A Reprobate Mind
“And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient.” Romans 1:28
Webster’s Dictionary gives us the secular definition of reprobate as “depraved; vicious; unprincipled” and the theological definition as someone who is “rejected by God; excluded from salvation and lost in sin”. But we know that scripture tells us that God would have everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth (I Timothy 2:4). So which is it? Are there folks whom God will turn His back upon causing them to have no opportunity for salvation? Some folks believe that in the end all people will be saved, but the Bible doesn’t teach that. It is plain as the nose on our faces that there are plenty of folks who have turned their backs on God and have tried to find their way to heaven by some other way besides repentance and belief in Christ. Many believe that if their “good” works outweigh their sins, then heaven’s gate will swing wide open for them when they pass from this life. This belief comes from a lack of knowledge of God’s word. Remember, God said that He desired for folks to “come to the knowledge of the truth” and without discovering the truth of what God requires for a person to be reconciled to Him, that unbeliever will face a sure judgment.
What began this discussion by Paul in his letter to the Romans in reference to those who will be given over by God to a reprobate mind, was Paul’s statement that the “just shall live by faith” and that God’s wrath will pour out on all those who reject the faith and reject Him. God even gives mankind plenty of evidence to believe in Him. He gave men and women a conscience to guide them as to basic rights and wrongs. It is a basic instinct to know that it is wrong to take the life of another human chiefly because people cherish their own lives and do not desire that someone would take it from them. That is what separates humans from animals. It is an animal’s instinct to kill another animal out of either survival or domination. People also murder other people, but they know that it is wrong as long as they have at least some portion of conscience left within their soul.
When a person continues in sin, he or she becomes less likely to listen to their conscience. Eventually, the conscience is “seared with a hot iron” (I Timothy 4:2), that is, the conscience becomes so hardened that it has little or no effect upon the person who has ignored it over and over which makes the commitment of sin easier each time. This man or woman not only ignores his or her conscience, but they ignore God, not even recognizing His authority over His creation, and acting as if He doesn’t even exist. It is at that point that, as they have given up God, He reciprocates by giving them up to do whatever they please no matter how wicked, vile, disgusting, or stupid that it is. Once He has allowed them to go their own way, Satan has free reign over them and will use them to his advantage over those who trust in Christ and attempt to live righteously. The devil can’t get at God, but he can disrupt the relationship between God and His followers. What about those who say they believe in God, even go to church, yet there is absolutely no evidence in their lives that they truly know God? They are those who, as Paul wrote in II Timothy 3:5, have a form of godliness, but deny the power thereof. In other words, they may hear the preacher as he expounds upon the word of God, but they really don’t believe a word he says. Paul said to stay away from these folks.
I said all of this to give a reason for why I believe we are seeing such turmoil in our country and world today. There are multitudes upon multitudes who have ignored God and His word for so long that He has allowed them to become void of sensible and righteous judgment. A prime example to illustrate this fact is to use the statement made earlier about folks having a basic instinct to know that murder is wrong. Those who support abortion, the murder of an innocent unborn and, in some cases, a new born baby, do not see it as wrong. They try to justify the killing of the unborn by claiming that it is not really a human being. What kind of mind thinks like that? Not one who understands that God is the author of life, and the taking of innocent life is an egregious sin against Him and against mankind. Why have so many young people become confused about their gender? Some folks are claiming that their are many different genders, and a person can choose which one they desire to be. God only made two genders, male and female, created in His image (Genesis 1:27). Men and women are always coming up with ways to attempt to supersede that which God has made. Michael Massie, writing for WND.com, in addressing the craziness going on in our world today by some very misguided, to put it mildly, folks, wrote, “…common sense and rational reasoning has been subverted by their demonic fixation to alter that which God created.” In the beginning, people tried to build a tower to heaven and make themselves their own gods, but they quickly found out that God was the sovereign Ruler and that He would disrupt their plan by causing them to speak many different languages so that they couldn’t communicate with one another (Genesis 11:1-9).
We are living in the age of grace now, but eventually it will come to an end, and folks will realize that they have gone down the wrong road. God will have the last word. He had the first, and He will have the last. As long as we are under grace, there is still time for folks to be forgiven and receive eternal life if they will acknowledge their sinful state, repent, and place their faith in Christ, but the opportunity to be saved and become a child of God won’t last forever.