given over as the verses in Romans describe, widespread societal homosexuality or approval of it is the result. Once again,  What does it mean when the Bible says, God gave them over?”

God’s giving over sinful mankind has a dual sense. First, in an indirect sense God gave them over simply by withdrawing His restraining and protective hand, allowing the consequences of sin to take their inevitable, destructive course. Sin degrades man, debases the image of God in which he is made, and strips him of dignity, peace of mind, and a clear conscience. Sin destroys personal relationships, marriages, families, cities, and nations It also destroys churches. Thomas Watson said, “Sin … puts gravel in our bread [and] wormwood in our cup” (A Body of Divinity [Carlisle, Pa.: Banner of Truth, 1983 reprint], p. 136).

In a second, direct sense God gave … over rebellious mankind by specific acts of judgment. The Bible is replete with accounts of divine wrath being directly and supernaturally poured out on sinful men. The flood of Noah’s day and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, for example, were not indirect natural consequences of sin but were overt supernatural expressions of God’s judgment on gross and unrepented sin

We know that the time is coming when God will give over the world to its choice, sin, and then directly pour out His judgment. The Man of Sin (antichrist, 2 Thessalonians 2:3) will appear and promote and allow any and all manner of sin one can dream of. Man is inventive in ways to sin, (Romans 1:30) and thus it will be a horrific time. That future time will be a period when God sends down His direct judgment for sin. Until that Day, one can easily see the progress that global sin is making in the world.

Specifically, what does it mean that the reprobate mind has reached the highest levels of government? Subsequent to the US Supreme Court’s 2015 Ogberfell v. Hodges decision regarding approval homosexual marriage in all the land, John MacArthur preached a sermon called “We Will Not Bow“. In it, he remarked about what happens when such sin permeates the highest levels:

Get ready folks, the reprobate mind has now reached the highest levels. And that level will demand the reprobate mind everywhere else. And where that mind dominates—the end of Romans 1, where there is a depraved mind—then everything that’s improper begins to happen. “All unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil, envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice, gossips, slanders, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventers of evil, disobedient to parents, without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful, and though they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but they give hearty approval to those who practice them.”

There is no higher level on earth than the United Nations … Praise God that the highest levels for the Christian has no limit because its upper reaches are Jesus Christ, in whom our minds are no longer darkened by sin but are illuminated by His righteousness, glory, and holiness.