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.
Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.
And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them. Romans 1:21-31
When we first become saved… the fire of the experience of Jesus fuels our souls! Then we begin our intellectual pursuit of the scriptures, Church, and religious doctrine as we have entered the ‘institutional system’ of the ‘business church’. Because that has become the supposed place of discipleship, and scholarly academic Biblical pursuit in human systems and ‘schools’ is seen as more ‘spiritual’ than prayer or learning to ‘listen’ to the indwelling Presence of the Holy Spirit. Yet what do the scriptures say as to whom is to be our Teacher? (Hint: John 14:26) Why is it that when someone becomes more ‘versed’ in the scriptures do they mention the Holy Spirit less and less when ‘witnessing’ to the unbeliever? Apologetics becomes the ‘tool’ rather than listening to the advice of the Holy Spirit in the moment.
Where does the ‘power’ of the gospel lie? In the scriptures or in the Holy Spirit? Who gives the ‘power’ to the Word? We need to be both versed in the scriptures AND have a humble obedience to the quiet advice and instructions of the Holy Spirit in every moment. Does He know what to say better than you do? Can you humble yourself and risk looking like a fool doing what He asks of you in that moment? Don’t brush Him aside in your mind. As knowledge increases in someone the temptation grows to think you are more than you ought to think. The idea that somehow those who have more intellectual scriptural knowledge makes them more valuable or more morally correct … is so wrong! (If this was the case Jesus would have praised the Pharisees) The above passage shows the slide into moral oblivion as you allow your ‘knowledge’ to puff up your pride. How many spiritual leaders have fallen into some type of sexual immorality? When we begin to think we are ‘all that’ …the enemies of our souls … smile, and immediately set the trap. And once snared… the individual often intellectually dismisses the trap or justifies it with smooth arguments and words. The hypocrisy becomes so obvious.
For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. Romans 12:3
Father help me! I need to be balanced in life with YOU Holy Spirit being my main anchor of knowledge and wisdom. Teach me to use the Word as YOU Holy Spirit guide and instruct me in each moment. Holy Spirit YOU are the power in the Word! Thank you Jesus for the Helper!