Upside Down... ~ A Culture Of Immorality ~

   In his first letter to the church at Corinth, the apostle Paul sharply rebuked the congregation for tolerating, within the congregation, a degree of sexual immorality so depraved that even the Gentiles would not so much as talk about such a thing.  A man had become involved in an affair with his father’s wife, apparently his step-mother (1 Cor. 5:1).  The Gentiles were unbelievers and idol worshipers.  Immorality seemed to naturally go hand-in-hand with idolatry, yet this was a form of immorality that even they found repulsive.  Sadly, what the Gentiles of Paul’s day would not even talk about might well be accepted in our nation today with its present cultural mind-set.  We are living in a culture of immorality!

   Twice Jeremiah warned the people of Judah, supposedly God’s people, that they had become so wicked, and so unashamed, that they did not even “know how to blush” (Jer. 6:15; 8:12).  That pretty well describes the culture of our nation today.  Wickedness, ungodliness and immorality is so common that a great many people do not seem to know the difference between righteousness and unrighteousness.
   Young children use profanity without even realizing that it is profanity.  Adults use obscene and demeaning language in virtually all kinds of settings, including in mixed company, without a second thought.
   Couples hook up for casual sex without much more thought than ordering a burger at Mc Donald’s.  That their behavior could be immoral does not seem to be a consideration.  It’s accepted as a normal part of today’s social scene.
   It’s nearly as common today for couples to live together and have children out of wedlock as it is for them to get married.  The immorality of the matter does not seem to much enter their thinking when contemplating moving in together.  It’s not done in secret but in the open, with no shame.
   It’s almost unbelievable how mothers dress their little girls these days.  They dress them in risqué fashion that would be questionable for an adult woman to wear.  Often, they add a degree of makeup that accents the look, leaving a ten to thirteen year old little girl looking like she’s advertising.  But momma thinks her daughter looks “oh, so cute!”  No blushing from momma except, perhaps, with pride.
   All of this is continuously promoted through the media- music, literature, television and Hollywood.  Immorality has become so normal and accepted that morality seems odd, out of place, strange.  Individuals who refuse to take part in the culture of immorality are often looked down upon and demeaned as being weird, stuck up, odd balls, freaks.  In some cases, they’re labeled as bigots.
   How ironic that people who take a stand for righteousness are seen as being immoral, narrow minded and mean-spirited, while people who openly live in sin are portrayed as being righteous.  Amazing!  Things are truly Upside Down.  Old Satan must be wearing a mile-wide grin. 
  “Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” (Isa. 5:20)…