Up until now, we have been discussing our life in the flesh with the focus on what we know is sin, but temptation’s greatest threat is when it appeals to our human desires while giving us reason to believe our actions are for a greater good. God will never use sinful means to reach a destination that we think is good. A few years back a politician was caught in a blatant lie he made during a campaign speech. When confronted he made the statement that although his statement was untruthful, it was justified because it pointed to a greater good. He was stating that it was ok to get people to believe a lie in order to persuade them to believe a principle he thought was true.
This is the heart of mankind’s way of thinking. Politicians
provide empty promises and lie to gain power; companies provide hidden charges
or misrepresent the truth to persuade; individuals lie to get out of situations
or to gain advantage. This is all with the focus that if it seems right to me,
it must be right. Many believe that the ends justify the means. When someone
thinks the end result is good, those who walk according to the flesh will also
believe that the methods they use to achieve what is assumed to be good is not
important. This is why the Bible warns that the heart is deceitful above all
things and desperately wicked. Only God can search the heart and test mans ways
and reveal to Him what is truly right[1]. Look
at the warning of Proverbs 16:
25 There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the
ways of death.
Our feelings are unreliable indicators of truth.
Statements like ‘listen to your heart’ sound appealing in songs, but it is a
recipe for disaster. Is there any sin that man has ever committed that didn’t
seem right at the time? A few years back, a gospel singer divorced her husband
to marry a man she had a long term affair with. In an interview she made the
statement that she believed the extramarital affair was of God because it made
her feel happy. The truth is that we should never put our human needs above our
spiritual need. Happiness is for a moment but the consequences can be eternal.
When our lives are lived in the flesh, we will seek our fulfillment in things
that draw us farther from God and rob us from eternal rewards. Until God
becomes our exceedingly great reward, worthless things will appear to have
value. Sin arises when we are looking at life through the lens of the flesh.
Each of us were born with a hunger for God and until we are born again and live
according to the Spirit, we will seek to fill that emptiness with things that promise
satisfaction but have no true value and cannot truly satisfy. Consider this
passage from Proverbs 27:6-7
6 Faithful are the wounds of
a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.
7 The full soul loatheth an
honeycomb; but to the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet.
Your flesh is your enemy. Like the deceptive kisses of those who secretly seek the harm of another, the temptation that appeals to us presents itself as goodness but in reality is for our harm. Lust masquerades as love; greed masquerades as success; hate masquerades as righteous indignation. I could go on and on, but the truth is evident. If you live according to the flesh you will die because your life will be invested into what seems right to the flesh but whose end is judgment.
Also
pay attention to the end of verse 7. When you are hungry, even the bitter
things in life will look sweet. This is why someone can say that sin makes them
happy. When we have no understanding of what is truly valuable, the trash of
this world will look appealing. The apostle Paul was a very religious man
before he met Christ. He had a passion for the Jewish religion that had drifted
so far from scripture that its leaders could not accept anything from God. With
passion and a great zeal, Paul lived his life trying to stamp out Christianity
for it was a threat to the man-centered religions that masqueraded as
scriptural. He excelled far beyond his peers and was destined to become great
in both the political and religious system of the day; however, when God
intervened and he found true faith in Christ, everything changed. When his eyes
were opened to the truth, he recognized that what he thought was valuable was
completely worthless. Look at his testimony in Philippians 3:7-9
7 But what things were gain to me,
those I counted loss for Christ.
8 Yea doubtless, and I count all
things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my
Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but
dung, that I may win Christ,
9 And be found in him, not having
mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the
faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:
When
Paul says, “I count all things as loss”, some translations use the word rubbish
or trash. The word ‘loss’ comes from the Greek word ‘zemioo’ (pronounced dzay-mee-o'-o) which means something damaged or that
causes damage. So the things that seemed so right and noble to Paul while his
religion was based on the flesh he suddenly realized that not only were they
worthless, but were damaging his life. What seemed right was actually leading
to his destruction. Any form of Christianity that draws us away from the
spiritual principles of scripture, though they may seem noble, are actually
putting its followers on a road that seems right but is leading to destruction.
The Bible speaks of this very thing even during the time of the apostles. Look
at 1 Timothy 1:18-19
18 This charge I commit unto thee,
son Timothy, according to the prophecies which went before on thee, that thou
by them mightest war a good warfare;
19 Holding faith, and a good
conscience; which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwreck:
Don’t
let the word ‘prophecies’ throw you. When the Bible speaks of the word
‘prophesies or prophesy’, it is referring to the word of God that was delivered
through the prophets. To prophesy is to proclaim that word to others and to
teach others to follow it. In this passage, a young minister named Timothy is
being warned not to neglect these things so that he may stand strong in this
world where we all are bombarded with appeals and threats to our flesh. Faith
comes by hearing the word of God[2]
and through the word, delivered Timothy is to hold to the faith. Those who have
put this word away have been shipwrecked in their faith. This is why Christians
can claim that adultery and other works of the flesh is compatible with the
will of God. While many leaders are speaking to believers testifying that God
permits all and uses our sins for good, the scripture is warning that “those
who do these things will not inherit the
13 Keep back thy servant also from
presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be
upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression.
The evidence that we know God is that we are drawn to walk
in His ways. Like the Jewish people during the time of their judgment, our
generation has begun to turn away from the scriptures to make religion
man-centered. As Christianity transforms from the faith delivered through
Christ and the apostles that focuses on becoming like Christ to a man-focused
belief system that attempts to make Christ like man, the love and focus shifts
from the life changing word of God to the sin loving ways of the flesh. I
realize the following passage is disturbing to a lot of people but it is
necessary for our instruction. Look at Hebrews 10:26-27
26 For if we sin wilfully
after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more
sacrifice for sins,
27 But a certain fearful looking
for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.
This passage was written specifically for the Christian.
Does this mean that Christians who have willfully sinned have lost their
salvation? No, it has much deeper instruction than to just cast hopelessness on
those who have fallen. Before going deeper into this passage, let’s tie it to
another passage that applies from Galatians 6:7-9
7 Be not deceived; God is
not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
8 For he that soweth to his flesh
shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of
the Spirit reap life everlasting.
9 And let us not be weary in well
doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
Once again we have to look at who is being instructed. This is not a warning to unbelievers for they are already under condemnation until coming to Christ. Jesus said that those who come to Him are no longer under the condemnation to sin, but those who refuse to believe are already under condemnation[4]. So the warnings we are looking at are not for the world, but the church. Without Christ, everything is under sin for whatever is not of faith is sin[5].
These warnings are for you and I. What we sow is what we are
going to reap in this life and the life to come. Is it not mockery to attribute
our sins to God and claim that He uses them for our good? The truth is that God
will judge us for our sins and use that judgment to show us the worthlessness
of sin, but God will not draw us into sin for the purpose of doing something
righteous. The Bible warns that when we sin we should never say that we are
tempted of God for He never tempts us with sin. We sin when we are drawn by our
own lusts and enticed[6].
Also consider 1 John 5:
18 We know that whosoever
is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and
that wicked one toucheth him not.
If we belong to Christ, there should be a desire to keep ourselves in fellowship with Him and when we do so, we have the promise that the wicked one cannot touch us. The devil can’t make you sin and God will not tempt you to sin. The devil may call your attention to sin, but even that has no effect unless our desires are rooted in the flesh.
So what does it mean that there remains no more sacrifice
for sin when we sin willfully? I am certain that this warning is not
necessarily the judgment of the soul; though if we have no desire to keep
ourselves in the love of God but our desire is to live for sin we should
examine ourselves to see if we are in the faith. If willfully sinning removed
us from the faith, I am not sure any would stand. This is especially true for
those young in the faith when the flesh is still so appealing. It is not the
loss of salvation that is to fear, but the judgment of our sins. I have alluded
to the Judgment Seat of Christ earlier, but now let us take a closer look at it
as it pertains to our topic at hand. I realize that this topic is a hard
teaching, but please do not turn away, but draw instruction from these
scriptures so that after you apply these things to your life, you may have
confidence and not fear. Look at 2 Corinthians 5:10-11
10 For we must all appear
before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done
in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good
or bad.
11 Knowing therefore the terror of
the Lord, we persuade men; but we are made manifest unto God; and I trust also
are made manifest in your consciences.
The modern church has abandoned this teaching rather than
equipping the saints for victory in their faith. The motivation of Paul was
that he knew the ‘terror of the Lord’ and for this reason he was motivated to
warn the church. The judgment seat of Christ is for the Christian and is not to
be mistaken with the Great White Throne judgment[7]
where the world will appear after God judges the earth. The judgment seat of
Christ is not only for getting rewards, but also for giving an account for
everything done in our body. This scripture specifically states that this
includes both good and bad things we have done. I have heard preachers proclaim
from the pulpit that we will never be held in account for anything we have done
because of our forgiveness. What an injustice it is to teach Christians that
God winks at their sins and through Christ we have a free license to do as we
please. We cannot live like the world while claiming to belong to Christ. Even
Jesus affirms this fact in Luke 12:47-48
47 And that servant,
which knew his lord's will, and prepared not himself, neither did
according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes.
48 But he that knew not, and did
commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For
unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men
have committed much, of him they will ask the more.
Those who know the truth and refuse to obey are held to a higher standard; however, those who choose to remain in ignorance are not excused. So I think we can see that the topic at hand is not maintaining salvation, but preparing our heart to do His will knowing that we were bought with a price and are no longer our own and we will be held accountable for our lives. Jesus even went as far as to say that every idle word will be called into account at the judgment[8].
A
presumptuous sin is when we sin willfully saying to ourselves that we will ask
for forgiveness afterward. I have been and probably every other Christian has
been guilty of this at times in their life. This is why we must learn to walk
in the Spirit so that the flesh begins to lose its appeal to us. To walk in the
Spirit means to walk by faith. We do so by studying and living according to the
word of God. If presumptuous sins meant damnation, life would be hopeless for
we all have sinned with the assumption that we will be forgiven. It still
should cause us to fear for we know that God will judge our sins either in this
life or at the time when we stand before Christ. To teach otherwise is a great
injustice to those who are influenced by the leader who gives them a supposed
excuse for surrendering themselves to the lusts of the flesh. Jesus addressed
this in Matthew 5:
19 Whosoever therefore shall break
one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the
least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them,
the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
What
a shame it would be to carry the label of one of those who led men astray by
teaching them that God accepts their decision to live in the flesh. These
scriptures are not shared to make you feel hopeless, but to show you the right
way so that you can begin living by hope. Guilt and despair are the products of
rejecting the conviction of the Spirit. Jesus said that the word gives life to
those who receive it. We can do nothing about our past, but we can prepare our
hearts to seek His word for the future. We don’t know how God will judge our
sins, but mercy is to those who walk in the fear of the Lord. We can still hope
in the promise of Proverbs 16:
6 By mercy and truth iniquity is
purged: and by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil.
Let
the Lord worry about our past, but we must focus on our future. We press on
looking ahead to the promises when we walk in obedience. Finally, look at this
passage from Philippians 2:12-13
12 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye
have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my
absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
13 For it is God which worketh in
you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
This passage does not say ‘work for your salvation’. The context is that we already have salvation delivered to us from God. We must set our hearts upon obedience as we apply ourselves to the commandments of God with fear and trembling. This all applies to the same topic we have been discussing and we must take this very seriously. So that we don’t miss the point by thinking we must do something in our flesh to please God, the next verse reminds us that it is God who is working in us to do His will. We have the promise that God began a good work in us and will finish it[9]. Our work is to study the word, walk by faith, submit ourselves to Him, and put off the works of the flesh.
This
has become a confusing topic in the modern church. It is hard to reconcile easy
believism and greasy grace to the fear of the Lord. I think you will shortly
see that the fear of the Lord has great value in the life of every believer and
it brings peace and comfort. Look at Acts 9:
31 Then had the churches rest
throughout all Judaea and Galilee and
When the church was walking in the fear of the Lord, they
were comforted, saw the power of the Holy Spirit and God multiplied the church.
Ironically, those who do not fear the Lord do not have peace, but those who
fear God are comforted and dwell without fear of evil. There are so many
scriptures on this topic that it is hard to weed out to a few. Let me begin by
pointing to Proverbs 9:
10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge
of the holy is understanding.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. This passage becomes clear when we look at it from a realistic perspective. The word fear is looked upon as a threat; therefore, almost every teaching on the fear of the Lord I have seen downplays it to redefine the word fear into something more passive. The idea of being afraid of God is uncomfortable to most people. I am sure that when you look honestly at it you will see that the fear of God is a good thing. Most try to say that it means reverence and to some degree reverence is involved; however, you can show reverence to an elder and still not obey their words. As we saw earlier, the apostles said, “Knowing the terror of the Lord, we persuade men”. They were talking about the church walking in obedience. The fear of the Lord is much more than reverence or respect.
It is comparable to the relationship between a parent and a child. A child has little or no understanding and their natural bent is to do mischief. Proverbs tells us that a child left to himself brings his parents shame. This is true for a child does not have the ability to see long term consequences for their actions and in our own lives, we can see that most of our bad habits and attitudes date back into childhood. All the child knows is that they want to do something, eat something, or take something. If you tell a child ‘no’, at some point they are going to rebel. Even if I can clearly see the certainty of harm, a three year old cannot. When a parent says not to do something and the child decides to follow their own desires, they are showing that they do not fear the command of their parents. This changes when punishment arrives. When I instruct my kids and they disobey, I warn them. If they continue, they are punished. The severity of the punishment is based on their determination to disobey.
The scriptures tell us that foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child and must be driven out. A child departs from foolish behavior, not because they desire what is right, but because they fear the punishment. When a child realizes that there are immediate consequences for rebelling against instruction, they curb their behavior to avoid punishment. They begin to show wisdom, not because they understand the reason, but because they understand the punishment for their actions. As a child grows into maturity, they begin to understand the value of good behavior and the reasons why certain actions are not allowed. As they grow in understanding, the wisdom grows as fear of punishment gives way to living by the principles that have meaning and value.
This
is also why the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. When we are born
in the Spirit, we have very little understanding and like a child we still
desire the flesh not knowing that there are consequences and that if we sow our
lives in the flesh we will reap corruption and sorrow. Like children, we cannot
fully understand why God has given us certain commandments, we only can see
that we are told to abstain from fleshly lusts that war against our souls.
Since I cannot see the end result, the temptation looks appealing and
therefore, I am willing to chance the consequences. This changes when I
understand the fear of the Lord. God will cause us pain for the purpose of correcting
us so that we are not judged with the world and so that we don’t come to the
end of life and find nothing but regret and sorrow. I do not enjoy chastising
my children, but it is necessary because I care about their lives. The same is
true for the Lord. Look at Hebrews 12:5-6
5 And ye have forgotten the
exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou
the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him:
6 For whom the Lord loveth he
chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.
Just
as the church Paul is speaking to had forgotten this principle, our modern
churches have forgotten as well. In our desire to gain larger congregations,
many churches only teach the things that make people feel good even though it
leaves their lives empty and meaningless. Since most people are taught that the
fear of the Lord is not something to fear and that God only wants to give
worldly possessions and not correction, people do not recognize that the
hardships and pain in their lives are the chastening of the Lord. In Amos 4,
God tells
9 That this is a rebellious
people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the LORD:
10 Which say to the seers, See not;
and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth
things, prophesy deceits:
11 Get you out of the way, turn
aside out of the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us.
12 Wherefore thus saith the Holy
One of Israel, Because ye despise this word, and trust in oppression and
perverseness, and stay thereon:
13 Therefore this iniquity shall be
to you as a breach ready to fall, swelling out in a high wall, whose breaking
cometh suddenly at an instant.
The Bible tells us that there is nothing new under the sun. How true for the same problems that plagued God’s people in the past are threatening the church today. People gather under the teachers that will tell them smooth things and provide comfort without fearing the Lord. The comfort of man is short-lived and frustration soon follows. The Old Testament false teachers caused the Lord to cease from among them, not by blatantly turning away from God, but by redefining truth and teaching God’s people that they could live like the culture around them and still please God. Those who do not know Christ and those who are still immature in the faith tend to want to live according to the flesh and will seek out those who will tell them that they can live for the world and God does not care. Some teachers go as far as to proclaim that God wants His people to live for pleasures.
What
we have done is to blind people to the chastening of the Lord. Rather than
turning back to God, people are taught that God’s chastening isn’t the hand of
correction, but a lack of faith on their part. We are being taught to despise
the chastening. So instead of recognizing God’s correction, people become
frustrated and think that God has let them down because He has not upheld the
self-centered religion they have put their trust into. Look again at 1 John 5:
18 We know that whosoever is born
of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that
wicked one toucheth him not.
If we are walking by faith in the fear of the Lord, we know
that Satan cannot touch us and can have the absolute confidence that all our
struggles are to teach us, refine us, prune us, and bring good into our
lives. Chastisement is the hand of God
working to bring us back into that confidence. Look also at 1 Corinthians 11:31-32
31 For if we would judge
ourselves, we should not be judged.
32 But when we are judged, we are
chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.
If you are in the word and are obeying the command to
diligently study to show yourself approved, you will have the power to judge
yourself by comparing your life, attitudes, and actions against the word. Even
mature Christians must be corrected for pride and human nature blind us to many
of our faults. When God shakes us, it causes that which is not eternal to fall
away and reveals to us the things that are true treasures of God. If we do not
judge ourselves, God chastens us so that we are not condemned with the world.
No matter how you look at it, chastening, though painful, is good and necessary
in the Christian life. The way that seems right leads to destruction;
therefore, God intervenes to turn us away from what He knows will harm us and will
rob us of our rewards found in Him.
The fear of the Lord is not a negative thing, but the work of God to bring hope,
comfort, and confidence in our lives. Look at Proverbs 14:26-27
26 In the fear of the
LORD is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of
refuge.
27 The fear of the LORD is a
fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death.
Like most spiritual principles, the ways of God appear foolish
to those who are in the flesh. To the fleshly mind, it would appear that the
fear of the Lord would take away our confidence, but in truth it is just the
opposite. The fear of the Lord is not just our confidence, but our strong
confidence and the refuge of our lives. It becomes our life and turns us away
from the snares of temptation that lead to death. Another key principle is
found in Proverbs 19:
23 The fear of the LORD tendeth
to life: and he that hath it shall abide satisfied; he shall not be
visited with evil.
Not
only does fearing the Lord give life to the believer, but through it we are
satisfied. Temptation vainly promises satisfaction to the flesh, but it cannot
deliver. The primary pleasure in temptation is the pursuit of pleasure, but
when temptation is fulfilled through sin, emptiness is the result. Temptation
promises life, fulfillment and satisfaction but delivers death, sorrow and
emptiness. The word of God calls us to obey with the following promise from Psalm 36:7-8
7 How excellent is thy
lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the
shadow of thy wings.
8 They shall be abundantly
satisfied with the fatness of thy house; and thou shalt make them drink of the
river of thy pleasures.
The promise of abundant satisfaction are only given to those who first put their trust under the shadow of God’s wings. Obedience by faith must come first before satisfaction in the Lord. The pleasures and satisfaction of the Lord will never lure you away from the word or call you to take your eyes off the Lord. We can only find abundant satisfaction in the Lord for the promises are only found within the abiding relationship we have in Christ. Anything else is a deception. It is all too common for people to have the fear that they are going to miss out on life when they surrender wholly to the Lord. Unfortunately we have very few examples of Christians who have made this surrender and so no one believes it to be possible. Some will pay lip service, but our lives testify for or against us.
When you look at the world, everyone is smiling and acting like they are having a good time, but when you really dig into people’s lives you see a different story. I believe there are two underlying issues at hand. First, people are following the world because they are hoping to find the satisfaction that they believe other people are experiencing. Second, no one is willing to admit that they are not happy and they present a façade to everyone else as a pretense that they are enjoying the life that they think everyone else is enjoying. A few years back I watched 20/20 as Barbara Walters interviewed a female porn star. This woman never quit smiling during the whole interview. At one point, tears began to trickle down her face but her smiling expression never changed. Barbara asked why she was smiling if she was crying. The lady stated that she smiles to hide the pain and emptiness inside and wanted to make everyone think she was happy.
What a perfect example of the deception of sin. At some point
each person will realize that the things that were supposed to bring pleasure
fail to bring happiness. No one wants to admit that they are the only one who
doesn’t find happiness so each puts on a happy face. Often times, those who are
presenting temptation to you are hiding their own emptiness. While they promise
liberty, they are slaves of corruption[10]. There
is indeed a short term pleasure in sin, but the temporary feeling of
satisfaction soon gives way to emptiness. Christians are not immune to this temptation
and often feel like the world holds some key to satisfaction that they are not
experiencing. The Christian is not satisfied because so few are willing to step
into complete surrender by faith. Those who do have this promise from Psalm 34:9-15
9 O fear the LORD, ye his
saints: for there is no want to them that fear him.
10 The young lions do lack, and
suffer hunger: but they that seek the LORD shall not want any good thing.
11 Come, ye children, hearken unto
me: I will teach you the fear of the LORD.
12 What man is he that desireth
life, and loveth many days, that he may see good?
13 Keep thy tongue from evil, and
thy lips from speaking guile.
14 Depart from evil, and do good;
seek peace, and pursue it.
15 The eyes of the LORD are upon
the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry.
When
you walk in the fear of the Lord and truly surrender to walk in His ways, you
have the promise that you will not lack any good thing. The things that God
denies you will one day be revealed as not being good. The abundant life is not
in the things you possess, but in the life lived in the Spirit who sees the
goodness of the Lord.
Eddie Snipes
Exchanged Life Outreach
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