Ethics

WHEN WE DO SOMETHING BAD (SIN), IS IT SATAN’S FAULT?

No, Satan cannot make us do anything. He can only influence us, but we decide what we will do.

Let’s go to the Garden of Eden and take a look at the first sin and see if we can find out whose fault it was.  When God put Adam and Eve in the Garden, He radically blessed them with all kinds of trees to eat from.  Man only had one restriction while in the Garden:

Gen 2:16-17 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; 17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die. NKJV

Satan comes into the scene in Chapter 3.  Note these things Satan does because he is trying the same tricks on us today. 

Satan brings in doubt to God’s word:

Gen 3:1 Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’? NKJV
 
Satan comes in bringing lies:

Gen 3:5 For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil. NKJV
 
Satan came only with words, never did he make them sin. 
 
God teaches us in Romans that the fault for that sin in the garden fell on Adam, not Satan:

Rom 5:12  Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned. NKJV

Today it’s the same way Satan will work through the world to hook you so you will make bad decisions. Most of the time, we sin because we make bad decisions, one after the next, till we do something bad (sin). 

James 1:14-15  but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. 15 Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. NIV

In order for us to fight off sin, we need to think about what we see and participate in.  It’s true; garbage in garbage out, well, the same is true on the flip side, good in good out.  Read, Believe and Live Out the Word of God and you will do what is right. David said it’s by reading the Word of God and living out what you read that will help us make the right calls.
   
Ps 119:9-11 How can a young man keep his life pure? By obeying your commands.10 with all my heart I try to serve you; keep me from disobeying your commandments.11 I keep your law in my heart, so that I will not sin against you. TEV

Paul tells the Christians to put off the old ways (non-Christian conduct), and thing about godly things. 

Eph 4:20-24 But you have not so learned Christ, 21 if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: 22 that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, 23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness. NKJV
 
Phil 4:8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things. NIV

DOES GOD CARE ABOUT WHAT KIND OF MUSIC WE LISTEN TO?

Yes, God does care what we listen to.  The things we listen to affect us, for better or for worse.

Music by itself is not bad; in fact Heaven is and will be full of music.  God made us with the ability to compose and enjoy music.   What makes music bad is the content; obviously when music has bad words, it’s bad.  Keep in mind that music with a bad message is bad, too. Music is a tool for teaching; in pre-school we learn the ABC song, in church we learn about God, and often on the radio we learn about having sex outside of marriage, murdering people, stealing and the list goes on.

This is what God has to say about someone who brings a false message. Note that the message is not directly against God, on the surface, but it is against God.

Jer 23:16-18  The LORD Almighty said to the people of Jerusalem, “Do not listen to what the prophets say; they are filling you with false hopes. They tell you what they have imagined and not what I have said. 17 To the people who refuse to listen to what I have said, they keep saying that all will go well with them. And they tell everyone who is stubborn that disaster will never touch him.” 18 I said, “None of these prophets has ever known the LORD’s secret thoughts. None of them has ever heard or understood his message, or ever listened or paid attention to what he said.  TEV

“They are filling you with false hopes”. So many say you don’t need anyone else, just believe in yourself.  It sounds like a “Positive Message” but keep in mind that this no one else also includes God, that’s a bad message.

“They tell you what they have imagined and not what I have said”. Many modern musicians have their own way of looking at life.  They often teach things that go against what God has said in His Word.

“All will go well with them”. They say it’s all good, no one will go to hell for disobeying God, keep having fun.

“They tell everyone who is stubborn that disaster will never touch him”.  That is a lie; the reality is that all those who rebel against God to do their own thing will be separated from God for all eternity in hell.

Music teaches us and moves us.  So I say listen to those things that will teach you good things and listen to those things that will move you to good works.  You will find that the more you think about godly things through song, the more you will want to know about God Himself.   Think about these verses and be encouraged to meditate on things that will bring you closer to God.

Phil 4:8-9 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy — meditate on these things. 9 The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you. NKJV

1 Thess 5:21-22 Test everything. Hold on to the good. 22 Avoid every kind of evil. NIV

Rom 16:19 …but I want you to be wise about what is good, and innocent about what is evil.  NIV

IS ALL FIGHTING SIN?

No, not all fighting is sin; the Bible is full of battles and wars that were fought for just reasons. On a spiritual level, the Bible commands us to fight against sin. 

James makes a note in his letter that fights come from selfish people, which is true but we also see in the Bible God commanding His people to go and fight.  God commanded His people to fight. Victory in the battle field was a way to show believers and non-believers that He is God.

Wars that are motivated by pride are sin; fighting to prove something or gain something.

James 4:1 Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? NKJV
 
Wars that come from just causes are something that we should be a part of.  God commands Gideon to fight against the enemy to deliver His people from oppression.

Judg 6:14 Then the LORD turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours, and you shall save Israel from the hand of the Midianites. Have I not sent you? NKJV

God fought for His people, and to show the rest of the nations that He is the True and Living God.  The reason why God wants the world to know that He is God is not an insecurity issue, it’s a salvation issue.   People will only go to heaven if they are forgiven by Him, the True and Living God.

Ex 14:13-14 And Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. 14 The LORD will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.”
Ex 14:18 Then the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I have gained honor for Myself over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.  NKJV

 When Jesus said turn the other cheek He was talking about being punished or attacked because of your faith and love for God.  If this is the reason why you are mooched or even harmed, then we are to turn the other cheek.  If someone attacks you just to harm you for any other reason, then you are allowed to defend yourself, or someone that cannot defend themselves. Suffering for the Lord is a privilege; don’t fight back.

Acts 5:40-42 And they agreed with him, and when they had called for the apostles and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. 41 So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name. 42 And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.

On the spiritual side of things, all of the great victories in the Bible teach us a great lesson that no one can bring us down when we have God fighting on our side.  The Old Testament battles serve as spiritual examples to us; no matter how big the sin in your life is you can have victory, so be ready for the fight!

Eph 6:10-13 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.  13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.  NKJV

IS HOMOSEXUALITY OKAY?

It is not okay! It isn’t good for us so God calls it a sin.

The Bible makes it very clear; those who practice this kind of life style will not be accepted by God into His Kingdom.  They are put in the same category as thieves and any other unrepentant sinner.

1 Cor 6:9-10 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, 10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.

Paul warns us “do not be deceived”, because God knew that there would come a day when people would want to teach you and me that these kinds of things are okay.

As God was giving his laws and regulations for sex, He made it very clear that it was designed to be experienced in a marriage between a man and his wife.  Anything outside of that is a distortion of God’s plan and labeled by God as sin.  Homosexuality is sin.  Practicing any sexual act outside of marriage is destructive to the human body, soul and mind. That’s why God calls it sin. 

Example: Think of a fire. It’s enjoyable when it’s used in the right way and contained in the right place.  But when a fire is lit in the wrong place, where it has no containment, it will bring disaster and death.

Lev 18:22  Do not lie with a man as one lies with a woman; that is detestable.

Lev 20:13  If a man lies with a man as one lies with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable. They must be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.

“Their blood will be on their own heads”. This statement by God shows us that the person committing this sin is the one responsible for the sin.  We cannot say “God made me this way, I can’t help it”. 

James warns us about blaming our sinful actions on God.

James 1:13-15   Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. 14 But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. 15 Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.

Some say “it feels so right, how can it be wrong”? The answer to that is that their hearts are calloused to the truth. They have rejected God’s plan for their lives and have done their own thing for so long that now they are convinced it’s right and good. They perverted their minds to the point where now they believe the lies, and not the truth.

Example:  Even some murderers and rapist when interviewed have said they’re innocent or that there was nothing wrong with what they did. How could they believe their actions where not wrong? They are self-deceived.

In Rom 1:18-29 we learn that when people have rejected God’s truth for a long time God will allow them to believe their own lies and even act on their desires. God will not make us obey if we don’t want to. That’s why some can live in sin with no remorse or conviction.  But God can save people from that too
 (1 Cor 6:9-11), just like he saved us.  Praise the Lord!!