A Culture in Rebellion Against God
by Dr. Phil Stringer (Florida)
"And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God
gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not
convenient" (Romans 1:28).
* * *
Romans chapter one describes the process by which an individual rebels
against God. When enough individuals in a culture rebel against God, the whole
culture can be said to be in rebellion against God. Most cultures in the history
of the world fit into this category.
Notice in this passage the bolded references which demonstrate what all
people know. The problem is not a lack of knowledge about the Creator God and
what His existence implies, but simply rebellion against that truth. Romans
1:16-32:
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God
unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the
Greek.
17 For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as
it is written, The just shall live by faith.
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and
unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;
19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath
showed it unto them.
20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are
clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal
power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:
21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither
were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart
was darkened.
22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,
23 And changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like
to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.
24 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of
their own hearts, to dishonor their own bodies between themselves:
25 Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshiped and served the
creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.
26 For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their
women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:
27 And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned
in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly,
and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meet.
28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave
them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;
29 Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness,
covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy murder, debate, deceit, malignity;
whisperers,
30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of
evil things, disobedient to parents,
31 Without understanding, convenantbreakers, without natural affection,
implacable, unmerciful:
32 Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are
worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.
The Founders of our country, writing in the Declaration of Independence,
referred to the Creator God as a "self-evident truth."
CREATION DEMANDS A CREATOR
The principles is simple: Creation demands a Creator. Because we are created
beings, we are accountable to our Creator. To be independent and unaccountable,
we would have to create our own universe which would then operate under our own
rules.
Little children grow up naturally understanding this. (That is one reason
they are so much easier to win to Christ than adults.) About the time an
individual reaches the teenage years, it is possible to try and hide from the
truth about a Creator God (the truth that, according to the Scriptures, you
already know). In fact, if this is going to happen, it usually happens during
the teenage years. People become uncomfortable about the concept of God when
they feel clear guilt about their sin. So, the old nature simply hides the truth
and begins to imagine other answers than the truth of the Creator God for the
great questions of life.
These made-up answers may include a concept of a god or gods, but they always
let man off the hook for his sin. They either explain away sins as righteous
acts, or they create an easy way for man to atone for his own sins.
II Peter 3:5-7 refers to the same thought process. Even though all scientific
evidence pints to the whole earth having once been covered by water, men imagine
their own explanations (some quite bizarre) to explain these facts and mock at
the idea of a universal flood:
5 For they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens
were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water:
6 Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:
7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept
in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of
ungodly men.
The fact of the universal flood reminds man of a Creator God who exercises
judgment. So, men in rebellion against God conveniently ignore the facts and
imagine other answers. Romans 1:21 clearly describes this process, "Because
that when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful,
but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was
darkened."
Many Biblical passages refer to the process of man using his imagination to
try to escape from the truth of the Creator God and judgment.
Genesis 6:5 (describing conditions right before the flood), "And God
saw the wickedness of man was great in the earth and that every imagination of
the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually."
Jeremiah 7:24, "But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, but
walked in the counsels and in the imaginations of their evil heart, and went
backward and not forward."
Perhaps no passage on this subject is better known than Psalms 2:1,
"Why do the heathen rage and the people imagine a vain thing?"
Paganism is based upon religious ideals and myths from the evil imaginations
of men.
The religions of the world, from Baal worship, to Hinduism, to the principles
of Buddha, to modern day blind faith in evolution, are simply the products of
the imagination of men in rebellion against God. In their desperation to find
excuses for the behavior that makes them feel guilty, men will put their faith
in the most incredible ideas.
Blind faith in the theory of evolution requires men to believe that some
primordial ooze (which came form rapidly spinning gases) evolved into
simple-celled organisms, which evolved into sea creatures, then into fish, then
into amphibians, then to reptiles, then to small mammals, then to primates, then
to cave men, then to modern man. This is supposed to be science (factual truth).
If you ask questions you are told about millions of intermediate stages, billion
of years, possible mutations, and changing atmospheric conditions. This is
exactly the kind of teaching that Christians are warned about in I Timothy
6:20-21:
O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and
vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called, Which some
professing have erred concerning the faith. Grace be with thee. Amen.
Romans 1:22 clearly refers to these thought processes by declaring,
"Professing themselves to be wise they became fools."
The Founders of our country understood that they were creating a nation based
upon the truth of a Creator God. Even the most casual reading of the Declaration
of Independence makes that clear. The culture that stemmed from this new nation
was based upon truth of the Creator God. There were always individuals who
followed the process of rebellion described in Romans 1, but they were always on
the fringe of society. Since the 1960's, rebellion against the truth of the
Creator God has been more organized, has involved more people, and it has pushed
itself into the mainstream of American society.
Just as Romans 1:17-20 makes it clear that men have no excuse for not knowing
the truth of the Creator God, Romans 1:23 makes it clear that men try to
transfer God’s glory to His creation, "... and changed the glory of the
incorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to the birds
and four footed beasts and creeping things." Men in rebellion toward the
Creator God seem much more comfortable worshiping animals, forces of nature,
idols of wood and stone, men, and governments than worshiping God. All of these
false gods can be explained in such a way as to justify man’s sin. Any
reminder of the truth of the Creator God makes sinful men feel guilty.
CONSEQUENCES OF IGNORING THE CREATOR
When men hide from the truth of a Creator God, there is no rational grounds
left for a moral code. Men ask the questions:
• Who is to say what is right or wrong?
• Who is judge?
• What makes any one person’s opinion better than anyone else’s?
When the Creator God is left out of the discussion, there is no answer to
these questions. As a result, God gives man up to the whims and imaginations of
his sinful nature. Romans 1:26 states it this way, "For this cause God gave
them up to uncleanness." Left to their old sinful nature, humans devise
rationalizations for using the bodies of others to satisfy their own lusts
(moral impurity).
This process causes men to separate sexual relationships from their spiritual
and social purpose. Only their physical nature is retained. Sexual relationships
take on the same character as recreational sports -- except there are
consequences form which human beings cannot escape. Out-of-wedlock pregnancies,
venereal disease, loss of self-respect, AIDS, and an exploding welfare system
all stem from the failure of men to follow God’s moral code.
Rather than admit that their moral code does not work, rebellious men blame
others, no matter how illogical or ridiculous their statements may be.
Homosexual activists blame President Reagan and President Bush because their
homosexual behavior spreads AIDS; former Clinton administration Surgeon General
Jocelyn Elders blamed churches that teach morality for the failure of her
policies; self-proclaimed black community spokesmen blamed Daniel Patrick
Moynihan for simply pointing out what out-of-wedlock births were doing to the
black community. But the fact is, God’s moral code was given to us for a good
reason. Sexual relationships are given by God to be part of the marriage
covenant. When they are part of the marriage covenant, they bring joy and
happiness to the marriage partners, propagate the human race, strengthen
society, and are actually a spiritual experience.
When sexual relationships are practiced in rebellion to God, they hurt both
participants and society in general. Romans 1:24 puts it this way,
"Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their
own hearts to dishonor their own bodies between themselves."
The Bible is very clear in describing God’s moral code. "For God hath
not called us unto uncleanness but unto holiness" (II Thessalonians 4:7).
Liberals are fond of criticizing the sexual moral code laid down in Scripture.
They accuse this moral code of being harsh, judgmental, and repressive.
GOD’S MORAL CODE
God’s Word provides five primary sexual prohibitions:
Prohibition against fornication (including premarital sex as well as all
other sex sins) -- Deuteronomy 22:28-29; I Thessalonians 4:3; Acts 15:29; I
Corinthians 6:18, 7:2, 10:8; and Ephesians 5:3.
Prohibition against adultery -- Exodus 20:14, Leviticus 20:10.
Prohibition against incest -- Leviticus 20:11-12, 14, 18-21; Deuteronomy
27:20, 22-23; and I Corinthians 5:1.
Prohibition against homosexuality -- Leviticus 20:13; Romans 1.
Prohibition against bestiality -- Leviticus 20:15-16, Deuteronomy 27:21.
The Lord also warns against the thought patterns that lead to such behavior.
Matthew 5:27-28:
Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit
adultery: But I say unto you, That whosever looketh on a woman to lust after
her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
The Lord also condemns the attitudes which justify immorality (see the Bible
passages which warn about lasciviousness, wantonness, licentiousness,
uncleanness, and reprobation). All of these terms imply a lack of self-control
and moral restraint.
Just think what our culture would be like if everyone took God’s moral code
seriously. There would be no child molestation or rape, and sexually transmitted
diseases like AIDS and chlamydia would eventually vanish. Women would no longer
have to fear being treated as mere sex objects. Unwed pregnancies would be
nonexistent. Untold billions of dollars would be saved form welfare payments no
longer needed. Divorce rates would plummet. Guilt would no longer shatter young
teenagers’ self-respect. There would be no demands for abortion, pornography,
or prostitution.
In Romans 1:25, God sums up the problem of those who are living in rebellion:
"Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshiped and served the
creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen."
As bad as the picture painted thus far is, it only gets worse. When men free
themselves from (hide from) the idea of a Creator God, no way can be found to
put moral limits on human behavior. Since no one can answer the question of what
is wrong, individuals drift farther and farther into perverse behavior. This
leads man into the ultimate form of rebellion towards God -- homosexuality.
Dr. Phil Stringer is Executive Vice President of Landmark
Baptist College, Haines City, Florida
