Scripture: 1 Corinthians 6 v 9 - 11: "Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,
10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
11 And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God."
We are sanctified! This means we have been made holy, through the cleansing Blood of Jesus and the washing of the Word. Yes the Word of God is powerful and anointed by Him that as we read, understand and apply the Word to our lives it changes us.
There is a list of negative lifestyles all of which made us unrighteous and unfit for Heaven but the power of the Cross, the Blood and the Word have recreated us into a new creation that has put off from us addictions, fornication, porn, drunkenness, molesting and abusing others, idolatry, homosexuality, extortion, theft, adultery and so on, because any or all of the above are not acceptable to our Father, and are forbidden in His Kingdom.
Nothing that mankind can do will change His mind. He knows what is sinful and He sent His Son to deal with it to the fullest extent. This means that the worst offenders can still have hope of salvation. If there are Satanists who have done vile and shameful acts, or paedophiles, or hopeless addicts, God has this message for them all.
Isaiah 55 v 6 - 8: "Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:
7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD."
If the Lord says the wicked must forsake his way, then that person has the ability to do so if he or she does it by seeking God's help. He must do a thorough internal audit of his mind, thoughts, fantasies, movies, books, porn, music or anything else that relates to sin in his her life.
An addict or other offender must remove themselves from the company they keep who do those wrong things but are unrepentant. They have to cut themselves off from every memory or situation or relationship that compromised them. They must cry out to God and confess their sins to Him, forgiving those that opened false doors for them.
The Lord will abundantly pardon and work with each one who repeats and bring them into a right relationship with Himself, washing them all clean and sanctifying them in His holiness.
A new year is approaching and our resolution should be to look out for those who are making a clean break with their past and assist them as much as possible. Befriend those freshly cleansed people and bring them into our fellowship.
The enemy does not like losing souls that were bound by his worst demons and he will try every trick in the book to force them back. They need help to withstand his wiles and the church should be rallying to provide it.
In many cases some of the above-mentioned have been sanctified by man and his laws, and these are now running churches too. It brings much confusion to those who are following the Lord out of darkness into light.
Romans 8 v 6 - 9: "For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.
8 So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.
9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his."
While in this world our senses are continually assaulted by the ungodliness all around us. We are offended by corrupt governments, profanities, lies, abuse, and theft. It pours out of our tv sets, radios, newspapers and periodicals. It is hard for the righteous soul to keep walking in the light.
However, through the grace of God we miraculously to live clean lives and to reach out to those seeing the light. We do need to be watchful and pray as the Holy Spirit leads us into doing God's will. He loves us and has a covenant with us, and if we do our part He will do His.
If we try to walk on the tightrope between the kingdom's of God and Satan, beware of failure as our enemy is on the prowl to entice the unwary back into sin. We have a free will but there are consequences if we are rebellious. Let us pray for the weak to be carefully protected at this time of the year.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for Your boundless love for every human. Thank You for drawing us to Yourself and changing us through sanctification. Holy means separated to You and to behave properly as examples to others. Let us grow in grace and love forever. In Jesus' name. Amen.
