Story:  On a dangerous sea coast where shipwrecks often occur, there was once a crude little life-saving station. The building was just a hut, and there was only one boat, but the few devoted members kept a constant watch over the sea and with no thought for themselves went out day and night tirelessly searching for the lost. Some of those who were saved, and various others in the surrounding area, wanted to become associated with the station and give of their time and money and effort for the support of its work. New boats were bought and new crews trained. The little lifesaving station grew. 

Some members of the lifesaving station were unhappy that the building was so crude and poorly equipped. They felt that a more comfortable place should be provided as the first refuge of those saved from the sea. They replaced the emergency cots with beds and put better furniture in the enlarged building. Now the lifesaving station became a popular gathering place for its members, and they decorated it beautifully and furnished it exquisitely, because they used it as sort of a club. 

Fewer members were now interested in going to sea on lifesaving missions, so they hired lifeboat crews to do this work. The lifesaving motif still prevailed in this club’s decorations, and there was a miniature lifeboat in the room where the club initiations were held. 

About this time a large ship was wrecked off the coast, and the hired crews brought in boatloads of cold, wet, and half-drowned people. They were dirty and sick, and some of them had black skin and some had yellow skin. The beautiful new club was in chaos. So the property committee immediately had a shower house built outside the club where victims of shipwreck could be cleaned up before coming inside. 

At the next meeting, there was a split in the club membership. Most of the members wanted to stop the club’s lifesaving activities, since they were unpleasant and a hindrance to the normal social life of the club. Some members insisted upon lifesaving as their primary purpose and pointed out that they were still called a lifesaving station. But they were finally voted down and told that if they wanted to save the lives of all the various kinds of people who were shipwrecked in those waters, they could begin their own lifesaving station down the coast. They did. 

As the years went by, the new station experienced the same changes that had occurred in the old. It evolved into a club, and yet another lifesaving station was founded. History continued to repeat itself, and if you visit that sea coast today you will find a number of exclusive clubs along the shore. Shipwrecks are frequent in those waters, but most of the people drown. 

Deuteronomy 10:12-13
12 "Now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require from you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and love Him, and to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, 
13 and to keep the LORD'S commandments and His statutes which I am commanding you today for your good? 

Matthew 23:23
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law : justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others.

John 14:15
"If you love Me, you will keep My commandments. 

John 14:6
Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. 

In week 4 we discussed divination as it related to Joseph from Genesis 44:14-15.  This week we will focus on idol worship which is along the same lines.  What is an idol?  The dictionary defines an idol in three ways.  First it is an image used as an object of worship or a false god.  Second, an idol can also be someone that is adored, often blindly or excessively.  And finally it is described as something visible but without substance.

How does idol worship relate to modern religion?  God does not care about religion.  God provided the only ordained religious system in the form of the tabernacle which was later replaced by the temple.  God allowed the articles of worship to be taken captive multiple times when Israel disobeyed and allowed the temple building to be destroyed after it had accomplished it's purpose.  Remember, Jesus said He would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days.  God wants Man (that is you - male or female) to be reconciled to Him by Christ.  Jesus is the Christ.  The Christ is the sacrifice to God for Man which is the form and function of the Lamb of God.
Open your bibles to . . . 

Revelation 9:13-21 (20)
13 Then the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God, 
14 one saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, "Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates." 
15 And the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour and day and month and year, were released, so that they would kill a third of mankind. 
16 The number of the armies of the horsemen was two hundred million; I heard the number of them. 
17 And this is how I saw in the vision the horses and those who sat on them: the riders had breastplates the color of fire and of hyacinth and of brimstone; and the heads of the horses are like the heads of lions; and out of their mouths proceed fire and smoke and brimstone. 
18 A third of mankind was killed by these three plagues, by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone which proceeded out of their mouths. 
19 For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails; for their tails are like serpents and have heads, and with them they do harm. 
20 The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, so as not to worship demons, and the idols of gold and of silver and of brass and of stone and of wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk; 
21 and they did not repent of their murders nor of their sorceries nor of their immorality nor of their thefts. 

Idol worship might be described as simply not repenting and coming to the Living God.  Jesus is the way, the truth and the life.  I was in a business meeting with a small baptist church and they had gathered the elders to discuss an expansion project.  I introduced myself and everything seemed to be going well.  That is until I placed my folder down on a special table.  As soon as I placed the folder on the table, the room went cold.  I could tell I had crossed some invisible spiritual line.  I looked at the table which was obviously the focus of their shock and I noticed a bible placed in a stand centered on the table. 

At first I did not get it.  What was the problem?  I am a Christian and I read my bible.  Then I realized that this small group of people regarded that table and that bible on that stand as a super special object of worship.  Does this qualify as visible but without substance?  We should honor God by letting the Word work in our lives and not just place the bible as an idol on a table.  Remember Jesus warning to the Pharisees in Matthew 23:23 not to neglect the weightier provisions of the law; justice and mercy and faithfulness. 

Open your bibles to . . . 

John 3:14-16
14 As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; 
15 so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life. 
16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. 
 

2 Kings 18:1-6
1 Now it came about in the third year of Hoshea, the son of Elah king of Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz king of Judah became king. 
2 He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Abi the daughter of Zechariah. 
3 He did right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father David had done. 
4 He removed the high places and broke down the sacred pillars and cut down the Asherah. He also broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the sons of Israel burned incense to it; and it was called Nehushtan. 
5 He trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel; so that after him there was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor among those who were before him.
6 For he clung to the Lord; he did not depart from following Him, but kept His commandments, which the Lord had commanded Moses. 

In John 3:14, Jesus describes a story from Numbers 21 about a bronze serpent.  We see in 2 Kings that the people of Israel had made that bronze serpent into an idol.  God was pleased to see it destroyed. What does that tell you?  We must remember the weightier provisions of the law without the neglecting the smaller.  It must be kept in perspective. 

Coaching little league baseball over seventeen years taught me that you must be balanced to play the game.  Hitting is all about shifting your weight to create torque from the feet to the hands, but you are always balanced.  Throwing is about creating torque by generating ball speed and movement while always remaining balanced.  Life must be balanced.  God wants mankind to be balanced as they find the way and the truth and the life. 

Open your bibles to . . .

Acts 17:16-31 (29)
16 Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was being provoked within him as he was observing the city full of idols. 
17 So he was reasoning in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Gentiles, and in the market place every day with those who happened to be present. 
18 And also some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers were conversing with him. Some were saying, "What would this idle babbler wish to say?" Others, "He seems to be a proclaimer of strange deities,"-because he was preaching Jesus and the resurrection. 
19 And they took him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, "May we know what this new teaching is which you are proclaiming? 
20 For you are bringing some strange things to our ears; so we want to know what these things mean." 
21 (Now all the Athenians and the strangers visiting there used to spend their time in nothing other than telling or hearing something new.) 
22 So Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, "Men of Athens, I observe that you are very religious in all respects. 
23 For while I was passing through and examining the objects of your worship, I also found an altar with this inscription, 'TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.' Therefore what you worship in ignorance, this I proclaim to you.
24 The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; 
25 nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things; 
26 and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, 
27 that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us;
28 for in Him we live and move and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, 'For we also are His children.' 
29 Being then the children of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and thought of man. 
30 Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, 
31 because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead." 

Athens was under Roman rule when Paul visited the city and made the observation above.  Rome ruled the region for over five hundred years from 85 BC to 529 AD.  Athens was known as a centre of learning and philosophy and for that reason Rome gave Athens the status of a free city.  You could visit the library, the gymnasium, civic buildings, various monuments, or see one of the multiple temples dedicated to various gods such as Zeus.  The Temple of Olympian Zeus was the largest temple in Greece and housed one of the largest cult statues in the ancient world.  These were the people Paul addressed when he visited Athens. 
Open your bibles to . . .

Romans 1:18-25
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, 
19 because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. 
20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. 
21 For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 
22 Professing to be wise, they became fools, 
23 and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures. 
24 Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them.
25 For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. 

Rome has a history that is more than ten times longer than the United States of America.  Rome at one time covered an area from Iraq to Spain to North Africa.  Understanding the history of the times will help understand the events of Jesus life and His apostles as they unfolded.  Herod the Great was on a major building campaign in Jerusalem because he wanted to make a name for himself inside the Roman political machine.  This placed pressure on the Jewish people to support the building projects with labor and financial support.  Herod was Governor in Galilee in 47 BC three years before Julius Caesar was murdered.  He could have met Julius Caesar.  He obviously knew Mark Antony because the palace-fortress located on the wall of the temple was named Antonia.  The Antonia was most likely the location where Jesus was tried by Potius Pilate.

Herod the Great gave the order to kill all the male children two years old and younger as recorded in Matthew 2:16-23, but he was not the Herod who tried Jesus in Luke 23:8-12.  Herod the Great died soon after giving the order to kill the children.  The Herod who tried Jesus was one of his three sons.  When Herod the Great died, his region of control was divided into three areas.  Herod Antipus tried Jesus because he received authority over Galilee and Perea.  His brother Philip controlled the northeast province.  The third son, Archelaus, ruled Samaria, Judea and part of Idumea.  This region with Judea had the largest Jewish population of the region.  Archelaus was fired.  The region had been ruled by four other governors who all were all fired.  The fifth to rule was Pontius Pilate.  This is the Pontius Pilate who tried Jesus and sent Him to Herod Antipus because Jesus was from Galilee.

Romans regarded religion as a normal part of daily life.  Each home had a household shrine and each neighborhood had sacred places.  Roman religion was based upon the principle of do ut des which means 'I give that you might give'.  As Rome grew and expanded their empire, they absorbed the local deities/cults of the people they ruled.  The Romans would promote religion by building temples to local gods thus building relations with the local people. 

The monotheistic worship of one God by the Jews posed some difficulties for the Romans because it was viewed as a threat to traditional Roman morality and unity to the state.  The Romans made compromises with the Jewish leadership, but Christians were considered an illegitimate group until 313 AD.  In AD 64 Nero blamed the burning of Rome on the Christians and the persecution of the faith began.  In 313 AD the Roman ruler Constantine established tolerance for Christianity without placing it above other religions with the Edict of Milan.  In 380 AD Emperor Theodosius declared that Christianity was the empire's sole authorized religion with the Edict of Thessalonica.
Open your bibles to . . .

1 Samuel 28:3-19
3 Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel had lamented him and buried him in Ramah, his own city. And Saul had removed from the land those who were mediums and spiritists. 
4 So the Philistines gathered together and came and camped in Shunem; and Saul gathered all Israel together and they camped in Gilboa. 
5 When Saul saw the camp of the Philistines, he was afraid and his heart trembled greatly. 
6 When Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord did not answer him, either by dreams or by Urim or by prophets. 
7 Then Saul said to his servants, "Seek for me a woman who is a medium, that I may go to her and inquire of her." And his servants said to him, "Behold, there is a woman who is a medium at En-dor." 
8 Then Saul disguised himself by putting on other clothes, and went, he and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night; and he said, "Conjure up for me, please, and bring up for me whom I shall name to you." 
9 But the woman said to him, "Behold, you know what Saul has done, how he has cut off those who are mediums and spiritists from the land.  Why are you then laying a snare for my life to bring about my death?" 
10 Saul vowed to her by the Lord, saying, "As the Lord lives, no punishment shall come upon you for this thing." 
11 Then the woman said, "Whom shall I bring up for you?" And he said, "Bring up Samuel for me." 
12 When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out with a loud voice; and the woman spoke to Saul, saying, "Why have you deceived me? For you are Saul." 
13 The king said to her, "Do not be afraid; but what do you see?" And the woman said to Saul, "I see a divine being coming up out of the earth." 
14 He said to her, "What is his form?" And she said, "An old man is coming up, and he is wrapped with a robe." And Saul knew that it was Samuel, and he bowed with his face to the ground and did homage. 
15 Then Samuel said to Saul, "Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?" And Saul answered, "I am greatly distressed; for the Philistines are waging war against me, and God has departed from me and no longer answers me, either through prophets or by dreams; therefore I have called you, that you may make known to me what I should do." 
16 Samuel said, "Why then do you ask me, since the Lord has departed from you and has become your adversary?
17 The Lord has done accordingly as He spoke through me; for the Lord has torn the kingdom out of your hand and given it to your neighbor, to David. 
18 As you did not obey the Lord and did not execute His fierce wrath on Amalek, so the Lord has done this thing to you this day. 
19 Moreover the Lord will also give over Israel along with you into the hands of the Philistines, therefore tomorrow you and your sons will be with me.  Indeed the Lord will give over the army of Israel into the hands of the Philistines!" 

The Word of God does not avoid the 'dark side' (to use a Star Wars reference).  But we must always remember that the Word of God is not Luke Skywalker fighting Darth Vader for control of the universe.  God is in control.  God allows life to play out.  Man choose to disobey and God allowed death to enter into our existance.  God will be glorified by the way, the truth and the life that God chooses and we know His name is Jesus.  If you want to obey God, great!  God is in control.  If you want to disobey God, your choice.  God is still in control. 
Open your bibles to . . .

Luke 16:19-31
19 "Now there was a rich man, and he habitually dressed in purple and fine linen, joyously living in splendor every day. 
20 "And a poor man named Lazarus was laid at his gate, covered with sores, 
21 and longing to be fed with the crumbs which were falling from the rich man's table; besides, even the dogs were coming and licking his sores. 
22 "Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham's bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried. 
23 "In Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom. 
24 "And he cried out and said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.' 
25 "But Abraham said, 'Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony. 
26 'And besides all this, between us and you there is a great chasm fixed, so that those who wish to come over from here to you will not be able, and that none may cross over from there to us.' 
27 "And he said, 'Then I beg you, father, that you send him to my father's house-- 
28 for I have five brothers--in order that he may warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.' 
29 "But Abraham said, 'They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.' 
30 "But he said, 'No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!' 
31 "But he said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.'" 
 

1 Peter 3:18-22
18 For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; 
19 in which also He went and made proclamation to the spirits now in prison, 
20 who once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water. 
21 Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you--not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience--through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 
22 who is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, after angels and authorities and powers had been subjected to Him. 

What do you think happened in the days of Noah when the people saw rain fall for the very first time?  Genesis describes that the world had never had rain fall upon the earth before the flood.  The people had been watching this crazy guy build a huge building/boat for years and years and years.  They had heard Noah preach during that hundred years, but they rejected the message over and over and over.  That is, until the rain came.  The message was beyond their understanding . . . until judgment fell.  When the boat was finished, the people saw all these different animals from all over the world make their way inside that big building/boat.  Think about what the reaction must have been when they looked up and saw an elephant or rhino walking down the road to Noah's house.  I think some of those people repented and died as saved saints trusting in the God of Noah, but they still died in the flood. 

There is a reality to the spiritual world and God tells mankind to leave it alone.  We have the realm of our physical world and the spiritual world has a realm.  Genesis 6:2 describes a situation where the sons of God saw the daughters of men and they took them.  It describes that this produced giants.  Theologians like to go around and around with stuff like this, but I just call it like I see it.  If this was a normal man and a woman, why would it produce a race of giants?  I think this was a situation where the spiritual world encroached upon the physical world and God judged the situation.

I saw a special television presentation that was extremely interesting on the life of dolphins.  Then the show started in on how the dolphin evolved from a wolf.  It was very well produced with great graphics and color.  It showed how the dolphin got rid of his fur coat, grew all these new muscles where he did not have muscles before, he shortened his two front legs and just told his rear legs to go away.  Of course, this took millions and millions and millions and millions of years.  I do not want to be disrespectful of the degree this writer/producer/director has and where he went to school, but that is just stupid. 

It is the same evolution pitch that man evolved from apes (or slime).  Then they justify it by saying that is occurred over millions of years.  Really?  Let us discuss; first, if it occurred over millions of years where is the half wolf/half dolphin or the half man/half ape?  All I see is a fully developed wolf and a fully developed dolphin (or a man and an ape).  The million year process should have left multiple middle versions running around.  Where are they?  Second, why did the giraffe grow a long neck and the ant eater a long nose?  The evolutionist will say that the giraffe wanted to eat from the tall tree so he willed that his neck grow long.  Really?  Why not just climb the tree and evolve into a monkey?  Or, evolve some wings and fly up the tree?  Or, evolve into an organism that does not need anything.  That would solve all the problems.

No, remember Romans 1:20 where God says that "For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse." Mankind knows that God exists, but if man will not accept Genesis then he must create an idol to worship.  Man who deny God just hide it by calling it science. 

Science is suppose to be a systematic method of knowledge.  Science is suppose to be about facts, but today it has been hijacked by a group of people who reject God and choose to display theory as fact to justify their existence.  Evolution of the species has been proven wrong, but it is still published in the public science text book.  Scientists have lost all credibility by presenting their insane theories as scientific fact.  They have actually created a 'non-god' religion although few would admit to it.

Isaiah 47:12-13
12 "Stand fast now in your spells And in your many sorceries With which you have labored from your youth; Perhaps you will be able to profit, Perhaps you may cause trembling. 
13 "You are wearied with your many counsels; Let now the astrologers, Those who prophesy by the stars, Those who predict by the new moons, Stand up and save you from what will come upon you.

In Isaiah 47:9 God describes the great power of sorcery.  It is great compared to man, but not compared to God.  God is in control.  That is why we start this program reading the first book of the law, Genesis, because the theme is that God is in control.  Last week you should have read Hosea.  God told the prophet to marry a whore so that Hosea could get a clear understanding of the message he was to deliver to Israel. God's heart was broken by the lack of love and respect from His people.  Hosea's heart was broken by his wife.  Have you broken God's heart by your lack of faith or your behavior?
Open your bibles to . . .

1 Samuel 15:20-26
20 Then Saul said to Samuel, "I did obey the voice of the Lord, and went on the mission on which the Lord sent me, and have brought back Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.
21 But the people took some of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the choicest of the things devoted to destruction, to sacrifice to the Lord your God at Gilgal." 
22 Samuel said, "Has the Lord as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices As in obeying the voice of the Lord?  Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams.
23 "For rebellion is as the sin of divination, And insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He has also rejected you from being king."
24 Then Saul said to Samuel, "I have sinned; I have indeed transgressed the command of the Lord and your words, because I feared the people and listened to their voice. 
25 Now therefore, please pardon my sin and return with me, that I may worship the Lord." 
26 But Samuel said to Saul, "I will not return with you; for you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel." 

This was the first part of the story that ends with Saul going to the witch to call Samuel from the dead.  To obey is better than sacrifice.  Rebellion is as the sin of divination and insubordination is as idolatry.  WOW.  One of the most often quoted phrases in the old and new testament is fear not.  Saul feared the people and not God.  The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.  We must have a healthy respect for who God is or we too could fall to peer pressure and dishonor ourselves before God.
Open your bibles to . . .

Ezekiel 16:15-29
15 "But you trusted in your beauty and played the harlot because of your fame, and you poured out your harlotries on every passer-by who might be willing. 
16 You took some of your clothes, made for yourself high places of various colors and played the harlot on them, which should never come about nor happen. 
17 You also took your beautiful jewels made of My gold and of My silver, which I had given you, and made for yourself male images that you might play the harlot with them. 
18 Then you took your embroidered cloth and covered them, and offered My oil and My incense before them. 
19 Also My bread which I gave you, fine flour, oil and honey with which I fed you, you would offer before them for a soothing aroma; so it happened," declares the Lord God. 
20 "Moreover, you took your sons and daughters whom you had borne to Me and sacrificed them to idols to be devoured. Were your harlotries so small a matter? 
21 You slaughtered My children and offered them up to idols by causing them to pass through the fire. 
22 Besides all your abominations and harlotries you did not remember the days of your youth, when you were naked and bare and squirming in your blood. 
23 "Then it came about after all your wickedness ('Woe, woe to you!' declares the Lord God), 
24 that you built yourself a shrine and made yourself a high place in every square. 
25 You built yourself a high place at the top of every street and made your beauty abominable, and you spread your legs to every passer-by to multiply your harlotry. 
26 You also played the harlot with the Egyptians, your lustful neighbors, and multiplied your harlotry to make Me angry. 
27 Behold now, I have stretched out My hand against you and diminished your rations. And I delivered you up to the desire of those who hate you, the daughters of the Philistines, who are ashamed of your lewd conduct. 
28 Moreover, you played the harlot with the Assyrians because you were not satisfied; you played the harlot with them and still were not satisfied. 
29 You also multiplied your harlotry with the land of merchants, Chaldea, yet even with this you were not satisfied."'" 

God deals with His people His way.  You and I are not any different from the Israelites.  Verses 20 and 21 above is shocking.  Is it any different in the United States of America with our abortion clinics?  See in verse 27 where the Philistines were ashamed of their lewd conduct.  Is it any different in the United States of America where our media is covered with sex scandals and our cities are covered with topless bars. 

We are all born in sin.  Our sin is like going before the Living God spiritually naked.  Jesus is our spiritual clothing before God.  Jesus is our righteousness.  Just look to Jesus like the Israelites looked at the serpent on the pole after they were bitten.
Open your bibles to . . .

Genesis 35:1-4
1 Then God said to Jacob, "Arise, go up to Bethel and live there, and make an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau." 
2 So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, "Put away the foreign gods which are among you, and purify yourselves and change your garments; 
3 and let us arise and go up to Bethel, and I will make an altar there to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone." 
4 So they gave to Jacob all the foreign gods which they had and the rings which were in their ears, and Jacob hid them under the oak which was near Shechem. 

This should not be a new story for you if you have done your homework.  God told Jacob He would change his name to Israel, but Jacob had to remove the idols from his household first.  God wants to give you His name in Christ, but first you must remove the idols from your house.
Open your bibles to . . .

2 Corinthians 5:18-21
18 Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation,
19 namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. 
20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 
21 He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.