When people consistently choose sin, ignoring God's warnings and showing no remorse, God steps away and "gives them over" to their sinful heart desires.
Three times in Romans 1:16-32 we read about God giving people over to their sins.
First: When people unashamedly engage in sexual immorality, rejecting God's loving commands, He gives them over to their worship of sexual “freedom.”
Second: When people take their worship of sex up a level, God gives them over to their worship of “shameful lusts” and “unnatural”(1) sexual sins such as homosexuality.
Third: When people become “filled with every kind of wickedness,” God gives them over to a depraved mind.
Romans 1:28-31 offers a long list of sins approved by those with depraved minds: greed, envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice, slander, insolence, arrogance, and boasting. They're unfaithful, unloving, and unmerciful, hating God and inventing new ways to sin.
One sin in Romans 1:28-31 might surprise you—disobeying (i.e. dishonoring) parents. It's also found in a list of serious sins in 2 Timothy 3:1-5. When culture rejects God's loving commands, that's always on the list.
Honoring parents requires humility, forgiveness, and maturity; and it results in blessings for individuals and culture as a whole. But modern man has created entire counseling philosophies to promote disrespect and hypocritical judging of parents (e.g. Boundaries).(2)
More than ever, we need to trust Scripture and proudly proclaim that we are not ashamed of the gospel (Romans 1:16).
Footnotes:
(1) Sexual sins which defy both God's commands and His creation design.
(2) If you want to read an example of this depraved thinking, read Blame Your Mom, which reviews one of the Boundaries "Christian" teachings.
See also: Understanding the Biblical Concept of Original Sin and Personal Responsibility and The Serious Consequences of Dishonoring Parents.
Bible Love Notes
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