“Whoever loves transgression loves strife; he who raises the door high seeks destruction.” Proverbs 17:19
Few people will say they love sin. Some will outright deny they love it, and others will deny the thing they love to do is sinful, but where sin abounds, where people willfully engage in it, there is trouble. Transgression brings strife, and the more transgression the more strife.
The God-haters out there love to blame religion - especially Christianity - for the world’s problems. Just imagine if we had no religion, there would be no trouble. Everyone would just get along, “living life in peace - oooo, oooo, oooo.”
Sorry John, but societies without God and societies that worship false gods are the most troubled, violent, and destructive. Think of the former Soviet Union, the People’s Republic of China and Nazi Germany - no God or false gods: a prescription for evil and tyranny. We in the U.S. don’t get off the hook so easy. As we turn away from God, we see more strife as we embrace transgression as normative.
What is the remedy? We cannot change the world, but we can change our hearts and hew closer to God’s Word. We can follow His commandments loving what is good, beautiful, and righteous, and put away our love of sinning. Repent. Seek the forgiveness found in Christ Jesus. Make a conscious effort to love God and seek Him.
Prayer: Lord God, my simple prayer is this. Fill my heart with love for you and your Word so that I might live according to your will and have peace. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.