Sin begets more sin. That is the effect of sin. It cannot produce anything good, but more sin. Anything "good" it might produce, is not "good", but rotten fruit that looks good on the outside, but inside it is rotting, and dying. The 'good' it might produce may be, for example, something like the ban on pornography by earthly secular law. This may seem good on the outside to the follower of Christ. If it is based on evil underlying principles, and doctrines of demons, such as that pornography should be prohibited because breaks down human relationships, rather than because it is evil per se, a fleshly means of reasoning, this deceptively 'good fruit' is actually bad fruit.
Sin encourages more sin. Sin has not only the power of death and destruction to it, and the power of corruption. It has the power of enslavement. Those who are under the power of sin, in the case of the unsaved, or still struggling with a particular sin, in the case of the saved, will not be able to see the power of enslavement. Rather, they will think that when they sin, in the case of the unsaved, or fall into a particular sin on a besetting basis, in the case of the save, they think that because what they are doing is legitimate, they are not enslaved in anyway. Therein lies the deceptiveness of sin, which enslaves those under it. Indeed, behind every sin is deception. John 8:31-32 makes it clear that the truth, which can only be found in Jesus Christ who defeated sin and death, will set a person free:
Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
Many in the modern western Church do not even realise that indebtedness is enslavement, in and of itself. Of all people, the Church should know that, and only the Church, because she is walking in the light, which cleanses a person from all sins: But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin (1 John 1:7).
Why is it that so many in the modern western Church do not realise that indebtedness is enslavement to mammon? Because they are under the spirit of mammon. That is why they find it so hard to even understand that usury is, let alone that usury is truly a sin. In doing so, they are perverting the Words of Christ when it made it very very clear that "No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon" (Matthew 6:24). To pervert the Words of Christ is not only to have a low view of His Words. To even think about perverting His words it itself to call Him a liar. It is vile, despicable, disgusting arrogance, to think one knows better than Him.
You may say that you could not have a low view of Christ's Words because you are a true follower of Christ. You may still try to argue that such people are not true followers of Christ. To even doubt His Word on any point and find it hard to accept, even to the slightest, is itself to have a low view of Christ's Words. If you find any concept of the Word of God hard to accept in your heart, that is exactly what it means to have a low view of the Word of God. If you are fearful of proclaiming any, not some, or most, but any truth of the Word of God, you are ashamed of Him.
Instead of accepting that usury itself is a vile sin and admitting that they are trying to serve money, that claim that it is wrong to love money, but that usury is not wrong. What vile liars! What vile hypocrisy! Any person who says it is wrong to love money, but yet argue that usury is not wrong is a liar and a hypocrite. For usury itself is the love of money. To even think that usury is to be tolerated, or to even think of making any qualifications to the truth that usury is sin, is itself to love money. End of story.
What makes usury evil is that it offends God, and that alone, for only God defines truth and it truth itself (John 14:6). It offends God because charging usury is the epitome of loving mammon. Usury, however, is not only the love of mammon. It encourages others to love mammon, for it is of the spirit of mammon. The spirit behind usury seduces the usurer to tempt others to get into debt, for his own selfish, heartless, cold-blooded gain. Such is indeed the way of the modern bank. The modern bank profits of the indebtedness, or slavery to debt. It loves to get others indebted, for that is how it makes it profits by usury.
Usury is not merely materialism. It is far more than that. It is not only the love of money itself, but that which seduces others into the love of money through debt.
Sin encourages more sin. Sin has not only the power of death and destruction to it, and the power of corruption. It has the power of enslavement. Those who are under the power of sin, in the case of the unsaved, or still struggling with a particular sin, in the case of the saved, will not be able to see the power of enslavement. Rather, they will think that when they sin, in the case of the unsaved, or fall into a particular sin on a besetting basis, in the case of the save, they think that because what they are doing is legitimate, they are not enslaved in anyway. Therein lies the deceptiveness of sin, which enslaves those under it. Indeed, behind every sin is deception. John 8:31-32 makes it clear that the truth, which can only be found in Jesus Christ who defeated sin and death, will set a person free:
Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
Many in the modern western Church do not even realise that indebtedness is enslavement, in and of itself. Of all people, the Church should know that, and only the Church, because she is walking in the light, which cleanses a person from all sins: But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin (1 John 1:7).
Why is it that so many in the modern western Church do not realise that indebtedness is enslavement to mammon? Because they are under the spirit of mammon. That is why they find it so hard to even understand that usury is, let alone that usury is truly a sin. In doing so, they are perverting the Words of Christ when it made it very very clear that "No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon" (Matthew 6:24). To pervert the Words of Christ is not only to have a low view of His Words. To even think about perverting His words it itself to call Him a liar. It is vile, despicable, disgusting arrogance, to think one knows better than Him.
You may say that you could not have a low view of Christ's Words because you are a true follower of Christ. You may still try to argue that such people are not true followers of Christ. To even doubt His Word on any point and find it hard to accept, even to the slightest, is itself to have a low view of Christ's Words. If you find any concept of the Word of God hard to accept in your heart, that is exactly what it means to have a low view of the Word of God. If you are fearful of proclaiming any, not some, or most, but any truth of the Word of God, you are ashamed of Him.
Instead of accepting that usury itself is a vile sin and admitting that they are trying to serve money, that claim that it is wrong to love money, but that usury is not wrong. What vile liars! What vile hypocrisy! Any person who says it is wrong to love money, but yet argue that usury is not wrong is a liar and a hypocrite. For usury itself is the love of money. To even think that usury is to be tolerated, or to even think of making any qualifications to the truth that usury is sin, is itself to love money. End of story.
What makes usury evil is that it offends God, and that alone, for only God defines truth and it truth itself (John 14:6). It offends God because charging usury is the epitome of loving mammon. Usury, however, is not only the love of mammon. It encourages others to love mammon, for it is of the spirit of mammon. The spirit behind usury seduces the usurer to tempt others to get into debt, for his own selfish, heartless, cold-blooded gain. Such is indeed the way of the modern bank. The modern bank profits of the indebtedness, or slavery to debt. It loves to get others indebted, for that is how it makes it profits by usury.
Usury is not merely materialism. It is far more than that. It is not only the love of money itself, but that which seduces others into the love of money through debt.
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