A New Beginning

Greg Laurie: The devil will sometimes tempt us to do wrong and then condemn us for doing what he suggested. Pastor Greg Laurie says, beware.

Greg Laurie: You are in church, and suddenly the most wicked, twisted thought comes into your mind. I mean, really bad. And immediately, the accuser of the brethren says, what kind of a twisted person are you?

Greg Laurie: But here's the thing, it's not a sin to be tempted. The issue of sin is not in the bait, it's in the bite.

Greg Laurie: Our spiritual adversary has been at war with believers for a long time. Thousands of years, in fact. He knows how to trip us up, and sadly, admittedly, he's pretty good at it. So how do we stand strong? Well, today on A New Beginning, Pastor Greg Laurie points us to the battle-tested truth of God's Word. The good news, we are not fighting for victory, we're fighting from victory. God has already won, and He's equipped us to stand our ground.

Greg Laurie: Grab your Bibles. Let's turn to First John chapter 3. And the title of my message is "Overcoming the Great Deceiver: Truth in a World of Fakes." Chapter 3, starting in verse 7.

Greg Laurie: "Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. For whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him, and he cannot sin because he's been born of God."

Greg Laurie: All right, so Satan is real, and always has been. The devil, according to verse 6, has sinned from the beginning. We basically have been on demon time since day one. That's literally Satan's whole vibe, if you will. It's lying, twisting truth, and causing chaos. It's not a phrase. That's how he rolls. That's who he is. That is his nature.

Greg Laurie: So, we wonder, why would God create someone as horrible and as evil as Satan? And the conventional wisdom is, Satan came from hell. But actually, Satan didn't come from hell at all. You might be surprised to know that if you want to get technical, Satan came from heaven. Now let me explain.

Greg Laurie: He was not always Satan. First, he was Lucifer, the son of the morning, a beautiful, high-ranking angel, possibly an archangel, certainly an important one, who had access to the throne of God, but he rebelled against God. And God's judgment came upon him as a result.

Greg Laurie: And so Satan comes to accuse and deceive. He comes to accuse and deceive. So it's kind of scary when you think about it. And you think, how can we overcome the devil? And that brings me to my next point. Jesus has already defeated Satan. Jesus has already defeated Satan.

Greg Laurie: Look at First John 3:8. "For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. Whoever has been born of God does not sin, His seed remains in him, and he cannot sin because he's been born of God." So why was Jesus Christ manifested? Why did He come to our planet? Well, He came to die for the sin of the world, needless to say. But He also came to destroy the works of the devil.

Greg Laurie: So Satan has been defeated. But let's think for a moment about his strategy. I mentioned he's called the accuser of the brethren. So over in Revelation 12, and I want you to turn to Revelation 12, we're going to go there for a few moments, also written by John, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, on the island of Patmos.

Greg Laurie: And in Revelation 12, you have an interesting scene. We have a battle breaking out in heaven. Satan and his fallen angels pick a fight with Michael and his angels, which is a bad idea, because Satan isn't even the equal of Michael, much less God. I bring this up because I think sometimes we think that Satan is the equal of God. He's not even close to that.

Greg Laurie: God is omnipresent. Satan can only be in one place at one time. God is omniscient, means all-knowing. Satan knows a lot, but he has limited knowledge. God is omnipotent, all-powerful. Satan has limitations to his power. But even Michael the archangel is more powerful than Satan. So you don't pick a fight with someone that can beat you.

Greg Laurie: That's exactly what the devil does. He picks a fight with Michael, and Michael, of course, prevails. Satan is cast out of heaven. And then we pick the story up in Revelation 12, starting in verse 10. "Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, 'Now salvation and strength and the kingdom of our God and the power of His Christ has come, for the accuser of the brethren,' I would underline that, 'the accuser of the brethren, who accused them before our God day and night has been cast down.'

Greg Laurie: Now here's the big verse. "They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death." So he's overcome, and how do they do it, these believers? By the blood of the Lamb, the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives unto the death.

Greg Laurie: But there's a verse that explains why the devil does what he does. In Revelation 12:12, it says, "Woe to the inhabitants of the earth, for the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, and he knows he has a short time." See, the devil knows his days are numbered. He knows he's going to be judged.

Greg Laurie: And you would think he would repent and get right with God. But he does the very opposite. He wants to wreak as much havoc as he can among humanity until the day he faces his final judgment. And then he has his demon powers working with him. He picks his fight with Michael, but then he attacks the believers with accusation.

Greg Laurie: It's important we understand how this works. He is the accuser of the brethren. So here's how it rolls. You're just sitting somewhere. Maybe even in church, sitting in church, listening to a message. And you're thinking, Greg is such a handsome gentleman. Excuse me, those are my thoughts. I apologize. No, you're, you're, whatever, you're listening, maybe you're worshipping, whatever it is you're doing, it's all good.

Greg Laurie: You're in church, and suddenly the most wicked, twisted thought comes into your mind. I mean, really bad. You can't even believe this thought is in your mind. And you can't believe this thought is in your mind in church, of all places. And immediately, the accuser of the brethren says, "What kind of a twisted person are you? Why would you think such a thought? You ought to just leave church right now. You're the ultimate hypocrite for even being in here." So if you walk out while I'm preaching, I know this is what's happening to you. Or you have to go to the bathroom. One of those two things.

Greg Laurie: But, but here's the thing, it's not a sin to be tempted. It's only a sin if you give in to the temptation. The issue of sin is not in the bait, it's in the bite. So if the devil comes and dangles something before you, that doesn't mean you've done a single thing wrong. Jesus himself was tempted. It's not a sin to be tempted, but you have a choice. I can let that thought into my mind, let it become a part of my thought processes, or I can reject that thought at the outset and not let it in. That's why the Bible says, "Casting down imaginations and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God."

Greg Laurie: The Bible also says, "You will keep them in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you." So, if you let that thought in, now we have a problem. And then even worse, if you act on that thought, far worse. But if you just cut it off right there, you don't open the door, you don't entertain it, then you don't have to feel bad. You can just say, "Get behind me, Satan." You know, the Bible says, "Resist the devil and he'll flee from you." Get out of here.

Greg Laurie: Right? But he tempts us, and then he accuses us for being tempted, right? How do you overcome him? We just read about it in verse 11 there in Revelation. They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb.

Greg Laurie: Pastor Greg Laurie will have the second half of his message in just a moment.

Guest (Female): We love to hear stories of how lives have been changed through the teaching of God's word. Hi, Pastor Greg. I'm very thankful for your gospel messages that have helped lead my mother-in-law to Christ. That then trickled down to my husband and finally reached me. At that time, I was part of a religious group that I thought was teaching the truth, but found out the real truth by listening to you teach the Bible and then my own study in God's Word. I now know Jesus personally and love to share the truth of Jesus with them also. Thank you.

Guest (Male): How have these studies in God's Word touched your life? If you have a story to share, why not call us and let us know? Call 1-866-871-1144. That's 866-871-1144.

Greg Laurie: Well, today, Pastor Greg is exposing how the devil tempts us and then turns around and accuses us. We continue with more of today's message now.

Greg Laurie: Let's say that you give in to that temptation. At least mentally. You you entertained it. You took it for a test drive, and then you realize this is wrong, this is sinful. God, I'm sorry. Forgive me. The devil will say, "Don't go to God and say you're sorry. God's not going to hear your prayer. You're a hypocrite." Okay, listen. I can go to God any time because Christ died for my sin and has given me access.

Greg Laurie: Satan is always going to use your sins in a hateful and condemning way to drive you from the cross. The Holy Spirit will convict you of your sins in a loving way to bring you to the cross. Anything that drives you from the cross is from the devil. Don't listen to it. I can go to Christ right now. I can be forgiven. Yes, I sin, but I repent of that sin, and I ask you to forgive me. That's how you overcome Satan by the blood of the Lamb. Apply it in your life.

Greg Laurie: You apply the blood. Remember when Israel was being led out of Egypt, and God instituted the first Passover? He told them to slay a lamb, and then he told them to take the blood and apply it to the doorway of their home. Remember? So you put the blood on the top, you put the blood on the left, you put the blood on the right. You'll notice that's a cross there. It was foreshadowing the death of Christ on the cross. Apply the blood. God says, "Whenever I see the blood, I will pass over." So God was judging the people, but if He saw the blood applied, He would pass over that home, hence the term.

Greg Laurie: See, you have to apply the blood. Yes, Jesus shed His blood for you, but it's not going to help you if you don't apply it. "I don't know what that means." It means that you say, "Lord, I know You shed Your blood for me. I'm sorry for my sin. Forgive me of my sin. And because You promised, if I walk in the light, as You're in the light, I'll have fellowship with You, and the blood of Jesus Christ will cleanse me from all sin." You say the verse out loud. And then you say, "And I claim that promise right now. I am forgiven by God." That's how you apply the blood.

Greg Laurie: And it's something we need to do. I told you about a conversation I had years ago with Billy Graham in his home in Montreat, North Carolina. We had had a wonderful lunch. And afterwards, I asked Billy if there's something an older Billy could say to a younger Billy, what advice would you give yourself? And Billy said, "I would preach more on the cross and the blood of Christ because that's where the power is." That's not just for gospel preaching. That's for believers to remember. The cross and the blood of Christ. That's how they overcame him.

Greg Laurie: Now we shift gears. And John is dealing with the topic of envy. First John 3:11. "For this message you've heard from the beginning, that we should love one another, not as Cain who was of the wicked one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his works were evil and his brother's were righteous." So my point is, envy kills.

Greg Laurie: So Cain and Abel, the sons of Adam and Eve. They brought their offerings to the Lord. God accepted the offering of Abel. He rejected the offering of Cain. So Cain was so angry, so filled with envy and jealousy, he murdered his brother Abel. So we see how important motive is.

Greg Laurie: You know, envy is an interesting kind of a sin when you think about it. Because we only envy certain people. In other words, I don't envy someone that's greater than me. I don't sit around and think, why don't I have the wealth of Elon Musk? Or why don't I have the ability to play guitar like Eric Clapton? Or why can't I I do something like this famous person? You don't think that. You envy people that are closer to you. Aristotle said, quote, "Envy grows naturally in a relationship between equals." End quote.

Greg Laurie: So envy has been described as a small-town sin. It breeds on proximity. So, I'm not going to envy some celebrity for the most part. I'm going to envy my neighbor. How come my neighbor has that, and I don't have that? I'm going to envy a coworker. I'm going to envy maybe somebody that I have a friendship with. And, you know, and I'm desiring what they have. I've told you the illustration before of the crab fisherman who had his bucket full of crabs with no lid. And someone said, "Wow, this crabs are in your bucket. Why don't they climb out?" He goes, "Oh, it's no problem. Because when one climbs up, the others pull him back down."

Greg Laurie: That's how we are. Oh, I envy, I want that. And this is what motivated Cain. His motives were wrong. See, when they brought their offering, Abel brought his offering in faith, and Cain did not. And motives are everything when it comes to approaching God. Certainly in our prayers, also in our finances.

Greg Laurie: When you pray, you want to have your heart in the right place. God says, "These people draw near to me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me." You know, we think in worship it's all about having a beautiful voice. What it really comes down to is having a heart that's right with God. And when we worship, the Lord's not saying, "Wow, your voice is better than anybody else's voice." And this person, "Your voice is awful." No, he doesn't, God doesn't look at that. God looks on the heart. Look at this person's heart.

Greg Laurie: Look at how they're turned toward me. And another person, maybe who's not engaged at all. Or when we pray, we're saying something, but our heart is not really in it. So motive matters there. It certainly matters in the giving of our finances because the Bible says God loves a cheerful giver.

Greg Laurie: It is an absolute privilege to give of our finances to the Lord. You know why? Because everything that you have has been given to you by God to start with. Don't get quiet on me. I hate this. Oh, if you're talking about money, probably going to receive an offering next. Well, maybe I will. Why do we withdraw when this topic comes up?

Greg Laurie: Why is it that this is, we can talk about any subject under the sun. We're, "Amen! Yeah, that's right. Preach it!" And we get to this, I don't know. I'm just telling you what the Bible says. And the Bible says that everything you have comes to you from God. And the Bible says that every Christian should give of their finances on a regular basis, and the Bible speaks of tithes and offerings. A tithe is 10%, and an offering is something above that.

Greg Laurie: And, and there are people that don't give at all to the Lord. And here's what I'm saying to you: you're missing out. You're missing out on the great blessing of giving, the great joy of giving. Actually, Jesus said, "It is more blessed to give than to receive." And that could be translated, more happy-making. We don't think of it that way.

Greg Laurie: It's more happy-making. You've experienced it. How many of you ever done something for someone and felt really good after you did it? You've heard of the runner's high? I've never experienced it, but I've heard about it. I've experienced the eater's high. Endorphins released.

Greg Laurie: Well, there's also something they've identified called the giver's high, the giver's high, where they say when you do something for someone else, there's a release of endorphins. So, when Jesus says it's more happy-making to give than to receive, it's interesting because you think, "No, it's more happy-making to get than to give." And the Bible says the opposite, and you've already found it out for yourself when you've given to others, when you've helped others. So when I invest in the work of the kingdom, I'm laying up for myself treasures in heaven.

Greg Laurie: Here's what you're going to find, God will never be your debtor. Listen, I started giving long before I could afford to give anything. Some say, "I can't afford to give." I can't afford not to give. Because here's what I've found, God always makes it up to me in some way, shape, or form. And He's made some crazy promises, some great promises. Malachi comes to mind. God says, "Bring your offerings and your gifts and your tithes to Me, and see if I will not open up the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing on you so great, you won't even be able to receive it." Just start giving, and you watch what the Lord will do, right?

Greg Laurie: Do your giving while you're living, then you know where it's going, okay?

Greg Laurie: Good insight on the importance of having a heart of generosity, especially toward the Lord. Pastor Greg Laurie with his message today here on A New Beginning, called "Overcoming the Great Deceiver: Truth in a World of Fakes."

Guest (Male): There's a lot more to come in this message, but Pastor Greg, what if somebody realizes they need to make a change today in their own personal relationship with the Lord? Maybe they're not quite sure about the next step.

Greg Laurie: Well, they just need to hear more. They need to hear what the essential Gospel message is. And I've got a great resource for you. We've set up a webpage that's called knowgod.org, K-N-O-W-G-O-D.O-R-G. You go there, I have a video presentation of how you accept Christ, lead you in a prayer, and then it links to other spiritual resources that will help you grow spiritually. So just go to knowgod.org. Do it right now.

Guest (Male): All right. And then thank you for partnering with us to help these daily studies continue. Your investments have eternal benefits. Why not make this a part of your personal ministry, to partner in an effort that's making a real difference with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Thank you for your prayers and for prayerfully considering how God might lead you to help tangibly. Online, you'll find us at harvest.org. And there, you'll see the way we'd like to thank you for your donation right now. That's harvest.org. Or write us at A New Beginning, Box 4000, Riverside, California 92514. Or call us at 1-800-821-3300. We're here around the clock to take your call. Again, at 1-800-821-3300.

Guest (Male): Well, next time, important insight coming on spiritual discernment. Pastor Greg helps us spot the fakes around us and hold fast to the truth. Join us here on A New Beginning with Pastor and Bible teacher Greg Laurie.