Devotion #6: Choose Your Path Carefully
“Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen. For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error. And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.” Romans 1:24-32
God is loving, holy, and righteous. He has a beautiful path for us, but He does not force us to walk there. He gives us the ability to know truth, then allows us to seek Him. If we choose Jesus Christ as our Savior, we will live a fulfilled life seeking God’s path. However, not everyone chooses to follow Christ.
In Romans 1:24-32, Paul writes about lost people who were seeking wicked things. Instead of seeking truth and finding God’s way, they chose to turn away from God to worship things He created rather than worship the Creator. Because of their behavior and denial of God’s existence, God let them have exactly what they were seeking.
The progression of their descent is sad but easy to see. It started with uncontrolled lust - desiring something they did not have but wanted. God finally allowed them their lust. Did that fulfill them? No. Uncontrolled lust caused them to passionately pursue the objects of their lust. Their passion sought to fulfill the burning created by lust. God gave them over to their passions. Did this satisfy them? No. Passion for evil gave them a debased mind - a mind that failed to know the truth and sought only to obtain the object of their lust. This consumed their thoughts with every evil they could invent. God eventually gave them over to their debased mind as well. They were either passionately absorbed into the evil, lustful acts of their debased mind, or at the very least, they supported those who did all those things. What a sad state - to lust for something that would harm them and others and would never fulfill their longing but only create more lust. Eventually, God allowed them exactly what they were fighting to have, and their choice only made them more evil and unfulfilled than they were before.
God has a path He wants us to seek. If we take His hand and walk that path, our lives are full of joy and fulfilled, and He holds us up when we stumble or are exhausted. God does not force us on this path. If we would rather walk through the rough terrain, or slip on the uneven way, He will not prevent us.
When I chose Christ, He sent the Holy Spirit to fill the dark places in my heart. While I still find times when I desire things that are not Christ-honoring, the Holy Spirit helps me realize what it would lead to and that it cannot bring happiness. God has given us the truth to enjoy and fulfill life, but we must seek Him and His truth in the Bible.
The progression to the assent of what life in Christ provides is also easy to see, and is joyous to follow. Read His truth and seek His way. If we know His truth, we will long for those things that bring us closer to Christ. This will make us passionate about sharing Him with others which will give us a mind full of His truth, wisdom, kindness, and love.