Romans 1:24

Romans 1:24 says, Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves.  There is no sadder place to be than to be given up by God.  When God removes His grace from a person, or a nation, there is no hope.  We may like to think that this means that that person or nation is going to suffer in a material way, but God is speaking of giving them up to their own spiritual uncleanliness. There are nations today that deny even the existence of God, like China, that are very powerful and prosperous, but they are spiritually dead.  Even in America, there are many people who deny God exists or make their own gods of wealth and power who prosper materially. Verse twenty-five adds, Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.  This continues with the effects of God giving people up to the lusts of their own hearts.  My generation had a saying, If it feels good, do it.  Though maybe not expressed as openly today, that is what happens when we change God's truth into our own.  We worship the creature more than the Creator, Who is blessed forever.  Now, we may choose not to bless Him, but that does not mean He is not blessed.  God's goodness, nor His nature, does not depend on how we view Him.  No matter what we try to replace God with, whether manmade idols or material goods, nothing can ever replace God and will ultimately let us down.  Verse twenty-six continues, 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:  Verse twenty-seven concludes, 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 recompence of their error which was meet.  God gave them up to vile affections.  The example given is homosexuality, since Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed for their great sinfulness, of which this was an example.  Secular America today seems to almost promote this lifestyle, while Christians see it as one of the greatest sins.  We need to realize that this is but one sin when God allows people to live by their own desires.  We also need to realize that any sin separates us from God, and that God will always love even the worst of sinner.  Until we acknowledge God, we can expect that we as individuals or as a nation will only slip deeper into sin.