Don’t Be Deceived

 

Intro: We need to pay close attention to what is being said and taught as truth today, in the media, our government and churches. We need to be ready for the deception to come in the future. God does not want us to be deceived so He warns us in His word.

I. The bible warns there will be much deception in the last days. 1 Timothy 4:1-2 (NKJV) ¹ Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, ² speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron.                                                  The bible warns that there will be many false prophets in the last days.   1 John 4:1 (NKJV) Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

II. Satan’s goal is to deceive the whole world. Satan is brilliantly clever at taking age-old lies, disguising them as realities, and gradually introducing them to even those churches who insist that they believe in the infallible authority of the Bible. Revelation 12:9 speaks of, " that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceives the whole world." To deceive means to lead astray. Devil tries to lead astray by contradicting and twisting the word of God to say something other than what is true as he did Eve. The Lord put this and similar verses in his Word to warn us of a reality of world history: Global deception. Even those who profess to be Evangelical Christians are susceptible to the Serpent's lie. We already are and will continue to be exposed to deception about the intentions of other religions that are trying to establish a one world religion. There is deception by our government leaders about their intentions for a new world order to get control of the people.

III. Some examples of Satan’s deception. Ephesians 2:8-9 (NKJV) ⁸  For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, ⁹  not of works, lest anyone should boast. Satan deceives people by the teaching of salvation by works instead of God’s grace. The bible tells us in Ephesians 2:8-9 the true way of salvation. What all the world’s religions and philosophies have in common is a form of self-righteousness that teaches salvation by works, that you earn salvation by what you do. They deny the Biblical Jesus and salvation by grace through faith in Him which is not of works lest any should boast. Jesus prayed to the Father that if there was any other way for mankind to be saved remove this cup from me. Jesus would not have had to go to the cross if there was any other way. Satan's is infiltrating the church with error through pastors and false teachers. Not only is Satan the "Father of lies," but he is also the "Author of confusion." It is getting harder and harder to tell the difference between the world views and the liberal church. The message and the priorities of the Church are becoming just like the World. There are books that teach on many different religions, philosophies and ideas. Beware of what you read and fill your mind with! Remember books written by mankind cannot replace the gospel. Only the gospel is error free. Christians are being deceived more and more with religious groups and movements which teach a mixture of beliefs and compromise of God's truth and priorities. The different religions are uniting for the purpose of solving the problems that create differences of religion in the world, thus one world religion. They do this in the name of God and peace. The only one world religion that will work is when Jesus returns and sets up His kingdom on this earth. The bible warns in; 2 Corinthians 6:14-15 (NLT) ¹⁴ Don’t team up with those who are unbelievers. How can righteousness be a partner with wickedness? How can light live with darkness? ¹⁵ What harmony can there be between Christ and the devil? How can a believer be a partner with an unbeliever? Any religion that denies Jesus as God and Savior of the world is anti-Christ, evil and deceptive. It is of the devil. There is no harmony between Christ and the devil.

IV. The solution for avoiding deception is the Holy word of God. Christians are much more likely, these days, to not read their Bible for their convictions and world- view, but instead they follow the opinions of leaders they look up to. Celebrity preachers and some T.V. Ministers are likely to draw our attention and our allegiance. In these last days we cannot afford to follow human leaders as if they were experts; no matter who they are. We are to be disciples of Jesus and follow him alone. So how can we be sure we are not being deceived? The only way we will be able to spot deception is by having encounters with the truth. Knowledge of the truth exposes lies. Our only hope to not be deceived in these last days is to "abide in Jesus and His words"; according to John 15:7 We must surrender our hearts moment by moment to the Holy Spirit. We need to be like those in Acts 17:11 (NKJV) They searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so. We should read our bibles every day if possible. That's the only way we will be able to spot deception is by having regular encounters with the truth of God’s word. When we read the bible John 8:32 says “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."

Invitation: Do not be deceived about your salvation. Romans 3:23 says “All have sinned and fallen short of God's glory.” Romans 6:23 says “The wages of our sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life, In Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Be sure you have confessed your sins to Jesus and asked Him to forgive you so you can receive the gift of eternal life. Then invite Him into your heart to take charge of your life. Be baptized in His name.

Confidence in God

 

Scripture Text

Psalm 138: 7-8

Intro: King David is a good example of one who had great confidence in God. The scriptures for this message tell us we too can have great confidence in God.

I. Christianity is not trouble free. Psalms 138:7 (NKJV) Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You will revive me; You will stretch out Your hand Against the wrath of my enemies, And Your right hand will save me. Our hope is not in the absence of trouble. David walked daily in the midst of trouble and trials. So do Christians! Every day we face all kinds of troubles, distresses, different risks, sicknesses. So, we shouldn't expect an absence of trouble. Our hope is in God. He will revive us [cheer our spirit] in the midst of trouble. He will stretch out His hand against the wrath of our enemies. He will bring us victory in the midst of troubles. God says in Psalms 23:4 (NKJV) Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. If one finds their self in a valley of deep [trouble, distress, sickness, anxiety] , you need not fear. The Lord is with you and will protect you with His glorious provisions. A. God gives the victory in the presence of our enemies. [Psalms 23:5] You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over. The psalmist here rejoices in the Lord’s provision. What was comforting to David was that the victory was in the presence of his enemies. Despite impending danger, the Lord spread out a table for him, that is, God provided for him and anointed his head with oil which is symbolic of the anointing of God's favor and blessings in which comes our victory. In view of the table and the oil, David knew that his lot in life (his cup) was abundant blessing from the Lord. His right hand will save us. The same hand that strikes out against our adversaries will save us from disaster. 1 Peter 3:22 (NKJV) Jesus has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, angels and authorities and powers having been made subject to Him. Romans 8:34 (NKJV) Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.

II. God will complete that which concerns us. Psalms 138:8 (NKJV) The Lord will perfect that which concerns me; Your mercy, O Lord, endures forever; Do not forsake the works of Your hands. This is the same confidence that Paul expressed in; Philippians 1:6 (NKJV) being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. We can be sure God will complete His work in us because His steadfast love endures forever. [In Heb. 13:5 God says] “He will never leave us nor forsake us.” God's word says in; Romans 8:28 (NKJV) And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.

III. God never can or will forsake the works of His hand. We Christians are the work of His hands. Ephesians 2:10 (NKJV) For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. Romans 8:38-39 (NKJV) ³⁸ For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, ³⁹ nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Conclusion: God works constantly to bring beauty out of pain. The question is not “Will He succeed?” But rather, “Will we trust Him until He completes that which concerns us?” The answer is up to us!

Invitation: Confidence in God begins with being born again by the Spirit. When we confess our sins to Jesus and ask Him to forgive and save us, we can have confidence that He will hear us and save us. Once we have taken this first step we can have confidence that God will take care of us and deliver us through whatever we have to face in this life because He will never leave us nor forsake us. We can have then confidence that nothing can separate us from the love of God which we have in Christ Jesus our Lord. We are His now and throughout eternity! Praise God!

Complete Freedom

 

Scripture Text

Rom. 8:1-11

Intro: Thank God for your spiritual freedom. Freedom means to be liberated from whatever has you in bondage. Sin had us in bondage. Complete freedom comes from only one source, and that is God Almighty. Are we truly thankful for the spiritual freedom we have in Christ? We can not lose sight of the One who died to set us spiritually free. Let us thank Him for the spiritual freedom we enjoy today. Let us not take it for granted.

I. Trying to keep God's law brings us into bondage. Romans 3:19-20 (NKJV) ¹⁹  Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. ²⁰  Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin. We are unable to keep the righteous requirements of God' law. The law was given to show us what sin is. No one has been able to fully keep God's law since the creation of mankind. Therefore all mankind needs to be set completely free from this bondage because the penalty for sin is eternal separation from God and His Heaven. Because of the weakness of the flesh, we are unable to fulfill the righteous requirements of God's law. Therefore, All are under God's condemnation.

II. Jesus sets us completely free from God's condemnation. Romans 8:1 (NKJV) There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. The condemnation that the law brings can only be changed by Jesus Christ and by walking or living our lives in the power of His Spirit instead of the sins of the flesh. A lot of Christians are still in bondage by believing they have to perform some kind of good work to please God. They never know when they have done enough good works and so they live in bondage to the devil.

III. We are completely free from the law of sin and death. Romans 8:2-4 (NKJV) ²  For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. ³  For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, ⁴  that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. What the law could not do for us, Jesus did in setting us free from the law of sin and death. The law of God was just and right in telling us what God wanted us to do and not to do but it did not give us the power to keep those perfect laws of God. We could not keep God's law because of the weakness of our sinful fleshly nature. Christ took on humanity in order to be a sacrifice for our sins. God condemned sin through the flesh of His perfect Son Jesus Christ. Jesus took the full wrath of God against our sin and gave us who live according to the Spirit His righteousness. Because Christ was sinless, his death passed the “death sentence” on sin for all of us, destroying sin’s control over us. For mankind to be able to reach the righteous requirement of the law takes more than our sinful nature can produce. Only through Christ’s death and the resulting freedom from sin can we no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit and thus fulfill the righteous requirements of the law. The Holy Spirit is the one who helps us become holy. The Holy Spirit provides the power we need to help us do what the law required of us.

IV. The benefits of our spiritual freedom. [Rom. 8:5-11]Romans 8:5-11 (NKJV) ⁵  For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. ⁶  For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. ⁷  Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. ⁸  So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God. ⁹  But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. ¹⁰  And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. ¹¹  But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. Those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the flesh, the things of this world. But we who have been set free live by the Spirit by setting our minds on the things of the Spirit who lives within us. Even though our bodies will die because of sin, the Spirit gives us eternal life because we have been made right with God thru Christ. Spiritual freedom means the same Spirit of God who raised Christ from the dead lives in us and will also raise our mortal bodies to glorious resurrected bodies that will live forever. So we do not do what our sinful nature urges us to do. We are free from bondage to live for Christ.

Invitation: Are you completely free from the bondage of sin and death? If not, Jesus waits to free you from all that has you bound. Simply right where you are, confess your sins to Jesus and ask Him to forgive you and then invite Him into your life and help you live in complete freedom. Be baptized to show you are sincere! You will be glad you did!