PREVIEW: As Israel’s king, David was concerned with the steady stream of people who were bright enough to work themselves into positions of influence within his government yet lived and acted without regard for the laws of God. He knew that powerful leaders who acknowledged God with their lips but dishonored him by their actions were the ingredients to a recipe that would produce great damage in Israel. You know people like that, too. They’re quite smart, very successful, and uber-magnetic in their personalities, but they live with no thought for God. They act without regard for his moral law, with no consideration of his right to rule their lives, and oblivious to his eternal purposes in this world. They are practical atheists. At times, we, too, are that foolish. We think, plan, and do without giving God the highest consideration. We don’t mean to live that way, yet we neglect to give God his rightful place as Lord and Ruler over all the details of our lives, both big and small. What say we do what Jesus called the early Christians to do who had fallen into that same trap of practical atheism: “Remember the heights from which you have fallen. Repent and do the things you did at first.” Let’s get back to the practice of putting God first in every waking thought we have.
A Journey of Worship // Psalm 14:1
Only fools say in their hearts, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, and their actions are evil; not one of them does good!.”
David is not referring here to the atheist who flat-out denies the existence of God — although we could easily argue the foolishness of such a position. Nor is he speaking of someone who is intellectually challenged. Rather, he is speaking of the person who is morally lacking. That one may even be very bright and believe in God, but for all intents and purposes, live as if God doesn’t exist. That kind of person, in effect, is a practical atheist.
You might find it interesting to know that David referred to such a person more than once in the Psalms. He uses identical language in Psalm 10:4, and in Psalm 53:1, where he actually gives us a clear definition of how the fool lives: “In all his thoughts there is no room for God.”
As king of Israel, David was concerned with the steady stream of people who were bright enough to work themselves into positions of influence within his government yet lived and acted without regard for the laws of God. He knew that powerful leaders who acknowledged God with their lips but dishonored him by their actions were the ingredients to a recipe that would produce great damage in Israel.
You know people like that, and so do I. They are very smart, extremely successful, and perhaps even quite magnetic in their personalities, but they live with no thought for God. They act without regard for his moral law, with no consideration of his right to rule their lives, and oblivious to his eternal purposes in this world. They are practical atheists. In fact, some of these “fools” might even be sitting next to you in church.
You know, I must confess that, at times, I am a fool. I think, plan, and do without giving God the highest consideration. I have a feeling you do too. I don’t mean to live that way; neither do you. I just neglect to give God his rightful place as Lord and Ruler over all the details of my life — both big and small. In that sense, you and I are no different from the type of person David calls the fool. Yet, at some level, we must accept those stinging words as a rebuke to the way we have lived.
So, what say we do what Jesus called some of the early Christians to do who had fallen into that same trap of practical atheism: “Remember the heights from which you have fallen. Repent and do the things you did at first.” (Rev 2:5) In other words, let’s get back to the practice of putting God first in every waking thought we have. Or, as Paul taught in Romans 12:1,
Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it.
That’s what you might call practicing the presence of God. And it is the best antidote to practical atheism.
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