BiblicalInsights.net

Consider the following words from the Holy Spirit through the apostle Paul, “Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; Who will render to every man according to his deeds” (Rom. 2:4-6). The word impenitent means “without a change of mind.” The impenitent will not turn away from sin to serve the true and living God. Repentance is a change of heart that affects a change of life. This change is in God’s direction and is always for the better. Repentance is a universal command of God (Acts 17:30). Failure to obey this command results in a state of hardness and impenitence.
There are several features of impenitence that Paul reveals. The first is ingratitude. The impenitent despise God’s goodness. The goodness of God is seen in many ways, but especially in the unspeakable gift of His Son (John 3:16). When men refuse to repent, they manifest ingratitude for redemption through Jesus Christ. God’s forbearance and longsuffering provide opportunity for man to repent. However, the impenitent do not take advantage of this opportunity. Second, there is hardness of heart. The human heart can be hardened through unbelief and the practice of sin (Heb. 3:12). A hardened heart resists God’s Will. The hard hearted rebell against God. Third, there is contentiousness and disobedience (Rom. 2:8). The impenitent fight against God and refuse to obey the truth. Impenitence produces an antagonism against God. The impenitent become the enemies of God.
Notice some causes of impenitence. The first cause that we must consider is pride. Pride is inordinate self-esteem. It is unreasonable conceit of superiority. It is thinking of oneself more highly than what should be done. A good synonym for pride is arrogance. Pride is at the root of every sin man commits. When we sin, we are saying that we will do things our way rather than God’s way. Second, impenitence is caused by a lack of godly sorrow. In I Cor. 5:2, Paul reveals the apathy of the Corinthian brethren regarding the sin of fornication that was present in the church. He states, “And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you.” Pride and lack of godly sorrow for sin were the cause of the toleration of sin in the church. Godly sorrow produces repentance. Repentance is an essential aspect of salvation (II Cor. 7:10). The impenitent fail to mourn their sins. Another cause of impenitence is ignorance of sin. Ignorance of sin is dangerous because it results in a false sense of security. Paul persecuted the Lord’s church because of ignorance (I Tim. 1:13). The Jews crucified Jesus because of ignorance (Acts 3:17). Closely related to ignorance is unbelief. When we act in ignorance, we often manifest unbelief (I Tim. 1:13). Paul, before his conversion, rejected the truth that Jesus Christ was the Son of God and consequently, he consented unto the death of the saints and imprisoned them. His zeal against the Lord’s church was miguided and wrong. Unbelief causes men to turn away from God and turn against God.”
The cure for impenitence begins with brokenness. Brokenness is the result of a combination of humility, sorrow and pain caused by sin (Luke 4:18). Brokenness destroys pride. It produces godly sorrow. Impenitence can be cured through the knowledge of the truth. Truth destroys ignorance and convicts of sin (John 16:8-9). We must be convinced of our need for Christ. Impenitence can be overcome by faith. Faith involves being convinced of righteousness. The human mind must be informed in the right ways of God or there is no motivation to change. The Word of God provides us with the necessary content of the knowledge of God and produces faith in God (Rom. 10:17). Impenitence can be overcome with hope. Faith and hope go together. Where there is faith in God, there is hope in God. There is a better way to live life than in the pursuit of wickedness. Following Jesus points us in a better direction and gives us a better future–a future with God (Heb. 8:6; 6:18-19). Finally, impenitence can be overcome by considering the righteous judgment of God. God’s wrath and punishment will fall upon the unrighteous. God will render to every man according to his deeds. There is a reward for the righteous and punishment for the disobedient. The impenitent will face the wrath of God. This should be sufficient to turn them away from sin to God (Rom. 2:7-10).
The impenitent heart will never see God. The way of the transgressor is hard. You can choose this path for your life or you can choose to follow Jesus. We can change our lives for the better if we choose to walk with God.

In I Tim. 5:21, Paul by the Holy Spirit writes, “I charge thee before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, and the elect angels, that thou observe these things without preferring one before another, doing nothing by partiality.” Paul made a solemn charge to Timothy to carry out his ministry without partiality (prejudice).
Definition of Prejudice
W. E. Vine, Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, III, p. 204, states that the word prejudice is from the Greek word prokrima which means prejudging. He also states, “preferring one person, another being put aside, by unfavorable judgment due to partiality.” Prejudice involves two aspects. The first is partiality or respect of persons. Without partiality means that we do not show favoritism to one person over another or, negatively, that we do not show ill-will to one person over another based upon who they are or how they look. This is an attribute of fairness in dealing with others. God is no respector of persons (Acts 10:34)! This attribute of our heavenly Father is one that we can and should imitate (James 2:1-10). James makes the practical application of the principle. He denounces the favoritism that might be shown in a worship assembly to one who is dressed in expensive clothing (the rich) over one who is not dressed in costly apparel (the poor). The second aspect of prejudice is prejudging. To pre-judge is to judge before we have the facts or the truth. We make up our minds before we have the facts. In John 7:24, we are instructed to judge righteous judgment. Righteous judgment is based upon the truth. We must wait and gather the facts before we draw a conclusion. Judgment based upon the truth eliminates stereotypes. A stereotype is where we establish a preconceived way of thinking about people and judging people that molds our opinions about them. Some examples of social stereotypes include: all black people are lazy and white men can’t jump. Stereotypes are ways of prejudging people based upon a generalization of some aspect or characterization of them that betrays our feelings of superiority. Prejudice involves both partiality and prejudging. God condemns this type of thinking and the behavior it generates.
Types of Prejudice
There are many types of prejudice, but three are worthy of mention in this article. The first is racial prejudice. Racial prejudice involves judging people based upon the color of their skin rather than the content of their character. Or, another way of stating is that we judge people on the basis of the ethnicity rather than the truth about their lives. The second type of prejudice is religious prejudice. Judging people based upon their religious affiliation rather than the truth of their personal beliefs and practices. An example of this type of prejudice can be seen in the conversion account of Michael Shank who wrote the book, Muscle and Shovel. In this book, Michael relates an incident in which members of the church of Christ were called “water dogs” a derrogatory term given because Christians in these congregations believe that baptism is essential for salvation and that it is an immersion in water. Third, there is relational prejudice. Relational prejudice is where we judge people based upon their social status or birthplace or some other factor rather than the truth of who they are. Jesus was from Nazareth where He grew up. Later, in His public ministry, there were those who castigated Him by saying, “Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth” (John 1:46). Nazareth may have had a bad reputation, but the savior of the world came from Nazareth. The statement was prejudicial. It is also an example of the “genetic fallacy” the fallacy of origins. In James 2:1-10, James denounces those who show prejudice based upon social standing.
Errors of Prejudice
All types of prejudice violate the law of love. Jesus states this law in Matthew 22:36-39. The first and greatest commandment is to love God with all of our heart, soul and mind. The second greatest commandment is to love our neighbor as ourself. The law of love is illustrated in the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37). In this parable, Jesus teaches that racial prejudice is wrong. The hero is a Samaritan who was despised by the Jews. The Jews referred to Samaritans as “dogs.” But, when Jesus asked who was neighbor to the man who fell among the thieves, the correct response was “he who showed compassion.” In other words, the one who showed love for his fellowman. Prejudice also violates the law of justice. Justice is based upon truth. Prejudice involves pre-judging before all the facts are available. It is judging based upon preconceived ideas. For justice to be served, the truth must be known and preserved. Prejudice also violates the law of unity. In Galatians 3:26-28, Paul indicates that “in Christ” we are all “one.” Spiritual union with Christ occurs when we believe in Christ and obey His commands. The result of spiritual union with Christ is that we are all one “there is no more Jew or Greek, bond or free, male or female.” We all take on a new spiritual identity and are just Christians. Prejudice destroys this unity and causes division which does untold harm to the body of Christ.
Prevention of Prejudice.
Prejudice can be prevented by developing authentic love for one another. In Ephesians 5:1-2, Paul declares, “Be ye followers of God as dear children and walk in love as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.” Love is selfless and results in sacrifice. Love is humble. Love slays pride which is at the root of prejudice. Love slays feelings of superiority. Love will forego a right to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Prejudice can be prevented by seeking the truth in all situations. What does God say? What are the facts? Pursue the truth and you will be rewarded with righteous judgments. Prejudice can be prevented through self-examination. Prejudicial judgments are condemned by Jesus in Matt. 7:1-3. We attempt to remove the speck in our brother’s eye while we have a beam in our own eye! First, remove the beam in your own eye! Judging begins with our own heart! See also I Cor. 11:28 and II Cor. 13:5.
The remedy for prejudice will not come through politicians or the laws of men. It will come through surrender of the heart to God’s Will. Only God can transform the human heart through the power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

James 1:14-15, “But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then, when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth for death.” Temptation follows this order: enticement (external), lust (internal), sin, and death. Let’s focus on “enticement.”
The English word “entice” comes from the Greek word which literally means “to lure by bait.” In James 1:14, the word is used metaphorically. Synonyms of the word entice include: seduce, allure and beguile. In 2 Peter 2:14, Peter writes of those who “beguile unstable souls.” In 2 Peter 2:18, he writes of those who “allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness (lasciviousness-DS).”
What is involved in seduction? The answer to this question can be seen in two examples. The first example comes from the writing of Marilyn Lancelot in her new book, Detour, as she describes the effects of gambling casinos on her. The casino affected her physically with the repitition of sounds, bright colors, and pleasing atmosphere. It affected her emotionally as she describes herself being in a “love affair” with gambling. She felt tremendous excitement. She also had some fear because of the risk involved (the risk of losing large sums of money). She was also jealous. When someone else occupied “her” slot machine, she was jealous and resented it. There were psychological affects of gambling. She told herself that she never lost, but always “almost won.” She deceived herself. There was further seduction from without. The employees of the casino were always very helpful. They offfered her drinks. They offered to cash checks for her. They gave her VIP treatment. They gave her free meals and free lodging. She writes, “In my entire life, I have never been treated more grandly” (Detour, p. 89). She thought to herself, “how could this place be evil or dangerous?” She also thought, “If it looked good and felt good, I wanted more of it.” Clearly, she had fallen prey to seduction. She developed an addiction to gambling that cost her her job, her homes, her reputation, her freedom (she spent time in prison) and put her soul in jeopardy.
A second example of seduction is found in Numbers 25. The children of Israel committed sin by joining themselves to Baal-peor. They forsook God and worshipped idols. Baalam was instrumental in bringing out this trespass by beguiling the people (Numbers 31:16; 25:18). In the latter passage, the Bible says, “they vexed you with their wiles.” They were seduced! To worship Baal is to become involved in one of the fertility religions. Baal’s female counterpart was Asherah. The fertility religions represented by Baalism perverted fertility which wa a gift from God in makng sex a mysterioius ritual (the seed of your body in exchange for the multiplication of your crops) which revived Satan’s rivalry with heaven. Temple prostitutes served the worshippers. Sexual sin always involves the presentation of one’s body (and, therefore, of our whole selves) to the dark powers that wish to control it (John White, Eros Redeemed). Sexual sin enslaves us to the “gods” to whom we unwittingly yield ourselves. Every time we sin by misusing the sexual parts of our bodies, or by indulging in sexual fantasies, by pursing pornography or paying for time on erotic phone numbers, their power over our behavior increases. Sexual seduction is a powerful force for evil in our world today. God was displeased with Israel and punished them for their sin. Twenty-four thousand were slain by a plague. The wages of wickedness are severe.
The fall of every person into sinful conduct involves the same pathway: enticement/lust/sin/and death.
The only remedy once we have sinned is God’s grace and our faith working by love (Eph. 2:8-9; Gal. 5:1-6). Idolatry can be anything to which we give extreme devotion. Idolatry is to hear the words of darkness and to act upon them. When we do this, we sin against God. Because of our sin, we must turn to God, repent and obey His will.