Basic Truth #40- Idolatry, Fornication, Drunkeness, Lying

Please find in this forum the forty (40) Basic, Elementary Truths taught by all Jehovah's Witnesses world wide. Also, please find a brief description of each teaching, with biblical substantiation for each tenet believed, which constitutes this nation as God's Name People, Modern-Day "Israel" of Bible Prophecy.

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bejay

Basic Truth #40- Idolatry, Fornication, Drunkeness, Lying

Post by bejay »

Basic Truth #40 – Idolatry, Fornication, Drunkenness and Lying Condemned Conduct

Christians live their lives in harmony with Godly principles not because they want to please humans but because Jehovah their God requires them to do so if they are to enjoy his protection, blessings and guidance presently and have the hope of a happy future. They strive to follow his laws and commands closely even if it means being hated by the world in general. They also know that their adversary, Satan the Devil, is determined to do whatever he can to cause them to fall away from the faith and lose their approved standing with Jehovah. (1 Peter 5:8) So they strive to keep progressing by avoiding the things that Satan’s world approves of.

Through the Bible we learn that the downfall of the human race came because Satan led the first human pair to believe a lie. As a result, the Bible describes Satan as the ‘father of the lie,’ and lying is one of the things he encourages humans to do because he knows that Jehovah, the ‘God of truth,’ hates it. (Psalms 31:5; Proverbs 6:17)

Paul wrote to the Christians at Colossae this, as recorded at Colossians 3:9, 10:

“Do not be lying to one another. Strip off the old personality with its practices and clothe yourselves with the new personality, which through accurate knowledge is being made new according to the image of the One who created it.”

Yes, lying is a trait that a Christian must rid himself of, as it is something that he practiced before he learned accurate knowledge. It is a part of the old personality that conformed to the thinking of the world under Satan’s control and a Christian must shed this distasteful habit.

The practice of homosexuality is another trait of Satan’s system that has become an acceptable practice and the majority of humans do not condemn it. But it is one of the detestable practices that God abhors as it is a perversion of what is normal.

Romans 1:26, 27 says this concerning those who practice this perversion:

“That is why God gave them up to disgraceful sexual appetites, for both their females changed the natural use of themselves into one contrary to nature; and likewise even the males left the natural use of the female and became violently inflamed in their lust toward one another, males with males, working what is obscene and receiving in themselves the full recompense, which was due for their error.”

Yes this unnatural sexual practice is condemned in God’s word and Christians must not allow themselves to give tacit approval to this practice by watching programs on the television that portray those who practice this abnormal behavior as normal or by not sharing with others the Bible’s view of this practice.

The use of images in worship is expressly forbidden in the Bible. Its prohibition was included as one of the first Commandments given to the nation of Israel as part of their covenant. (Exodus 20:4, 5) The use of images is an outward form of idolatry but there are more subtle forms of it practiced by the world today. Giving honor to nations or institution by saluting its flag or singing songs that give honor to them is idolatry. A person can also engage in idolatry by giving honor to himself or to another human as they are not deserving of such or placing too much emphasis on possessions or money. (Philippians 3:19) Whatever form the idolatry takes, a Christian is warned to “flee from idolatry” by the apostle Paul at 1 Corinthians 10:14. The Bible expressly warns God’s servants that idolatry is punishable by death. (Exodus 32:1-6, 25-29; Deuteronomy 13:6-11)

Drunkenness is another vice that a true Christian would not want to be guilty of engaging in. A person does not have to be in a state of inebriation all of the time to be guilty of this sin. Occasionally a person may overindulge in the drinking of alcoholic beverages and become inebriated and unsteady on his feet. He is now in a state whereby he becomes uninhibited in his actions and finds that he says and does things that he would not normally do or say. This is why the Bible warns us at Ephesians 5:18 this way:

“Also do not be getting drunk with wine in which there is debauchery, but keep getting filled with spirit.”

Yes, overindulging in alcoholic beverages can affect the personal conduct of the Christian because of the effect it has on his thinking ability. His senses become dulled so that he is unable to make vital decisions and his judgment is impaired. Thus he can be led into committing acts which will bring reproach on Jehovah’s name. (Proverbs 20:1) The wise course would be to view alcoholic beverages as something to be taken in moderation only and if one cannot do this, then he should avoid it altogether. A Christian would always want to ‘adorn the teachings of our Savior, God, in all things.’ (Titus 2:10)

At 1 Corinthians 6:9, 10 Paul warned Christians in his day that those who returned to the unrighteous practices that many of them had been freed from, would not inherit God’s kingdom. They had been washed clean and were expected to continue honoring Jehovah in this state of righteousness. They were not to return to their former condition, as this would bring destruction for them. As Revelation 21:8 shows “their portion would be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, the second death.”
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