KneEmail - a devotional by Mike Benson associated with Forthright Magazine
Smorgasbord
WE OFTEN HEAR the cultural argument from those who wish to justify their behavior...
They contend that behaviors the New Testament held as sinful for the first century is not for the 21st century. To handle the Scriptures like this, however, is more than inconsistent. We must first ask how anyone can dismiss the morality of the Bible as culturally insignificant, while he claims the promises of the Bible are perpetually trustworthy. The Bible is not a smorgasbord, from which we may choose what we like and ignore what we dislike.
Second, Jesus commanded that men not only preach the gospel to all creation and baptize but also teach the disciples to observe all things He had commanded. He promised to be with His followers until the end of the age (Matt. 28:19-20; cf. Jude 3). Jesus' own words imply that both His Gospel and His commandments were for all people in all places for all time. While there are some cultural customs mentioned in the Bible, such as holy kisses and lifting hands, there is nothing in Scripture to suggest that behaviors regarded sinful in the first century are not still sinful in the 21st. (Phil Sanders, via THINK)
KneEmail: "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life" (Gal. 6:7-8).