Did not honor Him – Praying Pint

59. Take care lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside

Deuteronomy 29:18 Beware lest there be among you a man or woman or clan or tribe whose heart is turning away today from the Lord our God to go and serve the gods of those nations. Beware lest there be among you a root bearing poisonous and bitter fruit, one who, when he hears the words of this sworn covenant, blesses himself in his heart, saying, ‘I shall be safe, though I walk in the stubbornness of my heart.’ This will lead to the sweeping away of moist and dry alike. The Lord will not be willing to forgive him, but rather the anger of the Lord and his jealousy will smoke against that man, and the curses written in this book will settle upon him, and the Lord will blot out his name from under heaven.

Ecclesiastes 11:9 Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and the sight of your eyes. But know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment.

Romans 1:21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.

Jeremiah 7:24 But they did not obey or incline their ear, but walked in their own counsels and the stubbornness of their evil hearts, and went backward and not forward.

Psalms 10:11 He says in his heart, “God has forgotten, he has hidden his face, he will never see it.

Deuteronomy 11:16-17 Take care lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside

With all these warnings it is good to have reasons to stay in His word every day.

It helps to know and do God’s will

It leads you away from sin

It will guard you against false teaching

Gives you time alone with Jesus

It will convict you or sin

You will see how great of love was demonstrated and given for your salvation

You will find encouragement

You will find reason to praise Jesus

Your faith will grow

You will find rest and peace for today and hope for tomorrow

You will be building a defense against Satan’s attacks

His word must be active in our lives or something else will surely fill that void.

What’s in your heart?

“For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools,”

“For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks”

Psalms 14:1
The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds; there is none who does good. The LORD looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt; there is none who does good, not even one. Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers who eat up my people as they eat bread and do not call upon the LORD? There they are in great terror, for God is with the generation of the righteous. You would shame the plans of the poor, but the LORD is his refuge.

Proverbs 1:7
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Proverbs 1:22
“How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple? How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing and fools hate knowledge?

Proverbs 13:19
A desire fulfilled is sweet to the soul, but to turn away from evil is an abomination to fools.

Luke 12:20
But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’

Revelation 21:8
But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”

Matthew 12:34
You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks

Romans 1:21-32
For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools,

At times I wonder what is worse, those who claim there is no God and live like it, or those who claim there is a God but don’t live like it. For although they knew God they did not honor Him as God or give thanks to Him. A good way to determine where God is in your life is to listen to what comes out of your mouth – “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks”

10 minutes

“For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; for it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.” So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.”

Psalms 10:3
For the wicked boasts of the desires of his soul, and the one greedy for gain curses and renounces the LORD. In the pride of his face the wicked does not seek him; all his thoughts are, “There is no God.” His ways prosper at all times; your judgments are on high, out of his sight; as for all his foes, he puffs at them. He says in his heart, “I shall not be moved; throughout all generations I shall not meet adversity.”
He says in his heart, “God has forgotten, he has hidden his face, he will never see it.”
Why does the wicked renounce God and say in his heart, “You will not call to account”?

Psalms 73:11
And they say, “How can God know? Is there knowledge in the Most High?”

Psalms 94:7
and they say, “The LORD does not see”

Job 22:13-14
But you say, ‘What does God know? Can he judge through the deep darkness?

Ezekiel 8:12
Then he said to me, “Son of man, have you seen what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the dark, each in his room of pictures? For they say, ‘The LORD does not see us, the LORD has forsaken the land.’”

Isaiah 29:15
Ah, you who hide deep from the LORD your counsel, whose deeds are in the dark, and who say, “Who sees us? Who knows us?

Romans 1:21-22
For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools,

Psalms 49:10-13
For he sees that even the wise die; the fool and the stupid alike must perish and leave their wealth to others. Their graves are their homes forever, their dwelling places to all generations, though they called lands by their own names. Man in his pomp will not remain; he is like the beasts that perish. This is the path of those who have foolish confidence; yet after them people approve of their boasts.

When you read these verses you understand the serious view God has on those who deny His existence or His ability to do anything about what they say or do. How easy is it for us to forget that this applies to each one of us. When we fail to find time to spend in His word, when we desire things of this world more than seeking Him, when we choose to neglect His expectation for our lives, when we stop listening for that quiet small voice of His leading us, when we fail to obey when we hear it, when we coast along life in our comforts and give no thoughts of Him day after day…… We are to encourage each other to stay in His word, we are to use His word as a light onto our path, we are to use His word to make disciples, we are to write his word on our heart and mind, we are to allow ourselves to be wronged for the sake of love and unity, we are to proclaim His glory, power, grace, love and mercy….. There is much we water down and see no benefit for not only our lives but those we come into contact each day. However if you would take 5 minutes a day to read His word and spend 5 minutes thinking about what it says to you I think you will see family, friends, neighbors, strangers in a different light – God will give you purpose and direction in all of life. 10 minutes a day.