Mar
19
Written by:
Bob Flynn
3/19/2009 7:43 AM
We must not use the power which comes from us, rather we must use the power which proceeds from the Holy Spirit. (Watchman Nee, The Latent Power of the Soul)
Deception was the tool used by the Enemy that caused our parents to be cast out of the Garden and separated from their innocence. Deception continues to be Satan’s tool in the current age; however, self-deception is a horse of a different color. It, like the Nile, has multiple sources, one of which is self! So complete is this delusion and so rampant is its gain that we can observe its presence on the nightly news. Perhaps the Puritan John Flavel covered this when he said, “Conceits and whimsies abound most in men of weak reason.” John Flavel, Preparation for Suffering.
Watchman Nee, in The Latent Power of the Soul, describes this self-deception source as follows: “My hope for today is that you may be helped to know the source and the operations of the latent power of the soul. May God impress us with the fact that where soul force is, there also is the evil spirit. We must not use the power which comes from us, rather we must use the power which proceeds from the Holy Spirit. May we especially deny the latent power of the soul, lest we fall into Satan’s hand. For the soul’s power has, through Adam’s sin, already fallen under the dominion of Satan and has become the latter’s working instrument. We therefore need to exercise great caution against Satan’s deception.”
A.W. Tozer, in Man—The Dwelling Place of God, contrasts these deceptions by saying that when a man is deceived, he is being deceived against his will and is the victim of another’s guile. However when he is self-deceived, he has become his own worst enemy and is perpetrating a fraud upon himself. As a result of his life’s conditioning, he wants to believe the lie. He cannot resist the deceit because he has become a collaborator with it against himself. The battle is over before it starts because he has already surrendered. “He enjoys being deceived….The further we push into the sanctuary, the greater becomes the danger of self-deception. The deeply religious man is far more vulnerable than the easygoing fellow who takes his religion lightly. This latter may be deceived but he is not likely to be self-deceived.” (Tozer)
“Men can do many good things and yet not be holy in heart and righteous in conduct. They can do many good things and lack that spiritual quality of heart called holiness. How great the need of hearing the words of Paul guarding us against self-deception in the great work of personal salvation: ‘Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap’” E.M. Bounds - The Essentials of Prayer.
Arthur W. Pink asserts, in Practical Christianity, that there is indeed a faith in Christ which does not save! Hence, it is very easy to be deceived about faith despite the many pointed warnings from the Holy Spirit written in Scripture!
“A deceived heart has turned him aside” (Isaiah 44:20 NASB).
“The arrogance of your heart has deceived you” (Obadiah 3 NASB).
“See to it that you be not misled” (Luke 21:8 NASB).
“For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself” (Galatians 6:3 NASB).
“At no point does Satan use this cunning and power more tenaciously, and more successfully, than in getting people to believe that they have a saving faith when they have not. How many a Satan-blinded soul will read this and then say, It does not apply to me; I know that my faith is a saving one!” (A. W. Pink)
Today Lucifer continues to wield this mighty, effective tool because it works! Even while you are reading this article your soul is already putting up a defense! All the while, the Devil is turning you away from the sword point of conviction from Holy Scripture, as the concrete hardens around your feet making you a captive of unbelief.
“Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves!” (2 Corinthians 13:5 NASB).
“Oh, my reader, heed that word now. Reader, if there is a reserve in your obedience, you are on the way to hell.” (A. W. Pink)
According to A.W. Tozer, in The Dwelling Place of God, we have created a panacea for all the ills and dubbed it prayer. We worship it as the secret key that will unlock every prison door. There is great privilege and every advantage to those who “pray in the Spirit,” but he who prays carelessly will find that this too will become a source of self-deception.
“To escape self-deception, the praying man must come out clean and honest. He cannot hide in the cross while concealing in his bosom the golden wedge and the goodly Babylonish garment. Grace will save a man, but it will not save him and his idol. The blood of Christ will shield the penitent sinner alone, but never the sinner and his idol. Faith will justify the sinner, but it will never justify the sinner and his sin. How may we remain free from self-deception? The answer sounds old-fashioned and dull but here it is: Mean what you say and never say what you do not mean, either to God or man. Think candid thoughts and act forthrightly always, whatever the consequence. To do this will bring the cross into your life and keep you dead to self and to public opinion. And it may get you into trouble sometimes, too. But a guileless mind is a great treasure; it is worth any price.” (Tozer)
Then come “‘the world-rulers of the darkness of this age.’ This name would suggest a ministry of deception, the keeping in darkness of the minds of men, and especially of the leaders of thought” J.A. MacMillan, The Authority of the Believer.
“So often activity, even Christian service, can be a cloak to hide the truth both from ourselves and from others. The Holy Spirit is against all such self-deception and sham. It is truth and not sacrifice which He requires in such a case.” Roy Hession, Be Filled Now.
“The circumspect walk is distinctly the will of the Lord for each and every child of God. Therefore, the present walk in the flesh is not only a folly of infinite proportion, but is a distinct disobedience and disregard of the revealed will of the One Who has saved us at measureless cost. The antinomian1 deception is, that exactness of conduct is an indifferent thing so long as there is soundness of doctrine; but such error is most serious. True piety is not a thoughtless security, but rather a watchful sobriety, which is a daily habit of mind. There is marvelous advantage to the one who knows the doctrines and stands secure in their glorious fullness; but there is need, as well, that the doctrine shall be adorned.” Lewis Sperry Chafer, Ephesian Letter.
“Satan’s ambition is leading him to make this age of his special opportunity, as near perfect as his wisdom and power will permit. And in this connection it may be noted that Satan’s ambition was not to become a fiend, but rather to become like the Most High. He will, therefore, strive for all that is moral and good: yet at the same time do all in his power to draw men from their natural reverence of God, that, in due time, they may acknowledge himself without fear. The Satanic ideal of this age is, then, an improved social order, a moral and cultured people, who are devout worshippers of himself, though for the present they may imagine they are worshipping Jehovah through their empty religious forms and ceremonies, while they are really in a state of God-dishonoring unbelief, and all their thoughts are energized by Satan alone. The Satanic message for this age will be reformation and self-development, while the message of God is regeneration by the power of the Spirit. The action of Satan may also be detected in that a humble messenger who is loyal to Christ and His Salvation by grace alone, will be almost unheeded at the present time: while the vast throng will be found supporting that which is religious only in its externals, but which is, in reality, a gospel of morality and subtle denial of the redemption that is in Christ.
Again, the opposing power of Satan may be seen in the matter of Christian giving. Millions are given without solicitation for education, culture, and humanity’s physical comfort, but real world-wide evangelization must ever drag on with its shameful limitations and debts.” Lewis Sperry Chaffer, Satan.
“Is it not God’s design that men should obtain assurance in any other way than by mortifying corruption, and increasing in grace, and obtaining the lively exercise of it? And although self-examination be a duty of great use and importance, and by no means to be neglected, yet it is not the principal means by which the saints do get satisfaction of their good estate. Assurance is not to be obtained so much by self-examination as by action!” Jonathan Edwards, The Religious Affections.
1. Antinomian—One who holds that under the Gospel dispensation of Grace the moral law is of no use or obligation because faith alone is necessary to salvation. (Merriam-Webster Online)
Copyright ©2009 Robert Flynn