Sermon on Morality – Sins of Speech, Sex, Modesty, Gambling

1. The spirit of the world says….

1) Lie

2) Use God’s name in vain.

3) Curse to your heart’s content.

4) Talk dirty.

2. The Spirit of God says…

1) Speak truth to one another — Ephesians 4:25, 29, 31 “Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another…. Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers…. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice.”

2) Do not use God’s name in vain.

a. Exodus 20:7 “Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.”

b. Jesus condemns the Pharisees for the same sin in Matt. 23:16-22 “Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor! Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty. Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon. And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein. And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon”

3) Don’t curse God’s creation.

a. Don’t curse man as God’s creation — Matthew 5:22 “But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.”

b. Don’t curse anything — 1 Peter 3:8-10 “Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous: Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing. For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile.”

4) When we speak about things that God has made holy as if they are common, such as improper discussions about sex or jokes about sex, we are cursing something God has made holy–the marriage relationship.

a. Ephesians 5:3-5 “But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints; Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks. For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.”

b. Colossians 4:5-6 “Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time. Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.”

3. God says, always tell the truth and speak words of sobriety.

1. The spirit of the world says…

1) Have sex whenever you want with whoever you want as long as it is “safe.”

2) Cheat on your spouse anytime. Have an affair. Everyone is doing it, why not you too?

3) Have same sex relationships–whatever feels good, do it.

2. The Spirit of God says…

1) The only place where sex is allowed is within marriage.

a. Hebrews 13:4 “Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge.”

b. 1 Corinthians 7:1-2 “Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman. Nevertheless, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband”

2) Cheating on your spouse is adultery and those who do it will not inherit God’s kingdom.

a. Galatians 5:19-21 “Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God”

b. 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.”

3) Homosexuality is an abomination and those who practice it stand in condemnation.

a. Leviticus 18:22 “Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.”

b. Romans 1:26-27 “For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meet.”

3. God says, keep sex between male and female AND within marriage.

1. The spirit of the world says…

1) One may have as few clothes on as the law will allow–not wearing clothing.

2) One may have as many clothes on as fashion will allow–overdressing.

3) Both of these in essence say wear whatever calls attention to self and glorifies self.

4) Our bodies belong to ourselves.

2. The Spirit of God says that we may not dress in a way so as to call attention to ourselves.

1) Whether it involves lack of dress. 1 Timothy 2:9a “In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety”

2) Or whether it involves overdress. 1 Timothy 2:9b “not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array;”

3) But to dress godly. 1 Timothy 2:10 “But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works.”

3. The Spirit of God says behave in such a way that glorifies God, not self! Your body does not belong to yourself–it belongs to God!

1) The life of the Christian must always be focused upon glorifying God. If we dress in such a way that brings glory to ourselves, then we are not glorifying God.

2) 1 Corinthians 6:20 ” For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.”

3) 1 Peter 2:11-12 ASV “Beloved, I beseech you as sojourners and pilgrims, to abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul; having your behavior seemly among the Gentiles; that, wherein they speak against you as evil-doers, they may by your good works, which they behold, glorify God in the day of visitation.”

4) Matt. 5:13-16 “Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”

1. The spirit of the world says…

1) Your money belongs to you, do with it what you will.

2) You earned your money, you should have the right to have some fun with it.

3) If someone gives you the opportunity to get something for nothing, you should take it.

2. The spirit of God says…

1) You are just a steward of what already belongs to God. 1 Peter 4:9-10 “Use hospitality one to another without grudging. As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.”

2) God gives ALL blessings, including our income. James 1:17 ” Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning”

3) It is wrong to try to cheat people out of their money. In essence it is legalized theft. Ephesians 4:28 “Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth.”

4) Gambling is addictive and things that are addictive are sinful. Romans 6:16 ” Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey… ?”

3. The Spirit of God says we and everything we have should be given to God

1) 2 Corinthians 8:1-5 “Moreover, brethren, we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia; How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality. For to their power, I bear record, yea, and beyond their power they were willing of themselves; Praying us with much intreaty that we would receive the gift, and take upon us the fellowship of the ministering to the saints. And this they did, not as we hoped, but first gave their own selves to the Lord, and unto us by the will of God.”