“But God turned away and gave them over to worship the host of heaven…” – Acts 7:42
This verse highlights one of the most frightening things God ever does…. He removes His restraining hand and lets people simply do whatever they feel like! “You do you.” Most of the time God, in His great mercy, restrains our worst, most sinful personal and cultural impulses. But not always. Sometimes, our debauchery, sin, and love for sin becomes so powerful, God removes His restraining hand (what we might call our personal or societal conscience). When that happens, God permits us to fall into the most terrible, powerful depravity imaginable. The Bible would say that God gives us over…
When God gives us over to what we want, we see whole countries go wild with lust, greed, hatred, indulgence, or violence. As bad as we often are, we become far, far worse when God removes His restraining hand of mercy. People chase after and celebrate false gods, indulging in profound sin, and doing “whatever is right in their own eyes.” God does this both as punishment and to eventually shock a faithful remnant back to its senses. As people sink into the depth of depravity, some recognize the sub-human status they have sinned themselves into and cry out in repentance, begging for forgiveness and revival.
Is this where we are today? Has God already removed His restraining hand which explains why so many, including people who claim to follow Jesus, chase after and loudly celebrate false gods of power, money, sex, and pleasure? Are we are already part way into this hellish situation? It certainly seems possible! Pray for God to revive His people, turning Christians away from earthly things and toward Him. Pray for God to awaken our neighbors who don’t know Him. Pray for people to find forgiveness and new, higher, holy life in Jesus Christ, decisively rejecting the rampant depravity into which they have fallen. #FollowJesus