Romans 1:28-31 Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. 29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; 31 they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy.

If a person choses to reject knowing God, it will create a vacuum that will be filled with things of this world. Someone or something will be sovereign in our lives. If God is not, then we will fill the vacuum with our own depraved mind. This depravity or bent towards evil appears in the things that Paul lists in these verses. Some of these would be obvious because they are the “big” sins. But others are more subtle and deceptive, such as gossiping and boasting. All of these sins will affect others and destroy relationships. There is no room in such a heart for the things of God will include understanding, fidelity, love, and mercy. This type of person is opposite of Christlikeness. When we run from God, we ruin the image of God in us.

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