Deceiving Ourselves and No One Else

When Samuel reached him, Saul said, “The Lord bless you! I have carried out the Lord’s instructions.” But Samuel said, “What then is this bleating of sheep in my ears? What is this lowing of cattle that I hear?” Saul answered, “The soldiers brought them from the Amalekites; they spared the best of the sheep and cattle to sacrifice to the Lord your God, but we totally destroyed the rest.”

1 Samuel 15:13-15

The frustrating thing about pretending to be something you aren't is that the evidence of who you truly are is all around you. It cries out against you to betray you like the bleating of these sheep. That's the problem with being a hypocrite or of pretending to follow God when you really aren't, is that everyone around you can see how you are really living your life.

What sound or evidence cries out against you and threatens to reveal the truth about who you really are? Your internet search history? Your Netflix watch history? Your credit card history? Or your social media activity? No one can hide the truth about themselves forever. It always comes out in the end. 

But somehow we always fool ourselves into thinking we will get away with it. No other creature on earth is as skilled in self-deception as man. Even a dog that convinces himself he is chasing something other than his own tail, yelps in pain and admits he was wrong when he finally catches his tail and bites down hard on it. But not man. People will lie to themselves and go one refusing to admit their mistakes long after everyone else knows they were wrong. 

That's what Saul did. He refused to admit his sin. He tried to shift the blame onto his own soldiers. He even tried to claim he disobeyed God in order to worship Him! When all along, he ought to have been honest with himself, admitted his sin and asked God for forgiveness. 

Are you deceiving yourself this morning? Are you shifting the blame? You would be far better off just admitting your sin and seeking God's forgiveness. 

Be Somebody's Barnabas

When [Saul] came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple. But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus. So Saul stayed with them and moved about freely in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord.

Acts 9:26-28

You may remember that Saul had been a Pharisee and was an eager persecutor of the church. He had gone to Damascus to arrest Christians, but on the way there the risen Lord Jesus had appeared to him and changed his life forever. Saul became a Christian. Eventually he was run out of Damascus narrowly escaping with his life. But when he came to the church in Jerusalem, he wasn’t welcomed with open arms. He was met with suspicion.

You see the last time the Christians in Jerusalem had encountered Saul he was one of their most ardent persecutors, so they didn’t trust him. They thought that perhaps this was a trick. They couldn’t risk letting a wolf in amongst the sheep. So Saul was left isolated and alone. This new believer and powerful preacher had no one to pray with, no one to worship with, no one to study Scripture with, no real friend or brother in Christ. He was rejected by everyone, until Barnabas found him. 

Where others saw an enemy, Barnabas saw a brother. Where others saw potential for evil, Barnabas saw potential for good. When every other Christian in Jerusalem saw only the worst in Saul, Barnabas saw the best in him. Barnabas came alongside Saul and nurtured and encouraged him. He took him under his wing. He took him to the apostles and personally vouched for him. Think about this, Barnabas introduced the apostles to the man who would write half the New Testament! And because the apostles knew and trusted Barnabas, Saul was welcomed into the church in Jerusalem. It says “he stayed with them and he moved about freely in Jerusalem and spoke boldly of Jesus.” 

Who knows how many Saul’s there are in our churches right now? How many future preachers, future missionaries, music ministers, youth ministers, deacons and Sunday School teachers are in our churches right now and all they need is for someone to come alongside them, for someone to encourage them and nurture them and give them a chance. You’ll never know the difference a little encouragement can make in someone’s life... a little belief in their abilities... a little nurturing of their talents... a little grace for their failures. You will never know what kind of impact you can have on somebody until you come alongside and encourage them.

 

Be like Barnabas! Where others saw risk, he saw potential. Where everyone else saw the worst, Barnabas saw the best. Who do you need to encourage today? It might be your spouse or a child. It might be someone who is isolated and alone like Saul was. Someone who needs a friend, a brother in Christ to come alongside them and encourage them. Will you be that brother or sister in Christ? Will you be that friend? Be somebody's Barnabas today.

Cheering Sin from the Cheap Seats

Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul...And Saul approved of their killing him.

Acts 7:58 & 8:1

My wife and I have reached that stage of life where you start watching more shows on PBS. Maybe it's because I'm boring or maybe it's just that I don't like what's on the other channels, but there are several shows that I actually like on PBS now. If you have ever watched any of these shows they end with the same message tagged at the end. "This program was made possible by generous donations from the..." and then they list the names of all the foundations and rich people who helped fund the show. After all the important people have been named, they end with this "and by the support of your local PBS station by viewers like you." At the end of every show they remind us that these shows wouldn't be possible without the viewers' support. 

It occurred to me today that sin is much the same way. I don't mean that sin would go away entirely without support, but it does rather seem to thrive on an audience doesn't it? How often are you guilty of cheering sin on from the cheap seats?

We tend to come down rather hard on Saul for standing by in approval of Stephen's martyrdom, and for good reason. Saul didn't just approve of it, he actually guarded the coats of those who were killing Stephen (Acts 22:20). He supported it! We come down hard on Saul for this, but how often have we stood by in support of sin in our own way? How often do we still do so?

When was the last time you doubled over laughing at someone's joke that was only funny because of filthy language or content? You can't tell me that doesn't encourage them to tell more jokes like that. Comedy clubs are full of people who are only as funny as they are filthy. Or how about the TV shows and movies that you watch. How many of them do you watch not in spite of the small amount of worldly content in them, but precisely because you enjoy the vulgarity, violence, nudity, and sexual content? Or how many times do you fail to be salt and light to your lost friends and instead choose to live vicariously through them by drinking in all their stories from their wild nights?

Approving of sin is sin. Don't stand by and witness it. Don't support it or make it easier for others to do it. Keep your mind, your heart, and your life clean from such filth. Be set apart and holy to the Lord. As Ephesians 5:3-4 says, "But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving." When our lives match up with these verses, we will find that another barrier in our relationship with the Lord has fallen, and we will be that much more like Christ.