By Romans 1:28-32
And because they did not think it worthwhile to acknowledge God, God delivered them over to a worthless mind to do what is morally wrong. They are filled with all unrighteousness, evil, greed, and wickedness. They are full of envy, murder, quarrels, deceit, and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God- haters, arrogant, proud, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, and unmerciful. Although they know full well God’s just sentence — that those who practice such things deserve to die — they not only do them, but even applaud others who practice them.
Do you applaud (either in your heart, or openly) the sin of others? If you do, it may be an evidence that God has given up on you and delivered you over to your unrighteousness.
Yesterday we were talking about God’s view of same-sex marriage. In Minnesota, we just had our annual “Pride Festival.” Thousands of Minnesotans gathered together to give hearty approval to those who practice such behavior, which God declares as morally wrong. The fact that these individuals gathered together to applaud themselves and others who practice this sin is evidence that they do not think it worthwhile to acknowledge God. And likewise that they have a worthless mind.
This is a hard pill to swallow. People (including me) do not want to hear that their mind is worthless. We want to think that we have a good mind which contributes to the benefit of society. Many homosexuals indeed have very sharp minds which plan great and grand things. Many of these individuals could use their minds to do wonderful things for the sake of others. Yet God tells us that our minds are tied directly to whom we worship; God or created things.
We will look closer at ourselves in tomorrow’s devotion; but for now, take a closer look at the list of sins mentioned in our Bible reading. Have you ever slandered? Have you ever gossiped? Have you ever been disobedient to your parents? Have you ever envied? Have you ever quarreled? …. Ya, me too! But the question is are you filled with these things? The word filled means to be crammed full. Are you crammed full of the above listed sins, or do you seek repentance and forgiveness through Jesus when you commit them? If you do, God has not delivered you over to a worthless mind yet and this is good. If you ever begin to find that you are approving and applauding others when they commit such sins; you may be on a slippery slope which leads to destruction.
- Can you think of a time when you have applauded others when they commit sin?
- Are you grieved in your heart over sin (both yours and others), or are you indifferent to it?
Leading Family Devotions 