God Loves… Himself

Be persuaded that your soul is far more valuable to you than the whole world and there are only two places (heaven and hell) that you will spend all eternity in.

You can count on it that it is very difficult to come to heaven, but the way to destruction is broad and easy. Take it to heart that you have a deceitful heart with you, a wicked devil close to you, and snares and hindrances around and before you.

While it is hard for a spiritual mind to grasp the extent of the deceptions of the evil one, it may well be impossible for the natural mind (unregenerate) to grasp these things. Our own hearts deceiving us is really a terrible judgment upon us, but then to have one who is far smarter and far more powerful than we are who exerts himself in deceiving people and keeping them deceived, this is a judgment beyond what we can comprehend. It should also drive us to an end of our own strength and wisdom so that we would look to Christ and seek Him for grace to enable us to seek Him from a true heart. Not only are we deceived about so many things, but we are also deceived about what it means to seek Christ.

Revelation 12:9 And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.

Revelation 20:3 and he threw him into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he would not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be released for a short time.

Revelation 20:8 and will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together for the war; the number of them is like the sand of the seashore.

The book of Revelation opens for us some of the work of Satan. It shows us what his work on the earth has been, what his works is now, and it shows his work in the future. Satan is out to deceive human souls. He wants to deceive them concerning the need for the Gospel and to blind them as to the glory of the Gospel (II Cor 4:4). He wants to deceive men into thinking that they don’t need salvation and he wants to deceive them into thinking that they are saved. He wants to deceive them about the nature of God as he deceived Eve in that regard. He wants to deceive human beings regarding the nature of the gate to salvation and the road to heaven. He is said to deceive the whole world, which I take to mean all those who are part of the worldly system or worldly way of thinking.

Our own hearts deceive us, other men deceive us (some with intent and some by virtue of who they are), sin deceives us, and the devil uses all of those things in his arsenal to work deception in and upon us. It is bad enough for our own hearts to deceive us, but when the deceiver uses our own hearts against us, we are very deceived. It is bad enough to have sin (which is in us and surrounds us in seemingly all places at all points) at work deceiving us, but when it is in the hands of the deceiver, we should see how easily we are deceived and how impossible it is for us to be undeceived unless Christ should do the work.

It is so vital for us to understand that it is not enough for some poor soul to pray a prayer, make a decision, or walk an aisle in order to be saved. Those things themselves are the deceptions of the evil one. Every soul that is born of natural means (so to speak) is born dead in sins and trespasses and is born with a deceived heart regarding those things. The natural man is prone to deception regarding his need for salvation and for the way of salvation. Men must be taught these things by Christ and they must be broken from their self-autonomy and pride or they will be deceived by themselves and by the deceiver himself. When the Scriptures speaks of sinners being brought from bondage to the devil and from the power of darkness, that is part of what they are talking about. The Gospel is not the good news of what deceived man can do for himself, it is good news of what Christ does in rescuing helpless and deceived men. A deceitful heart wants to make the way to heaven easy, but the undeceived heart understands that with men this is impossible. Christ is the only Savior, yes, but He alone can teach us these things in the inward man and He alone can open the eyes of the heart. We must (absolutely) have Him undeceive us or we will perish.

Be persuaded that your soul is far more valuable to you than the whole world and there are only two places (heaven and hell) that you will spend all eternity in.

You can count on it that it is very difficult to come to heaven, but the way to destruction is broad and easy. Take it to heart that you have a deceitful heart with you, a wicked devil close to you, and snares and hindrances around and before you.

It would be a terrible thing if our souls were for more valuable than a thousand worlds and yet we were deceived about how valuable our souls were to us and about the two places that are the only options we will spend eternity in. If someone set himself to deceive us about ourselves and about eternal dwellings, that would be as wicked and evil a thing as a human could do to us. But then think of an entire worldly system that is set out to provide ways for our hearts to deceive us and we are in big trouble. But even more, that worldly system is set in place by the master deceiver who wants to deceive human beings. He deceived Eve and she ate of the fruit. He has been deceiving ever since then. But again, it is the objective truth that we will spend all eternity in either heaven or hell. We will spend all eternity in eternal bliss or eternal torment. Our souls are of far greater value to us than the world. But our own hearts deceive us about that and it appears everything else around us.

But perhaps worse than those things, the modern, professing church appears to be a major way of deceiving people. 2 Corinthians 11:13 sets this out and leaves no room for doubt: “For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ.” It is clear enough that men deceive themselves and want to deceive themselves regarding the things of religion, but when they do that they are also deceiving others. But there are also others who purposefully deceive others. There are some who are false apostles and deceitful workers who are self-deceived, but there are others who know what they are doing and want to deceive. We know that the Pharisees were terribly deceived and they went about deceiving others as well. It is a terrible thing when a person with a deceived heart, has others around him who are deceiving him, has the worldly system deceiving him, and the devil deceiving him. But even more, when that person attends a local professing church and the deception there can be even worse. The deception there can be one that deceives the person into thinking that he has the truth and is a converted person. That person will be helped into hell and have his slide there greased by the teaching of modern religious people. This is true of liberals, of conservatives, and of any in between.

Now this appears terribly judgmental with railings against the modern, professing church. But Jesus Himself told us (Matthew 7:22) that there would be many who would cry out on that day, “’Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’” There will be many who prophesied (preached) and yet will hear the words of Christ spoken to them: “And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.’” Let us not be deceived about the many religions and the many professing churches in our day. We must have Christ Himself teach us in our inner man and yet we are to look for those who are teaching and preaching the Truth of Christ. Yet all of them claim to do so and many of the false teachers are kind, nice, and very smart and learned people.

When Christ came to this planet 2,000 years ago what did He find? He found a religion that followed many of the externals, but hardly anyone followed Christ Himself. The religious leaders of the day had the appearance of great wisdom and great holiness, but they were fakes and frauds who taught something other than the Truth and Christ. When Martin Luther burst on the scene 500 years ago (round figures), what did he find? He found a religious system set in place that had virtually no Gospel and no true holiness. What did people find in religion just before Christ came? They found deception and emptiness. What did people find in religion during the time just before Luther? They found deception and emptiness.

I am not trying to argue that our modern day is as bad as the days of Christ or of Luther. I am saying, however, that it certainly appears to be quite bad. Men must learn that only Christ can give them eyes to see and ears to hear. Men must learn that they need new hearts and not just new information. Men must learn that they need an inner instruction as well as an outward instruction. Men must learn that their proud hearts are their enemies and are not their friends. They must realize that Christ alone can teach them and that Christ alone can deliver them.

Be persuaded that your soul is far more valuable to you than the whole world and there are only two places (heaven and hell) that you will spend all eternity in.

You can count on it that it is very difficult to come to heaven, but the way to destruction is broad and easy. Take it to heart that you have a deceitful heart with you, a wicked devil close to you, and snares and hindrances around and before you.

While the Gospel is said to be easy in our day, though that is certainly not accurate in one sense, that is a different thing than saying that it is easy to go to heaven. The heart that Christ prepares is a heart that must go through many temptations and trials. The heart that Christ prepares is a heart that must be broken, and it should be clear that a broken heart in the midst of a fiery trial is not an easy thing to go through. The way to destruction, however, while it does include the misery of sin, does not include the hard things that God brings on the soul to break it of self-love, self-will, and of pride. The way to destruction appears broad and easy to those who do not wish to fight with their own deceptive hearts, the deceptive hearts of others, and the deceptions of the devil. But while the way is difficult to go to heaven, that difficulty is only for this life and it is mixed with the joy of the Holy Spirit, but then there are eternal pleasures in the presence of God. The hearts that are on the way to destruction have to endure the results of sin in this life, which can bring much misery, but the sin appears to be the fulfillment of the desires of their hearts. But once they arrive in hell, there is unceasing torment forever and ever.

At some point each soul has got to come to grips with eternity and realize that his or her soul will be in eternal bliss or eternal torment. When a person dies, a person either goes into the arms of the Lord or will lift up his or her eyes in torment. The soul must come to realize in this life that it is far more valuable than the whole world and it must not give in the deceptions of sin and of others. Each soul must realize that part of the deception of sin, of the world, and of the devil has to do with the reality of sin and of the reality of eternal torment. It appears that the teachings concerning hell are rapidly disappearing today as the deceptions of the devil and of the human heart (which is at enmity with God and hates the idea of the wrath of God against itself) are at open war against God and the truths of God.

With all the deceptions that are going on, in, and around the human soul, another great deception is that man only needs more information and accurate information. The truth of the matter is that man cannot undeceive himself, undeceive others, and cannot overcome the deceptions of the evil one in his own power and with more information. As 1 Corinthians 3:18 sets out, “Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you thinks that he is wise in this age, he must become foolish, so that he may become wise.” Since man cannot do this great work of overcoming the deceptions in and around him, he must be broken from his own pride and self-sufficiency so that he could look to Christ to teach him Truth. Oh how the proud of man is so strong and so hardened to think that he cannot overcome the deceptions of his own heart and the deceptions that are around him. However, the very heart of pride and self-love are a major part of his own deception. Pride deceives man and self-love deceives man.

Jeremiah 17:9 “The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it?

Mark 7:21 “For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, 22 deeds of coveting and wickedness, as well as deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride and foolishness.

Proverbs 21:4 Haughty eyes and a proud heart, The lamp of the wicked, is sin.

The heart of man must be taught of Christ and it must be humbled and broken by Christ. There is no greater power in man than his own pride and self-love, so clearly it must be a greater power than that to break him from his pride and self-love. That greater power and greater wisdom is Christ. It is the Lord Jesus Christ who will work in the hearts of sinful man and show man his sin and his weakness. It is the Lord Jesus who works in that heart until the heart sees that it if full of pride and self-love and cannot do anything else but act in pride and self-love. The very lamp or the light that guides the heart is pride. That heart must learn that Christ alone can change that heart.

Be persuaded that your soul is far more valuable to you than the whole world and there are only two places (heaven and hell) that you will spend all eternity in.

You can count on it that it is very difficult to come to heaven, but the way to destruction is broad and easy. Take it to heart that you have a deceitful heart with you, a wicked devil close to you, and snares and hindrances around and before you.

As the reality of eternity begins to sink in, the soul will face great deception. A person may have been raised to be moral or perhaps has rejected some Christian teachings or perhaps Christianity as a whole. What we must understand, however, is that when the weight of eternity begins to settle in on a soul, the soul may have some real terror settling in. The soul may begin to see sin in a different light and begin to question many things, but then the little voice (so to speak) begins to sound in the quiet times. It is then that one may meet some people who are very, very nice and outwardly kind and understanding and they try to explain some of the basic teachings of the Bible and of the character of God away. At times like that, we must understand that the Bible does speak directly to those issues and to people who are hearing things like that.

Ephesians 5:5 For this you know with certainty, that no immoral or impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater, has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. 6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.

The Scriptures tell us that we can know something (in this case) with certainty and that is that no immoral or impure person or covetous man has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. But again, the very nice people and the kind and understanding people will try to explain verses like that away. There are many, many nice pastors in pulpits across our land that try to explain those things away. But again, we can know with certainty that the type of person listed in Ephesians 5:5 has no inheritance in the kingdom. But we move on to verse 6 and notice that the warning there is to let no one deceive you with empty or vain words. Instead of the person that the things in verse 5 describes having an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God, those are the things that the wrath of God comes upon. Those are the people called “sons of disobedience.” These people are not sons of God, they are sons of disobedience.

1 Corinthians 6:9 Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, 10 nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.

The passage just above also tells us that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God and Paul seems surprised that these people don’t know that. He goes on to tell them not to be deceived about this. Now many in our day are quite deceived about this and many ministers are now saying that homosexuality is not a sin. Many are saying that fornication and adultery and so on are not really against God either. Some of the people had been those things, but they had been washed and justified. In other words, those are things that a person needs the power of God to save them from. Once again Paul warns the people not to be deceived about these things. Evidently people were being deceived then and they are certainly being deceived about these things now (in our day).

From all of this it is quite clear that sinners are deceived about sin and one reason that they are deceived is so that they will go to hell with the devil. He hates all human beings and wants all of them to go to hell with him. He is at work to deceive people about sin so that they will continue in their sin and not seek the Lord for repentance from it. As long as people keep thinking that God loves sinners just the way they are and that they do not need deliverance from the bondage of sin and forgiveness for that sin, then they are deceived and are on their way to hell without realizing it. Christ is the Prophet who must open the minds of sinners to see past or out of their deceptions. Christ is the One who must open the heart to see sin as sin and then how sin binds sinners and makes them slaves of it. Christ is the One who must show sinners that He alone can deliver from the true bondage of sin. Christ is Savior, yes, but He is Savior from the power of sin, the deception of sin, as well as the punishment for sin.

Be persuaded that your soul is far more valuable to you than the whole world and there are only two places (heaven and hell) that you will spend all eternity in.

You can count on it that it is very difficult to come to heaven, but the way to destruction is broad and easy. Take it to heart that you have a deceitful heart with you, a wicked devil close to you, and snares and hindrances around and before you.

A blind person would not make it in the world very long at all without help and helps. That is also true of all other people as well. Jesus spoke of the blind leading the blind and they both fell in the ditch. But of course He was speaking of a spiritual blindness which includes a spiritual deception as well. Those who are blind are fully human beings, but they lack one sense that helps people in and through the world. They cannot see the world as it is. They cannot see curbs and pot holes and construction ditches. They cannot see that they are walking to the edge of a bluff. But imagine a blind person who deceived himself into thinking that he could see. That is what happens with people who are dead in sin and yet think of themselves as alive. These are people who are spiritually blind and yet think they have spiritual sight. Blindness can be overcome, but as long as a person is deceived into thinking that he can see there is no hope for that person. As long as a person that is blind to spiritual things does not see that Christ must reveal truth to him or her, there is no hope for that person.

Galatians 6:3 For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.

James 1:26 If anyone thinks himself to be religious, and yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man’s religion is worthless.

In the verses above we see some of the great deception that humanity has to deal with. The world is constantly telling us that we are something and how great our self-esteem should be, yet it is opposed to the Scriptures which tell us that if we think we are something when we are nothing we deceive ourselves. The context of Galatians 6:3 is certainly a spiritual context, but we can simply note that it is very possible to deceive ourselves by thinking too highly of what we think our attainments might be. A person can think of self as quite spiritual and yet the reality is that the person is an unbeliever and still in bondage to self and sin.

The passage above from the book of James is quite powerful and should shred the hopes of many as to their religion. Many, many people think that they are religious, but they are quite deceived about the true nature of their religion. The true nature of Christianity has to do with the centrality of the glory of God and the hearts of men that He has changed so that they may live for His glory and be instruments of His glory. He does this by grace alone. But many think of Christianity as being essentially doctrinal, so if they have solid doctrine and an intellectual grasp of it they think they are converted. Others think of Christianity as moral, so they follow a certain morality and are quite content in thinking that they are solid Christians. But James teaches us something different throughout the book. Christianity has its essence in the heart and a person that does not control the tongue is not a person who has a new heart. A person can claim to believe, but a new heart and new life are necessary to validate that claim.

The person that thinks that Christianity is doctrine alone or moral alone is something like a blind person let out in the wilderness who thinks that s/he can see. The blind person in the wilderness must be convinced that s/he is blind in order to be led into the truth. Christ alone is the perfect Guide and the One who can lead people to the Father. People are greatly deceived who think that their doctrine or their morality can lead them to the Father or heaven. Following the way of doctrine is easy for the intellectual person, but repenting of all hope in the intellect is not. Following the way of external and public morality is easy for a strong-willed person or a proud person, but having Christ teach us that we have no self-righteousness and that even our good works are as filthy rags is not. While it is so hard for people to grasp in our day, but religion apart from Christ is very deceptive. Religion with a little of Christ is quite deceptive. It is also true that religion that uses the name of Christ a lot can be quite deceptive if not more deceptive than the rest. We must have the true Christ teach our hearts and take us in our spiritual blindness by our hands and lead us to truth and Himself. All else is deception.