Thursday, April 2, 2015

on Leave a Comment

Discrimination And Abomination

         As children, we were all taught, if our parents cared about us, to discern/discriminate between what is good and what is evil (right and wrong).  Discernment is the pure definition of discrimination and discrimination is the result of discernment.  The Bible is the Word of God, and therefore the authority of what is good, and what is evil.  The Bible tells us to "test every Spirit".  We, people of faith, need to know what comes from the infallible mind of God, and what comes from the fallible mind of man. 

          The Bible lists many forms of sin and abomination.  We are told not to commit sins and even more not to commit abominations. We are told to stand fast in our faith. We are told to separate ourselves from sin and not follow in the way of sinners.  We are instructed to love the sinner while we hate the sin: for all have sinned and come short of the Glory of God, and salvation through Christ is available to anyone who repents of their sin and submits to the Lord.[1]  It only makes sense that we should not participate in anything that further enhances, or enables, the practice of sin.  As Peter and other apostles told those in authority, we should obey God rather than man[2]. 

          Apparently there are sins that are more egregious to God than others.  We know that sin is anything that comes between God and us.  Throughout the Bible we see references to things that will carry a more severe punishment than others.  The Bible tells us about sin, iniquity and abomination. Perhaps this is a reflection on the difference in committing sin, and willfully continuing to repeat, practice and retain sin in our lives, either knowingly or out of ignorance. We also know that Christ died for our sins: almost all of them, for everyone, for all time.  There is, however, one sin that the Bible states can never be forgiven.  That sin is the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit ( saying that the works of the Holy Spirit are from Satan and saying that the works of Satan are from the Holy Spirit). 

          "Webster’s dictionary defines the word 'abomination' as a 'loathsome or disgusting act.'  This serves as an adequate biblical definition as well, for when the bible mentions something as an 'abomination' it means 'an act which is loathsome or disgusting in the eyes of God.' "[3]

Abominations, What The Lord Hates

          An abomination seems to carry the description of being of a greater severity, in Gods mind, than the other 'run of the mill' sins.  It would be worthwhile, therefore, to establish what God, and the Bible, have referred to as abominations.  The following is a list of those abominations.

1.  A proud look, proud, pride (self love) Everyone who is proud of heart.

2.  A lying tongue (the tongue that devises mischief's)

3.  Hands that shed innocent blood (such as abortion) Thou shall not do so unto the Lord thy God: for every abomination to the Lord, which he hates, have they done unto their gods; for even their sons and their daughters they have burnt in the fire to their gods.  To cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire unto Molech; which I commanded them not, neither came it into my mind, that they should do this abomination (today its abortion)

4.  Feet that are swift in running to mischief

5.  A false witness

6.  A heart that desires wicked imaginations

7.  He that sows discord among brethren

8.  Those of a froward heart (Perverse; deceitful; false)

9. Lying lips (one who conceals hatred has lying lips)

10. The thoughts of the wicked

11. The sacrifice of the wicked (presenting the face of religion, without being religious)

12. The way of the wicked

13.  It is an abomination to kings to commit wickedness: for the throne is established by righteousness.

14. He that justifies the wicked, and he that condemneth the just, even they both abomination to the Lord.

15. Divers weights, a false balance and divers measures, they are alike abomination to the Lord.

16. Thou shall not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.  If a man also lie with mankind, as he lies with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination, Leviticus 18:22 19.

17. The woman shall not wear that which pertains unto a man, neither shall a man put on a woman's garment: for all that do so are abomination unto the Lord thy God.

18. Cursed be the man that maketh any graven or molten image, an abomination unto the Lord, the work of the hands of the craftsman, and puts it in a secret place

19. They that are of a froward heart are abomination to the Lord: but such as are upright in their way are his delight

20. He that turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be abomination. Proverbs 28:9

21. Idol worship, Idols made with hands

22. I have seen thy adulteries, and thy neighings, the lewdness of thy whoredom

23. You are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knows your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.

24. Using the hair of a whore or the price of a dog for a vow

25.  Remarrying a woman who you divorced, who married another man and left him

Deuteronomy 18:10-15
There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that uses divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch. Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord: and because of these abominations the Lord thy God doth drive them out from before thee.

So that the Lord could no longer bear, because of the evil of your doings, and because of the abominations which ye have committed; therefore is your land a desolation, and an astonishment, and a curse

And mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity: I will recompense thee according to thy ways and thy abominations that are in the midst of thee; and ye shall know that I am the Lord that smites.

Isaiah 66:3
He that kills an ox is as if he slew a man; he that sacrifices a lamb, as if he cut off a dog's neck; he that offers an oblation, as if he offered swine's blood; he that burns incense, as if he blessed an idol. Yea, they have chosen their own ways, and their soul delights in their abominations.

Proverbs 19:18
Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy soul spare for his crying.

Luke 16:15
And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knows your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.

And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defiles, neither whatsoever works abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life.

          I would like to add to the list of abominations, a couple of things that are not listed as such in the Bible, but I personally feel that are true abominations. All of these were developed after the New Testament was established.

1. Replacement theology

2. It's up to man to make the world perfect (dominion or amillennial theology)

3. Telling people that there is more than one way to Heaven

For these things to be true, Jesus, God the Father, the Holy Spirit and all the writers of the New Testament would have to be liars. 

          As we can see, there are consequences to our actions and also our inactions. We will all be held to account for our actions and inactions, sooner or later, before the judgment seat of God. God does not wink at our indiscretions or transgressions.  God is the same yesterday, today and forever. God will not be mocked.  We cannot serve sin and God at the same time.

          The heart of the matter is that we believers cannot tell others, especially non believers, what they may or may not do.  However, for the secular world to be able to have the right to force the believer to act and be involved in any behavior that is contrary to our faith, in God's Word, is to deny us the right of the practice of our religious freedoms, as delineated in  First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America.

          Regardless of the sin involved, (LGBT lifestyle, fornication, adultery, murder, idolatry, lust, theft, etc.) the nonbeliever is entitled to sin as they see fit.  However, the nonbeliever is not entitled to demand that the believer be involved or participate in the practice or enabling of their sin. Tolerance is supposed to be a two way street, or it leads to tyranny.


[1] John 3:16-18  and Romans 10:9-13
[2] Acts 5:29
[3] http://www.raptureready.com/featured/gillette/bg28.html 

0 comments:

Post a Comment