A New Beginning

Greg Laurie: We live in a world full of fake things. And those fake things seem to capture our attention. God alone is worthy of our admiration and adoration. God doesn't want to share his glory with anyone.

Guest (Male): Pastor Greg Laurie points us back to reality.

Greg Laurie: But yet in our culture today, it seems like we're looking for substitutes for Jesus. We live in an ABC culture: Anything But Christ.

Guest (Male): It has become more and more difficult to distinguish the genuine from the counterfeit. AI has us all scratching our heads and wondering what we should believe what we see. But the father of fakery is none other than our spiritual adversary. He's referred to as the great deceiver.

Today on A New Beginning, Pastor Greg Laurie helps us spot his deceptions and stop his influence in our lives. It's part of his encouraging series in 1 John, a series called Unshakable.

Greg Laurie: I was in a market a while ago and I checked out and I walked by this little section that had flowers for sale. I noticed they had the most beautiful tulips. I love tulips. Aren't tulips amazing? That may be my favorite flower. They're just so beautiful and perfect, they don't look real.

I looked at this little bouquet of tulips and I thought, I've got to get these for Kathy. So I bought them. They were a little on the expensive side. I was a little surprised, but I thought, oh, she's going to love them. I took them home and I said, "Kathy, look at these amazing tulips I bought you."

So we got out a vase and we were cutting the stems and trying to figure out why the stem wouldn't cut. We kept cutting and then we realized the reason it seemed like it was fake was because it was fake. We live in a world full of fake things.

I'm old enough to remember when the iPhone came out. It wasn't that long ago. In 2008, Steve Jobs appeared with this concept that he presented to the world. Up to this point, we all had Blackberries and Motorola flip phones. All of a sudden he pulls out this technology that had never been seen before.

It was actually called before it was released the Jesus Phone, which is pretty ironic. He pulls that out and introduces it and there was a gasp in the audience. I remember I was at a Mac convention where they had a display of one of the prototypes and it was surrounded by plexiglass.

I took my camera to take a photograph of it—not my phone. We didn't have phones with cameras yet. So I took out a digital camera and I took a photo and the guard said, "Sir, step back." These are not the crown jewels of England here. But it was so exciting because it was like a whole new world opened up.

It wasn't long until after the iPhone came out, all the imitators started making their versions of them. Then the market was flooded with them. Now that's the kind of phone that we all basically have. Along came social media, apps, and all the things that have come from that, which is a lot of trouble.

Along with that came a rise in depression, anxiety, social contagions, even suicide. It's been said of this generation, the young generation, they're the most stressed generation in history. Sometimes I wonder if we'd be better off if we just left that iPhone in the plexiglass and went back to the flip phones again where you actually just use your phone to make a phone call.

It's like we opened up the Pandora's box. I don't know if you know the origin of that statement, Pandora's box. It's from Greek mythology. Zeus, the king of the gods, was angry at mankind according to the mythology. So he created a woman. He named her Pandora and he gave her a box that was sealed and he told her to not open the box.

Curiosity got the best of Pandora, and once she opened the box, all of the bad things that affect us to this very day came out of the box and she couldn't seal it again. I feel like we're living in an Antichrist culture.

John tells us not only is there a coming world leader that will emerge on the scene that we call the Antichrist, or the beast, or the wicked one, but then he talks about antichrists plural. Remember, anti doesn't just mean against, it also means instead of.

I feel like right now our culture is flooded with fake things or "instead of" versions of Jesus, things that people want to turn their attention to. Think for a moment about the Ten Commandments. What is the first commandment of ten that God gives us? Is it you shall not commit adultery? Is it you shall not murder? Is it you shall not steal or you shall not covet?

No, the first commandment, according to God, is "You shall have no other gods before me." If we have that one right, it will affect us in the keeping of all the other commandments. Number one: Have no other gods before me. Commandment number two: Don't make any graven images. God doesn't want to share his glory with anyone.

But yet in our culture today, it seems like we're looking for substitutes for Jesus. We live in an ABC culture: Anything But Christ. I just read an article the other day that said that 75 percent of Gen Zers think AI partners have the potential to replace human companionship. 75 percent of Gen Z kids think that AI partners could replace human companionship.

In other words, they would date AI. How does that even work? Would you take your phone out for dinner? This is kind of a crazy thing that just shows what I'm saying already, "instead of" Christ. This article pointed out in Google searches there was a huge uptick for the phrase "feelings for AI." Someone is actually typing in a search engine, "I have feelings for AI."

Another one is "fell in love with AI." Those searches skyrocketed 132 percent. I think what we're trying to do is to fill a void in our life that can only be filled by God himself. Don't settle for Antichrist or "instead of" Christ thinking.

Then there are the fake things that people believe about God. For instance, people will say, "Well, you know, I believe that all roads lead to God." That's not true. There's only one road that leads to heaven. Jesus made that clear that he is the way, the truth, and the life, and no man comes to the Father but through him.

Another false view of God is that all religions basically teach the same thing. By the way, if someone says that to you, that's another way of them saying, "I have no idea what I'm talking about and I haven't even looked into this briefly." All religions teach the same thing? Nothing could be further from the truth.

If you were to sum up all the religions of the world apart from Christianity, you could sum them up in one word: do. Do this and maybe you'll get to heaven. Do that and you may find inner peace. Do this other thing and you might find nirvana. It's all about doing. But Christianity can be summed up in one word: done. God has done it for you. He's purchased it for you.

Then, of course, the other crazy things people think the Bible teaches, like, "God helps those who help themselves." Ben Franklin said that. God didn't say that. As a matter of fact, he said it to me personally as I recall. That's not even true. The reality is God helps those who can't help themselves. On the list goes, but there are certain things that we need to know as Christians, certain things we need to be reminded of again and again.

Guest (Male): Did you know that we put our services that we do on Sundays online? It's called Harvest at Home. And you can be a part of our extended congregation, no matter where you are. People watch from literally all around the world. So if you want to watch Harvest at Home or view it later if you like, just download the Harvest Plus app and then join us for Harvest at Home.

Well, you've joined us for a study in 1 John today, a message Pastor Greg has titled, "Overcoming the Great Deceiver: Truth in a World of Fakes."

Greg Laurie: Let's dig in and see what John has to say to us in chapter three, starting in verse seven.

"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."

Remember we pointed out that in the Greek that could be translated habitually or continually. So a better way to translate that would be: he who continually, habitually practices sin is of the devil. Not whoever has ever committed a sin is of the devil, because we've all committed sin.

"For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil." I would underline that. Destroy the works of the devil.

"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."

Satan is real and always has been. The devil, according to verse six, has sinned from the beginning. We've basically been on demon time since day one. That's literally Satan's whole vibe. It's lying, twisting truth, and causing chaos. That's how he rolls. That's who he is. That is his nature.

We wonder why would God create someone as horrible and as evil as Satan? 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.

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. Why he did that, we don't know.

He rebelled against God and took one-third of the angels with him. That's where we get demons from. Demons are fallen angels. To this day, the devil, formerly Lucifer, now has a network of demon powers around the planet that do his bidding.

The Bible says the whole world is under the sway of the wicked one. He's called the god of this world, the prince of the power of the air, and so forth. He wasn't made as Satan, but he became Satan when he rebelled against God. God's judgment came upon him as a result.

Satan comes to accuse and deceive. We have a picture of this in the Bible, in the book of Job, where the angels come and present themselves before the Lord. The Bible says Satan was among them. The Lord says, "Hey guys, what's up? What you been doing?"

Satan speaks up and says, "Well, I've been just looking around the planet, watching what's going on." Then God starts bragging on Job, of course. "Have you considered my servant Job, a perfect and upright man, one that fears God and shuns evil?"

The devil pushes back and says, "Oh, Job just fears you because you bless him. Job fears you because you give him cool stuff. Give me a little time with Job and we'll see what he's made of." The Lord allowed the devil to bring a series of calamities upon poor old Job.

You see the devil approaching God and accusing Job before God. That is who Satan is. He is an accuser. The Bible calls him the accuser of the brethren. With his demon network, their purpose seems to be twofold: they want to hinder the purposes of God and extend the power of Satan.

It's kind of scary when you think about it and you think how can we overcome the devil? Jesus has already defeated Satan. Look at 1 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."

Why was Jesus Christ manifested? Why did he come to our planet? He came to die for the sin of the world, needless to say. But he also came to destroy the works of the devil. At the cross, Satan was cancelled. We hear about people being cancelled today. Jesus cancelled Satan.

It's talked about in Colossians 2:14 where it says Christ cancelled the record of the charges against us and took it away, nailing it to the cross. In this way he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities and shamed them publicly by the victory over them on the cross.

Jesus cancelled the record. The word here used for record is a handwritten certificate of debt. Imagine this for a moment. Here is a list, and on this list is your name. There below your name is a list of every sin you've ever committed throughout your life. That would be a long list, would it not?

They just go through page after page after page, and you're just absolutely horrified by it. But here's what this verse is teaching: when Christ died on the cross, he cancelled that list. He cancelled every sin, cancelled every lie, cancelled everything you've done wrong. He paid for it, and he defeated it.

I know there are times when some sin seems undefeated. There are addictions in your life that you don't feel you can break. There are weaknesses you have that you don't feel you can overcome. But according to this verse and other verses, this has been dealt with at the cross.

As a young boy age 17, I memorized 1 Corinthians 10:13. I have to tell you that one of the best things I started doing as a young Christian was memorizing Scripture. I hope that you do that. The psalmist said, "Your word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against you."

I cannot emphasize strongly enough how important it is to have your mind filled with Bible verses. You say, "But Greg, I can't memorize things." Of course you can memorize things. You quote lines from movies. You remember stats from football games and baseball games from years gone by.

You remember lyrics to songs. You even remember lyrics to stupid commercials on television, right? You can and you do memorize, sometimes consciously, sometimes unconsciously. But we retain this information. If you will just apply yourself, you will find you can, and I will add, you must memorize the Bible. You must.

It's great to carry a Bible in your briefcase or in your purse or in your murse or whatever you call those things when you're a guy with a purse. But the best place to carry the word of God is in your heart. So get it in your heart.

That's why I memorized 1 Corinthians 10:13. I can't tell you how many times that's come in handy. I memorized it in King James. I don't know what it is, but there's something very memorable about the King James Version. I find it easier to retain verses from that translation than other translations. I think because it's so unusual.

1 Corinthians 10:13 in King James says, "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it."

You can do this too. It's nothing special. But to quote that because you say, "Oh man, I can't handle this. This is more than I can bear." No. Whatever temptation comes your way, it's common to man, which means we all get tempted. You're not the only one getting tempted, so don't feel bad about that.

There's always a way of escape that you may be able to bear it. There's always a way of escape. Classic example: Joseph being tempted by the wife of Potiphar. I'm sure she was a very attractive woman. This older woman's preying on this younger guy. She was the original cougar.

Joseph said to her, "Mrs. Robinson, I think you're trying to seduce me." That's a line from a very old movie, never mind. But she would not take no for an answer. One day she dismissed all the servants. They were alone in the home. She grabs him and pulls him down on the bed, says, "Lie with me."

Joseph did what any clear-thinking, red-blooded young man should do under such circumstances. He ran out of there as fast as he could. Sometimes the solution is as simple as that: get out of there. You can't always get out of there, but many times you can. It might be as simple as terminating the conversation, hitting the off button, leaving the place where you're at at that moment. But sometimes we'll put ourselves in a place of temptation and wonder why we're getting tempted. So be practical about this. Satan has been defeated.

Guest (Male): Pastor Greg Laurie with the first part of his message today called, "Overcoming the Great Deceiver: Truth in a World of Fakes." And there's more to come here on A New Beginning.

As mentioned, when we stand with the Lord, we stand in victory. But that brings up the question, do we truly stand with the Lord? Have we ever come to the Lord and asked for his forgiveness of sin and asked him to be our Savior? Pastor Greg, what would you say to the person listening who just doesn't know if they've ever done that? They can't think of a time when they made a deliberate decision for the Lord. It's just not a good idea to assume everything's just going to work out okay, is it?

Greg Laurie: No, this is one area of your life you want to be sure about: where you're going to spend eternity. The Bible says, "These things we write to you that you may believe on the Son of God and that you may know that you have eternal life."

Listen, I know I have eternal life. I know I'll go to heaven one day. I hope that doesn't sound boastful. If it does, I'm boasting in what God has done for me, not in what I've done for God. The reason I know these things is because I've turned from my sin and I've put my faith in Christ, you see?

If you do the same, you can have this same hope. You just need to call out to the Lord and admit you're a sinner and ask Jesus Christ to forgive you and come into your life. The Bible says whoever will call upon the name of the Lord will be saved. Will you call upon him right now?

I'm going to pray a simple prayer, and I'm going to ask you to pray this prayer after me if you would. If you want to know that you'll go to heaven when you die, if you want to know for certain that Christ is living in your life, then pray this prayer with me. Just pray these words.

Lord Jesus, I know I am a sinner, but I know you are the Savior who died on the cross for my sin. I turn from my sin now and I choose to follow you from this moment forward as my Savior and my Lord, as my God and my friend. Thank you for hearing this prayer. Thank you for answering this prayer. And I ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.

Guest (Male): Amen. If you have just prayed that prayer with Pastor Greg and you've meant those words sincerely, the Lord has forgiven your sin and you're now a brand-new Christian. We want to help you get started in this new life of faith.

Let us send you Pastor Greg's New Believer's Bible. It's in an easy-to-understand translation and there are scores of features to help a new believer build a solid foundation. We'll send it free of charge. Just call 1-800-821-3300. You can call any time, 1-800-821-3300. Or write A New Beginning, Box 4000, Riverside, California, 92514. Or go online to harvest.org and click on "Know God."

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Even a small investment would help. It's actually an investment in changing lives. Thank you for partnering with us. You can donate securely online at harvest.org or write A New Beginning, Box 4000, Riverside, California, 92514. Or call us at 1-800-821-3300. Again, that's 1-800-821-3300.

Next time, Pastor Greg helps us get a clear view of spiritual warfare and points us to the battle-tested truth of God's word. Good information is coming. Join us here on A New Beginning with Pastor and Bible teacher Greg Laurie.