re-post
I heard a question today, that I know needed a response, however the person asking it would not understand the reply. To paraphrase:
“Does being spiritually dead make you blind to the truth of God?”
My response starts in Romans 1:
18 But God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness. 19 They know the truth about God because he has made it obvious to them. 20 For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.
21 Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. 22 Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools. 23 And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles.
24 So God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other’s bodies. 25 They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen. 26 That is why God abandoned them to their shameful desires. Even the women turned against the natural way to have sex and instead indulged in sex with each other. 27 And the men, instead of having normal sexual relations with women, burned with lust for each other. Men did shameful things with other men, and as a result of this sin, they suffered within themselves the penalty they deserved.
28 Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that should never be done. 29 Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, and gossip. 30 They are backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, and boastful. They invent new ways of sinning, and they disobey their parents. 31 They refuse to understand, break their promises, are heartless, and have no mercy. 32 They know God’s justice requires that those who do these things deserve to die, yet they do them anyway. Worse yet, they encourage others to do them, too.
At some point in everyone’s life they will see without a doubt that God is real. Now look at verse 21 through 23 once again. In the KJV the word “vain” is used.
Vain – mataioo` – I become vain
Vain – excessively proud of or concerned about one’s own appearance, qualities, achievements, etc.; conceited: (per Dictionary.com)
Conceited – the habit or attitude of thinking yourself better than others, even when there is no reason to think so (per Cambridge Dictionary)
Each individual can make a selfish, self-serving view and causes it to reflect themselves and state that is what is real, when in reality they were to say: “This is God.”
An example: Penn Jillette once made a comment of watching a sunset at a beach and a nearby couple said. “How can someone watch this and not believe in God.” He said he could. Now from what I understand Mr. Jillette is a nice person. This however does not change the fact that he was given an opening by God to say: “God you are real.”
This is the type of opportunities that are given to all.
Why?
For our judgment due to free-will does not come directly from God. For we are our own judge and jury. God has shown us “He is.” Yet people would rather worship themselves and as is shown in this first chapter of Romans, people live in sin willingly and joyfully. So much so, they encourage others to join them.
People pass judgment upon themselves. So on that day that they stand before the Great White Throne Judgment they will have no excuses. Realizing they have chosen their own eternal fate in the creation of God.
This is why Jesus Christ Himself made it very clear to the lukewarm. For the lukewarm are liars. Not only to the world, but themselves, and it will be these that weep and gnash their teeth on the fateful day. This is why the lukewarm are seen as worse than those that see there is a God and reject Him. The lukewarm, the hypocrites, the liars are seen as inferior for they lived of the world and for the world, but told all they served God and so led others into damnation and pain and suffering.
Revelation 20:11 – And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. 13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. 14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.
Revelation 21:8 – But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.