446_Consequences of rejecting God

Psalm 14 The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds;
there is none who does good.

2 The Lord looks down from heaven on the children of man,
to see if there are any who understand,
who seek after God.

3 They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt;
there is none who does good,
not even one.

4 Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers
who eat up my people as they eat bread
and do not call upon the Lord?

5 There they are in great terror,
for God is with the generation of the righteous.
6 You would shame the plans of the poor,
but the Lord is his refuge.

7 Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!
When the Lord restores the fortunes of his people,
let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad.

A man on a hiking trip with his friends stood for a moment, gazing at the starlit sky. He murmured, almost without meaning to himself, “Do you really think all of this just happened by chance?” His question lingered in the cold air like smoke from a dying fire. What followed wasn’t a debate but a deep and honest conversation. What if God is real? And if He is, how should that change our lives?

Such conversations have echoed in every generation. But Scripture declares a sobering truth. This is the jarring line with which Psalm 14 begins. “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” David does not speak here of philosophical atheism, but something far deeper and more dangerous: the practical rejection of God’s presence and authority in our inner lives.

There’s a difference between questioning God’s existence and rejecting Him in our hearts. A questioning heart may still be seeking truth, but a rejecting heart has turned away. And that rejection doesn’t just affect what we think; it shapes our morality, how we live. It produces moral rottenness, in the form of corruption, injustice, and spiritual blindness.

There’s a form of practical atheism that is even more dangerous than theoretical disbelief. If people profess faith in God, take part in religious observances, and pray regularly, yet if their hearts do not revere him and if they do not acknowledge His presence in their everyday choices, they reveal that they are living as though he is absent in this universe.

As Alexander Maclaren said, “To strip Him of His justice and rob Him of His control is the part of a fool. For the Biblical conception of folly is moral perversity rather than intellectual feebleness, and whoever is morally and religiously wrong cannot be in reality intellectually right.” To reject God in our hearts is not merely a philosophical error. It is to become spiritually blind and morally adrift.

This is why David goes on to write, “They are corrupt; their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good.” Without the fear of God, there is no good in man. All noble actions in human life have their source in God alone. Otherwise, our best deeds are tainted by self-interest and pride, rather than love.

Psalm 14 continues, “The Lord looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God. All have turned away, all have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one.” Godlessness is universally linked to moral corruption. Without the fear of God, no man does what is right on his own.

Rejecting God doesn’t always manifest as open defiance. Most commonly, it shows itself in neglect. It reveals itself in the way people drift or push ahead in life without thinking of their duty to God or enquiring his will. They plan their days and their lives, they make their decisions, they pursue their desires. God is nowhere in their hearts or minds. The longer this goes on, the harder the heart becomes. There is no longer any sense of right or wrong.

The godless devour the people of God “as they eat bread”. The ungodly oppress and persecute the righteous to enrich themselves at their cost. Without the fear of God, we no longer see others as God’s image-bearers but as obstacles to be removed for our own advancement, or tools to be exploited for our own profit. Injustice thrives when people no longer believe they are accountable to a higher authority.

Amidst the chaos of widespread injustice and oppression, the eye of faith sees God still and forever on the heavenly throne. He has not turned His face away. He sees. He knows. And He defends the righteous. “They may frustrate the plans of the poor, but the Lord is their refuge.” What a comfort that is! The world may seem out of control, but He is still our protector, still our righteous judge.

The psalm ends with the longing for restoration. “Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion! When the Lord restores the fortunes of his people, let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!” This goes beyond the need for political rescue or material blessing. It is a yearning for spiritual renewal—a hope for the day when God would intervene and restore what has been lost.

And God has answered, in Christ Jesus. Paul quotes these words in Romans 3: “There is no one righteous, not even one. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” No nation or race is righteous by culture or religion. In Christ alone, the ungodly find salvation. They find forgiveness and righteousness through the mercy of God, shown on the cross and at the empty tomb.

The good news is that though we have all, at some point, rejected God in our hearts, and turned aside from his way, he has not rejected us. He still calls us to seek him with our whole heart. He still seeks us, promising, as Jeremiah 29:13 says, “You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.”

Knowing this, let us live constantly and consciously under his authority, deferring in all things to God. Let us live knowing he is present and sovereign in every part of life. Let us not only publicly acknowledge him but also obey him in public and in private. For the one who has faith must also have virtue. Those who have faith must act out what they believe. God bless.

Let us seek God humbly, not to get answers to our intellectual difficulties but to give him our wholehearted and simple trust and obedience. Let us obey the voice of conscience, and walk in righteousness, submitting to his lordship in our hearts and in our lives.

Let us be joyful for God has revealed his salvation from Zion. Jesus Christ will restore the fortunes of his people. He gives us the free gift of righteousness, not because we are good, but because He is. In following him, we inherit eternal life. As Romans 6:23 reminds us, “The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

The consequences of rejecting God are not only future. They are present realities: moral confusion, spiritual emptiness, and broken relationships. But the rewards of seeking Him are life, joy, peace, and the restoration of all that was lost.

Let us reject the ungodliness of the fool. Instead, let us set the Lord always before us, living in the joy of obeying his righteous and perfect will. Thus, walking humbly with our God, he will abide with us, filling our lives with His presence. He is near to those who seek Him. And if we draw near to Him, He will draw near to us.