3st Spirit, Soul, Body (3)
2004-09-26 | Pastor Dr. Jaerock Lee | Gal 5:19-21
Last time we looked at the field of fornication among the works of the flesh, but today we will continue to testify against filthiness, sensuality, and idolatry.
Almighty God, who created and governs the heavens and the earth, has promised answers to prayers, and as the father of his beloved children, he is pleased to bless them. But why do some people go through trials and tribulations while claiming to believe in God and being faithful? Why are some people not getting their heart’s desires answered even though they pray earnestly or the answers are delayed?
This is because there is a wall of sin between us and God (Isaiah 59:1-3). No matter how much we pray with tears, if there is a wall of sin, we cannot experience the work of Almighty God and it is far from blessing. Also, as recorded in the text, those who practice the works of the flesh cannot inherit the kingdom of God, so even if they pray, “God, please answer me,” they will not receive an answer. Rather, God waits, saying, “First depart from your sins, and after you have repented and turned, come to me and ask.” This is because the answer to all prayers, blessings, and the secret to gaining heaven and eternal life lies in forsaking sins through the merits of the precious blood of Jesus Christ.
1. dirty things
By “unclean” we mean not physically unclean, but spiritually unclean. This does not refer to only one specific sin, but it is an expression that includes all the promiscuous manifestations of any sinful nature beyond the general level.
Humans have sinful qualities inherited from their ancestors, so there may be things like hatred, envy, or adultery. After all, it is true that people can sin through their thoughts and actions, even if they are not particularly evil, because they live in the world’s sins before they receive the Holy Spirit after receiving the Lord.
However, dirty things are crimes that go beyond the general level, betray humanity and deviate from morals. When people frown on things that they do not understand, or things that cause pain, they are immediately described as “dirty”.
Even just looking at “fornication,” there are shocking things that go beyond the fornication that usually happens, and bring frowns to people. For example, there are cases where a robber assaults a wife and daughter in front of family members, or a man and a woman commit adultery and live in a group.
In Leviticus 18:6, it is said, “You shall not come near to the weary, and do not touch your naked body.” In the verses below, it is said that stepmothers, mothers, mother-in-law, sisters or stepsisters, granddaughters, granddaughters, aunts, aunts, aunts, etc. You say don’t do it.
Leviticus 20:15-16 says, “If a man has sexual intercourse with an animal, he must kill it, and you also put the animal to death. lira” he said.
Beyond this common fornication, things that violate humanity and things that are embarrassing to even say are considered unclean fornication. In Leviticus 18:29, after the prohibition of all things came out, it is said, “Whoever does even one of these detestable things will be cut off from among his people.” This is clearly forbidden not only in the Old Testament but also in the New Testament (1 Corinthians 5:4-5).
In the case of “envy,” too much will come out as dirty. When people feel that they are inferior to others, envy comes out in them, and many people generally have this kind of heart. However, if you look at historical dramas, there are scary actions such as studying magic that harms opponents through intense speculation, drawing portraits and shooting arrows, or making dolls and stabbing them with needles.
These cursing actions were just beyond the extent of envy and came out as unclean. It is a fact that evil things go beyond the limit, and the common man’s conscience will come up with unacceptable filthy things.
2. sensuality
The dictionary meaning of sensuality is “love for women, or seeking, coveting,” and the Bible also states that “it is doing all kinds of wrong things in pursuit of lust.” It means living in words and deeds. If you follow the color like this, you will come across fornication that is beyond the normal level.
This includes having relations with animals or pursuing lust in groups, as well as sexual relations with the same sex (Leviticus 18:22, 20:13) and using utensils. People’s sense of guilt about lewd things is getting duller.
For example, by creating an interest group to defend homosexuals, they claim that it is not against the law but that it is natural, and that “It is not a sin, but it is just a different sexual orientation, and their human rights should be respected.” Even some churches in the United States and Europe ordained homosexuals as priests, and in some cases, same-sex marriages are recognized by the churches.
However, you must know that this is clearly against God and against the Bible (Romans 1:26-27). Such people cannot be saved (1 Corinthians 6:9-10), and even if they offer gifts to God, they do not accept them, but rather, they consider them abominable (Deuteronomy 23:18).
For reference, it is a fact that sexual identity changes are also unacceptable in the sight of God. That is, even if you have a female body and you consider yourself to be a man, or your body is a man and you consider yourself to be a woman, it is not acceptable to God (Deuteronomy 22:5). This is against the providence of creation. The things such as fornication, unclean things, and sensuality, which have been described so far, are the most conspicuous manifestations of sin in the world, as he said, “The works of the flesh are remarkable.”
Even if you look at the ruins of Pompeii, which were judged by a volcanic eruption when Sodom and Rome were destroyed in the Bible, it is revealed how fornication, filthiness, and sensuality were prevalent in them when they were destroyed.
The same is true today. Twenty-three years ago, it was not easy to even talk about such things, and when someone was exposed to an adulterous case, they were shunned or expelled from the neighborhood. Especially in the case of virgins, if there was any unfaithfulness before marriage, marriage would be blocked. However, in spite of the prevalence of fornication today, we do not even realize how shameful and disobedient it is to God. Even through these things, we can realize that the time of judgment is near.
3. Idol Worship
Idolatry is one of the sins that God hates the most (Exodus 20:4-5). If you worship idols, the retribution will be up to three or four generations, which means that your family will be completely destroyed. Even if the three generations of trials and tribulations overlap, the family is almost always in disarray.
In fact, if you look at families that have worshiped idols heavily from generation to generation, you can see that the enemy the devil always brings trials and tribulations, and suffering and suffering continue even among their descendants. In particular, there are many cases where people are spiritually disturbed, such as people possessed by demons, insanity, and alcoholics. Even if the descendants try to accept the Lord and believe in God, the enemy the devil continues to harass them, so you can see that they have more difficulties than others in their religious life.
Things that rely on witchcraft, such as looking at fortune-telling and divination, are also idolatry, especially when believers do these things, as explained in the previous section, which is spiritual fornication, and it is very disappointing to God.
But idolatry includes not only physical idolatry but also spiritual idolatry. In other words, idolatry is not just worshiping and worshiping false gods because they do not know the true God. When people who claim to know and believe in the true God love something more than God, that love becomes an idol spiritually.
In the book of Acts, Ananias and Sapphira were zealous for God at first and sold the land to give all they had. However, when their greed took advantage of them, they hid part of the money they sold, and eventually they were cursed for lying to the Holy Spirit and their souls left. Even though they say they serve God, they love material things more than God, so they are on the road to destruction. That’s why Colossians 3:5 says, “Destroy your members that are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, lust, evil passions, and covetousness, which is idolatry.”
In addition to covetousness, loving one’s carnal family or children more, enjoying entertainment or luxury, honor, authority, or anything else more than God can become spiritual idols. For example, some parents have faith but tell their children not to go to prayer meetings or church meetings because they have to break the Sunday during exams or go to a private academy. In the end, this leads them to the path of destruction by forcing their children to make their studies an idol.
Also, some people break Sundays because of their favorite TV shows, sports games, or hobbies, and there are cases where a person who was good in faith neglects his prayer life and church life in order to meet the opposite sex after dating. All of these things love the flesh more than God, and eventually become idolatry.
Dear saints,
Revelation 18:4 says, “And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, and do not share in her sins, and do not receive from her plagues.” Those who hear these voices and wake up will come out of darkness and be saved, and those who are still asleep will experience great mourning on the day of the Lord, unprepared.
Therefore, I pray in the name of the Lord that you will reveal the glory of God to the whole world by revealing sin, righteousness, and judgment and becoming an instrument of the Holy Spirit who quickly attains holiness when you hear the word of holiness and awakens all churches in the last days.
