Scripture: Romans 1:24-32
24 Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25 They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen. 26 Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. 27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion. 28 Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what not to be done. 29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; 31 they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.
Observation:
· These verses are a pretty long list of things God tells us not to do—to stand against.
· Why do you think God is so specific about what we should or shouldn’t do?
o God wants us to have the best life possible and by living his way and obeying his commands we can have it! Not to be confused with a trouble-free life or an easy life, but simply the best way to live your life.
· What do you think is considered sexual impurity? How far is too far?
o What answer would you tell God if he asked you face-to-face?
· How do you feel about the statement: Homosexuality is evil and a sin against God, period.
o Do you agree or disagree?
o The scriptures tell us that homosexuality is a sin…no exceptions, but many Christians fail to stand up for God’s standards when they’re challenged by someone else!
o Important to understand that while homosexuality is a sin it is certainly no less or more dishonoring to God than the rest of the sins given.
Application:
· What behavior from this list do you struggle with the most? Why?
o We need to remember that just because something is easy to do or because something gives us pleasure, or even that it seems to be a struggle for many people doesn’t mean that it’s acceptable by God.
· What actions can you take to stand on God’s side? That means standing up for the things God stands up for and sitting for the things God sits for.
Prayer:
Admit to God any areas that you battle with. Let God work in you to cleanse you from your sin and to make you strong to stand up for what’s right. Anytime throughout your day that you begin to struggle with something you know you shouldn’t do, take a moment and say a silent prayer to God to help you live according to his standards.
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4 comments:
Cody, these are awesome devotions! Very thought-provoking and applicable. Could you create a printable version for those of us who prefer to read from paper?
Cody, how should we treat people who are homosexual since God says this is wrong?
The best way to print these off would be to copy and paste to a word document and then just change the font color to black. Hope this helps.
We interact with people everyday who are doing things that violate God's principles for our lives. In dealing with these situations whether it's homosexuality or someone who is a gossip we should keep two things in mind: 1. How close can I be with this person without allowing their sin to cause me to be contaminated by their sin (Jude 1:23). 2. Am I living a life that shows them God's way of doing life because that is perhaps the most powerful tool on our belt (1 Peter 2:12). 3.Am I spending more time judging and condemning their sin or communicating that in spite of their sin you will treat them as a person loved by God even though they may be spending most of their time living in the Wilderness or probably more likely havn't even escaped the bondage and slavery of Egypt to experience the Promise Land.
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