The Appearance of Evil. (The Appearance!)

 We don't even have to ask ourselves, as Christians (followers of Christ), if we're supposed to play or dabble in the occult. It's a no-brainer. You don't do it. You don't play with the Quiji board and tease your friends by saying "It's not real", "It's a game" ...or "lighten up!", because it's not a game, and it is real. Sure, it's fun, it's a lot of fun with friends and family, just sitting around laughing and asking questions that you already know the answers to, but you want to see if the mojo in the room will help steer your hands as you and others barely touch the pointer.  C'mon, it's a game, right? No.

    It's not just the Ouiji board or game either; there are so many other normal things that the average person is into that you start checking and looking at, thinking about, living by, and following.  Horoscopes are one of the easiest ways to start the slippery slope because of how informative and fun they can be. It's all very general when you delve into it a bit further, and then they hook you with something that may or may not be in your most recent future and you start questioning if the psychic was right after all. Maybe you should have a full reading. It can't hurt, right? Yes. It can.

    The Zodiac is not the same thing as the Horoscope.  God made the stars, keep that in mind. He placed them in the Heavens. They are there for a couple of reasons, and He tells you straight up those reasons. One is for guidance, you can literally navigate using the constellations because they don't change, and the stories that are set in the stars literally tell the birth, life, death, and resurrection as well as the return of Christ! Think about it; Virgo (birth) to Leo (Return) and in the middle are things such as events, Satan, communication, and the death of Christ, it's all in there. He saw to that. Then Satan came around and bastardized the stories, causing folks to follow the stars through worshipping them, asking for advice in a perverse manner, and yeah, we ended up where we are today with the idiots telling us that you'll end up with a lover soon, have great wealth, or die a death of sorrow. People pay good money to hear stupid things.

    Christians aren't supposed to even hang out with others who do things that APPEAR to be evil. It's not the evil itself that is the offense really, as our Lord is so much bigger, stronger, better, and more glorious than anything Satan can throw at us. Satan hasn't died and been resurrected. It is the APPEARANCE of evil that we are to obtain from, because the mere appearance, the look, the brim, the edge, whatever you want to call it, is a lure. It drags us in with fluff, pretty things, fun, fellowship, and game-like energy, and hey, it's nearly 2023...times have changed! Have they?  When was the Bible written again? Oh yeah, thousands of years ago. So THOUSANDS of years ago there were people lying to others about what is and what is not acceptable. Something about a snake will always remind you of the Garden of Eden, and there's a reason for that. Snakes aren't bad, but the appearance of one will cause you to pause. 

    When perception is a reality for most of us, perhaps we should be a bit more cautious about the appearance we are showing and the perception we are giving out as a witness IF IN FACT, we are claiming to be born again.  None of this pansy-wansy mixed messages crap that we see will due. If you're born again, say so. Live it, show it, be it, let your yes be yes, and your no be no. Don't wrap yourself in a rainbow and expect others to SEE or PERCEIVE you as anything other that what you are wrapped in. Choose you this day who you will serve. Don't let your message say one thing, but your appearance be another. Oh, but Joseph had a coat of many colors, right? Maybe it was the rainbow coat.  

    Don't kid yourself, and don't try to make something that isn't true, true. Be honest. If you're gay say you're gay. Let your yes be yes, and your no be no. Deception is just that, deceptive. If you're proud of who you are, own it. God knows the truth. He didn't make you that way, your relationship with God is YOUR relationship with Him, but know this. He doesn't change. If He said (67 times in the Bible) that something was NOT GOOD and that it WAS SIN, then He's not going to suddenly accept you for what you are now; He does not change. His yes is still yes. His NO is still NO. 

    Can gay people go to Heaven? Ask God. I think a person goes to Heaven if they have accepted Jesus as their personal Savior. Being gay is a sin, but there are no levels of sin. Can a person be sinless? No. Does God forgive sin? Every day. Paul mentioned something worth looking into. Paul said that while we do often do that which we don't want to do, and we end up being who we don't want to be, we should not allow the fact that God forgives sin to allow us to continue in our sin. That too would be sinful. We are to repent, which means to STOP the behavior, and become a new creature in Christ, not the same old idiot we were before we accepted Him, and certainly not continuing in known sin after we have accepted Him. Our witness not only takes a beating but it is also destroyed when we do that. Think about Lot. He was a man after God, but sin took his credibility to be meaningful or respected. Sure, he was still protected, but he was not blessed. Why do that?

    Forsaking sin is hard! Giving up things that look like fun, are fun, and would be fun, that's tough to do. God never said being a Christian was supposed to be boring, but He never said it would be a walk in the park either. Too many martyrs should tell you that much. You haven't suffered. Look what is happening in Iraq, Afghanistan, North Korea, Iran, Nigeria, China, Saudi Arabia, and other places where the mention of Jesus Christ can get you slaughtered instantly! You have not suffered. If you, being a Christian, are allowing your eyes and your mind to dwell on sites (think Instagram) where you can follow wickedness, the occult, in-your-face sinful debauchery, pornography, racism, you name it, if you've been adding sites (and people) that would bring into question who you follow and who you say you serve, then maybe you need to do a bit of housecleaning...and I don't mean on social media. I mean in YOUR HEART and IN YOUR SOUL.  It's the appearance!  We see it.  STOP.

    Not one of us, including myself, is able to create a single breath that we breathe. We don't own anything. We don't have the right to claim any power. We are absolutely nothing without our God. When did you forget that? Why did you forget that? Why pollute your online witness for the thousands of people who follow you and think you're the best -- who know you now as someone who compromises, who seeks PRIDEFUL things and damaging things? Maybe it's time to readjust the lenses and focus on the Word. God doesn't change. We did. God doesn't change His Word (Thank you, Jesus) and He doesn't change His Truth. You will not drag His name through the mud for very long. He gives, but He also takes away. The appearance of evil is all anyone needs to think about before judging you. EVEN if what you're really doing is just looking -- don't follow it. Don't post photos of things that will or do dishonor Him. We all do it. I would pray and I mean it, I would pray that someone would have the balls to tell me when I screw up. I have a hard time seeing it in my own life. Please, if you see it, let me know. The last thing I want to do is appear to be something I should not be. 

    Keep the KINGDOM in sight. He is the Light in the darkest of nights. He is the GOLD and He is the perfect Father. The rest is a lie. Don't let it keep you from being who you were and who you can be again. He is the rock, your refuge. Return. The really good news is because He doesn't change, it means He's still there, right where you FOUND Him before. "Trust and obey, for there's no other way, to be happy in Jesus than to trust and obey."  I love that song. It has gotten me through so much.

 

Photo Credit: SteveHawley.Blogspot.com