Romans 1:25 (ESV) because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.

What do you care about? What you care about is what you chase after. Some chase fame, some chase power and some chase wealth. If you care about that certain someone you pursue them.

We have spoken briefly about gifts and taking possession of them for our own agenda. How would you feel if you gave that certain someone a perfect gift and they loved it more than you? God has given us life, a planet, nature, and an abundance of things that are pleasing to us.

This exchanging of truth spoken of in Romans 1:25 takes on a complex array of possibilities. That is not about the truth of God but rather the lie and lies come in a variety of forms. It may begin with there is no God. It might be that God abandoned us. It might be that God is a voyeur who gets enjoyment from watching us suffer. It might be that God is vindictive, harsh, and cruel by nature.

Iy might be that the lie comes in the form of God has given me love for the spotted owl. Anything that takes the focus of our affections away from God is a lie. We do not call those things gods but idol worship isn’t restricted to false gods named of old.

If you are a student of the word you will see that I took Romans 1:25 out of context. There were specific warnings and details upon which the context contains charged emotions within this present age. It is all too easy to take up the gauntlet of judgment and hammer at offenders. Some do just that. The larger point has to be directed at the lies not the offense. The lies result in the offender exchanging the truth of God. It matters not what the lie says, it led to the exchange of affection and that is the problem.

Ephesians 4:8 (ESV) Therefore it says,

“When he ascended on high he led a host of captives,
    and he gave gifts to men.”

The simple view is that all we have to do is follow Jesus and we will be with Him where He is now. That is true and so simple that it fails to uncover what gifts have been given, why they were given, and how to use them. Simply following Jesus is a little more complicated than saying, “He is there and that is where I am going.”

It is complicated because we are complicated. We are not all motivated by one ruling factor. We hide behind masks and build up walls to protect ourselves because the world treats us as enemies or as competitors for control. We are lied to and manipulated. That is the world we live in. It is not God.

Answer this honestly. What do you want? If you are sitting in a Sunday school class you might search for the right spiritual answer. If you are in an economics class in college you will answer in accordance with syllabus for that class. If you are alone with your significant other that question will take on a whole new meaning. If you are in an ethics seminar you will lie. We all have different agendas and we serve those agendas because that was how we were raised in the world.

We are given gifts by God. What gifts are given and how to use them will be answered best in the why. We are given gifts to serve God’s agenda and not our own.

1 Corinthians 12:31a (ESV) But earnestly desire the higher gifts.

The immature will desire out of a heart that grew up in the world and seek to possess the gifts and use them to serve their own agenda. It is a changed heart that seeks to serve God’s agenda without bias or influence from anything or anyone apart from Christ.