Bold Facts About God’s Truth in 2022 and Beyond

I tossed and turned in bed. Over and over the Lord spoke this article to me. So here I am writing now. It is bold truth. Not my opinion, but fact. Whether any of us believe this or not, it doesn’t change truth. God’s truth.

Please do not be deceived by today’s standards of the world, and what place a Christian may “fit in”. We are called to be set apart, not to fit in. We are called to be in the world, not of the world. We are not asked to be perfect, but to be holy.

Don’t be deceived: 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.

Be set apart: 1 Peter 2:9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.

You are not of this world: John 17:15-18 I do not ask that You take them out of the world, but that You keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth. As You sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.

Be holy: 1 Peter 1:16 Since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”

How can we do that? By allowing the Spirit of the Living God to be alive and well within us. In order for that to happen, we have to turn our lives over to Him every morning when we wake up, and every minute throughout the day. We have to write His Word upon our hearts, and believe them enough to ask Him to help us live them out:

Romans 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.

Hebrews 10:16 “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, said the Lord, I will put My laws into their hearts and in their minds I will write them.”

When we fall, we must get up. When we engage in sin, we must turn around. Practicing sin over and over without repentance, guilt or remorse shows a dangerous heart condition. Justifying that bad behavior is even more dangerous.

Acts 3:19 Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord…

Mark 7:20-23 And He was saying, “That which proceeds out of the man, that is what defiles the man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, deeds of coveting and wickedness, as well as deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride and foolishness. All these evil things proceed from within and defile the man.”

Right now, as many are reading this, you may be engaging in an on-going sin that you KNOW is not pleasing to God. There are consequences coming! Turn around! Drug addiction and misuse, alcohol addiction, pornography addiction, living with/having sex with someone who is not your married spouse; shoplifting (no matter how small); telling deliberate lies about others; gossiping; perpetual (unresolved) anger; judging someone else to make yourself feel superior to them; fueling feelings of hate toward someone you feel wronged by and wishing them harm or ill will; aiming to get even with someone by inflicting a form of punishment upon them, and actually experiencing pleasure from it! Stop! Turn around! Examine your heart, examine your salvation! Examine your relationship with the One who made you!

Sin separates us from the Father. Not only does it lead to death and not only does sin separate us from the Father, but sin is harmful to us and those around us. From the time of Adam and Eve’s fall in the garden, God has set consequences in place for every action of sin. Bad actions reap bad consequences, even if later down the line; they still come. Good actions reap good consequences - things that bring us true blessings, therefore bringing us closer to God.

Isaiah 59:2 But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear.

Romans 6:23 “ For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

In the Bible’s Book of Galatians chapter 5, the apostle Paul gives us some really good words to live by. I encourage you to read the scripture below thoughtfully and thoroughly:

Vs. 1 It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Vs. 13-23 You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other. So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.

This does not mean we are perfect, but it does mean we are trying. Jesus makes us perfect by His blood at the Cross. He sees us through the eyes of love, forgiveness and as white as snow. But only when we have accepted His wonderful gift of eternity in heaven (salvation). Have you done that? Be honest with yourself. Have you? It’s as easy as ABC, but you have to mean it, and then follow His guidance.

A – Admit you are a sinner. Romans 3:23 - for everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.

B – Believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and He died for YOUR sins! John 3:16 - For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.

C – Confess with your mouth of your decision to be changed by His love!

Romans 10:9 - … that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

Each of us knows the true condition of our own heart and what we need to work on. Let’s all examine ourselves and pray for correction, restoration and to make a difference for Christ in this short period we call “life”! Time is winding down here on earth. Every day we are closer to eternity. I wouldn’t want to miss it for the world! How about you?

This is a faithful saying, and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief. 1 Timothy 1:15 KJV ~ the apostle Paul