Romans 1:29-31
We live in one of the most advanced societies of all time. However, morally speaking, things have not really changed. In the first century, the Apostle Paul said, “They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless.” (Romans 1:29-31) He was painting a painful picture of what happens when the human race refuses to acknowledge God.
Do you see yourself in that list? If you do not, I doubt you have even begun to grasp the depth of your sinfulness. This list includes economic sins, relational sins, sexual sins, sins of hate, and many other types of sin. There is something here for all of us.
We are all part of the problem, despite our persistent blame games. Our own sin stirs up others to sin. Like weeds sown into a garden, sin produces a crop that strangles the other plants. Thus, the picture of sin the Apostle paints us.
How do you detoxify a situation like that? Should you withdraw from the world and become a hermit? Jesus did not seem to think so. He said he wanted his followers to live in this world, even though he warned them about being of the world (John 17:14-16).
To detoxify this situation, you need to become part of the cure instead of the cause. You need to align yourself with something else, or more specifically Someone else, who has the power to restore what has been lost.
People talk about being on the right side of history. But, how do you know what the right side of history will be? The Bible tells us. In the end, God wins. Jesus overcomes our sinfulness. Jesus wins, and every knee will one day bow down to him (Romans 14:11).
To detoxify the situation, you need to stop working for the dark side and start working for the only One who has the power to break the bonds of sin. Align yourself to Christ. Let him convict you of your own sin and involvement in the problem. Then, and only then, will you be able to, with the gentleness and compassion of Christ, take the speck out of your brother or sister’s eye (Matthew 7:7).