And
even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave
them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not
fitting; being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality,
wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder,
strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, backbiters,
haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things,
disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving,
unforgiving, unmerciful; who, knowing the righteous judgment of God,
that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only
do the same but also approve of those who practice them. (Romans
01:28-32, NKJV).
First
God gives unrepentant sinners up
to vile passions, and
then He gives them over
to a debased mind. He
surrenders them to their own lusts and impulses and crooked thinking;
all in judgment for their willful and arrogant ignorance of Him.
He
allows them to continue unabated in the very activities that prove
their continuing rejection; activities that are guaranteed to
increase their misery and condemnation. It is a horrible, ravenous
place to be, rife with unsatisfied lust and frenetic, unending
restlessness. There is, literally, no peace for the wicked. There is
only an increasing spiral downward, with one depraved behavior
followed by another. When a person reaches this point they are a
danger to themselves and to those around them. They cannot be trusted
or reasoned with, nor do they value truth. Their focus is only on
what they can get for themselves, without concern or thought to the
damage or cost to others.
These
debauched individuals are the epitome of selfishness and
self-centeredness, and know nothing of love or giving. They are
takers only, and unless God intervenes, each one is destined for the
eternal fires and torment of Hell.
And
it all starts in the mind.
Human
thought is a powerful force. God intended it to be so. It envisions,
plans, invents, motivates and can change the course of history. It is
where sin is conceived, and left unrestrained, it is what feeds and
nourishes the evil in which mankind is so demonstrably skilled.
That
is why Scripture teaches us to take every thought captive and to
renew our minds in the truth of God. Despite today's popular
misconceptions, Christianity is very much concerned with the realm of
human thinking, not to restrict or prohibit, but to guide upwards.
Many
of the great inventors, scientists, philosophers and innovators of
the past were unabashedly Christian. They sought to expand their
knowledge of the Universe motivated by the unbridled certainty that
the Intelligence behind Creation was orderly and knowable. Their
intellectual achievements were the result of their desire to know
more of God by the study of His handiwork, and in pursuing these
objectives they changed the world for the better.
There
was a popular slogan years back that said, “a mind is a terrible
thing to waste.” It was meant to encourage secular education, but
it was a statement of profound truth nonetheless. For we are made in
the image of God, meaning we possess personhood, intellect, will and
emotion. We are conscious of self and of the world around us as
separate entities, related but distinct. Therein, I believe, lies the
main difference between men and animals. And a wasted mind, one given
over to debased thinking, is a terrible
thing.
It
is also said that evil men are “animals”, but this is untrue.
Animals are incapable of evil, for even the most voracious predator
does not inflict pain or suffering for its own sake, but for survival
in a fallen world. Humans, on the other hand, are more than capable
of perpetrating the most vile acts while taking immense satisfaction
in the resulting misery of their victims.
And
we are often guilty of using our immense and powerful minds to devise
the most heinous evil.
Paul's
description of this descent into depravity lays the responsibility
where it belongs: at the feet of Man. It is the inevitable result of
God removing His providential care and allowing human evil to take
its natural course.
This
by the way, is the answer to the skeptic's or atheist's question as
to why evil exists in the world. In one sense, evil is the result of
God's forbearance and mercy. He provides mankind with revelation of
Himself and the way of salvation knowing full well that most will not
avail themselves of the gift. And He allows the temporary continuance
of human evil for the sake of those who will come to repentance and
forgiveness.
In
the future, His forbearance will cease, and all evil will be
eradicated once and for all. When that Day of Judgement comes, there
will no longer be opportunity for repentance.
In
the meantime, we who are His children by faith are to be occupied
until He comes, walking in those good works which He has prepared
beforehand, not to earn our reprieve, but as proof that we have
already obtained His forgiveness, and are being transformed into the
image of His Son.
There
is an element of conscious mind control in all this, a willful
surrender to the thoughts of God, rather than stubborn adherence to
our own vain imaginings. As Paul writes in Philippians:
Finally,
brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble,
whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things
are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any
virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy--meditate
on these things. (Philippians 4:8, NKJV).
This
is the prescription for both taking our thoughts captive and for
renewing our minds. It is the means by which God has ordained for us
believers to avoid being conformed to this world, and to let Christ's
mind be in us. It is a goal and a destiny that is as far from a
debased mind as it is possible to get.
Love,
Dad.
