There are so many opportunities in this day and hour, given the demoralization that has been occurring in America over the last 40 to 60 years, to be at peace with our sinful nature, and to simultaneously proclaim the name of God, professing Christianity. The sad truth is the real numbers of those who ‘seek God with their whole heart’ are ever shrinking as a result of the ever growing sinful industries.
As I read through the news I find that there is not a single news or informational website, that once upon a time would look down on advertising that included sex or used skin to sell something, that does not currently allow the clickbait advertising on its site. I can still remember when this was taboo and an embarrassment, because it meant printing such things on a newspaper, or that it was considered as ignorant that the limitations of your intelligence was to use skin to sell something— but what was once taboo is commonly accepted, as what was once only tolerated is now widely distributed.
One compromise leads to another. “Today, it has been considered that 46–74% of men and 16–41% of women are active pornography users in modern nations. These data are supported by one of the most popular porn website, PornHub, as reported over 39 billion searches and 42 billion visits during 2019, suggesting 115 million visits and 18,073 terabytes of data transferred per day.” Source: Nature.com This was a single website recording these numbers.
It is a statistic that cannot be ignored. The lockdown increasing the number to an even higher height. Yet in the Book of Daniel we find a man, much like we today, surrounded in sin and in captivity, who refused to bend the knee to sin. It is said of Daniel that he ‘purposed in his heart he would not defile himself with the king’s meat.’ Daniel, even with everyone around him looking for him to fail, would not yield to the attractions and distractions of the king’s court. The same is with us today— many would love to see us fail and fall, as they needed him to fail, because his faith, piety, righteousness and holiness, though personal and before the Lord in humility, was a judgement on them.
For instance in the book Hebrews it tells us that “by Faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an Ark, to the saving of his family (household salvation) by which he condemned the world...” Like Noah, whose faith condemned the world, Daniel’s faith even though was a personal faith and walk with God— was an offense to others— insomuch as it was a judgement of their lack of Faith.
The action of faith does two things- it moves God and makes enemies.
Anytime we step out to do the right thing, be sure there will be those who seek to find fault in us- if only to justify their own misbehaving. As we move closer to God and raise the standards of holiness against the world and ‘purpose in our heart that we will not defile ourselves with this world’ the power and pull and rip current of sin becomes less and less formidable. For Daniel, his accusers could find “none occasion nor fault: for as much as he was Faithful, neither was there any error or fault found in him.” (Dan 6:4)
I take this to heart as I face the day knowing that at every turn there will be opportunities for the occasional fault, I take heart knowing that occasionally sinning, always turns into bondage. Ben Franklin said it this way: “it’s easier to resist the first desire then it is to satisfy all those that follow.” How true.
Moreover it is not that being a Christian means rules, it truly means freedom. “All things are lawful, but not all things are expedient,” we have liberty in Christ Jesus but “let your moderation be known to all,” Paul admonishes us— and as for the secret sin, the sins against your very character and that destroy the soul, that 3 out of 4 men struggle with- let it be said of us that there was no occasion for us to sin. Safeguard your lifestyle, your phone, your computer and television, protect yourselves from yourselves, do not tolerate those things we know to wrong our souls. Repent and ask God to heal us, and God will heal.
God said “to come out from among them and be ye separate.. and I will be a Father to you and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. Having therefore these promises dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting Holiness in the fear of the Lord.”
God help us to be clean in your eyes, let us not fall into a snare or temptations as they come, give us the Grace —that is the power to overcome, the power to do your will, the power that is greater than this world, the power that enables us to ‘purify our souls in obedience to the truth.’
‘Let it not be not be named once among us’ who call ourselves Christian. Help us to be a light in this dark world, not fearing them who would find occasion in us to justify themselves. God give us a heart after your heart, a whole heart, a circumcised heart, a clean heart, renewed in your Word daily, in Jesus name,
Amen.