It's A Mad, Mad World

June 28, 2022

If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would have no sin; but now they have seen and also hated both Me and My Father (John 15:24).

The Apostle Paul wrote to the Roman Christians (Romans 7:7) What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, “You shall not covet.” Had Jesus not come in the flesh, we would not know the righteousness of God, nor would we know His holiness, nor would we even know Him personally. We certainly wouldn’t know our own sin. Why is that so important?

We tend to live our lives with blinders on. We are accustomed to evaluating ourselves by the standards we have become accustomed to in our own lives, that we can’t see how far short we have fallen from the standards God has set for us. It wasn’t until Jesus appeared that people became aware of the hypocrisy, greed, unrighteousness, and ungodliness of the Scribes, Pharisees, and Sadducees. They thought they were pretty good guys. The people thought they were pretty good guys. But compared to Jesus Christ, these guys were the worst of the worst because they knew the Scriptures, they were the repositories of the wisdom of God, they knew better!

The witness of Jesus, in word and deed, exposed the Elders of Israel for what they truly were - spiritually whitewashed graves, glorious on the outside but decayed on the inside. The Law, as Paul declared, had proven his weakness and sin; it put under the curse all he built his life upon. There is none righteous - he was not righteous. There is none who seeks God - he didn’t seek God. There is none who does good (as God defines good) - he did not do good. Because of Jesus Christ, every religious mouth is stopped and there is no legitimate argument to give otherwise.

The presence of Jesus Christ brought out not merely the failure of men to meet the requirements of Mosaic Law (God’s Law), but also exposed man’s hatred of God’s holiness and righteousness - of God Himself! The sinfulness of men is not only seen in their rejection of the standards God has established for moral, ethical, and spiritual life, it is also seen in their rejection of His Son, Jesus Christ, and ultimately of God Himself. (Romans 1:21-23) . . . because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man - and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things. Never has this become more evident and obvious than it is today. People mourn the Supreme Court’s ruling on Roe v. Wade, but they do not mourn the millions of innocent lives that have been murdered. They are quick to judge a person harshly for killing an animal, but have little concern for a person who kills another human being. I read where there was a petition to grant an elephant personhood that it might have certain benefits given to it. We have gone mad. We have become futile (empty; vain) in our thoughts, and our hearts have become senseless (without understanding) and darkened (unable to perceive truth). God help us! Amen.

Pastor Martin

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