27/09/2012 - Woe to those who live in sin

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Woe to her who is rebellious and polluted, to the oppressing city! She has not obeyed His voice, she has not received correction; she has not trusted in the LORD, she has not drawn near to her God.

Zephaniah 3: 1, 2

Jerusalem, the rebellious town of the people of God, was polluted and greatly oppressed but still she refused to listen to the voice of the prophets sent by The Lord. Zephaniah was then used to give her a divine warning. Well, the scenario of those days was not that different from the one we’re living today since many people won’t listen to The Words of The Most High and, by doing that, they end up being affected by the enemy’s assaults.

The inhabitants of Jerusalem couldn’t perceive they had fallen for the devil’s treachery. Those people weren’t really concerned about their evil attitudes since they were the offspring of Abraham and on account of that they considered themselves being endowed with special attributes regardless of their wrongdoing. Today many people follow the same line of reasoning. They reckon that because they are Christians they won’t be condemned by God. It’s a mistake not to listen to The Word of The Lord.

The city of Jerusalem was stained. Nowadays sin still stains people likewise. Those who cherish the subtle touch of sensuality are being carried away by lewd desires and when their eyes are opened they will realize they’ve been completely contaminated. Unfortunately, many children of God find themselves under that circumstance today. Do not let the lies of the enemy get into your heart considering that, if that happens, you won’t be able to realize that you’ve gone further away from salvation.

Apart from being rebellious and stained The Lord calls Jerusalem the oppressing city. Those people who are in error can’t see how much assistance they’ve been giving to their oppressor – the devil – to cause harassment to the people of God. Those who know how to do good deeds but won’t, according to The Word of God, are committing a sin (James 4: 17). As a Christian finds him or herself under such circumstance he or she becomes complicit with the kind of yoke which will fall upon the other part. They neither pray any longer nor rebuke evil and they won’t intercede on behalf of those who are suffering.

The Lord insisted on carrying on with His warnings but, “of course, the inhabitants of Jerusalem had other important issues to take care of”. Every time a people becomes prosperous celebrations increase dramatically. Even those who belong to God take to copying the lost ones when it comes to stylish celebrations, elegant dinners, vibrant parties and other desires of riches that those people who don’t know The Lord indulge in with the sole purpose of entertaining themselves. Be careful! That might be occurring to you right now! Yet, we have a quite distinct feast to participate.

Woe to Jerusalem of those days! Already possessed by sin she wouldn’t accept the reprimands of The Lord any longer. There’ll always be people showing off their “miraculous potions” to drive other people’s eyes away from the reprimands imposed by God as a lesson for those who belong to Him. And the latter, whenever making an error, tend to feel the most miserable beings on earth. But if they carry on listening to the false prophets their ways won’t get straight and, in no time, they’ll end up finding the evil deeds they’ve been perpetrating to be absolutely normal.

Be careful not to commit the same mistake. Do get closer to God and put your trust in Him all the time. Do not let yourself be induced by those people who set a bad example, for they’re the ones called by Peter as spots and blemishes (2 Peter 2: 13). To them eternal darkness is reserved. And you don’t want to be like them! Turn to The Lord while it’s still time.

In Christ, with love,

R. R. Soares