I know I may be beating a dead horse (unfortunate pun not intended), but as I read the following headline this morning, the incredible absurdity of a world in denial and ignorance was too powerful to gloss over. The headline read:This wonderful piece of “pragmatic” philosophy was spoken by British Prime Minister Tony Blair, regarding the discussion of “effective” ways at fighting the spread of AIDS. The headline’s article goes on to say incredulously:
The Bible says: Stop deceiving yourselves. If you think you are wise by this world’s standards, you need to become a fool to be truly wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness to God. As the Scriptures say, “He traps the wise in the snare of their own cleverness.” And again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise; he knows they are worthless.” (1 Corinthians 3:18-20) Don’t follow the so-called wisdom of this world – condoms are simply another way to allow you to be promiscuous, to sleep around with person after person, and try to fool yourself into thinking that you can’t get infected with the many possible diseases that your sleeping partners may have gotten from their sleeping partners who got it from their sleeping partners and so on and so on and so on. Stop the madness! Listen to the God who created you and who loves you even now: "Everything is permissible for me"—but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible for me"—but I will not be mastered by anything…Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body…you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body. (1 Corinthians 12; 18; 20 NIV)
In a television interview on World AIDS Day Friday, Mr. Blair criticized the Vatican’s longstanding opposition to the use of condoms, as he argued that preaching abstinence was not enough… Speaking to MTV, Mr. Blair, Anglican, said: "The danger is if we have a sort of blanket ban from religious hierarchy saying it's wrong to do it (using condoms), then you discourage people from doing it in circumstances where they need to protect their lives." – Christian Today.com…things that people need to protect their lives. The absurdity of the point that people need condoms “to protect their lives”! I wonder what Jesus would say to such a statement and thought process: “Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the act of adultery. The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?”…Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, “Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?” “No, Lord,” she said. And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.” (John 8:4-5;10-11 NLT) When Jesus was presented with this woman caught in the sin of prostitution, His answer to her was “I don’t condemn you BUT…go and sin no more” (my paraphrase). He told her to stop doing that which would condemn her. He didn’t suggest that she should continue living her life that way because understandably she needed to earn a living or that her human impulses were understandably going to need to be satisfied so therefore continue on in your sexual sin. No. Christ lovingly and simply stated to her “sin no more”. Stop the act that would bring her condemnation and death. I submit that, to those who supposedly need to wear condoms to protect themselves from AIDS, Christ would say to you “sin no more”. Stop sleeping around with people. Period! Christ would say this is a guaranteed way that you will NOT get AIDS.
The Bible says: Stop deceiving yourselves. If you think you are wise by this world’s standards, you need to become a fool to be truly wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness to God. As the Scriptures say, “He traps the wise in the snare of their own cleverness.” And again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise; he knows they are worthless.” (1 Corinthians 3:18-20) Don’t follow the so-called wisdom of this world – condoms are simply another way to allow you to be promiscuous, to sleep around with person after person, and try to fool yourself into thinking that you can’t get infected with the many possible diseases that your sleeping partners may have gotten from their sleeping partners who got it from their sleeping partners and so on and so on and so on. Stop the madness! Listen to the God who created you and who loves you even now: "Everything is permissible for me"—but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible for me"—but I will not be mastered by anything…Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body…you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body. (1 Corinthians 12; 18; 20 NIV)