Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 3:18-23
Deceiving Ourselves
(Part 2)
Intro.
1. Christ warns us not to be deceived and devoured, 1 Pet. 5:8-9.
2. Part 1: Sources of deception we must know and avoid.
3. Among the most tragic and dangerous deceptions we must know and avoid is when we deceive ourselves. “No man was ever so much deceived by another as by himself.” (Greville)
4. It is extremely difficult to overcome self-deception. Demands honest and thorough examination of our hearts/lives, 2 Cor. 13:5.
5. We deceive ourselves…
I. BY THINKING TOO HIGHLY OF OUR 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 and truth.
2. “Everyone is entitled to my opinion!”
B. Trusting 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; 17:9; Prov. 16:25.
II. BY BEING HEARERS AND NOT DOERS OF GOD’S WORD, James 1:22-25.
A. Only those Who Do God’s Will be Saved, Matt. 7:21-27.
1. Yes, we must hear the word of God to be saved, Luke 8:12.
2. But we must also obey the gospel we hear, Luke 6:46; Heb. 5:9.
a. “Faith only” will not save (James 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; Luke 6:46).
B. We are Deceiving Ourselves when We Think Obedience is a Burden, 1 John 5:3; 2:5.
1. When worship becomes a burden, Mal. 1:12-14.
2. When it becomes a burden to put God first, Neh. 13:15-17.
III. BY SAYING WE HAVE NO SIN, 1 John 1:8 (Rom. 3:23).
A. When We Say, “Sin is not Really Sin” (redefine sin: disease, different lifestyle, man’s opinion, etc.) (Isa. 5:20)
B. When We Live as if “Ignorance is Bliss” Luke 12:48.
C. When We Think We Can Sin and Get Away 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, 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 we have underestimated the strength of sin and overestimated our ability to resist temptation, 1 Cor. 10:12.
B. When We become Overconfident in our Spiritual Strength, We are Ready to Fall, Mark 14:27-31.
V. BY NOT CONTROLLING OUR TONGUES, James 1:26.
A. Worshipers of God Deceive Ourselves this Way, James 1:16.
-James has already shown Christians that hearing without obeying is of no profit (1:22). Now, he shows that obeying without controlling our tongue makes our worship vain.
B. Misuse of the Tongue is a Widespread Problem, James 3:2-8.
1. False teaching, James 3:1.
2. Expressions of bitterness and malice, James 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” (M-W), Prov. 20:19.
5. Backbiting: Secret speech intended to belittle, defame, and destroy, Prov. 16:28.
6. Be warned; These things ought not happen, James 3:10.
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 prevent deceiving ourselves, Eph. 6:10.
By: Joe R. Price
Posted June 1, 2021