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A Troubled
Land –Part3
1 John 3:4-12
by Paul
George
In part 3, A Troubled
Land” we will examine the sources of the problems in our
nation and in the Church.
The number one source is disobedience. This is not a
popular subject. Many view the concept of disobedience
antiquated and demeaning, something that needs casting
aside in light of current “modern thought." The
advocates of the current modern thought theory claim the
problems in our nation and in the Church are the result
of a conflict between those who are content living a
life that is going nowhere and those who are moving
forward to a higher state of consciousness. Christians
however know the Word of God will never become outdated.
Disobedience is one of the subjects that will never
become outdated. It is as relevant today as it was two
thousand years ago.
Disobedience is defined as the knowingly and willful
refusal to comply with the guidance of authority,
especially a refusal to obey the commandments and
statues of God. Disobedience involves the setting of the
human will above the will of God. This is a natural
tendency. It is the Christian’s responsibility to engage
in a spiritual warfare against their natural tendency to
disobey God (2 Corinthians 10:5-6) and be as obedient to
God’s will as Christ was when He “became obedient to the
point of death (Philippians 2:8).
We do not do this blindly. God has given us His
commandments and statues to guide us in the way of
righteousness. These commandments and laws are for our
good and are meant to preserve the gift of life that God
has given us. When we obey God's commandments and law
there is liberty and freedom to enjoy the gift of life
without fear of future problems.
James wrote in his letter, “But one who looks intently
at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by
it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an
effectual doer, this man shall be blessed in what he
does” (1:25). The laws of God are perfect and are given
to bless us. When we break God's law we have committed
sin and are acting in a way that will be detrimental to
our own good and that of our neighbor.
Righteousness is a word used to describe the state of
being in conformity with God's laws and requirements.
The apostle Paul asked the Corinthians, “Do you not know
that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of
God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor
idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor
homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor
drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, shall inherit
the kingdom of God” (1 Corinthians 6:9-10). He told
them, “Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for
what partnership has righteousness and lawlessness, or
what fellowship has light with darkness?” (2 Corinthians
6:14). Unrighteousness is the same as lawlessness both
of which describe the concept of sin. “Therefore, to one
who knows the right thing to do, and does not do it, to
him it is sin” (James 4:17).
The second source of the problems in the nation and in
the Church is Rejecting God’s Plans and Purpose.
God has given His laws to govern His creation. These
laws govern our lives in the context of the pursuit of
God's plans and purposes. God has created and designed
this world with specific plans and purposes that are not
to be neglected or rejected. His original plan for the
human family was to be fruitful and multiply and to fill
the earth. This puts the focus of life on the family.
Husbands and wives raising children in loving families
where the truth about God is learned from God's word.
Disobedience has altered the original plans and purposes
of God.
The focus of the disobedient society we live in is the
destruction of the family unit. In the disobedient
society, the family unit is described as three or more
people living together as a family unit. This can be two
men living together in the role of a husband and wife.
Two women living together in the role of a husband and
wife. The label, “domestic partners” is used to describe
this perverting of God’s plan and purpose for the family
unit.
The problems in our nation and in the Church exist
because this one source of disobedience that is
supported by the authorities of this nation and the
judicial system. In the Church, it is tolerated. We
often ask the question what would Jesus do. If we need
to ask this question we have not listened to what Jesus
said when He walked on this earth two thousand years
age. He has not changed His mind.
The third source of the problems in the nation and in
the Church is Rejection of the Will of God.
The will of God for our lives includes our salvation,
sanctification and service for the kingdom of God. When
we reject the plans and purposes of God for our life in
pursuit of our own plans and purposes we are disobeying
God. Isaiah said, “Woe to those who deeply hide their
plans from the LORD, and whose deeds are done in a dark
place, and they say, "Who sees us?" or "Who knows us?"
(Isaiah 29:15). The Lord sees and the Lord knows.
The fourth source of the problems in our nation and in
the Church is The Human Heart, the Human Nature.
The scriptures are consistent in teaching that man is
inherently flawed. This idea like that of disobedience
is not popular with many today. However, what needs to
be accepted is not what is popular but what is true. The
Bible as God's word is true when it speaks of the
condition of man. The prophet Jeremiah tells us, “The
heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately
sick; who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9). Jesus
said, "That which proceeds out of the man that is what
defiles the man. For from within, out of the heart of
men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornications, thefts,
murders, adulteries, deeds of coveting and wickedness,
as well as deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride and
foolishness. All these evil things proceed from within
and defile the man" (Mark 7:20-23)
The apostle Paul, one of the greatest Christians to have
lived, evaluated his own heart condition in these words:
“For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in
my flesh; for the wishing is present in me, but the
doing of the good is not. For the good that I wish, I do
not do; but I practice the very evil that I do not wish.
But if I am doing the very thing I do not wish, I am no
longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. I
find then the principle that evil is present in me, the
one who wishes to do good... Wretched man that I am! Who
will set me free from the body of this death?
While some might recoil at the thought of admitting to
the presence of sin in their heart, others might find
hope in being able to define and understand a principle
at work in their lives that moves them towards that
which they know to be wrong. May such an individual find
even more hope in the words of Jesus, "It is not those
who are well who need a physician, but those who are
sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners
to repentance” ((Luke 5:31-32).
The most important aspect of disobedience is the
rejection God’s plan and purpose for our lives and the
rejection of His will. We need to understand and
acknowledge these are the universal nature of
disobedience. The scriptures are clear and unmistakable
on this point. Every person has disobeyed God and stands
before God guilty. “All have sinned and fall short of
the glory of God” (Romans 3:23), “There is none
righteous, not even one” (Romans 3:9-10), and “If we say
that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves, and the
truth is not in us” (1 John 1:8). We need acknowledge
the source of disobedience. It is the sinful human
nature.
These verses are not saying that every person is living
a life characterized by consistent patterns of gross sin
and rebellion against God but simply that all have
sinned in one way or another and as a result that none
can stand before God in perfect righteousness. We need
to stop making excuses and justifying the problems in
the nation and in the Church and apply the cure,
confession. Confess disobedience and return to the ways
of the Lord. As long as our nation and the Church
disobey God, we will not solve the problems.
A Troubled Land - Part 4
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