Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things.

Philippians 3:19

Some questions are obvious, but they still really matter. Even to the point where you need to stop and think about them, I mean really think! Here is one we quickly rush past far too often: Do you believe the scriptures are trustworthy and true? Do they accurately portray life the way it actually is?

It all depends, right?

If someone is not a Christian, the Bible is like a crapshoot. It often seems to be as accurate as the last fortune cookie they ate at the local all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet. If someone is a casual Christian, where they were raised in the church but don’t have Christ, they will say the scriptures are wonderful if they make a person feel good or promise rewards. But if the Bible meddles too much in my personal affairs it needs to go back up on the shelf, look nice, and stay shut.

But if you are a true follower of Jesus you know he has chosen primarily to work through his word…so yes, the scriptures accurately portray life as it is. But are you sure? Because not every Christian feels that way.

I ask this because there is one topic the scriptures are very clear on, you can’t miss it. But because of our current political culture, one which worships tolerance and inclusion, many Christians have neglected this vital teaching altogether. That teaching is of course “the depravity of man.”

The “depravity of man” teaches that all human beings have inherited a sin nature from our father Adam. Romans 5:12 says, “Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned.” All people sin. That means everyone is broken, rebellious, and prone to “leave the God they love.” Sin isn’t a mistake or an unintended accident, it is a part of our nature which views God and his word with animosity. We don’t want him around. As a result of sin, “our hearts are deceitful above all things and desperately wicked.” (Jeremiah 17:9)

So in practical terms, that means “none of us are righteous, no not one.” Without help from God, we will do all we can to scheme, lie, cheat, steal to be on top. Narcissism drives us.

People do not like to hear this because we all want others to see us in a favorable light. The popular notion, more like universal delusion, is that humans, by nature, are good. When I first entered the ministry I was a bible teacher in downtown Chicago at a church with very rich congregants. They all worked in Chicago’s Loop as lawyers, advertising executives, and accountants. Needless to say, they thought very highly of themselves. While we were studying Romans we came upon 7:21-24 which says:

“So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death?”

So I asked the people in the study: After reading this, do you think that mankind in general, is by nature good or bad? The majority said, “Good. People are good.” I was shocked! Not only is that a terrible reading of Romans 7, but it strips the cross of all meaning. I tried to press this point with them by asking, “If mankind is good, then why did Jesus need to die?” They had no answer.

Jesus had to die because depravity has wrecked all of us.

But this is a terrible truth to admit. So we try to hide. No one wants to be considered a “wretched man” or woman for that matter. And the way people hide is by putting on a “cloak of immunity”. A cloak is a metaphorical garment that is meant to cover. Immunity means “free of condemnation.” So people try to put on a cover to hide their guilt and shame. If I can get a person to only see my cloak, and not my heart, I can carry on in the delusion of goodness, and I don’t have to admit my need for the cross.

If I can convince you I am a good person, I will continue to scheme, lie, cheat, and steal. The “cloak of immunity” is a powerful weapon that people have used so deftly that they start to believe this cloak is really who they are. And if they really believe themselves to be good, they no longer have to change. They can live in their badness while still thinking they are actually righteous.

For years, the bleached white cloak of cultural Christianity has been used the most by people to cover their depravity. Church, organ music, stained glass windows, polished shoes, and lit candles are powerful tools to keep the delusion of goodness alive and well. But since the 60’s the cloak has gotten soiled and it no longer covers like it used to.

Religious hypocrisy has become a target of hatred ever since the boomer generation started growing up. Many of their culturally Christian parents were quick to divorce and find meaning in addictions to wealth and prosperity. As a result, it is now cool for the younger generations to turn against church, with good reason. They have realized just because someone goes to church, or wears a cross, or sings songs with Jesus in it, doesn’t mean a person is good.

So cultural Christianity has lost a great deal of respect. People are leaving the church left and right. You could say that the cloak of cultural Christianity no longer offers immunity because it has been found moth-ridden and torn to shreds.

So to hide our depravity we must find new cloaks of immunity to wear. I believe our culture has found three:

1. The Camouflage Military Cloak: Recently I was at my son’s graduation and they had a time in the service to clap for students from different groups when they were asked to stand: Athletes, Band Members, Drama, Eagle Scouts, and Top Ten Students. And then they asked for those students who were going into the military to stand. The crowd went wild. Soldiers are the new saints of our culture. If a person goes into service, we are to look at them as shining white knights of righteousness. Yes, I am grateful for the men and women who sacrifice, but that does not make them righteous. In fact, sometimes the military is a perfect place to exercise wretchedness, (ie: Abu Ghraib). We need to see that waging Holy War is the heresy of the Islamic Jihadist. War should not be something to celebrate but to avoid. And we should never rush into a life of military service so we are seen in the glow of glamourous moral good. War is only a dreadful necessity to keep the world safe and evil at bay. If you think warfare is glorious to read about the War of Antietam. What a tragic waste of human life.
2. The Pink Female Cloak: Are women really morally better than men? Honestly? That is the whole reason I wrote: “2085: The Rise & Fall of The Sisters” to show that depravity has passed on to females too! Recently Pete Buttigieg was asked during a presidential town hall about what he would do as president to protect reproductive rights. He said, “I think the dialogue has gotten so caught up on when you draw the line on life that we’ve gotten away from the fundamental question of who gets to draw the line. And I trust women to draw the line.” Do you see what he is subtly saying? Women will make the right choice primarily because they are women. So is moral goodness a matter of biology? Is the “y” chromosome the vehicle that transfers the depravity? I know how our world will answer, “It isn’t a matter of biology but of personal choice. When a woman is pregnant it is their body and they should get to choose what to do with their body.” But if you are a Christian, and the scriptures are an accurate telling of reality, then you should see that pregnancy is another person’s life. We need to see motherhood as a unique responsibility given to women by God. Being able to have a baby (aka: fetus) is a great calling given to the woman by God. It is not a burden. Let me give you an example. One day I was working on a moving crew and we had to move a whole dining room of a wife’s expensive china. Her husband put me in charge because I was older than the other guys and he said, “I trust you to treat such expensive china with the utmost care. It costs a fortune.” Did he give me this job because he wanted to punish me? No! He gave me the job because he trusted me. That is what the job of a woman is like from God. Carrying a baby in the womb is a huge responsibility. Yes, it takes a while, 9 months, for a baby to form in the womb. But just think what the result of waiting 9 months produces? A human being made in the image of God! What a massive honor it is to be trusted to bear a child. God chooses women because they alone have been uniquely designed to care for and carry a baby. Did God allow a woman to be pregnant because he wants to punish them? No! He gives the woman the job of a mother because he trusts them to be the caretaker of his priceless gift. How in the world did we get to the point where giving the woman the right to choose to kill that baby (abort) is now seen as a morally righteous and compassionate choice? Pete Buttigieg is not a nice guy, he is dangerous Wormtongue!  He speaks like he is so caring and yet his smooth words are laced with poison.
3.  The Rainbow Queer Cloak: Here is where we are the most confused and duped. Being Gay, Transgendered and Gender Fluid is not a sign you are a morally good person, it is merely a designation of how you want to play dress-up or who you like to sleep with. Why is someone better than another simply because they now want to wear a dress, high heels or sleep with someone of the same sex? The general answer is because a person is being their true-self. (This is the antithesis of hypocrisy that we said earlier is the new target of hatred). But that fine sounding, culturally enlightened sentiment is not necessarily true. The Bible, if you believe it is accurate, says many of those choices are born from a debased and narcissistic perversion where wrong has become right. Let us all be honest: Allowing your 10-year-old son to dress like a drag queen is idiotic and wrong!!!! We use to say that was sick, now we say that is the freedom of expression. What happened to the parent who would do anything they could to protect their children from thinking twisted thoughts and becoming the object of lust driven exploiters of children? Don’t you know that your son or daughter needs a place to grow up without the confusion of sexual experimentation? Haven’t you read the research that shows how screwing with hormones warp healthy thinking?

“But Chris, you don’t know how people mistreat the transgendered?” That is not an argument for allowing people to think they are good when they are still under the clutches of depravity. It is always wrong to mock and belittle others. Every Christian knows we need to extend kindness and compassion. My argument, however, is about this false “cloak of immunity” that LGBTQ advocates are trying to sell the world. You are not good because someone mocked you. You are not good because you can experiment. You are not good because you can put on a new color of lipstick.

So then, what makes a person good?

There is another cloak out there. The righteousness of Christ. If you put that on, then and only then, can you claim that God is finally pleased with you! “For he has made him sin for us, who knew no sin so that we can be the righteousness of God in him.” 2 Corinthians 5:21