Consequences of Denying God

"Only fools say in their hearts,

'There is no God.'

They are corrupt,

and their actions are evil;

not one of them does good!"

Psalm 53:1 NLT

Our culture is headed down a dark path.  We wonder how things have become so bad, what caused us to come to this place.  Have we considered it might have something to do with our quest for tolerance?  In our effort to not offend, we have affronted the One who gave us life. 

What happens when we as a country deny God and cease to acknowledge Him as Lord?  

Corruption.  She already paid for her visa and had been in the country for a couple of weeks when she received the message from the powers that be.  The young missionary must pay an extra fee which was three times what had already been paid in order to have permission to stay within their borders.  Corruption runs rampant in this dark world.

While we may not see this kind of corruption, at least not yet, there is another kind of perversion going on in America.  What used to be considered wrong and off-limits is now accepted as good and even beneficial.  What is dark is being cloaked as light.  

Abortion is no longer widely understood as the act of killing an unborn child but is simply the disposal of tissue, the ending of an unwanted pregnancy, a healthcare choice due every intelligent woman.  Gay marriage is seen as a civil right instead of an alteration of God's definition of marriage.  Divorce is simply a way out of an unhappy relationship not the breaking of a permanent vow that was never meant to be severed.  Need I go on?

If there is no God, there is no longer a standard and, quite frankly, anything goes.  This will only get worse as time goes on unless we turn back to God and acknowledge Him as a nation as the Giver of life and of all good things, the setter of standards, the one righteous Judge.

Corruption flourishes when God is denied.

Abominable Iniquity.  It's hard to imagine anything worse or more evil than sacrificing children on an altar.  Ceasing to protect the most vulnerable of society but using them as a way to get what those in power want; favor with their god.   At least our civilized society has not stooped to such depths, right?  Wrong!

Human trafficking flourishes in America, right under our self-righteous noses.  Girls are abducted and used for other's pleasure and profit.  Pornography is prevalent, touching the lives of many men who are drawn to it's allure, increasing the need for more victims to be objectified, abused and subjected to horrors unimagined.

On another level, children are left to their own devices, raising themselves as their parents run after a certain lifestyle or level of income.  Other youth are carted around from one activity to another in a quest to enrich their lives and instill a certain brand of value, but of the One thing that is necessary is completely forsaken.  These young ones have all the trappings of an affluent and modern family but they don't have what is of eternal importance.  Values are backwards as the bringing up of their offspring becomes an afterthought and there is little to no thought put into instilling godly beliefs and discipleship.  "Religion" is left to the church or completely denied instead of the teaching of God's ways being taken on as a parent's God-given responsibility (Deuteronomy 6:6-7).   

Children are being sacrificed on many altars in this modern world.  Need I go on?  I think we all get the picture.  When we turn away from God, the unimaginable becomes commonplace.

Abominable iniquities abound when God is denied.

No Good.  Man has a corrupted sense of good and evil.  I cannot judge for myself what is beneficial and what is harmful.  Apart from God, my flesh rules and my sense of judgment is way off.  What is good becomes bad, and what truly is bad is seen as good.  Without God's Spirit to guide me through faith in Jesus Christ, I can do no good (Romans 7:18-25).  

With this premise firmly understood, it's no surprise that, as a nation, we are willingly watching vulgar practices under the pretense of being entertained.  Or that we try to make laws that are fair to everyone but end up having a dark outcome that no one could foresee.  Or that we highlight philanthropy, extolling it's virtues while ignoring the suffering in our midst.  The charity and "giving back" becomes just a show, a pretense of doing something good to make us feel good without actually caring to love as Jesus does.  Only Jesus can do that through us.  Any effort on our behalf to mimic His lovingkindness will be empty and hollow.

There is no good apart from God.

What happens when we as a society fail to identify God as sovereign over all?  Corruption spreads, repulsive wickedness flourishes, and no good can be accomplished despite the best efforts of man.  These are some of the consequences of denying God.

As I begin this day it is my prayer that I can keep God at the forefront of my thoughts and intentions.

When do I live as if I don't know God?

How am I corrupt in my thinking?