When we exchange the truth of God for a lie.
“Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator – who is forever praised. Amen. Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion. Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, He gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done.” Romans 1:24-28With the outpouring of equal signs overwhelming social media today in an effort to support “equality in marriage”, it is more than clear that we live in a society that has exchanged the truth of God for a lie. Both Christians and non-Christians alike have voiced their support for homosexual marriage in the name of tolerance and acceptance, all the while with the remembrance of the blood-stained cross of Jesus Christ in clear sight as we approach Good Friday. We live in a culture that has been deceived by an enormous amount of lies. Rick Warren said it best in regards to today’s events with these words:“Our culture has accepted two huge lies. The first is that if you disagree with someone’s lifestyle, you must fear or hate them. The second is that to love someone means you agree with everything they believe or do. Both are nonsense. You don’t have to compromise convictions to be compassionate.”God calls us to love, yes. And it was in His unfailing love for us that He required the cross of Jesus Christ. You see, God does not nor has He ever tolerated sin. Rather, He demanded payment for sin, the ultimate sacrifice – Jesus on the cross. And because God doesn’t tolerate sin, neither should we. However, because it is politically incorrect to call sin what it is, we embrace a more palatable Gospel, one that proclaims “truth is relative”. The problem with saying “whatever is good for you is OK” is that each person’s definition of good is drastically different from one another, not to mention in stark contrast with God’s Word. There are some who would tell you that it is obedience and the highest form of love for their god to kill someone who opposes their religion. Good? Have we simply forgotten that there is a standard, and that the standard is God’s Word? Or do we just reject it as being outdated, not up with the times and the changing culture? As culture continues to change, so will morals, ethics, and values. The world shouts at us, “Follow your heart!” The Bible tells us to guard your heart (Proverbs 4:23) because the heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure (Jeremiah 17:9). The more we live apart from life in the Spirit and obedience, the more deceitful our desires become.Let’s be reminded of something. ALL SCRIPTURE is God-breathed (2 Timothy 3:16), not just the parts that make you and I feel good. The Bible is not a buffet that we can pick and choose the parts that taste good to us. The entirety of God’s Word is life-giving truth, and apart from truth, we have no freedom.Straight from the very mouth of Jesus Christ, the one who took our punishment on Himself and died in our place, He alone determines truth from error:“If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:31b-32