This is now the third article in a series on sins of which the apostle Paul, speaking by means of the Holy Spirit, says will deny one an inheritance in the kingdom of God if practiced. Of course, one can quit the practice of a sin and repent of it but to continue on in any of these sins without repentance is to be condemned.
In Part I of the series the sins
of adultery and fornication were dealt with.
In Part II the sins of homosexuality, sodomy, uncleanness, and lewdness
were covered. In this installment I will
be dealing with idolatry, covetousness, thievery, extortion, sorcery, hatred,
and drunkenness.
The text used for this series can
be found below, the underlining being my own.
|
1 Cor. 6:9-10 |
Gal. 5:19-21 |
Eph. 5:5-7 |
|
“Do you not know that
the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived.
Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor
sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor
extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.” (1Cor. 6:9-10 NKJV) |
“Now the works of the
flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery,
hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions,
dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like;
of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those
who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Gal. 5:19-21
NKJV) |
“For this you know,
that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has
any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. Let no one deceive you
with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the
sons of disobedience. Therefore do not be partakers with them.” (Eph. 5:5-7
NKJV) |
Most people have an understanding
of pagan idolatry so little needs to be said of that. There is still a lot of that kind of idolatry
in the world but not in the modern day western world. One finds it, however, not just in some
remote tribal regions in say Africa or Southeast Asia but also in more advanced
nations like India (Hinduism) and China and Japan (Buddhism – let the reader
decide). Most people from the West generally
recognize pagan idolatry when they see it.
Few westerners are likely to be attracted to that type of idolatry.
Our danger in the West is of the more
insidious types of idolatry. For
example, Paul says in Col. 3:5 that covetousness is idolatry. An idol does not have to have a physical,
material form and set on a shelf or be placed in a temple. An idol is anything we worship ahead of God
or in place of God. It can come in the
form of a hobby or sport, it can be money, it can be a job, it is anything you
put before God, in place of God, as number one in your life.
Covetousness, which Paul says is
idolatry, is also on the list of sins that will keep one from an inheritance in
the kingdom of God. What is
covetousness? Well, Paul says in Acts
20:33, “I have coveted no one's silver or gold or apparel.” (NKJV) Thus, to lust after another person’s
possessions, desiring them for yourself is to covet. In 1 Tim. 6:10 Paul speaks of some whose love
of money led them to stray from the faith in their greediness for it. Greediness is a synonym for covetousness.
We are not to lust after evil
things (1 Cor. 10:6). Paul speaks of
those who “being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work
all uncleanness with greediness.” (Eph. 4:19 NKJV) Remember greediness is just another word for covetousness. One can thus covet the immoral.
Covetousness is a desire for more
and more. "Take heed and beware of
covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he
possesses." (Luke 12:15 NKJV) I think we get the general idea of things or
ways in which a person can covet and become covetous.
Somewhat related to covetousness
is the sin of being a thief. This would
seem to be a sin so commonly understood that little would need to be said of
it. However, one must bear in mind there
are things one can steal other than another person’s money or possessions. I could steal your good name; I could steal
your spouse if I was able to do so. Yes,
these sins would involve other sins as well as theft but, nevertheless, it
would still be theft.
Then one could also steal by
cheating on an exam or in a competition.
One can be a thief in many different scenarios. If you are a thief, unrepentant, there is no
inheritance in God’s kingdom for you. We
need to be perfectly honest in all of our dealings, no cheating, and no
stealing.
Extortioners are another class of
people who will not inherit God’s kingdom.
An extortioner is also one who covets but since one might covet only in
his/her heart without taking action an extortioner acts on the sin in his
heart. David Lipscomb, in his commentary
on 1 Corinthians 5:10, gives the easiest to understand definition of an
extortioner. He says, “An extortioner is
one who by power or threats takes what is not his own or more than is
right. The man who takes advantage of
another’s poverty, or his necessities, to obtain exorbitant gain, is an
extortioner.” Thus one might charge an
exorbitant interest rate to one to whom you loan money who is in no position to
seek the loan elsewhere. The idea seems
to be that the extortioner is in a position to exert his power over the other
due to the other’s inferior position and lack of options.
John the Baptist, speaking to the
tax collectors who had come to him asking him what they should do, told them
“collect no more than what is appointed for you.” (Luke 3:13 NKJV) He was saying do not extort the people from
whom you are collecting taxes. They were
in a position where they could easily have extorted the people and gotten by
with it had they a mind to do so, they had that power. We are to be fair and honest in all of our
dealings with others. We are entitled to
a profit in our business dealings but not an excessive one to the hurt of the
other person who has no choice but deal with us.
We move now from sins related to
greed to sorcery. The Greek behind this
word is translated by the word “witchcraft” in the New International Version
and some other lesser well known translations.
It has the idea of the occult behind it.
Philip Schaff in his commentary says sorcery is “a secret tampering with
the powers of evil” usually in association with idolatry. Zerr in his commentary says, “It means any
attempt to accomplish a result by means of pretended supernatural power or
knowledge, such as fortune telling, palm reading, astrology, etc.”
It involved spells, incantations, enchantments, and
magic. David Lipscomb said of sorcery,
“The use of magical enchantment, divination by supposed assistance of evil
spirits, witchcraft.”
Perhaps the most well known
biblical account of such activity was with King Saul at En Dor when he
consulted the medium there (see 1 Sam. 28).
Sorcery was common in the world of the Old and New Testaments. Paul encountered this activity more than once
in his travels (see Acts 19:19 as an example, also Acts 8:9-11, 13:6). One wants to stay as far away from fortune
telling, consulting the dead, etc., as is possible. “And when they say to you ‘Seek those who are
mediums and wizards, who whisper and mutter,’ should not a people seek their
God? Should they seek the dead on behalf
of the living?” (Isa. 8:19 NKJV)
We get an idea of God’s attitude
toward all things occult from Deut. 18:10-12, “There shall not be found among
you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who
practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a
sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who
calls up the dead. For all who do these
things are an abomination to the Lord.”
The distinctions made here in the Old Testament among various aspects of
the occult I do not find in the New Testament but I think they would all be
covered under the word sorcery.
Hatred will also keep one from an
inheritance in the kingdom of God. We
generally associate hatred as being an inward trait or feeling one has toward
another individual or group. That is
certainly condemned, however, seldom if ever can one have a loathing in his/her
heart for another without some manifestation of it in their behavior toward
that individual. Perhaps when around
that individual you just make it obvious that you are cool toward them, want
nothing to do with them, or perhaps you speak ill of them to others. However it is done there are usually outward
evidences of your animosity.
In worst case scenarios hatred can
lead to malice where the hater seeks to do harm or injury to his object of
hatred. It can lead to violence and
death. Even when it does not go that far
the apostle John says, “He who does not love his brother abides in death. Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and
you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.” (I John 3:14-15
NKJV) Earlier John says hatred blinds
one. “But he who hates his brother is in
darkness and walks in darkness … because the darkness has blinded his eyes.” (1
John 2:11 NKJV) We have all seen people
or read about them so blinded by hatred that they cannot reason
rationally. Think Hitler if no other.
One might ask the question, is all
there is either love or hate? The only
other thing I can think of is indifference but what is indifference? It is not love. Since it is not love it is not willing to
help. So where does that leave
indifference? One thinks of the parable
of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:30-36.
The priest and the Levite walked away from the injured man in need of
assistance. One can certainly say they
had no love in their hearts for the man.
“He who does not love his brother abides in death.” (1 John 3:14 NKJV)
The sin of drunkenness will also keep
one out of any inheritance in the kingdom of God. As is the case with all the sins listed by
Paul in our texts we are talking about drunkenness that is unrepented of and
that is ongoing. Jesus said all sins
will be forgiven the sons of men except for blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.
(Mark 3:28-29 NKJV) Drunkenness is not
the unforgivable sin if repented of.
We live in a society that seems to
view drinking as a rite of passage from adolescence to adulthood and what would
a party of adults be if we could not serve and drink alcoholic beverages? It is as if our society idolizes alcohol and
as if drinking makes a man a man and a woman a woman. No one dare speak of the lost lives and
ruined lives from drinking whether one wants to talk about those maimed or killed
in car wrecks, those who commit crime while under the influence who would not
have done so had they been sober, or those who become alcoholics and lose
control over their lives and wreck havoc in their families.
When one becomes addicted to
alcohol, or any drug, it is a tough climb out of addiction but it can be
done. Many have done it. That is not to say it is easy. I have often thought of this much like the
difficulty one has who marries say in their late twenties or early thirties. We are to live sexually pure lives and in
many ways our standard under the law of Christ is even tougher than it was
under the Law of Moses for it reaches even into the heart. It is tough to live up to that standard as a
single person through the many years of one’s youth who does not marry until
late. When you learn the correct
definition of what God calls fornication, learn how extensive the meaning of
that word is (translated “sexual immorality” in modern translations) you will
understand what I am saying. My point is
nearly everyone fights strong prolonged temptation; if it is not this it is
that or something else. It is a
difficult battle but it must be fought until victory is won.
We ought always to fight
temptation to win but, and if, we lose on occasion we should not despair and
give up but get back up and start the fight all over again until finally with
God’s help we win. God is not willing
that any should perish (2 Peter 3:9) and so he will help the determined
individual who will turn from his or her sin.
If God was out to get us he would zap us the first time we sinned.
To the person not addicted to a
drug or alcohol that just enjoys getting high or drunk – are you out of your
mind? Having eyes to see can you not
see? Have you learned nothing from
observation? Do you not care about
others and your example before them and what they might be led into because of
you?
I, obviously, have not yet finished this series of articles on sins that will keep us from an inheritance in the kingdom of God but we have gotten close enough I think one more article will do it and enough has been written for this time.
[To download this article or print it out click here.]
Link to Part I
Link to Part II
Link to Part IV
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