Deeply Troubled

Chuckle: Geography teacher: "Who can describe the English Channel?" Student: "We don't get that channel on our TV."

Good Quote: "A healthy (pure) conscience tugs at the concealed sin in our lives as though it were God's hidden hand." --Unknown source

"While Paul waited for them in Athens, he was deeply troubled by all the idols he saw everywhere in the city" (Acts 17:16 NLT).

We live in a society deeply engrossed in political correctness and tolerance of any and all lifestyles and immoral behavior. Is your spirit troubled by what you see? Tolerance is a good thing up to a point, but when it leads to complacency about things that are clearly wrong according to God's Word, even tolerance can become a sin.

Jesus tells us we are to be "salt and Light" in an evil world -- that we are to be an influence for that which is good, pure, holy, and true. The path of least resistance is to set back and let the world go by without lifting a finger or a voice against the corruption that permeates our communities and our nation. Are you deeply troubled by the deterioration in moral standards in your family, your community and your nation?

In our passage, the apostle Paul was deeply troubled by the idolatry and sinful living by the people of Athens. The Athenians were tolerant of any and all idolatry and conduct among the people. Paul was troubled to the point that he had to confront the Christian Jews and God-fearing Greeks. We should do as Paul did; look around us at the idols and be moved to do our part to represent Christ in our homes, schools, communities, clubs, workplaces, etc. If not now, when? If not you, who? Today's idols may be money, power, success, popularity, or false religions. Is our nation any different than Athens?

The gradual drift toward unbridled tolerance for sin can be traced to moral decay and sinful practices in our own lives. We can fill our minds with immoral images from television, movies, video games, and other media; and slowly and subtly we begin to compromise our moral standards. We become less and less offended by what we see. Then we not only tolerate those sinful images, but come to enjoy them. Our spiritual senses become dulled, our holiness is compromised, and we become useless to God as His ambassadors and messengers.

If we as God's people, are to influence our society for good --integrity, morality, and holiness, we must begin with our own hearts and lives. We need pure consciences and godly actions. We should not blend in with the rest of a corrupt society. Instead, we should be a positive influence by following the example of Jesus who hates sin while loving the sinner.

Love, Jerry & Dotse