Christian man or woman, are you going to continue to give that which is unholy to God? The truth is out there if you want to learn it and have an open heart to receive it. You can hold on to your man-made, Satan-inspired traditions, or you can be set free from following the blind and repent of this golden calf worship. Which are you going to do?

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Let's end this where we started, with the Israelites, and see what God said and did to them because of their folly.

Exodus 32:9-10, "And the Lord said unto Moses, I have seen this people, and, behold, it is a stiffnecked people: Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume them: and I will make of thee a great nation."

God was so displeased with the Israelites and their "strange fire" and abominable offering that He was ready to destroy them. Fortunately for them, God did not kill them all. But they were taught a lesson, their idol was destroyed, and some of them who would not repent of this sin were killed.

Exodus 32:19-20, "And it came to pass, as soon as he came nigh unto the camp, that he saw the calf, and the dancing: and Moses' anger waxed hot, and he cast the tables out of his hands, and brake them beneath the mount. And he took the calf which they had made, and burnt it in the fire, and ground it to powder, and strowed it upon the water, and made the children of Israel drink of it."

Exodus 32:26-28, "Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Who is on the Lord's side? let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him. And he said unto them, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Put every man his sword by his side, and go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp, and slay every man his brother, and every man his companion, and every man his neighbour. And the children of Levi did according to the word of Moses: and there fell of the people that day about three thousand men."

As we just read, the sons of Levi saw the error of their ways. They were willing to repent of their sin of worshipping the golden calf, come forth from the masses, and even be used to slay those whom the Lord directed them to slay, be it brother, companion, or neighbor. By their actions they showed whose side they wanted to be on, which was the Lord's side. They were not trying to play both sides of the field.

The Israelites had sinned a great sin by making themselves a god of gold. People today sin a great sin by trying to pretend that something that is thoroughly pagan is in honor of the True and Only Living God. Will you be like the sons of Levi and come out from amongst this adulterous generation, lift up your sword (The Word of God), and "kill" in your home and in your life all traces of this abomination called Christmas? Or will you transgress the commandment of God by your traditions and cleave unto your abominations out of sentimentality and stubbornness?

God says:

Come out from among them, and be ye separate!!

Who is on the Lord's side? Let him come unto me.

Matters of the heart

How would you feel if your spouse were unfaithful? They made vows that they would love, honor, and cherish you, yet you come home from work and catch them in the midst of an adulterous situation. And when you confront them with the question, "How could you do this to me?" their response is a statement calmly made of, "But, honey, you know my heart," implying that although they are guilty of adultery and the taking of your love and their vows for granted, that you should just overlook their shameful, disrespectful behavior because down deep they really do love you. Would their words make you feel any better? Would this so-called "heart love" match the blatantly disobedient behavior of the one who is your spouse? Of course not! Yet every single day men and women who claim to be the bride of Christ justify their unfaithfulness towards the Lord (their sinful behavior) with those five little words, "But God knows my heart."

Here are some real-life examples of times when people have used this "but God knows my heart" line to justify their sin:

- Here we have people who lie, cheat, or scam to get ahead at work or to benefit in other ways:

"I know that lying is a sin, but my boss expects it in certain situations. I have to lie or I might lose my job. Well, God understands because he knows my heart."

"If I fill out these medical forms with my true status (newly married), I will lose my welfare benefits. I guess I'd better keep that information to myself and not tell them the truth. Oh, well, God knows my heart."

- Here are examples of men and women who justify the reasons they are fornicating:

"I'd love to get married, but he doesn't want to. Anyway, I've invested this many years in this relationship. It's like we're almost married. I'm sure God will forgive me. He knows my heart."

"If I get married to my live-in boyfriend, I will lose my widow social security benefits. I want to do right, but because of 'the system' I can't. But I know that God understands. He knows my heart."

"I'm scared to get married again because I was burned by my first wife in an ugly divorce. Maybe I will some day if my girlfriend signs a prenuptial agreement. In the meantime, we will just move in together and see how it goes. God knows my heart."

- Here are people who chose society's standards of right and wrong instead of God's standards of purity:

"As a professed Christian actress, some people might talk when I take on this R-rated role that requires nudity. Oh, well, I made my decision based on that still small voice inside. And I don't care what people say, God knows my heart."

"I don't feel comfortable being at this concert (or party or club or movie) with my unsaved friends and taking part in this worldly behavior, but I want people to like me. I want to fit in. Hey, God understands that it's hard being a teen, and He knows my heart."



Friend, do any of the above-mentioned real-life scenarios sound like behavior that you have engaged in? Are you making excuses for your sin or holding on to a lifestyle that a true lover of the Lord should not be holding on to? Have you been unfaithful to your Bridegroom, Jesus Christ? Are you using God's mercy and grace as a license to sin?

Yes, God does know your heart. God knows your heart even better than you do. And although you may fool yourself with this irrational thinking that somehow your actions and your heart are not connected, God is not fooled. His Word says this about you and your behavior:

Ezekiel 33:31, "And they come unto thee as the people cometh, and they sit before thee as my people, and they hear thy words, but they will not do them: for with their mouth they show much love, but their heart goeth after their covetousness."

Matthew 15:8, "This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoreth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me."

Jeremiah 13:10, "This evil people, which refuse to hear my words, which walk in the imagination of their heart, and walk after other gods, to serve them, and to worship them, shall even be as this girdle, which is good for nothing."

Luke 6:45, "A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil."

What are you bringing forth? Good fruit or evil fruit? Our ACTIONS show where our love lies. If in your heart you truly loved the Lord, you would repent of your sinful ways and live a life in obedience to your Bridegroom, Jesus Christ. God's law is written on every man's heart. You know right from wrong, yet you choose sin over God's will for your life. Then you justify your sin by making excuses or pretending that in spite of your actions, you love the Lord. What utter nonsense! The verses below show how someone who truly loved the Lord would live:

John 14:15, "If ye love me, keep my commandments."

1 John 2:3, "And hereby we do know that we know Him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know Him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him."

1 John 2:6, "He that saith he abideth in Him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked."

1 Corinthians 10:21, "Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord's table, and of the table of devils."

3 John 1:11, "Beloved, follow not that which is evil, but that which is good. He that doeth good is of God: but he that doeth evil hath not seen God."

So, Reader, are you truly of God? And if you are claiming to have been born again and saved, then why are you still living like an old unregenerate sinner? Is that man or woman that you are fornicating with your idol? They must be, why else would you put pleasing them before pleasing the Lord? Are those lies that you are telling helping you to build a bigger, better golden calf to trust in? They must be, why else would you be so unwilling to speak the truth? Are those friends that you are compromising your Christian walk for worthy of the altar that you have placed them on? Obviously your answer is yes, or else you would not be hiding your Christian light in order to blend in with them.

You can't be a 70% Christian or even a 95% Christian. If Jesus is your Lord and Savior, you should be obeying Him 100%. Otherwise, you are just engaging in meaningless lip service. The Lord wants, no, He deserves a chaste bride, a righteous bride, someone who loves and cherishes Him above all else. You should not offer to Him your sloppy hand-me-down love. You should be ashamed to call yourself a Christian while your life resembles that of an unsaved heathen. God's Word shows us what we must do and how we are instructed to live:

2 Corinthians 7:1, "Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God."

Deuteronomy 10:12, "...What doth the Lord thy God require of thee, but to fear the Lord thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, to keep the commandments of the Lord, and his statutes..."

Galatians: 5:24, "And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts."

1 Thessalonians 5:22, "Abstain from all appearance of evil."

1 Peter 2:11, "Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;"

Romans 12:2, "And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God."

Ephesians 5:11, "And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them."

Acts 8:22, "Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee."

Romans 6:11-12, "Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof."

1 Samuel 12:24, "Only fear the Lord, and serve him in truth with all your heart; for consider how great things he hath done for you."

It could not be any clearer than that! Our Bridegroom who has done such great things for us should receive our utmost in return. So in conclusion, Friend, if your heart has been convicted and you know that you have not been living as you ought, it is not too late for you, but you need to make some changes. You need to be willing to give up the sins that you have been engaging in. Repent and ask the Lord to forgive you. Yes, you might have to sacrifice that relationship with that girlfriend or boyfriend. Yes, you might have to stand up to your boss. Yes, you might lose out on some money or worldly benefit. But if Jesus Christ is truly the One whom you love above all else, it should not be hard to let go of the people, possessions, or lifestyle which is causing you to sin in the first place.

And in the future, don't ever just go by how you feel. Don't just "listen to your heart" when deciding what things are good and right because you can deceive yourself into believing what is evil is good. Always look to God's Word. God has blessed us with instructions on exactly how He wants us to live. Read the Holy Bible and obey what you read. And don't judge a situation by the examples of others. Don't listen to your friends. Don't even think that your pastor has all the answers. God's Holy Word is the only source you need or that you can rely on.

Matthew 15:19, "For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies."

Proverbs 16:25, "There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death."

Jeremiah 17:9, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?"

Proverbs 28:26, "He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered."

Jeremiah 17:5, "Thus saith the Lord; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord."

What are you setting before YOUR eyes?

What is your favorite television program? What was the last movie you saw at the theater? What DVD’s are in your collection?  What kinds of things are YOU setting before your eyes? I’m asking you these questions because what you set before your eyes is of grave importance and could have serious consequences to your body, mind, and soul.

Personally, I am amazed at the ways professed Christians entertain themselves. They view horror movies, watch soap operas, and go to the theater regularly to see all of the same R- and PG-13-rated movies that the rest of the unsaved world is viewing. It doesn't seem to matter to these Christians at all that they are being entertained by scenes of immorality (adultery, fornication, lying, stealing, violence, profanity); wickedness (murder, sorcery, the occult); and blasphemy with the taking of the Lord’s name in vain. In fact, if you ask them what they think of these productions, they will gleefully tell you how GOOD and/or interesting the shows are and even highly recommend that you start viewing them as well. This lack of discernment that Christians seem to have regarding what they entertain themselves with makes me think of this verse: "There is a generation that are pure in their own eyes, and yet is not washed from their filthiness" (Proverbs 30:12).

You might be thinking, "Well, what is the big deal? It's just entertainment, make-believe. I'm not participating in anything bad myself. I'm just watching some actors tell a story." But that's where you are wrong. It is a big deal. There is SO much in the bible showing us how big of a deal this is that I hope you will take the time to read each of the verses below that I will now share with you to illustrate this point that I am trying to convey. Well, let's get started.

* First of all, all sin begins in the mind. And what is the main sense that we have that gets our mind stimulated? Our eyes. So those things that we view really do shape our thoughts, our desires. They give us ideas, examples, and set our imaginations aflame. And the world and the Prince of this world, Satan, knows this and is only too happy to use this medium of television to capture you, brainwash you, and shape your mind to long after things in opposition to the Lord. And that's why God gave us verses such as these to warn us to diligently guard our eyes:

Matthew 6:22-23, "The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!"

Our eyes truly are the windows to our soul. If you are STARING at a screen and filling your eyes with evil, worldly programs, you are filling your whole body with darkness, possibly inviting devils themselves into your mind and being. It's that serious!  Also, you are deadening your sensitivity to sin by repeatedly viewing scenes of immorality being played out.  What was once shocking becomes common and acceptable.  You begin to have trouble discerning evil from good.

There is certain judgment coming for unrepentant folks who fornicate, murder, invent evil things, and break God's other commandments. The bible says these people are worthy of death. So why are you taking pleasure in watching these sins played out on a screen anyway? Is it because your life is already filled with similar behavior and you find solace in watching others act out the sins that you partake of? Romans 1:32, "... who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them." Proverbs  2:13-14, “Who leave the paths of uprightness, to walk in the ways of darkness; Who rejoice to do evil, and delight in the frowardness of the wicked.”

Or maybe you really are striving to live a sin-free life and you truly don’t understand what the big deal is about watching certain shows. Friend, don’t you want to love the things that God loves and hate the things that God hates? It is not enough for you to not commit adultery, fornication, and immorality. You ALSO should not find entertainment or enjoyment in viewing others who are committing this lewdness. It is not enough that you keep your hands from violence and your mouth from profane speech. You ALSO should not bring this filth into your home or your mind by way of cable TV or weekend dates at the movies. I can’t say, "Oh, I would never steal or lie or cheat," and then turn around and spend hours eating popcorn while I happily watch others break God's laws.  God hates sin, and so should you. If your eyes have been opened to what sin is, you should be living a changed life. Perhaps the old hell-bound you was once a fan of horror movies or shows like Sex in the City or those daily soap operas, but the new you should desire those things that are righteous and holy and wholesome. You should be sensitive to sin and shun it wherever you can, including sin on your TV. You should show some discretion and obey verses like these below that are found in God's Word:

Psalm 101:3, "I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me."

2 Corinthians 5:17, "Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new."

Ephesians 5:11:12, "And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret."