Romans 1:21-23
Verse 18, begins in this way; “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven
against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their
unrighteousness suppress the truth.” What
does ungodliness mean to many in this culture we live in, would it be defined
as; “irreligious
or immoral: ungodly lives of self-obsession, lust, and pleasure.” (Dictionary) I do not believe many who are regular church
attenders would agree with that definition. I am not sure how the worldly crowd would
define unrighteousness, and I do believe it is clear that many in the church
have no clear understanding of the word.
I believe this quote is the answer for all who follower Christ; “Stale godliness is ungodliness. Let our religion be as warm, and
constant, and natural as the flow of the blood in our veins. A living God must
be served in a living way.” (Charles H. Spurgeon)
Maybe
we the church have gotten so lazy, so busy with filling our days with good
stuff that we forget that the Bible is a light to our feet and we are living in
darkness with little understanding of where we are. I believe this quote from Tozer is true of
millions; “The
vague and tenuous hope that God is too kind to punish the ungodly has become a
deadly opiate for the consciences of millions.”
(Tozer)
With that said the apostle Peter gives the following insight
in 2 Peter 2:4-10a, “For if God did not spare angels when they
sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness
to be kept until the judgment; if he did not spare the
ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven
others, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly; if by turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes he condemned
them to extinction, making them an example of what is going to happen to the
ungodly; and if he rescued righteous Lot, greatly
distressed by the sensual conduct of the wicked (for as
that righteous man lived among them day after day, he was tormenting his
righteous soul over their lawless deeds that he saw and heard); then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep
the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment, and especially those who indulge in the lust of defiling passion and
despise authority.”
God is going to judge the ungodly, so a
clear understanding of that word is something a wise person should desire, I
believe Jude 4 will give us a clear understanding of the meaning; “For
certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this
condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality
and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.” (Jude 4) I’m fearful that many today are influenced by
false teachers who push the lie that God is too good to punish sinners, and
I’ve also come to the understanding that many in Christ have little
understanding of how the flesh wants to run the show, each and every day.
If you are a follower of Christ watch
out for the following in your life; sensual conduct, lust, despising authority,
blaspheming, having a desire to sin, adultery, full of greed, or a desire to be
the first inline. If these are in your
life it is time for a check up.
In the letter to the Roman believers
the apostle Paul has this warning; “For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God
or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their
foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they
became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal
God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping
things.” (Romans 1:21-23) Now in closing let me answer the question; “Can a believer, a follower of Christ live
an ungodly life?” The answer is very
clear this letter is being addressed to the churches in Rome, not the
non-believers.
From the Back Porch,
Bob Rice
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