BEWARE OF YOUR ASSOCIATIONS

It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that even pagans do not tolerate: A man is sleeping with his father’s wife. And you are proud! Shouldn’t you rather have gone into mourning and have put out of your fellowship the man who has been doing this? —I Corinthians 5:1-2

I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people— not at all meaning the people of this world who are immoral, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters. In that case you would have to leave this world. But now I am writing to you that you must not associate with anyone who claims to be a brother or sister but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or slanderer, a drunkard or swindler. Do not even eat with such people. —I Corinthians 5:9-11

A person may think their own ways are right, but the Lord weighs the heart. —Proverbs 21:2

             Hold it!  Wait!  There was this type of sexual immorality going on IN THE CHURCH and they were tolerating it and they were proud about it!  They should have been mourning over this and should “have put out of your fellowship the man who has been doing this!”  Surely, “A person may think their own ways are right, but the Lord weighs the heart.”

             Paul, as moved by the Holy Spirit, said, “But now I am writing to you that you must not associate with anyone who claims to be a brother or sister but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or slanderer, a drunkard or swindler. Do not even eat with such people.”  Those who profess to know Jesus and yet are living these types of lifestyles are not even to be associated with!

             Now, our culture is filled with immorality, but Paul is not speaking to the culture at large, he is speaking to the church.  He said about the immoral culture that he wrote “to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people— not at all meaning the people of this world who are immoral, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters. In that case you would have to leave this world.”  These are the people we are to reach with the gospel and we are to associate with them… not be yoked to them, but also not to be isolated from them.  They need to hear about Jesus.  This is why we are in the world— to tell the lost about Jesus.

             We live in a bizarre time when—

• Killing babies in the womb is highly acceptable
• Teaching immorality to children at young ages in our schools
• Calling good evil and evil good
• Not being able to distinguish between who is a boy and who is a girl

We need to pray and share God’s Truth with those in our culture that think like this that “God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will” (II Timothy 2:25-26).

             There are groups that claim to be a “church” and yet they align themselves with the immorality of the culture.  Beware of associating with them.  We are to bring the gospel to whoever we can, but we are not to align with their immorality at all!  Dear Father, please help us to be faithful in this by the power of Your Holy Spirit and in the authority of Your Son Jesus.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8yUcC93khzU&list=RD8yUcC93khzU&start_radio=1