What's Wrong with the World?
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Praise God Who is Holy
Sin separates us from God
sin is more than a mistake, it reveals our evil desires
Introduction
our biggest enemies: world, flesh, and the devil
1. Satan works through deception
1. Satan works through deception
Satan is the serpent
Who is this serpent? The fullest answer is given in
So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
So the serpent in the garden is the devil (which means slanderer), and Satan (which means accuser), and the deceiver of the whole world. Jesus calls him “the wicked one” (Matthew 13:19) and “the ruler of this world” (John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11). The Pharisees call him “Beelzebul, the prince of demons” (Matthew 12:24). Paul calls him “the god of this age” (2 Corinthians 4:4) and “the prince of the power of the air” (Ephesians 2:2).
Lucifer, the highest of the angelic host, had previously rebelled in heaven (Isa. 14:12–17; Ezek. 28:12–19) and enticed one-third of the angels to revolt against God (Rev. 12:4).
the serpent in Genesis 3 as an actual serpent who really talked (through the malicious power of the devil) but who was an instrument of Satan. Satan, in other words, used the serpent as his tool in leading our first parents to sin against God
Eve was deceived
But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression.
But I’m not deceived! No? Then consider this...
Why do you sin so often?
are you such a great rebel that you choose to reject God’s authority over and over?
Pray for help
And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
Why do you keep committing the same sins over and over?
is it not because you trust your feelings more than God?
have you not been deceived by your senses?
So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.
Why do you not run from temptation?
Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.
Expect temptation to come
Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you;
Why do you want to get alone with sin?
It looks attractive
Scripture says Paul was not ignorant of Satan's devices, but many are because they do not study the Bible as they should.
For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.
He uses the beautiful (Hollywood actress), the skilled (the athlete) and the crafty (charismatic personalities) to advocate his evil. They look and sound so innocent and are so attractive. But what they advocate is vile wickedness.
2. Satan challenges God’s authority
2. Satan challenges God’s authority
Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
The serpent’s purpose in this conversation was to induce Eve to sin against God. So this was no mere serpent. Behind him was an evil being of some sort, who knew what God had said, who hated God, and who wished to tempt the woman to sin against God.
Was there really a speaking serpent?
Created in God’s Image Was There a Speaking Serpent?
If we say that the serpent, the speaking of the serpent, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and the eating of the forbidden fruit were not actual but only symbolic or figurative, then we really know nothing about how man fell into sin. Then we must conclude that Adam and Eve did not actually eat the forbidden fruit, but that they sinned against God in some other way—a way of which we are totally ignorant.
So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.
Adam chose to defy and disobey God. Sin was conceived in the womb of his heart, then gave birth to this insubordinate act. Despite having been placed in Paradise and surrounded by the abundance of God, man chose to resist the right of God to rule over him. Of this cosmic rebellion, R. Kent Hughes remarks, “Adam sinned willfully, eyes wide-open, without hesitation. His sin was freighted with sinful self-interest. He had watched Eve take the fruit, and nothing happened to her. He sinned willfully, assuming there would be no consequences. Everything was upside down. Eve followed the snake, Adam followed Eve, and no one followed God.” It was clear man would not submit to the sovereignty of God.
Sin is not a mistake, but rebellion.
this is why we need a Savior!
Submit to God not your feelings.
3. Satan attacks God’s character
3. Satan attacks God’s character
Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”
It is obvious that sin began in the heart of Eve already before she actually ate the forbidden fruit. Note the following stages:
The first thing that happened was that Satan, through the serpent, aroused doubt in Eve’s mind when he said, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” (v. 1).
Doubt slays many, and sin and Satan often gain a foothold on a person by casting doubt. To counter this vicious attack, know the Word of God well, failure to know the Word well will open the door to much unnecessary doubt which can lead you into much sin. Our secular schools often instill doubt about God's word in the minds of their students. No one grows strong spiritually though doubting the Word of God. Doubt leads to damnation. It is faith that gives us the victory
For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.
In the woman’s reply we note the beginning of resentment: (vv. 2–3). Actually, God had not said that Adam and Eve could not touch this tree; Eve’s mentioning this seems to suggest the beginning of resentment against what she now deemed to be an unfair restriction of their activities.
Satan suggested, without ever saying so, that God was not good, that God was withholding some pleasure from Eve—a life better than the one she had. Satan tricked Eve into seeking a good thing, but seeking it in an evil way. The serpent knew his prey: it was precisely because Eve was made in the image of God that she viewed being like God as a tempting prospect. Satan didn’t create evil desires; he twisted good ones.
Doubt and resentment soon led to unbelief. When the serpent went on to say, “You will not surely die” (v. 4), Eve began to believe the serpent and to disbelieve God.
Next the serpent aroused pride: (v. 5). Feeling that some greater height of God-likeness than she had previously attained had so far been denied her, and wanting in pride to reach that height, the woman was now ready for the final step.
As she looked intently at the tree, evil desire was aroused. There was an appeal to the appetite (“the fruit of the tree was good for food”), to the eyes (it was “pleasing to the eye”), and once again to her pride (the fruit was “desirable for gaining wisdom”). The final step was outright disobedience:(v. 6).
Genesis 2 makes it clear that God had made trees for just the reasons Eve was attracted to this one. The text says that He made “every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food” (2:9). So food is good. As is delight. As is being wise like God. Eve’s sin began, as all sins do, when good things were bent the wrong way. God’s good creations were used against Him. God’s creatures tried to make themselves equal to Him instead of merely like Him.
Do you doubt God’s goodness?
how often do you long for something more?
And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
Satan's attack is to make us discontent with what we have. He will major on the minors and minor on the majors to cause this discontent. Adam and Eve were permitted to eat of all the trees of the garden (Genesis 2:16), but Satan would concentrate on the one tree of which they were not to eat and from that cause much discontent in their hearts, and led them to sin. If we were more grateful we would be more holy. But, alas, so few are grateful for what they have but focus on what they do not have and this often leads to great sin. The business world is not innocent here for they emphasize your lack in order to sell their product. Sin is that which is more concerned about its wants than its needs.
4. Satan lies about God’s response
4. Satan lies about God’s response
Satan especially likes to deny the negative of sin. True Adam and Eve did not die immediately, but eventually they died. That is the lethal aspect of his lie. When man sins and does not suffer immediately for it, man has a tendency to think he got away with his sin and that sin will not punish him. So the ungodly may go for some time before the ill effects of their evil gets them. If you take away the certainty of judgment, you only encourage evil. The leniency of our courts only encourages evil, it does not stop it. Satan does not hesitate to lie about the negative results of evil.
Many tell us pornography will not hurt us, that alcohol does not hurt and promotes fun. We hear and read such arguments 24/7. But they are all lies and contrary to the facts. Adam and Eve died, Satan lied. Sin will curse you.
Conclusion
What’s wrong with the world - many things. our biggest problem is sin
Don’t be deceived
submit to God
be content
think about the end
Closing announcements:
Connection Card
Online giving
Bible reading
Member’s meeting
Allen
God is leading them to move to Oregon in March
He’s going to be on staff of the church he met Cherith in
The pastor is planning to retire in a couple of years and wants Allen to be the next pastor
we love them and they love our church here and our 7yrs here
I’ve known about this and been praying with us about it from the outset
Their hearts have always been to return to Oregon
we're grateful for the opportunity
God has gone up with a shout, The Lord with the sound of a trumpet. Sing praises to God, sing praises! Sing praises to our King, sing praises! For God is the King of all the earth; Sing praises with understanding. God reigns over the nations; God sits on His holy throne.
Application Questions:
Application Questions:
Since deception is “tricky,” how can we be on guard against it?
Temptation calls us to doubt who God is, and to defy his call on our lives. Where in life are you most tempted this way? How has God provided help for you to fight these temptations?
What things did Eve perceive to be desirable in the fruit she was forbidden to eat by God? What connection can be made between desire and disobedience?
Will a Christian suffer the temporal consequences of his sin the same as an unbeliever?
What has been most helpful to you in fighting temptation?
Newsletter
Newsletter
What’s Wrong with the World?
Is it the Democrats or the Republicans? If only it was that simple. There are many complex problems in our world. Our sermon text this Sunday addresses the biggest problem that humanity ever faced or will face. Curious to find out what it is? Get a head start by reading Genesis 3:1-7! See you tomorrow!