immorality – Page 2 – Praying Pint

8.c. “Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth’s abominations.”

Revelation 17:1 Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who is seated on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality, and with the wine of whose sexual immorality the dwellers on earth have become drunk.” And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. And on her forehead was written a name of mystery: “Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth’s abominations.” And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.

Babylon of old seems to be the birthplace of many false teachings and worship and is spiritually void of God. We have a political system established by the Antichrist and a religious system established by the false prophet. Babylon, both politically and religiously, has once again become great and not in a good way. The spiritual adultery people are graving and lusting after will give them their fill of false hopes, false ideas, and a false sense of security. This unfaithfulness toward God is voluntary and intentional. People during the tribulation, like now, have a choice to commit or not commit adultery with the world and what it has to offer. Every day we have choices we make that take us deeper with God or not. Do not be swayed by the eloquent speech of those who have an outward appearance of godliness but inwardly they are void. Do not we taken in by the cultural thoughts that lead to a lukewarm watered down Christian life. Do you want to grow spiritually and have a deeper understanding of God’s word? Spend as much time in it as what you spend watching sports, reading news, or surfing the internet. You will find an amazing release from world influence and will see a maturing of your faith over and over again. Watering down the gospel now points to a time in the near future where people will not even be aware of their adulterous acts against God.

1.s. You did well that it was in your heart

2 Chronicles 6:7 Now it was in the heart of David my father to build a house for the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. But the Lord said to David my father, ‘Whereas it was in your heart to build a house for my name, you did well that it was in your heart. Nevertheless, it is not you who shall build the house, but your son who shall be born to you shall build the house for my name.’ Now the Lord has fulfilled his promise that he made. For I have risen in the place of David my father and sit on the throne of Israel, as the Lord promised, and I have built the house for the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. And there I have set the ark, in which is the covenant of the Lord that he made with the people of Israel.”

2 Corinthians 8:12 For if the readiness is there, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have.

Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?

Matthew 15:19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander.

We see David had it in his heart to build a house for God. David was embarrassed by the fact that he was living in a fine palace and God was not. So, David purposed in his heart to save and set aside money, purchase materials, and design that which he purposed in his heart to build for God.

Don’t pass over “you did well that it was in your heart”. It is in the normal heart to lead and keep us focused on self and away from God.

Jon Bloom writes – “The truth is, no one lies to us more than our own hearts. No one. If our hearts are compasses, they are misguiding compasses. They don’t tell us the truth; they just tell us what we want. If our hearts are guides, they are more than likely lying and want to convince us to above all else please self. They are not benevolent; they are pathologically selfish. In fact, if we do what our hearts tell us to do, we will pervert and impoverish every desire, every beauty, every person, every wonder, and every joy. Our hearts want to consume these things for our own self-glory and self-indulgence. No, our hearts will not naturally lead us in the direction of God. We need to be saved from our hearts natural desires.” “Therefore, don’t believe in your heart; direct your heart to believe in God. Don’t follow your heart; follow Jesus. Note that Jesus did not say to his disciples, “Let not your hearts be troubled, just believe in your hearts.” He said, “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me” “So, though your heart will try to shepherd you today, do not follow it. It is not a shepherd. It is a pompous sheep that, due to remaining sin, has some wolf-like qualities. Don’t follow it, and be careful even listening to it. Remember, your heart only tells you what you want, not where you should go. So, only listen to it to note what it’s telling you about what you want, and then take your wants, both good and evil, to Jesus as requests and confessions.”

Intentionally choosing each day to be heart, soul, and mind, focused on honoring God will change the way you see each moment that passes before you, each thought that comes into your mind, and every action you are planning to take. Stay in His word and let it fill your heart and mind with more understanding and knowledge of Jesus Christ.

But Lot’s wife looked back

Genesis 19:23 The sun had risen on the earth when Lot came to Zoar. Then the Lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah sulfur and fire from the Lord out of heaven. And he overthrew those cities, and all the valley, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground. But Lot’s wife, behind him, looked back, and she became a pillar of salt. And Abraham went early in the morning to the place where he had stood before the Lord. And he looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah and toward all the land of the valley, and he looked and, behold, the smoke of the land went up like the smoke of a furnace. So it was that, when God destroyed the cities of the valley, God remembered Abraham and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow when he overthrew the cities in which Lot had lived.

Luke 17:28 Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot—they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all— so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed. On that day, let the one who is on the housetop, with his goods in the house, not come down to take them away, and likewise let the one who is in the field not turn back. Remember Lot’s wife. Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it.

1 Corinthians 10:6-12 Now these things took place as examples for us, that we might not desire evil as they did. Do not be idolaters as some of them were; as it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.” We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day. We must not put Christ to the test, as some of them did and were destroyed by serpents, nor grumble, as some of them did and were destroyed by the Destroyer. Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come. Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall.

Hebrews 10:38-39 but my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him.” But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls.

2 Peter 2:18-22 For, speaking loud boasts of folly, they entice by sensual passions of the flesh those who are barely escaping from those who live in error. They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved. For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them. What the true proverb says has happened to them: “The dog returns to its own vomit, and the sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire.”

Lot’s wife looked back which appears to be for a longing of the way things were. Living there was a life of what was recorded in Ezekiel 49 “Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy.” Change from this life caused her to turn back with a longing concern for what once was.

What keeps us from turning back or falling back into that which does not honor God? Is it not by the simple fact that through complacent neglect of His word we are deceived and diluted, by the way of the world, into thinking that which is common and natural and lawful to the culture is somehow ok for us? Oh, that our heart, mind and soul would thirst for understanding and knowledge of Him and His word. Oh that our passion was not for this world but rather to serve, honor, glorify, follow and obey Him who is worthy.

Matthew Henry comments “All the people of Sodom were very wicked and vile. Care was therefore taken for saving Lot and his family. Lot lingered; he trifled. Thus many who are under convictions about their spiritual state, and the necessity of a change, defer that needful work. The salvation of the most righteous men is of God’s mercy, not by their own merit. We are saved by grace. God’s power also must be acknowledged in bringing souls out of a sinful state If God had not been merciful to us, our lingering had been our ruin. Lot must flee for his life. He must not hanker after Sodom. Such commands as these are given to those who, through grace, are delivered out of a sinful state and condition. Return not to sin and Satan. Rest not in self and the world. Reach toward Christ and heaven, for that is escaping to the mountain, short of which we must not stop. Concerning this destruction, observe that it is a revelation of the wrath of God against sin and sinners of all ages. Let us learn from hence the evil of sin, and its hurtful nature; it leads to ruin.”

Thoughts lodged within you

Genesis 6:5 The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

Deuteronomy 29:19 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.

Ecclesiastes 7:29 See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes.

Ecclesiastes 9:3 This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that the same event happens to all. Also, the hearts of the children of man are full of evil, and madness is in their hearts while they live, and after that they go to the dead.

Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?

Matthew 15:19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander.

Mark 7:21-23 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”

Ephesians 2:1-3 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience — among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.

Titus 3:3 For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another.

Jeremiah 4:14 O Jerusalem, wash your heart from evil, that you may be saved. How long shall your wicked thoughts lodge within you?

Thoughts come and go. Some thoughts like to hang on. They seem to be firmly planted and gain more and more substance as they continue and cycle through our mind.

Do you ever catch yourself in a thought and say where in the world did that come from. I doubt we can stop these thoughts from coming but we certainly can do something about what we do with them. Recognition and intentional discarding them from spending more time in our head.

We have been given God’s word that tells us be on guard against the evil intents and thoughts of our sinful nature. In His word we find we can compare our thought against what the word of God says. We can know if it is a right or wrong thought. But this does require us to have His word in our heart, mind, and soul continually.

Thoughts of lust, pride, greed, coveting, hate, unkindness, and deceit all are seeds planted within our sinful nature and fueled by so many outside influences. I was thinking about things we see during what should be a good movie and only to have it include partial or full nudity. For what reason other than to plant seeds of lust and want. Reading the news can also be a vile thing, where news of hate, sex, abuse, and violence race for headlines. I read an article on Larry Flynn, the person who started Hustler magazine, and who took the right to publish to the supreme court and won. He said I am just giving people what they want. Pop-up adds tell us we need something more, planting the seed of coveting. How many times do you see adds promoting how to look better, act smarter, look younger, look sexy, being thinner, being stronger, blah, blah blah…. seemingly all for the purpose of planting seeds of wanting and that true satisfaction will only come through what they provide. Yielding to any small seed of thought on these is a problem because it takes very little watering to make them spout, grow and produce unwanted fruit. Doesn’t is seem pitiful that we allocate so much time in things that have little to no value for eternity.

Being aware of this sinful nature and cultivate an understanding – seeking, desiring, humbly serving, honoring, following and obeying God’s word which allows us to more clearly see right – wrong, truth – false, light – darkness, lust – purity, hate – love, worry – contentment, restlessness – peace, despair – hope, pain – pleasure, vicious – merciful, cruel – kind, coveting – generosity, and temptation – resisting, humbleness – pride.

Our heart, mind, and soul needs more than just the seeds of God’s word. These seeds need watering daily from the living water of God’s word to root and grow. In our culture of liberal tolerance and no absolute truth, His word in our life seems to have been replaced with indulgent application of complacent neglect.

Look closely and monitor what seeds are lodged within your heart and seek to fill your heart with that what is good and pleasing to Him who is worthy of our lives glorifying Him in our thoughts and actions.

Shouts of Praise 2

“By awesome deeds you answer us with righteousness, O God of our salvation, the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas;”

“All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the LORD, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you.”

Psalms 47:1 Clap your hands, all peoples! Shout to God with loud songs of joy!

Psalms 98:4 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises!

Ezra 3:11 And they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the LORD, “For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever toward Israel.” And all the people shouted with a great shout when they praised the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid. But many of the priests and Levites and heads of fathers’ houses, old men who had seen the first house, wept with a loud voice when they saw the foundation of this house being laid, though many shouted aloud for joy, so that the people could not distinguish the sound of the joyful shout from the sound of the people’s weeping, for the people shouted with a great shout, and the sound was heard far away.

Jeremiah 31:7 For thus says the LORD: “Sing aloud with gladness for Jacob, and raise shouts for the chief of the nations; proclaim, give praise, and say, ‘O LORD, save your people, the remnant of Israel.’

Zephaniah 3:14 Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem!

Zechariah 9:9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

Luke 19:37 As he was drawing near—already on the way down the Mount of Olives—the whole multitude of his disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen, saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”

Revelation 19:1 After this I heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, crying out, “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, for his judgments are true and just; for he has judged the great prostitute who corrupted the earth with her immorality, and has avenged on her the blood of his servants.”

Psalms 95:3 For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods.

Daniel 7:13 And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.

To be close to God’ is to be in place of heart & mind where we SHOUT PRAISES, GIVE PRAISE, and SHOUT WITH JOY because we know Him and what He has done, is doing and will do. I recently read something like this statement in a commentary on this Psalm “because God will not subdue our troubles, trials and worry under us, unless we have allowed Him to choose our life-plan. Live on that plan and you are unconquerable.” We can not expect to live in His blessing if we are not humbly serving, following, obeying, and making Him are all in all. We cannot expect to know His plan if we are not yielding each day to Him. Our lives must change. Our choice for each day must begin and end with humbly serving, obeying, and following Him. What would a day in the life of a person who does this look like? Would they start and end a day without as much as 5 minutes in His word? Would they spend more time watching TV or video games or hunting, or shopping, or fill in the blank…? Would their mind mull over what they have read? Would they be still and listen for God to speak to them through His word each day? Would they pray? Would they seek God’s leading in making decision? Do you want to know true blessing, rest, peace, joy, hope, and love to the point your heart bursts with shouts of praise. Commit your life, each day, to Him, read His word, study His word, listen to others proclaim His word, and above all else humbly serve, honor, follow and obey Him.