"21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.
24 Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25 They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen" Romans 1: 21-25
As I was reading through Romans this week, something jumped out and grabbed me that I've passed over quite a few times before. In verse 23 Paul says they exchanged the glory of God for images made to look like humans, birds, animals and reptiles. The use of the imagery is reminiscent of Plato's allegory of the cave. Basically, these people were outside of the cave, basking in the light (God's glory) and seeing everything as it truly was, but they exchanged this for the shadow puppets in the bottom of the cave again.
This sounds like a stupid thing to do, right? Well, in all actuality it is a stupid thing to do. Unfortunately it's also a stupid thing that we are all, at one point or another, guilty of. Any time you put something in your life before God, whether it be school, a relationship, work or a hobby, you're exchanging the truth of God's reality for the lies of the world. I don't care if you're Billy Graham, I know for a fact that you have at some point put something before God, and I would venture to say that most of us are there right now. I know it's finals week, and I know you're busy, but remember to keep God before everything this week. Putting him first this week will definitely be uplifting for you, and it will help show how dedicated you are, to God, to yourself and God.
So, what have we learned this semester? Writing blogs is Ben's favorite time of the week? We're all going to miss this class over the break? Plato and Paul can be related? I'm doing this instead of writing my paper? I like to ask too many irrelevant rhetorical questions? All good answers. Tune in next week for another dose of the same nonsensical blogging that you read this week.
P.S. I commented on Treya's blog "Sacrifices"
I never thought to connect verse 23 with the cave, but you are correct. Verse 25 begs me to wonder why I bother so much with the created. What is so enticing about it that calls my focus to the lower things rather than He Himself who makes all things? Is it that right here, right now mindset? Sometimes I struggle with placing Him here with me; I put distance between God and myself.
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