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Rejecting God

And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them. ROMANS 1:28-32 ESV

We reject God when we reject his authority

And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God… ROMANS 1:28 ESV

15 The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. 16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, 17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”  GENESIS 2:15-17 ESV

“Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?” LUKE 6:46 ESV

God alone has the authority to know what is good and true.

And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.” MARK 10:18 ESV

When we reject God’s authority, we question his integrity

Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’” But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise,2 she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. GENESIS 3:1-6 ESV

If something breaks God’s heart, it can never heal yours.

When we reject God’s morality, we invite cultural insanity

Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths. GENESIS 3:7 ESV

When we reject God’s moral standard, we create our own

Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them. ROMANS 1:32 ESV

In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes. JUDGES 21:15-16 ESV

My Notes

Personal Reflection Guide

Find a quiet place where you can shut out the noise of the world around you. Remind yourself that God’s greatest desire is to spend time with us. Take a few moments to become still and center your thoughts on him. When you are ready, begin a conversation with him. Ask God, “When have I rejected your authority and thought my way was better than yours?” Confess any sin he brings to mind and remember God wants to forgive you. Think of one of the times when you rejected his authority. Ask yourself, “How do I feel as I think about this time? What do these feelings reveal about what I believe?” Thank God for his mercy and grace for forgiving you. Ask him to show you a current situation in which you are tempted to reject his ways and follow your desires. Pray he will show you a way to confront the temptation this week and defeat it. Reach out to your community group or a trusted friend for support.

Discussion Questions

  1. What have you been learning about yourself, God or others in your personal Bible reading time? What stood out to you this week?
  2. Read Romans 1:28-32. As you read through this list of wrongs, what stands out to you personally, and why do you think it does?
  3. Read Genesis 2:15-17. As you look at your life, do you tend to struggle against God’s authority? Or, do you tend to take his commands too far and stack your rules on top of his laws? In what practical ways does your tendency affect you or those around you?
  4. Read Genesis 3:1-6. When in your life have you been tricked into disobeying God, or when has your desire for something overpowered your desire to obey him? What happened as a result?
  5. Read Genesis 3:7. Why do you think our first instinct when our sin is exposed is to hide from God and others? Put more specifically, why do you sometimes hide your sin from God and others when the healing and forgiveness you need is on the other side of being real with them?
  6. Read Judges 21:15-16. Where are you “doing what is right in your own eyes” right now and not following God’s instructions for your life? What can we do to help you?