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South Shore Sermon Series: 2002
Seven Abominations
By Bernie Parsons May 19, 2002
South Shore church of Christ
Proverbs 6: 16: "These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him:
17: A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood,
18: An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, 19: A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren."
Abomination means hatred or disgust. God hates these 7 things-they turn His stomach.
A Proud Look
Proverbs 16: 5: "Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD: though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished."
Isaiah 13: 9: "Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it.
10: For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine.
11: And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible."
I John 2: 16: "For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
17: And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever."
Mark 7:20: "And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man.
21: For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,
22: Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness:
23: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man."
1 Corinthians10:12: "Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall."
Pride is something that is fostered in America, in our schools, in our companies, and in our families. The Lord hates pride-it is an abomination to Him. We need to put pride out of our lives, and teaching our children.
Some argue that pride is not really pride-then we should quit using the word, pride. If it is not really pride, let us call it what it is: satisfaction, happiness, contentment-not pride.
Pride is an abomination to God-it turns His stomach.
A Lying Tongue
Proverbs 12: 22: "Lying lips are abomination to the LORD: but they that deal truly are his delight."
Ephesians 4: 22: "That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;
23: And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;
24: And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.
25: Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another."
Revelation 21:7: "He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
8: But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death."
Revelation 21:8: "But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death."
John 8:44: "Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it."
Some argue that there are white lies, told for a good cause-or little lies, told without much effect. God does not differentiate between white and black lies, or little lies and big one-they are all just lies. Lies are born of the Devil, and the Devil is the father of liars.
Lying is destructive-when people lie, it is hard to trust them again. You ask yourself: "Are they lying again, or telling the truth this time?"
Lying is an abomination to God-it turns His stomach.
Shedding Innocent Blood
Psalms 106:36: "And they served their idols: which were a snare unto them. 37: Yea, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters unto devils, 38: And shed innocent blood, even the blood of their sons and of their daughters, whom they sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan: and the land was polluted with blood. 39: Thus were they defiled with their own works, and went a whoring with their own inventions. 40: Therefore was the wrath of the LORD kindled against his people, insomuch that he abhorred his own inheritance.
41: And he gave them into the hand of the heathen; and they that hated them ruled over them. 42: Their enemies also oppressed them, and they were brought into subjection under their hand."
Romans 3: 10: "As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:
11: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.
12: They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.
13: Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips:
14: Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness:
15: Their feet are swift to shed blood:
16: Destruction and misery are in their ways:
17: And the way of peace have they not known:
18: There is no fear of God before their eyes."
Matthew 27:3: "Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders,
4: Saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood. And they said, What is that to us? see thou to that.
5: And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself."
Some people bring destruction upon themselves by their ungodly behavior. However, others are destroyed through no fault of their own. Muslims are even now killing Christians around the world, in Nigeria, Algeria, Malaysia, the Philippines, Sudan, Lebanon, and other places.
People who don’t go along with communists in parts of South America are being killed.
In this country people walk into convenience stores and service stations, even private residences, to kill the innocent men, women, and even children in order to steal a few dollars to buy drugs.
And the most innocent of all, the little unborn children, are murdered right in their mothers’ wombs-what should be the safest and most sacred place for an innocent human being to be. They are torn limb from limb, and extracted. In some cases they are born completely except for their heads, then a sharp instrument is gouged into the base of their schools, and their brains are sucked out. Their mangled bodies are thrown into garbage cans, or their body parts sold for research.
The Bible teaches us that Abel’s blood cried out from the soil beneath Cain’s feet. Can you imagine the horrible, blood-curdling sound of millions of tiny babies crying out to God? It makes my hair stand on end. Lord, have mercy! It’s a wonder that this nation even stands. Murder of the innocent is an abomination to God-it turns His stomach.
Wicked Imaginations
Genesis 6:5: "And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually."
Genesis 8:21: "And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done."
Jeremiah 7:24: "But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, but walked in the counsels and in the imagination of their evil heart, and went backward, and not forward."
Romans 1:18: "For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;
19: Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.
20: For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:
21: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
22: Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,
23: And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things."
If you continue reading the verses of that chapter, you find that the imagination of man leads him away from God, and into things like homosexuality, and the following, from:
Romans 1: 29: "Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,
30: Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,
31: Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:"
Man is not creative, as some suggest, but is instead, imitative. We do not invent, we only imitate, or else pervert, that which God has created. When we pervert, we end up committing all kinds of unrighteousness.
Wicked imagination is an abomination to God-it turns His stomach.
Running To Mischief
Mischief is derived from root words that mean literally wrong-headed. Mischief is when we get a wrong idea in our heads, usually carried to fruition.
I Peter 2:1: "Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, 2: As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: 3: If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious."
Colossians 3:8: "But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth.
9: Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds;
10: And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:"
If we Christians would get a good dictionary and look up all these words, especially their root meanings, and then follow the teachings of the Bible, we would all be a lot closer to God.
Malice is ill will, or intent to do harm; guile is slyness, cunning, or craftiness-indicating ability to deceive or trick by perverting, or twisting; hypocrisy is when we pretend to be what we are not; envy comes from root words that mean to look upon, as in to desire what someone else has; evil speakings is self-explanatory. These, and similar things, are wrong-headed. Anyone who loves doing these things runs to commit mischief.
Those who run to do mischief are an abomination to God-they turn His stomach.
False Witness
Bearing false witness was forbidden under the original commandments. It is a false claim by someone that they know something to be a fact, when it is not the truth.
Exodus 20:16: "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour."
Deuternomy 19:15: "One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established.
16: If a false witness rise up against any man to testify against him that which is wrong;
17: Then both the men, between whom the controversy is, shall stand before the LORD, before the priests and the judges, which shall be in those days;
18: And the judges shall make diligent inquisition: and, behold, if the witness be a false witness, and hath testified falsely against his brother;
19: Then shall ye do unto him, as he had thought to have done unto his brother: so shalt thou put the evil away from among you.
20: And those which remain shall hear, and fear, and shall henceforth commit no more any such evil among you.
21: And thine eye shall not pity; but life shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot."
Romans 13:9: "For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself."
False witnesses testified against Jesus, leading to His crucifixion. False witnesses spoke against Apostle Paul, causing him to be apprehended by authorities.
A false witness is an abomination to God-that turns His stomach.
Sowing Discord Among Brethren
Discord comes from root words meaning apart heart, and refers to disagreement, and conflict, and is the opposite of concord, which means together heart, referring to being of the same heart. To sow means to plant, so sowing discord means to plant the seeds of conflict.
Proverbs 6: "12: A naughty person, a wicked man, walketh with a froward mouth. 13: He winketh with his eyes, he speaketh with his feet, he teacheth with his fingers; 14: Frowardness is in his heart, he deviseth mischief continually; he soweth discord. 15: Therefore shall his calamity come suddenly; suddenly shall he be broken without remedy."
Proverbs 26: 20: "Where no wood is, there the fire goeth out: so where there is no talebearer, the strife ceaseth. 21: As coals are to burning coals, and wood to fire; so is a contentious man to kindle strife. 22: The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly."
James 3:14: "But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth. 15: This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. 16: For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work."
1 Corinthians 1:10: "Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
11: For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you."
1 Corinthians 11:16: "But if any man seem to be contentious, we have no such custom, neither the churches of God."
2 Corinthians 13:11: "Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you."
Philippians 1:27: "Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;"
Philippians 2:2: "Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind."
1 Peter 3:8: "Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous:"
Romans 14:19: "Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another."
2 Corinthians 13:11: "Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you."
Ephesians 4:1: "I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called,
2: With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love;
3: Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace."
Colossians 3:15: "And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful."
One who sows discord among brethren is an abomination to God-he turns God’s stomach. Rather than sowing discord, we must sow peace so that we become of one mind. We are one body-the body of Christ. We must work together as one, loving each other, being courteous to each other, and going out of our way to make peace with one another.
If we are all in the one Spirit, we will be one. We will work together, and we will show the world that we are the children of God, the true followers of Christ.
If you are here today, not following Christ, then you need to follow Him in all things. You need the Lord to add you to His body, the church. This is done when you come believing that He is the Son of God, and that His promises are true; repenting of your sins, and turning your life over to God; willingly confessing Jesus before man; and being buried in baptism in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, for the remission of your sins. You then become one with Christ, and the body of Christ. Will you come?
