AIDS is not a blessing, right? No, it's a curse! It's a curse on rebellion toward God. The sin of Sodom and Gomorrah is commonly taught as being homosexuality. THAT IS NOT WHAT GOD DESTROYED THEM FOR, although it was practiced, as were many other sins. Look what the Word of God says in Ezekiel 16:49-50, "NOW THIS WAS THE SIN OF YOUR SISTER SODOM: SHE AND HER DAUGHTERS WERE ARROGANT, OVERFED AND UNCONCERNED: THEY DID NOT HELP THE POOR AND NEEDY. THEY WERE HAUGHTY AND DID DETESTABLE THINGS BEFORE ME. THEREFORE I DID AWAY WITH THEM AS YOU HAVE SEEN."

God destroyed Sodom because she was ARROGANT, OVERFED, and UNCONCERNED. They did not help the poor and needy, is that what your Bible says? What a picture of a PROUD and BRAGGING (arrogant), COMFORTABLE (overfed), and SELFISH (unconcerned) people! These people are a picture for us today. So much of what's called church today is guilty of exactly the same sins that destroyed Sodom!

I knew a young man who recently died of AIDS. Let me share with you that this sin of Sodom is in the church today and she is contracting SPIRITUAL AIDS. AIDS means, ACQUIRED IMMUNE DEFICIENCY SYNDROME. Let's look at this a little closer.

ACQUIRED, first of all, obviously, to have AIDS it must start somewhere. ACQUIRED means to gain for one's self through one's actions or efforts. ROMANS 8:5, Paul tells us, "THOSE WHO LIVE ACCORDING TO THE SINFUL NATURE HAVE THEIR MINDS SET ON WHAT THAT NATURE DESIRES; BUT THOSE WHO LIVE IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE SPIRIT HAVE THEIR MINDS SET ON WHAT THE SPIRIT DESIRES. "Not only did Sodom start this way, but so did the young man who died with AIDS, the mind was set on the flesh. In the case of Sodom and this young man, they both were destroyed by what they had ACQUIRED. It started with their minds set on FLESHLY THINGS, SELFISH AMBITION, FLESHLY PLEASURE, and ENTERTAINMENT. How does PRIDE fit in here? Easy, the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God. It does not submit to God's law (Word), Romans 8:7. That's pride and arrogance, do your own thing, make God one of your idols!

Some churches, have turned into a playground, a carnival, a three ring circus! It has everything but, the POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. It draws its members like a spider does its prey. It presents a pretty package, (THE WEB), easy gospel, plenty of activities and comfort, (HERE'S YOUR OVERFED PEOPLE), although nothing but death and destruction await them!

This is ACQUIRED through the lust of the flesh. They become IMMUNE which means, EXEMPT FROM, i.e. certain illnesses, etc. only in this case Sodom was immune to the ways of God, to obedience to true grace! Look what the Word says in Titus 2:11-15, concerning TRUE GRACE!

"FOR THE GRACE OF GOD THAT BRINGS SALVATION HAS APPEARED TO ALL MEN. IT TEACHES US TO SAY "NO" TO UNGODLINESS AND WORLDLY PASSIONS AND TO LIVE SELF CONTROLLED, UPRIGHT AND GODLY LIVES IN THIS PRESENT AGE, WHILE WE WAIT FOR THE BLESSED HOPE - THE GLORIOUS APPEARING OF OUR GREAT GOD AND SAVIOR, JESUS CHRIST WHO GAVE HIMSELF FOR US TO REDEEM US FROM ALL WICKEDNESS AND TO PURIFY FOR HIMSELF A PEOPLE THAT ARE HIS VERY OWN EAGER TO DO WHAT IS GOOD. THESE, THEN ARE THE THINGS YOU SHOULD TEACH. ENCOURAGE AND REBUKE WITH ALL AUTHORITY. DO NOT LET ANYONE DESPISE YOU.

In the case of the young man with AIDS, he was "EXEMPT" from all help, (MEDICALLY SPEAKING THERE IS NO CURE). Paul says in Galatians 5:4, "YOU WHO ARE TRYING TO BE JUSTIFIED BY LAW HAVE BEEN ALIENATED FROM CHRIST: YOU HAVE FALLEN AWAY FROM GRACE"

The heart with SPIRITUAL AIDS is not only a proud, arrogant heart with the mind set on the pleasures of the flesh, but it's a heart who thinks it is being justified or pardoned by it's works, (LAW). In other words they may PROCLAIM their saved by grace through faith, saved by the blood through faith, but this is really only PRESUMPTION on their part to believe God will save them while they PRACTICE the sins of the flesh and call their walk faith! They have, according to Paul, FALLEN FROM GRACE! He's not saying here that they have lost their salvation, (ALTHOUGH IF THIS LIFESTYLE CONTINUES THEY WILL). He's saying here they are RESISTING the true grace of God to say NO to ALL ungodliness, they are not obeying the Word of God which only His grace can enable us to do. They, because of their selfish hearts, have fallen away from the grace of God it takes to walk in love and keep His commands. They are caught in this "WEB" of works (LAW), PERFORMING, DOING, BUILDING, running helter-skelter to serve God, and really NOT coming into fullness and obeying Him with a whole heart. Somehow hoping and thinking that all they are "DOING" is gaining them "APPROVAL" with God. Thus, they are "IMMUNE" to the power of the Holy Spirit and deceived in their hearts thinking they're helping God out.

This kind of walk brings a "DEFICIENCY." The dictionary calls it a DEFICIENCY DISEASE, an illness due to an insufficiency of one or more essential nutrients. IN II PETER 1:3-4, Peter tells us we need not be "DEFICIENT," "HIS DIVINE POWER HAS GIVEN US EVERYTHING WE NEED FOR LIFE AND GODLINESS THROUGH OUR KNOWLEDGE OF HIM WHO CALLED US BY HIS OWN GLORY AND GOODNESS. THROUGH THESE HE HAS GIVEN US HIS VERY GREAT AND PRECIOUS PROMISES, SO THAT THROUGH THEM YOU MAY PARTICIPATE IN THE DIVINE NATURE AND ESCAPE THE CORRUPTION IN THE WORLD CAUSED BY EVIL DESIRES." Notice verse four, this true grace of God, his divine power, is given for a reason! Does your Bible say it is so you may participate in the divine nature of Jesus and escape the corruption of the world caused by evil desires? Does your Bible say CORRUPTION comes by evil desires?

This SPIRITUAL AIDS brings a DEFICIENCY. This heart set on fleshly desires, selfish desires, not loving, really loving their neighbor or God with a whole heart, it lacks the "essential nutrients," LOVE, MERCY, LONGSUFFERING, COMPASSION, WISDOM, DISCERNMENT. Without true discernment how will you know whether or not you're being led astray? Without the essential nutrients, "THE WORD OF GOD," we become weak as the world, no power, no energy, EXCEPT AFTER THE FLESH, and we become susceptible to the attacks of the enemy. Sadly the word preached in most pulpits today is nothing more than a SERMONETTE, twenty five or thirty minutes of men's opinions and levity. A light hearted message, not too demanding, after all that may offend someone. They may leave, their tithe is gone, our numbers are down and we can't boast and brag about how many we had last Sunday!

The pastors of these PLAYHOUSE CHURCHES are not the sole blame. They are only giving a fleshly, carnal congregation what their wicked hearts really desire, PRIDE, COMFORT, EASE, UNCARING. These are the symptoms of the heart with SPIRITUAL AIDS.

The next word is SYNDROME, it means a group of symptoms that together are a characteristic of a specific condition or disease. Again, PRIDE, LUST, GREED, GOSSIP, BOASTING, ARROGANCE, SELFISH AMBITION, FALSE FLATTERY, USING PEOPLE, and MANIPULATION, these are only a FEW of the symptoms of the heart with SPIRITUAL AIDS.

Let's look back for a moment, first of all these symptoms were ACQUIRED by the mind set on the flesh. This heart is IMMUNE to the truth in the Word of God concerning holiness and righteousness and to the true walk of covenant with God. This brings a DEFICIENCY into their life, they lack the power of the Holy Spirit so their walk and activities are done in the energy or arm of the flesh. Fleshly achievements for God, (LAW), instead of walking in love and obeying God's Word. This leads back to SYNDROME, thus the person or church body with SPIRITUAL AIDS has the symptoms of the lost sinner in the world and gets angry when confronted with the truth.

Jesus said in John 3:19-21, "This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God."

Whenever the truth is presented to the evil heart it brings an anger inside. When evil deeds are exposed by the true light, the Word of God, the heart with Spiritual Aids wants to flee, to run, to get BUSY ON ANOTHER PROJECT. This is one way to avoid the heart being exposed and sin being dealt with. So there you have it! Do you have it? SPIRITUAL AIDS, I mean?

If your heart is more caught up in what you're doing for God, rather than a love relationship with God, it's one sign of SPIRITUAL AIDS. If you're too preoccupied with self or even so called CHURCH ACTIVITIES that you neglect the poor, (in spirit), and needy, (in spirit), like Sodom, this too is a symptom of SPIRITUAL AIDS. if your idea of walking with a Holy God is to be always comfortable, to bring the WORLD into the church and make it a PLAYHOUSE, A DEN OF ROBBERS, and presume on God because you prayed some magical prayer of salvation, but God really doesn't have ALL your heart and life, you have SPIRITUAL AIDS, and it is destroying far more than the AIDS my young friend died from.

By the way, this young man gave his WHOLE HEART to Jesus some months before he died of AIDS. He loved God so much he was carried into church on a mat some Sundays and some of the prayer meetings as well! It wasn't easy, sometimes he would throw up during the service and people had to tend to him and clean up his mess. They were showing the character of the Lamb, Jesus. Walking in true love toward their neighbor. There was hope for this young man, he found true deliverance in Jesus. Not muttering some prayer, but coming into a glorious love relationship with God.

There is also hope for you, if you have SPIRITUAL AIDS. Your only hope is found in Jesus, as well. Not in some fun time gospel or some RELIGIOUS FORM without true power to walk in covenant with God. But, giving Jesus your WHOLE HEART, crying out to him to bring you into his perfect love and will for you. To repent of your sins, walk in love and turn from ALL appearance of evil. There is a great hope, but if you continue to sit in church or in the bar room, and reject the truth of the gospel of Jesus... "THAT WITHOUT HOLINESS NO ONE WILL SEE THE LORD," (Heb 12:14), and live like Sodom, pride, arrogant, comfortable, selfish, etc., you will die with SPIRITUAL AIDS with the same end as Sodom. COME TO JESUS! HE'S THE GREAT PHYSICIAN!