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The Ungodly Are Not So
by Dr. Henderson Ward Sometimes we are afraid to call a spade a spade because we are so besotted with the world, and hungry for its applause and approval, that we would do and say nothing that offends them. This is not about political correctness, when one has to avoid loaded words and terms that can cause unintended offence, but the avoidance of describing a reality that exists right here and now. Jesus taught the world many things and one of them was that reality does not disappear just because you call it by some euphemism. Calling a geriatric in a wheel chair a youngster does not imbue him with youthful energy, and calling a friend a nice man when he is a rogue does not change him one bit. Some Jews were hypocrites; Jesus called them whited sepulchres (Matthew 23:27). Some were liars, peddling myths about Jesus. He called them Satan-like (John 8:44). Some were scoundrels engaged in fraud; He called them thieves (Luke 20:47). Believers need to jettison the awful habit of mimicking the world. When a politician gets up on a platform and makes a hate speech we should call him what he is; a bigot. If your friend beats up his wife, don't call him a traditional husband, or a martinet, call him what he is; an abuser. When your favourite, drug-dealing relative who has been selling illegal narcotics for years, and been in prison a number of times for his crimes, gets caught again and given a long term in prison, don't tell the world that your sweet, innocent relative has a bad deal. Tell it truthfully. The truth is that the world is full of wicked, ungodly people, and no matter how, as believers, we wish for their conversion, and would go to great lengths to help them, yet we must call it as we see it; for God requires no less. Believers know what it is to walk with God, the enormous discipline required to take up the cross daily and follow the Lord, to make any and every sacrifice required to know God and do his will. But the ungodly are not so. "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper." (Psalm 1:1-3) But the ungodly are not so, continues David (Psalm 1:4). So have you forgotten what the wicked, ungodly are really like? Since they are not like believers, they are not blessed and spiritually fruitful, are not lovers and meditators of God's word; do not lend themselves to discipline and order. So then what are they truly like? I came across this excellent description of the wicked by John Gill in his Bible Commentary, and it is worth sharing. He is commenting on the wicked in Psalm 32 Verse 10: "Many sorrows shall be to the wicked,.... Who will not be instructed and reformed, but are like the horse and mule, without understanding; many outward sorrows or afflictions attend them; loathsome and consuming diseases come upon their bodies by intemperance and debauchery; and they and their families are brought to a piece of bread, through their vicious courses; and inward sorrows, horror and terror of mind, seize them when their consciences are at any time awakened, and are open to conviction; when a load of guilt lies on them, what remorse of conscience they feel! and what severe reflections do they make! and how are they pierced through with many sorrows!" Gill proceeded like this, "And though indeed, for the most part, wicked men have their good things in this life, and are in prosperous circumstances, and are not in trouble, as other men; yet what they have is with a curse; and they have no true peace, pleasure, and satisfaction in what they enjoy; and the curses of a righteous law; and everlasting destruction is prepared for them in the other world, when they will have many sorrows indeed; their worm will not die, and the fire of divine fury will not be quenched; there will be for ever indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that does evil" The truth is that some people enjoy the ungodly life, they have chosen it, they live it and, moreover, they expect to die in it. Yet for all that, they are never truly happy in it. No human being can, for to live the ungodly life is to be in a state of spiritual death and constant rebellion against God, and that can never be really fulfilling. It's like having a thoroughbred racehorse in a paddock all its life, it may enjoy its existence and sedate life but it can never feel thoroughly fulfilled or tremendously accomplished. The reason the ungodly go to such extremes and excesses, especially if they are rich, is that they are expending more and more effort, to run after more and more things, in a vain attempt to satisfy their spiritual emptiness. The reality is that God made us with a spiritual component and to deny that, and ignore it, and try to drown it out with a flood of materialism, and earthly pleasures, merely exacerbates our futility and denigrate the true meaning of our life. Believers, on the other hand, have come to terms with the spiritual, they've acknowledged God to be central to their life, and have a deep and lasting prosperity rooted in the glorious provisions in Jesus Christ. But the ungodly are not so. Believers must be a mirror to the world, enabling it to see itself in true light, and must also be a bright and shining light to clearly show the world the way to salvation. Jesus Christ is our pattern, and we must be like him in calling the world to repent, but doing so in love and compassion. Our attitude must be more like Jesus' as summed up beautifully by this classic piece of Kenneth Filkins poetry: A man fell into a pit and he couldn't get out. A SUBJECTIVE person came along and said: "I FEEL for you, down there." An OBJECTIVE person came along and said: "It's logical that someone would fall, down there." A CHRISTIAN SCIENTIST came along: "You only THINK that you are in a pit." A PHARISEE said: "Only BAD people fall into a pit." A MATHEMATICIAN calculated HOW he fell into the pit. A NEWS REPORTER wanted the exclusive story on his pit. A FUNDAMENTALIST said: "You DESERVE your pit." CONFUCIUS said: "If you would have listened to me, you would not be in that pit." BUDDHA said: "Your pit is only a state of mind." A REALIST said: "That's a PIT." A SCIENTIST calculated the pressure necessary (lbs./sq.in.) to get him out of the pit. A GEOLOGIST told him to appreciate the rock strata in the pit. The COUNTY INSPECTOR asked if he had a permit to dig a pit. The COUNTY TAX ASSESSOR came along and figured the taxes he owed on the pit. A PROFESSOR gave him a lecture on: "The Elementary Principles of the Pit." A HEALTH AND WEALTH PREACHER said: "Just CONFESS that you're not in a pit." An OPTIMIST said: "Things COULD be worse." A PESSIMIST said: "Things WILL get worse!!" But Jesus, seeing the man, took him by the hand and lifted him out of the pit. Jesus is like that, full of love and deep compassion for all of God's children, both sinner and the converted. Whoever you are, there is mercy and help if you embrace the Lord Jesus Christ, "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." (Isaiah 55:7) Enough said. Books by this author (non-fiction except indicated otherwise) E-books Published by Amazon.com If you do not have a Kindle then when you access the site, click on How Buying Works and you will see the FREE apps for Computer, Cell phone, etc Then click as appropriate. (Please click on the appropriate book link or cut and paste in your URL) THINGS EVERY CHRISTIAN SHOULD KNOW (e-book) Volume 1 Five tough facts to be faced http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004YX5NSI STAND UP TO THE DEVIL (e-book) Volume 1 You must first identify him http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005BQVLSS BASTARD: A STORY OF REDEMPTION(e-book fiction) http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006OF3SD6 ONE MINUTE TO MIDNIGHT ON GOD'S CLOCK (Hard copy) http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002X78D16 ONE MINUTE TO MIDNIGHT ON GOD'S CLOCK (e-book) http://tatepublishing.com/bookstore/book.php?w=978-1-60799-630-9 Dr. Henderson Ward received his Doctor of Divinity in theology, with distinction, from Masters International School of Divinity, USA, where he is currently a post-doctoral fellow. Dr. Ward's career involved pastoring, evangelism, and teaching. Copyright 2017 Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com |