Thoughts of Iniquity

Isaiah 59:1-3 ESV

“Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save,

    or his ear dull, that it cannot hear;

but your iniquities have made a separation

    between you and your God,

and your sins have hidden his face from you

    so that he does not hear.

For your hands are defiled with blood

    and your fingers with iniquity;

your lips have spoken lies;

    your tongue mutters wickedness.”

Here in America we have many people professing faith in Jesus Christ who are living like this passage of Scripture describes. Although they are convinced that all their sins are forgiven, and that heaven is their eternal destiny, they are still walking in sin, still making sin their practice. And their sins are separating them from God. And so the salvation that they think they have is a lie, because it is not biblical salvation. 

For they focus mainly on Jesus forgiving us of our sins so that we can go to heaven when we die, but they largely skip over the part about us dying with Christ to sin, not just once, but daily, and us now living to God and to his righteousness in walks of obedience to the Lord. And many are teaching that we don’t have to turn from our sins and we don’t have to obey the Lord, and that no works are required of us for salvation and for eternal life with God.

But they are speaking lies, for the Scriptures do not teach that. Jesus Christ and his NT apostles taught that we must die with Christ to sin and that we must now walk (in conduct, in practice) according to the Spirit and no longer according to the flesh. For if sin is what we practice, and if righteousness, godliness, and obedience to our Lord are not what we practice, we will not inherit eternal life with God, regardless of what our lips have professed.

Isaiah 59:6-8 ESV

“Their works are works of iniquity,

    and deeds of violence are in their hands.

Their feet run to evil,

    and they are swift to shed innocent blood;

their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity;

    desolation and destruction are in their highways.

The way of peace they do not know,

    and there is no justice in their paths;

they have made their roads crooked;

    no one who treads on them knows peace.”

Although they make professions of faith in Jesus Christ, and they talk as though they are Christians who are serving the Lord with their lives, their works (deeds) are those of iniquity (sin, wickedness, evil). And their feet run to evil, i.e. they pursue evil in their walks, in their practices, and they seek out what is evil and wicked, for that is where their hearts are. For they are those who are deliberately, habitually, and premeditatedly sinning against God, without conscience, and absent of true remorse.

Their paths are crooked and the way of peace with God they do not know. For the way of peace with God is the way of spiritual wholeness. It is the way of righteousness and holiness. It is the way of moral purity, uprightness, honesty and faithfulness. And they are far from that. For that is not what they truly want, which is obvious by how they live their lives. Even if they claim that they want to walk in the ways of the Lord, they continue in their evil ways, still doing what their flesh calls out for them to do.

Isaiah 59:12-13 ESV

“For our transgressions are multiplied before you,

    and our sins testify against us;

for our transgressions are with us,

    and we know our iniquities:

transgressing, and denying the Lord,

    and turning back from following our God,

speaking oppression and revolt,

    conceiving and uttering from the heart lying words.”

Yes, those who are walking according to the flesh and not according to the Spirit have multiplied their transgressions before our holy God. And their sinful practices are what testify against them, even if they are giving lip service to the Lord contrary to how they are living, in truth. And they do know their own iniquities, although many will deny them if they are confronted about them. For they also deny the Lordship of Christ over their lives and his ownership of them and his requirements for obedience.

For, although they profess Jesus Christ as Lord, and they may claim that they are in fellowship with God, and that they know God/Christ, if they continue in habitual and deliberate sin, and if they do not obey the Lord, in practice, then they are liars. And if they turn back from following the Lord after they have confessed him as Lord, and if they have turned back from acknowledging the truth of the gospel to now uttering lying words, instead, then they are not born of God but of the devil, and they have not eternal life with God.

So, the call here is to repent of all sin, to turn away from making sin your practice, and die with Christ to sin and now live for him and follow him in his righteousness. No longer obey sin but obey God. No longer worship the idols of this world but worship only God. Submit to him as Lord. Surrender your will to the will of God. Follow in his ways and in his truth, and don’t ever look back. No longer desire after the life you had before, but now praise the Lord for setting you free from your sin so you can serve him with your life.

[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15] 

Broken Cord

An Original Work / August 29, 2018

Your bond is broken with your Lord and Savior

And your testimony is separate from Him.

Your words not matching your actions today.

Repent of your sin and bow down and pray.

Live what you testify in truth always.

Purity’s lacking in your life and witness,

For you profess one thing, but other you do.

Not moral, spiritual. Still of the flesh.

Not living in truth to what you confess.

Lying about it puts you in a mess.

Living a lie is your practice, ‘tis true of you.

Masquerade righteousness – none of it true.

Your heart is not given to your Lord God.

Because of how you live, you are a fraud.

Turn from your sin and give your life to God.

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