“And especially those who walk according to the flesh in the lust of uncleanness and despise authority. They are presumptuous, self-willed. They are not afraid to speak evil of dignitaries.”
They are presumptuous
“Presumptuous” means bold, daring. These people shamelessly dare to fly in the face of God’s authority. They dare His truth to have any effect on them. These people are “bold” because they carry no shame. They are audacious people and are particularly arrogant. They are so dominated by self-interest that they bold over divine authority.
These people so overvalue their own issues that they do not honor matters pertaining to the divine. They are totally heedless of God. They have no dread of divine judgment. They are so bold as to challenge or even defy the danger of God’s actions upon them; they are fearless toward God’s authority.
PRINCIPLE:
Presumption precludes people from finding God’s truth.
APPLICATION:
Presumptuous people have confidence in their worldview without adequate knowledge to make ultimate decisions. These people can be brazen or bold in the bad sense. They take undue liberties (not freedoms) with the Word of God. They fly in the face of God’s authority. They presume to know more than what God knows, making them autonomous from the divine viewpoint.
A plumber cannot tell a brain surgeon how to remove a tumor from the brain. Today many people give their opinion on how to arrive at the truth, especially how to get to heaven. Their opinion is irrelevant because they are not the ultimate authority on getting to heaven. Television shows and social media are filled with ignorant people giving answers to things they know nothing about. If we come to God, we must come in God’s way. We must come to the cross and there find forgiveness for our sins. There we will receive pardon and a guarantee of eternal life. We can no more tamper with the gospel than with the multiplication table.
Beware of half-truths; you may have gotten hold of the wrong half! It is twice as hard to crush a half-truth as a whole lie.
