The Lies We Believe

This morning, we’re going to talk about the “The Lies (L-I-E-S) That We Believe “ And the reason I titled it “The Lies We Believe” is because that’s what the Lord told me to title it. (Laughter)

Stephen and I were watching a program on ESPN called “30-30” which looks at the history of athletics during a certain year, like 1980 for example. If you are not a football fan, the name Marcus DuPree won’t mean much to you.

In 1981, he was a freshman running back at Oklahoma. The starting running back got injured and DuPree came in a shocked college football. He was, in my opinion, more talented than Bo Jackson.

What made me think about Marcus DuPress was the fact that people would say over and over, “He had God-given talent.” And knowing what I would be ministering on today, I thought it was very interesting that I would be watching this program.

Over the years, one of the lies that we have been taught is “I am the way I am because God made me that way.” Or, “I get angry real quick about something because God made me that way.” Or, “I can’t jump as high as some folks because God made me that way.” Or, “I have this body because this is the body that God gave me.” Or, “I’m not as smart as some folks because God didn’t give me that type of intellect.”

All of our shortcomings, the things we didn’t like about ourselves, or we wished we were better in some areas – we justified it by saying “This is the way God made me. So I have to deal with it.”

The reason that the examples I just gave are lies is because they are. God is an egalitarian. He treats everyone the same. The reason that those examples are lies is because there is a direct connection between what you believe and what you say with your faith. A direct connection.

So those areas where you are off in your doctrine, when it comes to the things you believe and say, you won’t have any faith. God wants us to maximize our faith. But you can’t maximize your faith if you believe God, your Heavenly Father, designed you the way you are.

One of the subheading you see in your notes is “Ethnicity.” There was a time in our country’s history when a lot of people believed that a person with my skin color was cursed by God. In other words, God cursed us and made us this way for a reason. Many people believed that.

And there was a time in our history when someone with my skin color didn’t want to be born with this skin color. We didn’t talk about it. But privately, we would much rather have been white than black. We knew that if we were white, we would have certain advantages and things available to us that we didn’t have at that time. So, there was a time in our country when it was preferred not being black.

Now, if God made me this way, made me with black skin, what are we saying? We’re saying God made me a second class citizen, or a third class citizen – whatever you want to call it. Obviously, if God made me this way, He didn’t make me first class because I’m subservient always to someone who has a lighter skin color.

Do you see how devastating that can be to building your faith? How can you love and trust a God who would purposely make you less than another human being? So, in that case, if you have a relationship with God that is not 100% in love with God and I’ll do anything He wants me to to because He made me black, then you’re not going to have a whole bunch of faith.

And on the other side, if the folks with the lighter colored skin believe the same thing, they’re not going to have a lot of faith either. Why? Their doctrine is just as off as the person with the black skin. Can you see how it’s a lie that God made me the way I am?

We’re going to look at a couple of verses that we’re familiar with in Genesis chapter one.

(26) And God said, Let us make man in our image, after or likeness: [This is the way it was in the beginning. We were exactly like God.] and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping them that creepeth upon the earth.

(27) So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; [I want you to pay attention to how many times scripture says in the image. That’s at least three times we’ve seen “in the image” so far.] male and female created he them.