3 Let there be no sexual immorality, impurity, or greed among you. Such sins have no place among God’s people. 4 Obscene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes—these are not for you. Instead, let there be thankfulness to God. 5 You can be sure that no immoral, impure, or greedy person will inherit the Kingdom of Christ and of God. For a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world.
6 Don’t be fooled by those who try to excuse these sins, for the anger of God will fall on all who disobey him. 7 Don’t participate in the things these people do. 8 For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light! 9 For this light within you produces only what is good and right and true.
10 Carefully determine what pleases the Lord. 11 Take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, expose them. 12 It is shameful even to talk about the things that ungodly people do in secret. 13 But their evil intentions will be exposed when the light shines on them, 14 for the light makes everything visible. This is why it is said, “Awake, O sleeper, rise up from the dead, and Christ will give you light.”
Live As People of Light
Well, isn’t this a romantic verse for Valentine’s Day!
Isn’t it interesting that we like to zero in on things like sexual immorality, impurity, and greed, and yet we often ignore things like obscene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes?
It’s why I’m not a big fan of making “sin lists.” Whenever we do that, we tend to categorize sin into “big sins” and “little sins.” And yet, the Bible is clear: sin is sin. There are no levels.
I think all of the things listed here should be considered. But even more so, it’s the heart behind them. Live as people of the light. In other words, live as people who have discovered a new message: the message of Grace. That God loves us unconditionally and he has called us to something greater. Something more.
Ahhh, but I can hear some of you already. Doesn’t this passage suggest that people who break the listed sins will not go to Heaven? Actually, no, it doesn’t say that. Look carefully at the passage. It says that people who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of Christ and of God.
So, what IS the kingdom of Christ and God. Well, Jesus made it clear. It’s living in this world and yet not being of this world. It’s seeing yourself as part of another kingdom. It’s creating a new culture within the culture that you live. A culture that declares “God’s way is better than my way.” It’s a culture that believes if you give up your life, you’ll discover a life worth living. If you give, you’ll receive. If you’re first, you’ll be last. To be great, you must serve.
You can’t “inherit” that kingdom (in other words, experience it) and still live for yourself. And if you look closely at the things listed, that’s exactly what they are: things you do when you’re living for yourself instead of sacrificing your desires and wants for others and for God.
So, which kingdom are you going to experience?
My prayer: Lord, help me to not fall into the trap of categorizing sin. When I do that, I minimize some sins. That’s never good. At the same time, help me to truly understand what it means to live in your kingdom. To inherit it. To live a life that is truly different that the life offered by the world. Amen.
Until tomorrow.
