HOW CAN THE BIBLE BE USED DEFENSIVELY? Untruths threaten to push us down the wrong path.
- Matthew 4:1-11; Ephesians 6:11; 1 Peter 5:8.
- We talked last week about using the Bible offensively – using it to win spiritual victories.
- This week we’re going to talk about using the Bible defensively – that is, using it to defend ourselves when we’re being attacked spiritually.
- The best known example of this would be the Temptation of Christ (Luke 4:1-13).
- Satan attacks Jesus spiritually three times and each time Jesus defends Himself from the untruth by quoting Scripture (see vv. 4, 8, 12). That’s a profound truth for us to understand. If Jesus used Scripture to defend Himself from a spiritual attack, how much more do we need to do that?
- I just want to note two things also about this chapter:
a. Note that Satan quotes Scripture in the third temptation: vv. 10-11.
- He knows how to pick and choose His Bible references to make things that are wrong sound like they’re ok.
- If something was 100% anti-Biblical, we might catch on, so a much more effective path is to mix some lies in with the truth and see if we notice.
- This is another reason why we need to have a good knowledge of the truth.
b. Last week in talking about using the Bible as an offensive weapon, I quoted from Luke 4:18-19. Note that both of these happen right at the outset of His ministry. These are not secondary issues.
- What’s the most common form of attack? An untruth.
- If He can get us to believe something that isn’t true and then follow it out to its natural conclusion, he’ll have us way off track.
- Imagine that you’re out hiking. You come to a fork in the road and your partner says: “I think we need to take the left fork that goes down past the lake. That looks like an easier path.” So you do and it is an easier path. Unfortunately, it also leads you five miles away from the base camp you were hoping to make it to.
- If you get false information and start down the wrong road, bad things are going to happen.
- Look at the lives of people around you. So many have believed false information and have ended up with bad things in their lives because of going down wrong paths.
- Satan doesn’t have to do all the work – we’ll do the work – he just has to get us pointed in the wrong direction.
- This is why it’s critical that we fight back against untruths.
- It’s essential not just that we’re sincere in our beliefs, but that we sincerely believe something that is actually true.
- Some people argue that it doesn’t really matter what you believe as long as you believe it sincerely. That’s hogwash. Many ideas are stupid; many are dangerous; many are evil; many are vapid. To say that sincerely believing something is all that’s required is an idea that sounds good at first blush but that doesn’t hold up to closer inspection.
- You need to found your life and you need to pursue a path based on what’s really true.
- That isn’t going to happen by accident. We’re surrounded by lies. I want to talk about some of the major sources of lies in our life.
WHO'S LYING TO US?
1. Satan.
a. Example #1: “You’re not worthy of having Jesus in your life.”
- Ephesians 2:8-9.
- The Enemy may put a thought into your head at a moment of sin. You’ve done something you shouldn’t have, so the Enemy plants a thought in your head: “You’re an idiot. You’re a spiritual failure. You’re not worthy of having Jesus in your life.”
- It would be easy for that thought to become a downward spiral of self-blame and depression, leading us to give up on our Christian walk.
- We need in that moment to know what the Bible says to that.
- The first thing is says is, “You’re right – I’m not worthy of having Jesus in my life, but He didn’t come in in the first place because I was worthy. He came in because He loved me.”
- Ephesians 2:8 reminds us that we’re saved by grace, not by our works.
- Because I’m saved by grace, I know that Jesus is willing to forgive me when I mess up. It’s not that my sin is something that’s “no big deal” – it was a big enough deal that Jesus died on the cross for it – but He loves me beyond my sin.
- So when I know the Bible, my response to that thought is to pursue repentance, not walking away from God.
b. Example #2: “If the preacher knew what you were really like, he’d never talk to you again.”
- Romans 14:13; Hebrews 3:13.
- A similar thought might be planted in our head as we come into church. We see folks around us who maybe seem to have things together pretty well.
- How do I measure up to them? Maybe I don’t feel like I do very well.
- We remember the truth, though, that I just mentioned – that we’re saved by grace.
- Then add to that the truth of Romans 14:13 that our job as Christians is not to pass judgment on one another. Our job is to encourage each other on to greater Christlikeness, as it speaks of in Hebrews 3:13.
- So church isn’t the place where we come to be judged and condemned. It’s the place we come to be encouraged and lifted up. So as I look around the church, I shouldn’t see a bunch of people in black robes looking to judge me, but rather a bunch of friends looking to encourage me to push on in my walk.
2. People.
a. Example #1: “How are you going to keep a boyfriend if you won’t have sex?”
- 1 Thessalonians 4:3.
- People’s views are usually based on what the popular view of right and wrong is. The consensus popular opinion today is that, as long as it’s consensual, there’s nothing wrong with having sex whenever you want to. The idea that sex is to be saved for marriage seems quaint and out-dated.
- As we get dating advice from friends, they may push us down the wrong road. “What do you mean you’re not going to sleep with him? How do you expect to keep him if you won’t?”
- We need to know what the Bible calls us to in order to defend ourselves. We are called to sexual purity outside of marriage (1 Thessalonians 4:3). We’re not going to get that advice from the people around us. We’ve got to get it from the Bible.
b. Example #2: “Just tell me what she said – you know you want to.”
- James 1:26.
- Gossip is so easy. We naturally want to share the juicy news that we know as well as be on the inside when others share their news. But gossip is a sin. We are not to spread rumors about people.
- People might tempt us to go down the wrong road. We need to fight back against that temptation.
- James 1:26 tells us to control our tongue.
- We need to keep what we say under the authority of the Holy Spirit.
3. Our conscience.
a. Example #1: “Just do what seems right to you.”
- James 1:5.
- One of the ideas that we throw out a lot is that we should just do what seems right to us. Movies often have the heroes find the answer by “following their heart.”
- The problem with that is that our heart doesn’t always have the right answer. Our conscience may tell us to just do what seems right, but what seems right to us isn’t actually right.
- When Jesus taught His disciples, so much of what He said was surprising. What comes naturally to us is not always the right thing to do. Jesus’ way is radically different.
- That’s because of the sinful nature that plagues humanity. Our heart is tainted by sin and that makes our internal compass one that we can’t rely on to always give us reliable moral direction.
- James 1:5 tells that God will give us wisdom when we lack it. In that moment, we can come to God and pray, “Father, I want to make the decision that you say is right, not just the one that seems right to me. Help me know what that is.”
- Of course, in that direction, knowing the Bible is a huge asset.
b. Example #2: “You didn’t have a choice but to do that.”
- 1 Corinthians 10:13.
- Sometimes our conscience tells us that we don’t really have choice but to do something that’s wrong. It may be that we know it’s morally questionable, but we feel as though the temptation is too strong for us.
- In truth, 1 Corinthians 10:13 tells us that we always have a choice. We can always find a way out if we want to.
4. Our feelings.
a. Example #1: “I don’t feel God near anymore, so I’m on my own.”
- Hebrews 13:5.
- It’s a wonderful thing when we know that God is near us because we feel His presence.
- It can be in church when the music touches our heart or when the sermon speaks directly to what we’re dealing with.
- It can be when God answers a prayer for us and we feel Him shining down on us.
- It can be when we face a struggle, but know that God is right there beside us.
- There are also times, though, when we do not feel the presence of God near us.
- We are in the hospital and we do not feel like He is paying attention to us anymore.
- We are praying about a decision and He doesn’t give us a clear answer immediately.
- We are facing a struggle and we feel alone.
- In those moments, we may not feel God near us. Because of that, our feelings tell our heart, “God has abandoned you.”
- It’s hard to overcome that because feelings have great influence on us.
- At a moment like that, we need to come back to the truth of the Scripture, like what it says in Hebrews 13:5, that God will never leave us or forsake us. That tells me that even if I don’t feel that God is near me, He still is.
- Sometimes my feelings may be lying to me. I need to make sure that I don’t blindly listen to them as though all they tell me is true.
- I need to know that even though I may not feel like God is near, that doesn’t change the fact that He is. I know because He’s promised to be.
- This is important because if we feel abandoned by God we may begin to make decisions out of bitterness or desperation.
b. Example #2: “I’m so worried about what might happen.”
- Matthew 6:25-34.
- Worry is a sin.
- That’s not something you’d think from how easily we excuse worry in our lives and in our hearts. But worry is a sin.
- Our feelings, though, tell us that worry come naturally. It feels like something that we should be doing. In fact, there are even people who feel guilty if they’re not worrying. Some mothers seem to believe that if they’re not actively worrying that God will punish them by making bad things happen.
- Like Frankie said on an episode of “The Middle,” “Worry shows God you’re not getting cocky.”
- In truth, God wants our hearts to be filled with peace.
- That sounds so good, but then we actively choose worry over peace times after time. Not only do we actively choose it, but we then talk like we didn’t really have a choice. Worry just happens – what can we do?
- When worry rises and our feelings try to push us down that path, we need to fight back with the truth: “No! God doesn’t want me consumed with worry. He wants me to live a life characterized by peace.”
OUR GOAL WHEN SPIRITUALLY ATTACKED: Stand strong and not be pushed down the wrong path.
- Ephesians 6:11, 13, 14 – “stand.”
- Revelation 2:24-25.
- Going back to last week’s sermon, there are times when we want to use the Bible as a weapon to win spiritual victories. That is, we use it as an “offensive” weapon.
- That’s important and we want to be doing that to see the Kingdom expand.
- But there are also times when we’re going to be attacked spiritually. In those moments, it may be that our goal is simply to stand strong right where we are.
- In Ephesians 6, there are multiple references to simply standing firm.
- I’m reminded of Jesus’ instruction to the church of Thyatira in Revelation 2:24-25 when He says that He’ll impose no further burden on them than to simply hold on to what they have. Sometimes there are times when holding your ground represents a victory.
- You may be in a season like that right now. You’re being oppressed and attacked. The best that you can do is to simply hold your ground and not get pushed backward. The best that you can do is not be pushed down a wrong road.
- In order to stand firm, though, you need to know the Word. You need to be able to use your sword to defend yourself. There are so many lies that can so easily get you off-track.
- We’ve talked about several examples today of going down the wrong path.
- The commitment that you need to make this morning is the same one that I’ve been pushing throughout this sermon series: you need to be in the Bible daily.
- If you’re facing a situation right now and don’t know what the Bible says, I’ll be more than happy to help you find what the Bible has to say about it.
- But long-term, you need to be able to do that for yourself. You need to be in the Bible every day, learning its truths. Maybe you just need to open it up and start. If you need some help on where to start, you’re welcome to join me in the plan I lead at 60in60Bible.org.
- However you get there, you need to make that commitment. It’s not an issue of just having Bible knowledge for the sake of saying you know a lot about the Bible. It’s an issue of knowing the truth of the Bible so you don’t ruin your life, so you don’t make disastrous decisions, so you don’t wander down the wrong path.
- It’s a wonderful thing to have confidence in what God is calling you to do, even when what He’s calling you to do is difficult.
- Conversely, it’s a tormented place to be unsure of what God desires for your life. It’s tough to want to know where God is leading and not be able to figure it, leaving you to just guess and hope for the best.
