Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God. 1 Corinthians 6:9-11

In my last post, I stated that many are embracing – both in the pew and the pulpit – lifestyles that are clearly denounced in Scripture as being abominations in the eyes of God. This alarming shift in the way churches, and even entire denominations, view the seriousness of sin is a clear indication that the church is moving toward a state of spiritual apostasy. It seems that the church, in general, has strayed from its spiritual moorings, anchored firmly in the word of God, and has now attached itself to the shifting winds of cultural change.

The passage quoted above is an amazing testimony to the power of grace given to the individual who experiences salvation. It is a statement verifying Paul’s assertion in Second Corinthians 5:17: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” Salvation brings forth change in the life of the believer.

Make special note of the emphasized phrase in the passage quoted at the outset of this post: And such were some of you. BUT… Read again the sins and sinful behaviors Paul mentions: fornicators, idolaters, adulterers, homosexuals, sodomites, thieves, covetous, drunkards, revilers, extortioners. And when Paul adds, “Such were some of you,” he states the obvious: they have now changed. They are no longer living lives characterized by these sinful lifestyles and actions. They are literally new creations in Christ.

When Paul adds, “Such were some of you,” he states the obvious: they have now changed.

When the church – individual, local congregations, or entire denominations – embraces these sinful lifestyles as being acceptable then it has lost its distinctiveness as the body of Christ. It is then not only in the world, but it is of the world. The church is to be a beacon of hope to those who are without Christ. It is to shine the light of God’s love and grace to those who are shackled to sinful lifestyles and behaviors that are contrary to the teachings of the Bible. It is to show the way out of the darkness and decadence of spiritual death, and point the way to spiritual life, which is found only in Jesus Christ.

When the church embraces these sinful lifestyles as being acceptable, then it has lost its distinctiveness as the body of Christ.

Admittedly, it seems that the church today focuses only on what it deems to be the more serious sins in Paul’s list. It often seems that the focus is on homosexuals, sodomites, adulterers, and fornicators. But the list includes thieves, drunkards, covetous, and others. Oftentimes, we tend to categorize sins. Some are viewed as more offensive to God than others. But note carefully the entire list. It clearly shows that all sin is an affront to God, and it teaches that salvation brings about a change from the old to the new. Such WERE some of you – but praise God you are no longer bound to the sins of your past!

So, let’s consider, in closing, a question and answer posed by the Apostle Paul that should give further clarification to this matter. In Romans 6:1-2 he says:

What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it.

Being in Christ, having been made a new creation with all things becoming new, means that we are dead to sin and alive to righteousness. Our lives should bear testimony to that truth. And if not, then we are showing that we never truly died to sin and are thus still enslaved to it.

The church should bear the message of hope for those who are shackled to, and under the power of, sin. We should share the message of salvation to those who are still living in darkness, with the prayer that God would open their eyes to see and embrace the truth of His amazing offer of forgiveness and newness of life. But we must not allow ourselves to embrace and accept these alternative lifestyles as normative. We must, rather, embrace and propagate the message of the life-changing, behavior-altering power of the gift of God’s salvation.

Until next time:

Blessings!