One
way the enemy keeps a person in an offended state is to keep the offense
hidden,
cloaked with pride. Pride will keep you from admitting your true
condition.
Once
I was severely hurt by a couple of ministers. People would say, “I can’t
believe
they did this to you. Aren’t you hurt?” I would quickly respond, “No, I am
fine.
I’m not hurt.” I knew it was wrong to be offended, so I denied and
repressed
it. I convinced myself I was not, but in reality I was. Pride masked the
true
condition of my heart.
Pride
keeps you from dealing with truth. It distorts your vision. You never
change
when you think everything is fine. Pride hardens your heart and dims the
eyes
of your understanding. It keeps you from the change of heart – repentance
–
that will set you free (See 2 Timothy 2:21-25).
Pride
causes you to view yourself as a victim. Your attitude becomes, “I was
mistreated
and misjudged; therefore, I am justified in my behavior.” Because you
believe
you are innocent and falsely accused, you hold back forgiveness.
Though
your true heart condition is hidden from you, it is not hidden from God.
Just
because you were mistreated, you do not have permission to hold on to an
offense.
Two wrongs do not make a right!
The
Cure
In
the Book of Revelation Jesus addressed the church of Laodicea by first telling
them
how they saw themselves as rich, wealthy and having need of nothing, then
by
exposing their true condition- “wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked”
(Rev.
3:14-20). They had mistaken their financial strength for spiritual strength.
Pride
hid their true condition.
Many
are this way today. They do not see the true condition of their hearts just
as
I was unable to see the resentment I carried toward those ministers. I had
convinced
myself I was not hurt. Jesus told the Laodiceans how to get out of their
deception:
buy God’s gold and see their true condition.
Buy
God’s gold
Jesus
‘ first instruction for breaking free from deception was to “buy from Me gold
refined
in the fire’ (Rev. 3:18).
Refined
gold is soft and pliable, free from corrosion or other substances. It is
when
gold is mixed with other metals (copper, iron and so on) that it becomes
hard,
less pliable, and more corrosive. This mixture is called flexible the gold is.
Immediately
we see the parallel: A pure heart is like pure gold- soft, tender and
pliable.
Hebrews: 3:13 states that the hearts are hardened through the
deceitfulness
of sin! If we do not deal with an offense, it will produce more fruit of
sin,
such as bitterness, anger and resentment.
This
added substance hardens our hearts just as alloys harden gold. This
reduces
or removes tenderness, creating a loss sensitivity.
We
are hindered in our ability to hear God’s voice. Our accuracy to see is
darkened.
This is a perfect setting for deception.
The
first step in refining gold is grinding it into a powder
and
mixing it with a substance called flux. Then the mixture is placed in a furnace
and
melted by intense heat. The alloys and impurities are drawn to the flux and
rise
to the surface. The gold (which is heavier) remains at the bottom. The
impurities
or dross (such as copper, iron and zinc combined with flux) is then
removed,
yielding a purer metal.
Now
look at what God says: I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested
you
in the furnace of affliction.
Isaiah
48:10
And
again: In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be,
you
have
been grieved by various trails, that the genuineness it is tested by fire, may
be
found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
1
Peter 1:6-7, emphasis added.
God
refines with afflictions, trails, and tribulations, the heat of which separates
impurities
such as unforgiveness, strife, bitterness, anger, envy, and so forth
from
the character of God in our lives.
Sin
easily hides where there is no heat of trails and afflictions. In times of
prosperity
and success, even a wicked man will seem kind and generous. Under
the
heat of trials, however, the impurities surface.
There
was a time in my life when I went through intense trials such as I had
never
faced before. I became rude and harsh with those closest to me. My family
and
friends began to avoid me.
I
cried out to the lord, “Where is all this anger coming from? It wasn’t here
before!”
The Lord responded, “Son, it is when they liquefy gold in fire that the
impurities
show up.” He then asked a question that changed my life. “Can you
see
the impurities in gold before it is put in the fire?”
“No,
“ I answered.
“But
that doesn’t mean they were not there, “He said. “When the fire of trails hit
you,
these impurities surfaced. Though hidden to you, they always visible to Me.
So
now you have a choice that will determine your future. You can remain angry,
blaming
your wife, friends, pastor, and the people you work with, or you can see
this
dress of sin for what it is and repent, receive forgiveness, and I will take My
ladle
and remove these impurities from your life.”
See
your true condition
Jesus
said our ability to see correctly is another key to being freed from
deception.
Often when we are offended we see ourselves as victims and blame
those
who hurt us. We justify our bitterness, forgiveness, anger, envy, and
resentment
as they surface. Sometimes we even resent those who remind us of
others
who have hurt us. For this reason Jesus counseled, “Anoint your eyes
with
eye salve, that you may see” (Rev. 3:18). See what? Your true condition!
That’s
the only way we can “be jealous and repent” as Jesus commanded next.
You
will only repent when you stop blaming other people. When we blame others
and
defend our own position, we are blind. We struggle to remove the speck out
of
our brother’s eye while there is a log in ours. It is the revelation of truth
that
brings
freedom to us.
When
the spirit of God shows us our sin, He always does it in such a way that it
seems
separate from us. This brings conviction, not condemnation.
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