INSECURITY - Man's Greatest Stumblingblock

Insecurity originated in the Garden of Eden when man chose to question God’s character (truthfulness, benevolence, sincerity, faithfulness) after listening and giving consideration to suggestions from a lying source.  The questioning led to the choice to believe lies and place their hopes, relationships, and very security in what they attempted to gain for themselves by partaking of the forbidden fruit. 

What they gained was knowledge—God was true and the serpent was a liar.

What they lost was practically everything else—trading open fellowship with God for all the selfish, prideful, angry, fighting, deceptive characteristics of soul which are opposite the nature of God.  Yes, and so much more!

In rebelling against God man gave up the complete security in God that had been his before, and opted for “I will do things my way and take care of myself in a world full of sinful people on a damaged earth.”  This condition fuels the insecurity that drives fear, defensiveness, competition, strife, anger, hatred, greed, hording, pride, materialism, boasting, and an unwillingness to lay all these things aside and fully trust in the benevolence, wisdom, power and promises of our Creator and Savior.

The key question for humans is and always has been, “Who are you going to trust?”

Nothing's Changed

In reading Acts 17, it struck me that what was true of the Athenians in Paul's day is just as true of many Americans in ours.  vs. 21(Now all the Athenians and the strangers visiting there used to spend their time in nothing other than telling or hearing something new.)  The Athenians believed all sorts of things about their various gods, yet were ignorant about the God who created all things and revealed Himself in Jesus and validated His deity by resurrection.  
You'd think that today, with the perspective of 2,000 years of history since Christ, and the impact of Christianity on the world, educated people would realize that the claims of Christ and the message of the Bible are valid and timeless.  The situation raises many issues such as "What is the state of education?" and "Who is really educated?".  Also, "What factors of spiritual blindness and willful disbelief also infect the human condition, hindering belief or adherence to the gospel?"  There are complexities to the matter, to be sure.  But on the surface it seems ironic that 2,000 years ago people were just as fascinated and preoccupied with "the latest thing" as people today with new apps and technological toys or with New Age ideologies and theories about the meaning of life and what happens after death.  Apart from gaining the knowledge of the One who is the Way, the Truth and the Life, mankind continues to simply spin his wheels through history.  "ever learning, but never able to come to the knowledge of the truth" 2nd Timothy 3:7