Series: Gospel Connections 010 Lesson: The Gospel-Driven Life: Issues of the Heart Lesson objective: (i) To encourage all recipients (teachers & lay people) to look past the fig leaves we often set up in our lives (ii) To understand the root beliefs of the heart (iii) To encourage repentance and faith Key passage: Genesis 3:4-5 Opening survey: (1) Would you say that all sins that you commit are because you are believing a lie? (2) If you answer, No, then why do you commit sin? (3) If you answer, Yes, then what is the lie that you are believing in that moment? Introductory Thoughts: This particular lesson will be primarily for adults, so let me speak to the teachers first and then to the adults receiving the lesson. If you are a teen, this is still quite applicable to you as well. Since the original Creation account and the Fall, we all have had a tendency to fig leaf religion. What is fig leaf religion? Fig leaf religion can be identified by several things: (1) It is the product of an awareness. What kind of awareness would this be? It is an awareness of our nakedness - something is missing! (Genesis 3:7). (2) It is characterized also by both a Godward insecurity as well as a man-ward insecurity. Note that Adam and Eve were not just covering up from God. They were covering up from each other. They covered and AND hid from God; but they covered up from each other (Genesis 3:7-8). See also Titus 3:3. The division is not just one that happened between mankind and God; but the division radically altered man s relationship among other men. (3) It is an attempt to change outward appearance with hopes of being found acceptable with a holy God. It is works righteousness, at best (Genesis 3:9-10).
(4) It is a mankind response and not just something that you might find in today s churches. Adam and Eve are representative of all mankind. Some people might like to think that hypocrites and religious people are only found in churches; but the fact is that all people are worshippers and religious in some sense. The hypocritical, cover-up approach to failure is common within the sinful nature of mankind. It is a response rooted in our pride. With that ground work, I want to caution teachers to examine their own lives (i.e. how you talk, what you emphasize...etc and practice of discernment that you use in the lives of those they influence. Why? Because, if we are not careful, we will look at fig leaves that people still sew today without understanding the deep heart issue that is at the root of fig leaves. When your conversations leave you and those around you feeling like they have to muster up enough strength to accomplish acceptability and the pleasure of God - you are dangerously treading on fig leaf religion. Purpose: It will be the purpose of this lesson to identify the issues of the heart. We must look beyond the externals and see what are the lies at the heart of all sin. How does the gospel help us to understand these lies? How does the gospel lead us to address these lies? The Genesis 3 Account: In these verses we see implicit lies that are being planted (Genesis 3:4-5). As you consider the conversation between Eve and the serpent, please do not overlook the treachery planted within the speech of the serpent. There are at least two lies to make note of: (1) God is not telling you the truth (Genesis 3:4) The serpent comes right out in direct contradiction to what God had said (Genesis 2:17) (2) God is withholding good from you. This second lie is implicitly understood from Genesis 3:5-6. Notice what Eve saw - saw that the tree was good for food. The implication is that she originally thought the tree was not good for food. Of course this belief was based upon God s command - the very word of God (Genesis 2:17). Satan convinced her that it was good. In essence, Satan is convincing Eve to believe that God is withholding something good from her. 1 Man fell when he believed the lie that he would be better off acting independently of God s rule. The result was his spiritual and physical disintegration and his penchant to rule himself and to depend upon something within the creation itself to make life work. 2 This last sentence is another way of saying that man declared his independence from God. GENESIS 3 BELIEF TODAY: Buried within the heart of every individual who is sinning are these beliefs that there is something I have not experienced, and what I have not experienced is a good thing that is being withheld from me. Further still, whatever that thing is, that is being withheld from me, will bring me pleasure. 1 One final further implication would be the lie that God is not concerned about you because he is lying to you, and He isn t concerned about your happiness. This is really a blending of the two lies listed. 2 Berg, James. The Big Picture of Disciple-Making. BJU Press. 2010. p. 4.
Since the initial Fall, these lusts come forth from the very nature of men. This initial account led to the degradation of the entire human race (Romans 5:12) and a malformation at the desire level. The world deceptively allures men and women by appealing to these base desires that dwell within the heart of all men (James 1:14-15). 3 For a teen, they believe that disobedience will provide them the pleasure or experience that justifies their decision. For example, a student who openly rebels against authority believes that the liberty they are exercising will somehow allow them to be superior in their own eyes and in the eyes of those around them. This belief can be equated to unbelief in God. WHAT IS UNBELIEF? Unbelief cannot be simply viewed as the absence of belief. Rather, unbelief must be understood as the absence of belief in God. What is the difference? You ask. The difference is that an individual who is unbelieving is actually believing in something or someone other than God to meet their ultimate satisfaction. Another way to understand unbelief is that unbelief is belief in a lie. It is this belief in a lie that leads to the behavior that you see. At it s core, unbelief declares that God is not sufficient, and I need more than God. If we speak of unbelief in a salvific way, then we are speaking of someone who has rejected Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. It should be noted that an individual who is in this kind of unbelief is there willfully. This is the consistent pattern in Scripture: people who remain in unbelief do so because they are unwilling to come to God, and the blame for such unbelief always lies with the unbelievers themselves, never with God. 4 Not everyone who sins is an unbeliever though. What I said above is not to say that everyone who is sinning is an unbeliever; but it is to say that even Christians who are behaving sinfully are believing a lie, in those moments. This can be called the unbelief of the believer. I remember Pastor Green preaching a message on this very topic - The Unbelief of the Believer. We can identify examples of this in the scriptures such as the following: King David in his sin with Bathsheba & the Apostle Peter in his denial of Jesus Christ. In summary: an unbeliever is in unbelief because they have rejected God by rejecting Jesus Christ; but a believer who has declared Jesus as their Lord can too be in unbelief. The believer s unbelief is manifested by sinful behaviors that they think will bring ultimate satisfaction. How can these heart issues be discerned? How is the gospel always the answer to these beliefs in lies? Where do we start? (APPLICATION) So, where should we start in our response? Here are the movements based on this passage that will be used: (1) Discerning the heart issue comes more quickly with practice As a believer (teacher or lay person), you must believe that what the scripture teaches about desire is true. Hence, it should be a regular practice that you reflect on each situation to 3 It may be good to listen to the message on the Image of God & Marriage - https:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=swsvghjonyk 4 Grudem, W. A. (2004). Systematic theology: an introduction to biblical doctrine (p. 681). Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; Zondervan Pub. House.
assess the heart issue. You may not be able to do this in the heat of the moment; but it should be regularly done so that it becomes habitual. As you seek to lead and counsel individuals under your influence, do not do them the disservice of addressing the symptoms of their problem (i.e. excessive spending, materialism, covetousness, over-eating etc). Know that behind all of this symptoms there are heart issues. Ask the Why questions to get to the heart issues. Secondly, as you are committed to discerning heart issues personally and with others, this will help you to avoid being reactionary when offenses are caused towards you. I realize that some of you are thinking that this has nothing to do with Genesis 3 or even with the gospel, but that is actually not true. Let me explain. We are people who are easily offended by the sinful behaviors of others towards us. This passage is tremendously helpful because if we understand the there are heart issues driving these sinful behaviors, then we must also admit that we are not the ultimate target of the sin. Don t get me wrong, whoever offends you is clearly impugning 5 you; but we tend to react to what we perceive to be the motive in the heart of someone who is offending us. Rather, consider that you are not really the object of their rebellion. You (the offended person) are merely a means to an end that they believe will satisfy their pursuits. This passage in Genesis calls all unbelievers and believers alike to continually affirm that all sin is first and foremost sin against God (See also Genesis 39:9, Psalm 51:4). When we react as if we have been so greatly offended, we tend to show how highly we esteem our names and our positions. This sends the wrong message. When a person is sinning against us, in their unbelief, they believe that the outcome will bring some sense of satisfaction to them. In those moments they are believing that the path to good (that is being withheld) is attained by sinning against you. But it is not; it is a sin against God, who is the ONLY One that can ultimately satisfy. You, the offended one, are just the object through which the heart issue is played out. GOD S GLORY ABOVE MY GLORY This should also cause you to understand a few other things. First, when someone is sinning against you, know that the heart issue at play is that they are believing a lie. Secondly, believing the lie is about withholding glory and praise from the One Who deserves this honor: God. In other words, be more passionate for God s glory in the life of the other individual rather than a defense of your own position or title. Pray for the individual, not because they have hurt you, but because they are withholding glory from God. A good biblical example of this is seen in the story of Achan in Joshua 7:19-20. Remember that Achan had clearly disobeyed God and it cost Israel dearly. If you should so desire, please take time to read the account. In the end, Joshua calls Achan to give glory to God. In Achan s response, he again comes to the realization that he had sinned against the Lord. (2) Recognizing how the gospel has addressed the heart issue is critical Consider the gospel in the redemptive historical sense. In other words, how did Jesus Christ address what we see in Genesis 3? We certainly can see many examples in the life of 5 impugn: dispute the truth, validity, or honesty of (a statement or motive); call into question
Christ where Jesus was confronting the issues of the heart; but I want you to think more deeply about Jesus and the gospel and how the gospel makes believers to be overcomers. Let s consider the two lies again. First, (Lie #1) God is NOT telling you the truth. Clearly, the gospel sets forth a few facts about truth; but the most glaring fact is the Jesus is Truth embodied. The omniscient God became flesh. The scriptures say that Jesus was full of grace and truth (John 1:14, John 14:6). Jesus is called the Word. Hebrews 1:1-3 teaches us that God, who had spoken by the prophets in the past has now spoken by Jesus Christ. The question is whether we will believe the truth that God has now postulated in the person of Jesus Christ. This still leaves one glaring question and it is related to the second lie. Is God really withholding good from you? (Lie #2) First, consider how God made all things good in the beginning (Genesis 1:31). God said that it was very good. Secondly, something drastic happened between then and now (2017) because all things are not good. On this fact, we can all agree. As a matter of fact, the scriptures make plain the truth that there is none good (Romans 3:10-12). Think about that for a moment. There is no one perfect or just before God. Thirdly, Jesus is the ultimate good One who suffered the ultimate injustice in that he was a substitution. The scope of this lesson will not allow us to dive deeply into all of the ways in which Jesus was good; but know that it is the righteousness of Christ that stands the test before God. Romans 3:25 and II Corinthians 5:21 are great, common passages that reflect that Jesus is good. You can also study the temptation of Christ in the wilderness in Matthew 4 or Luke 4. You will still conclude the same thing. Jesus is the ultimate good One. If he is really this good, then it stands to reason that if he suffered, he had to suffer in a substitutionary way - not suffering for his own sins for that of others. This then makes his suffering like no one else s suffering since everyone else is not perfect, a case can be made for the just suffering of everyone else and the unjust suffering of only one Person - Jesus Christ. This leads us to Romans 8:32. If God would offer so much in Jesus Christ, does it really stand to reason that God is trying to withhold good from us? No, of course not. When the gospel (What God has done in Christ towards us) is considered it exposes the lies that we have a tendency to believe. It is belief in these lies that leads to behavior that leads to fig leaf religion. This never works. (3) Admitting how the gospel confronts my two tendencies changes my thoughts/beliefs about the situation When we see the gospel, we understand that my tendencies (and that of all believers) are confronted head-on. A crisis ensues, and we are forced to question our fundamental beliefs. Repenting of our belief in the lies we have accepted and believing the clear, plain truth that we see in Jesus is a call to re-direct your faith (I John 1:7-9). Concluding thoughts: In summary, you and I must believe that all sins are rooted in believing two fundamental lies. Husbands, when you over-react and angrily lash out at your wife, you are sinning. Why?
You are sinning because, in that moment, you believe that your reaction will bring her pain according to the pain she has caused you. For some it takes longer than others before a little thing called regret or guilt sets into the heart of the husband. Why? What is it that brings this about? First, it is the realization that your foolish response did not actually bring you the satisfaction you d blindly hoped it would. In those angry moments, unwittingly, you were believing a lie; and IT DID NOT SATISFY. You must see this as a sin against God. You must repent. You must see that your forgiveness towards your spouse is to be as you have been forgiven (Ephesians 4:32). A similar application can be made for wives. Employee, when your boss takes advantage of you. In that moment, whether you realize or not, you will believe something. You will either believe that what God has done towards you in Christ is worthy of believing again (believe the gospel again), or you will believe that you can better handle your boss and make yourself feel better by reacting in an unkind manner. It would be good to read Ephesians 6:5-6 at this point. You must see this as a sin against God. You must repent. How could you claim that the Ultimate Servant is your Lord and then live rebelliously towards your human boss? This is really rebellion against the Ultimate Servant, since you are to serve as unto Christ. The examples could go on and on; but please know that you should not merely repent of the activity or the behavior; but it would be wise to repent of the sin of unbelief that resides in the heart. It is this that led to the behavior that reflects unbelief.