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Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 3:16-20

DECEIVING OURSELVES (2)

Intro.

1.  We are under Christ's warning to not be deceived & devoured by sin - 1 Pet. 5:8-9.

2.  Part 1 studied various sources of deception we must know & avoid.

3.  Among the most tragic & dangerous deceptions we must know & avoid is when we deceive ourselves.

  a.  "No man was ever so much deceived by another as by himself." (Greville)

  b.  "To be deceived by our enemies or betrayed by our friends in insupportable; yet by ourselves we are often content to be so treated."   (Francois, Duc De La Rochefoucauld)

4.  It is extremely difficult to overcome, demanding honest & thorough examination of one's own heart & life - 2 Cor. 13:5.

5.  We deceive ourselves…

 

I.  BY THINKING TOO HIGHLY OF OUR OWN WISDOM - 1 Cor. 3:18-19.

  A.  The Problem Of Pride - Prov. 3:5-7; 26:12; Isa. 5:21 (Rom. 12:3, 16).

    1.  Must distinguish between opinion & truth.

    2.  "Everyone is entitled to my opinion!"

  B.  Trusting That We Know Better Than God - cf. Jer. 37:9-10.

    1.  Man's profession of wisdom shows his ignorance - Rom. 1:21-23.

    2.  One must become "foolish" (humbly recognize his limitations) to be wise (approved by God) - 1 Cor. 3:18.

    3.  True of one's religious life, too! - Jer. 10:23; Prov. 16:25.

 

II.  BY BEING ONLY HEARERS OF GOD'S WORD - Jas. 1:22-25.

  A.  Only Those Who Do God's Will Are Saved - Matt. 7:21-27.

    1.  Yes, we must hear the word of God to be saved - Lk. 8:12.

    2.  But we must also obey the gospel we hear! - Lk. 6:46; Heb. 5:9

      a.  "Faith only" will not save (Jas. 2:24).

      b.  "Direct operation of HS" will not save (Acts 10:47-48).

      c.  Just living a "good, moral life" will not save (Acts 11:14).

      d.  Not living a faithful Christian life will not save (Rom. 12:1-2; Lk. 6:46).

  B.  If We Think Obedience Is A Burden, We Are Deceiving Ourselves! - 1 Jno. 5:3; 2:5.

    1.  Is it a burden to worship God? - cf. Mal. 1:12-14

    2.  Is it a burden to put God first? - cf. Neh. 13:15-17

 

III.  BY SAYING WE HAVE NO SIN - 1 Jno. 1:8 (Rom. 3:23).

  A.  When We Say That "Sin Is Not Really Sin." (redefine sin - disease, different lifestyle, man's opinion, etc.)

  B.  When We Live As If "Ignorance Is Bliss" - Lk. 12:48.

  C.  When We Think We Can Sin & Get By With It - Gal. 6:7-8; Deut. 29:19-20.

 

IV.  BY THINKING WE ARE STRONGER THAN WE ARE - Gal. 6:3.

  A.  We Need To Keep A Humble Heart About The Power Of Sin's Temptations - cf. Col. 3:12; Rom. 12:16.

    1.  "How could anyone ever do that?!" "I would never commit that sin!"  (Pride is a deceiver! - Obadiah 3)

    2.  Shows that we have under-estimated the strength of sin & over-estimated our ability to resist temptation!

  B.  When We Become Over-Confident In Our Spiritual Strength, We Are Ready To Fall - 1 Cor. 10:12; Mk. 14:27-31.

 

V.  BY NOT CONTROLLING OUR TONGUES - Jas. 1:26.

  A.  Worshippers Of God Deceive Themselves This Way - Jas. 1:16.

     -James has already shown Christians that hearing w/o doing is of no profit, now he shows that doing w/o controlling one's tongue makes one's worship vain!

  B.  Misuse Of The Tongue Is A Widespread Problem Among Us! - Jas. 3:2-8

    1.  False teaching - Jas. 3:1.

    2.  Expressions of bitterness & malice - Jas. 3:10 (Eph. 4:31).

    3.  Profanity - Eph. 5:29.

    4.  Gossip - "rumor or report of an intimate nature…a person who habitually reveals personal or sensational facts about others."   (Merriam-Webster) - Prov. 20:19

    5.  Backbiting - secret speech intended to belittle, defame & destroy - Prov. 16:28.

    6.  Jas. 3:10 - Be warned! These things should not happen!

 

Conclusion

1.  We are all targets of Satan, the great deceiver (Rev. 12:9).

2.  We must be strong in the strength of the Lord to not deceive ourselves! - Eph. 6:10

 

-Adapted from SELF-DECEPTION, David J. Riggs