"Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them; and then the Lord's wrath be kindled against you.....therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontelets between your eyes. And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates: that your days may be multiplied, and the days of your children, in the land which the Lord sware unto your fathers to give them, as the days of heaven upon the earth." (Deuteronomy 11:16-21)
It is clear from the scripture above, that the way to avoid self-deception ("that your heart not be deceived"), and the wrath of God that would follow that deception, is to "lay up these my words in your heart." But it is also a bit more than that because we often KNOW what it is the Lord has told us to do (as did Balaam), we can even hear the words being repeated to us by the Holy Spirit who brings those things to our remembrance; and yet, KNOWING the commands is not all there is to it.
I believe it is the DOING of the commands that keep us from being deceived, that keeps us on the right track. What other purpose would there be for hearing them, if not to DO them?
Look at how quickly Phinehas responded to the audacity of the Israelite man who brought the Midianite women into the camp and into his tent, and all, with extreme arrogance, right in front of Moses, God's own representative.
Phinehas did not take the time to think to himself, "Well, someone needs to do something about that. Maybe I'll go over and talk to Moses later on about that!" He just did what he KNEW the Lord would do. He apparently knew the Lord's heart well.
But the point is that he did not even hesitate, there was no time for rationalization or procrastination. What God said to do (through his servant Moses), he just DID!
I am probably belaboring the point, but the fact of the matter is that we are major procrastinators; easy to do because there is no fire under us moving us out...we are comfortable and that comfort means a lot to us Americans especially.
And our churches are sometimes worse because they are made up of people like us and it takes a "committee" of complacent procrastinators to make a decision! And all the conditions have to be just right...whether for individuals or for the committee...before the thing goes from being HEARD through the Word of God to being DONE!
But there is little time for procrastination. The disciples knew that. Paul knew that. Jesus knew that when He warned us to continually be on guard, expectant and waiting for that which He said WOULD come:
It is clear from the scripture above, that the way to avoid self-deception ("that your heart not be deceived"), and the wrath of God that would follow that deception, is to "lay up these my words in your heart." But it is also a bit more than that because we often KNOW what it is the Lord has told us to do (as did Balaam), we can even hear the words being repeated to us by the Holy Spirit who brings those things to our remembrance; and yet, KNOWING the commands is not all there is to it.
I believe it is the DOING of the commands that keep us from being deceived, that keeps us on the right track. What other purpose would there be for hearing them, if not to DO them?
Look at how quickly Phinehas responded to the audacity of the Israelite man who brought the Midianite women into the camp and into his tent, and all, with extreme arrogance, right in front of Moses, God's own representative.
Phinehas did not take the time to think to himself, "Well, someone needs to do something about that. Maybe I'll go over and talk to Moses later on about that!" He just did what he KNEW the Lord would do. He apparently knew the Lord's heart well.
But the point is that he did not even hesitate, there was no time for rationalization or procrastination. What God said to do (through his servant Moses), he just DID!
I am probably belaboring the point, but the fact of the matter is that we are major procrastinators; easy to do because there is no fire under us moving us out...we are comfortable and that comfort means a lot to us Americans especially.
And our churches are sometimes worse because they are made up of people like us and it takes a "committee" of complacent procrastinators to make a decision! And all the conditions have to be just right...whether for individuals or for the committee...before the thing goes from being HEARD through the Word of God to being DONE!
But there is little time for procrastination. The disciples knew that. Paul knew that. Jesus knew that when He warned us to continually be on guard, expectant and waiting for that which He said WOULD come:
"Take heed that ye be not deceived: for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ;and the time draweth near: go ye not therefore after them. But when ye shall hear of wars and commotions, be not terrified: for these things must first come to pass; but the end is not by and by. Then said he unto them, Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven...and ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death. And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake, but there shall not an hair of your head perish. In your patience possess ye your souls...and there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken. And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.
And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.
For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth" (Luke 21:8-36)
Are our hearts focused on the cares of this life? Are our hearts weighed down with excess?["overcharged with surfeiting" means "weighed down or encumbered with excess" - too much stuff! Do we own the stuff or does the stuff own us? Are we working longer hours to maintain our stuff? To provide roofs over our stuff? While the harvest is white, and people without any hope perish in their hopelessness...because we are too busy with our stuff and our schedules and our importance and even our spirituality?]
David cried out to God: "Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my thoughts: and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." (Psalm 139:23-24)
We cannot spot self-deception by the very fact that we are the ones deceived and we have deceived ourselves. Who can help us then? Only the Lord. Only when we cry out to Him to do so. Only when we take time out of our non-stop busy lives, and cry out to Him to reveal the deceptions that we have fallen prey to, to open our eyes to see our own wickedness, which can only happen when we have stopped pointing at everyone else's wickedness and point that finger truthfully and honestly at ourselves through the help of the Holy Spirit.
We are NOT better than the man next to us. We might be saved and blessed, but we are not better. Yet Christians sometimes tend to count themselves as BETTER. And it appears as SUPERIORITY to non-Christians, even sometimes to other Christians. But that in itself is just another self-deception.
We are blessed only because the Lord chose to bless us; we are free to walk in obedience only because He has opened our eyes to our deception and has provided the grace through Jesus Christ and the giving of the Holy Spirit to empower us to walk obediently. What does any of that have to do with US? NOTHING!
It is all GOD's work being done in us, not something we have done ourselves and to boast about. What does our pointing fingers at others accomplish? What does our superiority accomplish in the lives of those whom God has not yet chosen to open the eyes of?
Who among us believers is never envious? Who among us never backbites, gossips or talks evil of another...ever? Who among us is never deceitful, thankful that some sins are hidden still and not obvious to the world at large, especially to our church, so that we can maintain the appearance of spirituality? Who among us does not show that we are haters of God when we cannot find time in our day for Him? Who is there among us who understands, truly understands?
This is a call to the end of SELF-DECEPTION among Christians - individually and in our churches. This is a call to TRUTH, HUMILITY, HONESTY and OBEDIENCE not according to traditions or to our own ways, but to the ways of God as revealed through His WORD.
This is a call to REPENTANCE as has never been seen before.
"If my people who are called by MY NAME, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." (2 Chronicles 7:14)
The Word iin this particular scripture is not calling the unsaved to humility and turning from wicked ways...the Word is calling us who are called by HIS NAME. It is calling believers to humble repentance. Repentance from going our own ways.
But it is a call first and foremost to LOVE. And I think that is where we need to turn next. We need to turn to the thing that the church of Ephesus was lacking in: FIRST LOVE. (Revelation 2:1-7)
Are our hearts focused on the cares of this life? Are our hearts weighed down with excess?["overcharged with surfeiting" means "weighed down or encumbered with excess" - too much stuff! Do we own the stuff or does the stuff own us? Are we working longer hours to maintain our stuff? To provide roofs over our stuff? While the harvest is white, and people without any hope perish in their hopelessness...because we are too busy with our stuff and our schedules and our importance and even our spirituality?]
David cried out to God: "Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my thoughts: and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." (Psalm 139:23-24)
We cannot spot self-deception by the very fact that we are the ones deceived and we have deceived ourselves. Who can help us then? Only the Lord. Only when we cry out to Him to do so. Only when we take time out of our non-stop busy lives, and cry out to Him to reveal the deceptions that we have fallen prey to, to open our eyes to see our own wickedness, which can only happen when we have stopped pointing at everyone else's wickedness and point that finger truthfully and honestly at ourselves through the help of the Holy Spirit.
We are NOT better than the man next to us. We might be saved and blessed, but we are not better. Yet Christians sometimes tend to count themselves as BETTER. And it appears as SUPERIORITY to non-Christians, even sometimes to other Christians. But that in itself is just another self-deception.
We are blessed only because the Lord chose to bless us; we are free to walk in obedience only because He has opened our eyes to our deception and has provided the grace through Jesus Christ and the giving of the Holy Spirit to empower us to walk obediently. What does any of that have to do with US? NOTHING!
It is all GOD's work being done in us, not something we have done ourselves and to boast about. What does our pointing fingers at others accomplish? What does our superiority accomplish in the lives of those whom God has not yet chosen to open the eyes of?
Who among us believers is never envious? Who among us never backbites, gossips or talks evil of another...ever? Who among us is never deceitful, thankful that some sins are hidden still and not obvious to the world at large, especially to our church, so that we can maintain the appearance of spirituality? Who among us does not show that we are haters of God when we cannot find time in our day for Him? Who is there among us who understands, truly understands?
This is a call to the end of SELF-DECEPTION among Christians - individually and in our churches. This is a call to TRUTH, HUMILITY, HONESTY and OBEDIENCE not according to traditions or to our own ways, but to the ways of God as revealed through His WORD.
This is a call to REPENTANCE as has never been seen before.
"If my people who are called by MY NAME, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." (2 Chronicles 7:14)
The Word iin this particular scripture is not calling the unsaved to humility and turning from wicked ways...the Word is calling us who are called by HIS NAME. It is calling believers to humble repentance. Repentance from going our own ways.
But it is a call first and foremost to LOVE. And I think that is where we need to turn next. We need to turn to the thing that the church of Ephesus was lacking in: FIRST LOVE. (Revelation 2:1-7)
2 comments:
An excellent posting. We know what to do and it is the doing that is the challenge. Then, their are some who thinking just doing "something" will suffice, without prayer, patience, and confirmation from God. I fit in this group. I prayer hard and listen to what feels like a sufficient period to act. I have asked God most of my adult life to speak to me Himself from His mouth. That will be a reality, but not in this world. Thank you for providing the "meat" of God's Word.
In fact, it is the "doing" without "grace" that will be looked at in next posting...there is nothing wrong with us doing as long as it is all done from God's sufficiency and not our own. But as Shakespeare would say "Ah, there is the rub!" The key word for us then, is "intimacy"....we are the bride of Christ. What husband is grateful for a busy wife who has no time for him? And if the wife ignores what the husband gives in terms of provision and chooses to provide for herself out of her own strength and creativity, what need does she have of a husband? But when a husband and wife are ONE, then there is "intimacy"...then there is proper LOVE.
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