It Doesn’t Have to be Intentionally Wrong… to be Wrong

This is an unpopular topic… mostly because when Christians fall into this, they have ZERO intention of TRYING to make sin appealing & would NEVER claim that it’s even okay to do such a thing.

But just as the verse puts it, “… holding onto the traditions of men…” (Mark 7:8-9), it is easy to see what was okay to the past generations & feel if it’s okay with them & THEY weren’t intentionally trying to promote sin & it was always meant as “all in good fun,” then it can’t be wrong now either. And even though those verses refer to coming up with traditions to SEEM holy, rules God never gave in the first place because it made them feel good about themselves… the same can be true about justifying things we engage in that dishonor Him.

This is where the recurring theme/danger of humanity “doing what was right in their own eyes” (Judges 17:6; Judges 21:25) comes in & needing to pray the prayer, “Lord, search me & know me… see if there be any wicked way in me….” (Psalm 139:23-24) Because it’s not always INTENTIONAL when we’re in fact dishonoring God. We often have good intentions (or at least harmless ones) indeed.

But that doesn’t make it NOT wrong, either.

Almost True = NOT True

It is VITALLY important to do spiritual checkups frequently because we are fed information, beliefs, & opinions every day of our lives through every person we come in contact with, whether through our personal lives or through the media/social media. We are being fed from somewhere, always.

This is also why we NEED the MEAT of the Word of God to be part of our daily spiritual nutrition, coupled with constant prayer, because quite frankly, we don’t always recognize WHEN we’re buying into something that’s just not quite right… even though it may seem PRETTY CLOSE.

Let me put it this way… if something is ALMOST true, what does that make it?

Blurring the Lines Is No New Tactic

As a culture, I have witnessed what has actually been happening every day throughout all history, as it ebbs & flows in its determination to honor & please God… the watering down of how BAD sin really is. Sin sometimes sort of seems to come off as “doing a bad thing” versus wretchedness, wickedness, & deserving of Hell as it actually is.

Think about it. If we water down the severity of sin, which Satan is so intentional in his deceit here, it makes it SEEM like God is just on a major power trip… or that He is just overreacting about EVERYTHING… or that “WHY HELL?” It makes Him seem a maniacal dictator throwing the temper tantrum the century.

Satan very much wants us to think these things about God… to doubt Him… or at the very least, to question Him… to blur the lines of sin & God’s deserving, to make our secure foundation of faith begin to totter & crumble beneath us.

We Need a Reality Check Sometimes

We need a perception adjustment here as a culture.

When we sin… we are defying, disrespecting, & spitting in the face of a HOLY God, Creator & Sustainer of ALL life (that includes you & me!), Who gave His ALL for us through Jesus on the cross, paying the debt WE owe for OUR sin & wretchedness. We don’t deserve Heaven, but He paid the way for every one of us who is willing to turn to Jesus as their only hope. (Because He IS our only hope!)

So, we’re not just mocking HIM when we water down the wretchedness of sin, but also the fact that He knew you would, knew you could never adequately pay Him back to make it right, & so HE HIMSELF MADE a way for you to be cleared of your debt FOR YOU… Our sin mocks THAT, too.

He is infinitely WORTHY of us making sure we are not, in the SLIGHTEST, watering down what displeases God simply because it’s been widely accepted throughout mainstream culture or even sometimes, sadly, the church.

It Doesn’t Matter What It Is… If It At ALL Offends God… WALK AWAY from It

And when you take things like “identity” & make it a “choice” rather than His specific design… that’s mocking Him.

And when you say you don’t have a choice BUT to sin, because it’s “who you are…” that’s mocking Him. Reality check, even if you feel you’ve had a certain DRAW toward a specific something God calls sin since you were a kid… guess what… you were BORN a sinner, so that has since become a decision to satisfy SELF more than a desire to please God… that’s mocking Him.)

And when we downplay certain sins that seem like they’re “not really that bad compared to “WORSE” ones,” assuming sometimes it can be “innocent” & that God “knows your intentions”… that’s mocking God.

And when we defend certain books or movies or games that even a little bit make us wonder whether it offends God… why do you resist that nudge? Have you asked yourself that yet? Have you dared to confront it? To surrender it if needed? To be willing to let God change your mind about it & move on from it? Or do you shove that little heart nudge so deep down that you don’t have to think about it anymore because you don’t want to be made to feel bad about it?

Do you claim that giving it up would be “legalistic”? Is that the method Satan uses to successfully get you to desperately cling on to something that dishonors, displeases, or offends God?

He Gets to Choose

HE made us. HE gets to choose. HE gave us a choice, desiring that we would choose to honor Him, knowing we wouldn’t always, & then made a way for us anyway through JESUS. He is WORTHY of PRAISE & HONOR!

I get it. Trends are popular & tempting because they can be fun, engaging, exciting, & SEEM harmless… but if they honor something God calls sin… can we really, honestly examine ourselves & say that engaging with it doesn’t dishonor Him?

Are you willing to do a soul inventory? Are you willing to be “searched” & “known” by God as the prayer requests of God in Psalm 139? For Him to show you if there be “any wicked way” in you? Or do you insist on remaining comfortable in what you have wrapped excuses around as “not that bad”?

It’s tempting for me, when I come to these sorts of crossroads, for me to rear up, feel defensive & called out… to feel offended… because I am NOT TRYING to offend God IN THE LEAST! But if I am willing to be honest with myself… am I fully convinced that I am indeed NOT offending Him with ANY of my choices?

Or do I just want what I want, to convince myself it is just fine, & to stay tucked in that comfort?

I Don’t Like Being Challenged to Let Go

When facing myself & coming to a willingness to be shown as wrong… It’s scary to me. It is. It takes a willingness to try surrender. To say, “God, I don’t know about this. You know I’m not trying to offend You, right? I would NEVER want that! But I feel myself rearing up. I feel the tension & ick & fear of having to realize that what I was so convinced was just fine before… maybe isn’t actually so fine. I don’t like that. Help me. If this is something that DOES indeed offend You, God, help me be willing… WILLING… to let it go. Change my heart & my perspective to want only what honors You, even if I have to lose something I like. I am afraid of losing this. But I also don’t want to even RISK offending You, either. Help me. In Jesus’ name, AMEN.”

Are you willing to pray that? Are you willing to let God see the parts of you that you’ve justified circles around? Are you willing to let HIM change your mind about it if it indeed offends Him? Are you willing to risk losing that to make sure you honor & please Him with your choices no matter what?

Or will you cling? Will you rear back? Will you talk to friends who will help you feel better about it again so you have someone to back up what you want to feel okay about again?

Will you shut God out of that part of your life?

What/Who do you want more?

The Cultural Breakdown of Sin–Making Evil Look Good

We should NEVER try to sugarcoat what God calls evil or sin. EVER. And for GOOD reason! The cultural breakdown of sin–making evil look good, only stands to HURT us.

Are you willing to believe that if it dishonors or offends Him that it is for a GREAT reason? That His choices & commands ONLY EVER revolve around BOTH your good AND His Glory?

Are you willing to REALLY believe that?

Shine HOPE by being WILLING to go to God in whatever you felt defensive about as you read this… by being willing to ask God to search & to know you, to let you know if there is ANY wicked way in you that you may be excusing or justifying… SO THAT He can lead you in “THE WAY EVERLASTING.”

Coming Next Week

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Mini Mandala Dish (India)

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