Corrupted or Uncorrupted?

“But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.” – 2 Corinthians 11:3

Complexity seems to be a trademark of humanity; well, of Western Civilization at the very least.  Let us leave off the fail safe examples for now, all the talk of “my smartphone makes me feel stupid” and “why does the faceplate of my microwave resemble the inside of a NASA space craft?”  True, we live in a busy, complicated, clutter filled world; and certainly the “cares of this world and deceitfulness of riches will choke the Word and become unfruitful.”  This is a danger indeed that every Christian must vigilantly guard against; however as the scripture notes, the guard against this comes not from without, but from within.  The corruption, complication, confusion will first take place in the mind.

When reading through Paul’s letters to the Corinthians one can begin to deduce that Paul had some theological opposition.  In short, there were some that were coming in and preaching what he was not.  In my opinion, the problem must have been fairly serious or Paul would not have bothered to address it.  In doing so, he wisely (and thankfully for my understanding) brings in the example of Eve in the Garden of Eden.  Adam and Eve had but one commandment in the garden: “do not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.”  Satan corrupted that commandment in Eve’s mind; he convinced her that the implications of disobedience were not what God said they would be.  Furthermore, he applied to her humanity in promising that they will be “as gods.”  Until their fall, Adam and Eve lived a simple and pleasant life; walking and communing with God the Father.  The maintaining of their fellowship was a simple task; requiring only love and obedience.  Satan complicated that task in their minds, and once they sinned; the complication and confusion only increase in their lives.  It was no different in Paul’s day, and the same is true for us.  Only now, and in the day of Paul writing, the corruption was facilitated by an instrument of Satan, but Satan none the less.  Someone, somewhere, attempt to convince and persuade those who are/were serving God, according to the gospel of Jesus, to renounce their ways.  This could be done “by any means.”

The world (and the devices in it) today is no different than the false prophets and teachers of old.  Their sermon to the masses is preached in many a different forum and fashion, but the crux of it is essential the same.  That sermon is this; you are the master of your own life.  It appeals to lust & pride; we find it in: movies, television, music, magazines.  We find it in others, and unless Jesus Christ reigns on the throne of your heart, we find it in ourselves.  The church of YOU is organized, aggressive, evangelistic, and outspoken.  They shout the loudest and the longest, but at its core, it is empty.  Choosing to be a disciple of this church may seem like the easy road, but the contrary is true, it is complicated and difficult.  It is filled with darkness, depression, despair, and hopelessness; brought about as a result of all kinds of bad choices.  These choices are ones that you made, because, you thought you could be the master of your own life.  You thought you could own sin, but sin owned you.  The only power that can banish sin out of the human heart is Jesus Christ.

The simple fact is this; no one of us can master our own life better than Jesus Christ.  We each one are born in sin.  True, this sin can rule you, define you, and destroy you, but it does not have to be that way.  Jesus Christ died for you, he loved you, and he wants to take away sin in your life.  You can repent, God will forgive.  You can commit to serve him all the balance of your days, and Jesus will help you to do so. I cannot, but with Jesus Christ, I can.  Jesus Christ changes lives.  I was once a sinner, but Christ called me, forgave me, and sanctified me.  Jesus Christ changed my life, and he can change yours too.  This simplicity should never be corrupted.