Stand Strong in the Word
Stand Strong in the Word is a weekly bible study that teaches through the Bible verse by verse in chronological order. For more information, visit www.standstrongministries.org.
Stand Strong in the Word
#292 “Paul Warns of Satan’s Cunningness” (2 Corinthians 11:1-4)
Can you identify the subtle liesre meant to lead you astray? Today, we're unpacking Paul's urgent warnings from 2 Corinthians 11, revealing how cunningly Satan disguises false teachings to deceive believers. Join me as we learn to recognize his tactics, guard our hearts, of Satan that aand confidently hold onto the truth.
Please follow me here:
LINKS
https://www.facebook.com/jason.jimenez.5099
https://www.tiktok.com/@jasonpjimenez
https://www.instagram.com/jasonpjimenez/
https://twitter.com/jasonpjimenez
Would you recognize a false teacher if you heard one? Today we're unpacking Paul's bold warnings in 2 Corinthians, chapter 11 about those who twist the truth and distort the gospel. How do you guard yourself and others from deception? Stick around, because in the next few minutes we'll learn how to discern false teaching and confidently stand firm in your faith. Turn to 2 Corinthians, chapter 11, and let's get into it. Well, hey there, my friends, welcome to Stand Strong in the Word podcast. Jason Heman is with you as always Blessed to be with you guys in studio as we continue our study here in the book of 2 Corinthians.
Speaker 1:Now we're transitioning in chapter 11, and where we left off, we were talking about not seeking applause, not seeking praise for man, but making sure that our focus, what we do, is about the Lord. And this is so important because, as Paul now transitions and I'm going to break up this chapter into several segments we're going to look at verses 1 through 12 in a minute, and then we're going to be looking specifically at 13, verses 13 through 15, and then we'll look at Paul's suffering about how he has lived out the gospel, seeking the Lord in everything that he did. And it's so powerful, my friends, because when you really look at what Paul did in the ministry and then I look at the years I've been in ministry, I'm like Lord, this man has sacrificed so much. What a great example. And yet what we're gonna be talking about is false teachers. They pretend or they portray themselves or they proclaim certain things that sound good but they're not, and so, if you've missed any previous podcasts, I encourage you guys to check those things out. As always, we so love that you guys are praying for us, you're listening, you're downloading this podcast and also leaving a review so we can continue to reach more people, just like you, to stand strong in God's word.
Speaker 1:So, with that being said, let's turn to 2 Corinthians, chapter 11, and see what the word of God has for us today. Paul writes in verse 1 of chapter 11, I wish you would bear with me in a little foolishness. Do bear with me, for I feel a divine jealousy for you, since I betrothed you to one husband to present you as a pure virgin to Christ. Now let me pause and let's break down these first two verses so we can understand what Paul is saying here, as we then transition into him talking about deception and the enemy and how these false teachers are proclaiming another Jesus. They're in a different spirit and they're presenting a different gospel. Now, as I mentioned, galatians is very helpful here. If you go back to chapter one as well as if you look at chapter four and also chapter six, that really kind of feeds into second Corinthians 11.
Speaker 1:So what Paul is doing here and this is important to understand is he's trying to win back the Corinthians. He doesn't want them to follow these false teachers. He doesn't want them to be fooled by their tactics. They're deceiving them Again. They're using their orator abilities, their skillfulness, their brilliance, and they're turning away from Christ over time because they're rather you know, rather than the person of Christ. They're pursuing a platform, and so Paul feels compelled to resort to a form of boasting. Again. This is what he considers to be foolishness. He doesn't want to be mixed up in all this kind of stuff. He wants to be preaching the gospel, but this is where he's at. He finds himself. He's not snooping to their level, he's not lowering his standards and they sound as we're going to be reading through that.
Speaker 1:He is boasting about his accomplishments, but that's not what he's doing. If you go back to chapter 10 and you look at verse 12, it says, not that we dare to classify or compare ourselves with some of those who are commending themselves, but when they measure themselves by one another and compare themselves with one another, they are without understanding Verse 13,. But we will not boast beyond limits, but we'll boast only with regard to the area of influence God assigned to us to reach, even to you. So this is what Paul's going to be doing now in this passage is he's going to be resorting to what God has done through him, not comparing himself to other people, not, you know, praising all of the efforts that he's done. No, he's. He's revealing, actually, a process in this, some of his hurt and some of his humility. And so, paul, if you look at the following two chapters, this is full speech about this boastfulness and that's why he's talking about like, hey, let's get into a little foolishness here, a little foolishness here. But again, this is not him trying to focus on all of his accomplishments for people to say, oh yeah, that's right, paul is so much better than these other teachers because look at all he's done and we need to honor that.
Speaker 1:No, he's coming with a sincerity to the gospel. That's his motivation as he's trying to win back the Corinthians. And this is so important, my friends, as a shepherd, is winning back your people. That's trust, that's going to where they're at and figuring out why they feel or why they believe certain things, why have they been led astray, and what do we, as shepherds, need to do to win them back? A lot of times, it's us accommodating the leader, trying to fit into their platform and always elevating that and feeding that ego in, order, to quote, be accepted. That's not what Paul's doing here Now.
Speaker 1:On three other occasions okay, to be clear Paul condemned self-praise. He says this is a worthless tactic. This is not something that we're to use to exploit people. You go back to chapter three, verse one. Chapter five, verse 12. And, as I just read, in chapter 10, verses 12 and 13.
Speaker 1:And so it may sound like, as we're reading this passage, that he's being boastful, but let's understand his motive. Let's understand why he's doing what he's doing. He's not elevating his status. He's winning back the Corinthians. He's showing them how much he loves and cares for them. And when Paul talks about setbacks and struggles, this is not about accomplishments. This is about him trying to really relate to the people, and this is oftentimes, when you and I are having conversations with people and we convey to them. Oftentimes, when you and I are having conversations with people and we convey to them being vulnerable, that is, that we can relate that I too have fallen short or had this stronghold and had to turn to the Lord or get professional help. He's reminding the Corinthians of how much he invested in them, how he struggled. That's what we're going to see at the end of this chapter for them to keep in mind, not just the investment that Paul made, but why. What was the intentionality behind that? He's very clear that he did all of this not to be a burden to them or they were a burden to him, but rather that he's showing deep commitment to their well-being. And I got to ask you guys this question In your church, do you have that?
Speaker 1:Do you have shepherds who have this commitment to your wellbeing, that they care for you? You know, the sad reality is so many people in ministry they're hard to reach, you can't ever get them. And if you do see them, like you know, in public at church, after they get off the stage or something or they're always moving on to the next thing and if you feel just disregarded or overlooked, and again in its simplest form. That that's. That is absolutely true. You've tried, you're submissive, you're respectful, you're considering the people who are watching over you but really, at the end of the day, yeah, that's their quote, qualifications and job and the criteria according to scripture. But every time you've made an effort to get to know this person or for them to get to know you and how you need them in your life as your spiritual leader and they're not, then you have to consider moving on. I mean that's just reality. I mean it's great to have small community, like in a small group, and have friends that could pray for you and be there for you, but just like anything you would put up that with if that was your primary doctor, if they don't have time to even see you, you move on and find a doctor who's willing to see you, who really cares about your wellbeing, especially if there's a problem, especially if there is a diagnosis, and so you need treatment, and you you wanna have the experts in your life. And so pastors and shepherds they are that for us when it comes to our spiritual wellbeing, which feeds into every aspect of our life. So this is so important. I don't want us to overlook this.
Speaker 1:Paul's focus isn't primarily on promoting his name. So if you have a church or you attend a church where that's what it's about, like at the end of the day, that's what you see, and there's not this genuineness of belief in Christ to build community and to care for one another, then you have to move on. Now, the reason why I'm stressing this is because in the context, in the next few episodes, we're going to be talking about false teachers, false apostles, and so they will look differently depending on the person right, depending on their intentionality. But I love what Paul uses here to really speak to the heart. He uses this phrase divine jealousy. This is as a father has for his family, a husband has for his wife.
Speaker 1:Remember, in 1 Corinthians 4, verse 15, paul expressed that he was like a father to them. They have many instructors, but they don't have many fathers. This is speaking to the language that God, the Father, gave Israel through Moses in Exodus 34, verse 14. They're enslaved for hundreds of years. That's what their forefathers knew, and God wanted to deliver them and provide for them, and so that's why he uses this language betrothed you to one husband.
Speaker 1:So here now, paul's using a marriage metaphor as a way to describe the conversation of the Corinthians. And so, when it comes to Christ, we know that it's through Jesus who saves us from our sin and death and he gives us eternal life Not our pastors, not the church and we are forever married to him. I mean, it's a beautiful demonstration that Christ is our bridegroom and one day we, his bride, we will bow before him. In fact, the scripture tells us in Revelation 19, verse seven and eight let us rejoice and exalt and give him the glory, for the marriage of the lamb has come and his bride, that is us. His church has made herself ready. It was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure.
Speaker 1:So when Paul is appealing to them, he's trying to win back the Corinthians. He speaks to them with his jealousy that comes from the Lord. This is how much he loves and cares for them. And just as we are all married into one family, christ is our bridegroom that he gave his life for us. We, as ministers of the gospel. I'm speaking to people who are in positions of authority in whether it's a local church or a national ministry, a nonprofit. But you are an ordained minister. Your responsibility is to present the church, the people that God has called you to minister to, as a pure virgin to Christ. That's the phrase that Paul uses here, and I love this because with his passionate zeal, he's using again what God did for Israel and redeeming them and saving them and taking them out of slavery. There's a responsibility there, there's a process of sanctification there. This is also the picture that Paul's making here. There's so many things going on here Again as a father to children, instructing and guiding them.
Speaker 1:Going back to 1 Corinthians 4, verse 15, being married, being betrothed to one husband, christ. Right, he's our bridegroom. But then this terminology pure virgin to Christ is a father who protects the sanctification, the virginity of his daughter. This goes back to Deuteronomy, chapter 22, verses 15 through 21. In fact, in Colossians 1.22, paul writes he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless. And catch this. It also says and above reproach, before him. Our job, my friends, as we have been sanctified and washed, we've been reconciled and we are walking in the new man, we are to present our bodies holy and blameless. We are to be, you know, above reproach. We are to be before him washed clean by the blood, him washed clean by the blood. So Paul is saying that's my job. I am, I'm helping you guys, not I don't want you guys going astray, I'm trying to help you guys to be that chaste or pure virgin to Christ.
Speaker 1:He's a mediator and so, yes, when you have people who are teaching them things that are not true, it's gonna cause Paul to speak up, just like if there's anything that happens. A true man of God, a true leader of the home, is not gonna put up with falsehoods. It's not gonna put up with people who try to come into his house and to take his family. If there's any false, misleading ideologies, anything that is trying to brainwash kids, it's our responsibility to stand in the gap. And so, as ministers of the gospel, we are to stand in the gap. We are to win back people who are being led astray. We're to convince them persuasively. We are to give them a reason of the faith, but we're to do it with grace and with truth. That's why our conversations are to be seasoned with salt. We're not to compromise, we're not to make an apology for what we believe. We're to present people as a chaste virgin. So when you're calling out sin and you're doing it with God's grace and in truth, you're speaking the truth and love.
Speaker 1:Ephesians 4.15,. That is powerful, and to know that we have this ministry. We have this ministry of reconciliation because of what Christ has done for us. But then he says this in verse three but I'm afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. Now, this word Satan that we have is in reference to him being this great serpent. Okay, so this is the terminology. It's used In Greek, it's ofis. It just carries this idea of deadliness. So, in reference, if you look at the phraseology, it says but I'm afraid that, as this deadliness deceived Eve, so we know that Satan, who used to be Lucifer, paul or, excuse me, jesus, refers to him as the father of lies in John 8, 44.
Speaker 1:And also in the near eastern, you know, region, the people refer to snakes as cunning because of their tactics. Right, they take advantage of what would seem to be a safe place to find refuge under a tree, but buried in the sand or hidden in these bushes of shade would be a snake. And so, as somebody would seek refuge or rest. It could be very dangerous for them, and that's what he's referring to here, I'm afraid, as the serpent deceived Eve. Now, what's interesting is when you look throughout scripture, like in Psalm 58, verse four, and Psalm 104, verse three, and even Jesus in Matthew 23, verse 33, evil people with ill intent are referred to as serpents. Why? Because they come from satan. They're doing the work of satan. So false teachers, whatever they're trying to do, they are if they're deceiving you. And then this is important that the word deceived that paul uses here is axmoteo. It translates as a compound verb.
Speaker 1:That means to seduce thoroughly, to lead astray by persuasion or false promises, and there are many of you listen to this podcast around the world and we're so grateful that you listen to this podcast. This is a place we want you guys to again to be loved, to be grounded in the word of God, so your faith will grow and God can use you in powerful ways. But many of you, I'm sure, have been seduced, maybe sexually in a relationship, or you've been led astray from a persuasive talker convincing you to sign up for something or to invest in something, and they ripped you off. Or how many people have given you false promises, a persuasive talker convincing you to sign up for something or to invest in something, and they ripped you off. Or how many people have given you false promises? They deceived you, you believed in them.
Speaker 1:So when Paul writes in 1 Timothy 2, verse 14, and he's talking about Eve, and he says that after Eve was deceived she fell into transgression, so when you combine these two verses in 2 Corinthians 11, verse three in 1 Timothy 2, verse 14, what Paul is telling us is that Satan's cunning was the external force that exploited Eve's internal desires and it caused or led her to question God and make a sinful decision with eternal consequences, just like when we're deceived today. What type of consequences those can have in our lives. Now notice what Paul says here. He was able to deceive Eve by his cunning. So the Greek term here is panorgeia. It carries the idea of trickery, cleverness, craftiness or treachery. So people are deceived, they're seduced, they're led astray, not just through false promises but through trickery and cleverness and craftiness and treachery. So Paul is bringing out the meaning of Satan's cunningness here. This is how it all unfolded In Ephesians 4, verse 14,.
Speaker 1:He says so that we may no longer be children tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness and deceitful schemes. So this is a great demonstration. My friends, when we're talking about deception, you have to also make sure that the connection here is cunningness as well, the craftiness of the enemy, so his deceitful schemes that we talk about, remember, in spiritual warfare in chapter 10, and also we looked at Ephesians, chapter 6, verse 11 and 12. The schemes of the devil, these are tactics. These are ways in which he can try to get people to question, to doubt, to eventually be led astray or to grab a hold of false promises.
Speaker 1:It reminds me recently of a friend of mine who was out there doing evangelism and he encountered somebody who was reading tarot cards. He went to somebody who was giving her some insight and when he asked her he says do you have any spiritual beliefs? Have you ever put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior? And she said yeah. When I was a child I used to believe those things. So at some point, through the cunningness of Satan, this young girl has been led astray. This young girl has been led astray. So this phrase that Paul uses here, as the serpent deceived you by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray. The word captures the sense of withering away, shriveling or decaying. This is so important Because oftentimes when I talk to people who've been deceived in relationships, when I'm doing pastoral counseling or somebody who's been led astray as I wrote, hijacking Jesus I did a lot of interviews with people who once believed in biblical Christianity, believed in the doctrines, the essential doctrines of orthodoxy, and then, over time, yeah, I don't really buy into the virgin birth anymore.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I don't really believe in miracles anymore because I believe in evolution and I'm now an anti-supernaturalist. That didn't happen overnight. There was this withering away, maybe in their home life, maybe there was hypocrisy or the shriveling or decaying. Maybe there's this internal conflict, or maybe there was a sexual sin they felt so guilty about and then they feared judgment and nothing ever seemed to change. Or they tried this and they tried that, or this person that they put their faith and trust in, who was this believer? Or there was a scandal at the church. I mean, you guys, you know the stories, unfortunately. But that can cause a decaying that eventually, over time again, if left untreated, will wither away. And so, through his cunning, satan seeks to corrupt Christ's followers, to mislead them away from God's purpose for them. So anytime he talked to people said, well, I tried those things, it doesn't really work, or I prayed it doesn't really work. Notice, they're being misled, they're being led away from the purposes that God has for them.
Speaker 1:And one of the things that we've been seeing in our culture today with these culture wars that has been exploited to children now, and I just put an article out about this very thing, about transgenderism, and I was looking at an interview that Bill Maher you know that leftist liberal had done with a guy named John Lovett on this podcast called Pod Save America and you know he was under Obama and but it just looking at the trickery in the cleverness of how many of these people now obviously Bill Maher was disagreeing with this guy love it on so many other things, could love it as far more left. But how he was saying gender-affirming surgery, which is basically sex change right, transitioning from male and female or female-male, which again is impossible. There are two sexes. We see this in scripture. God made them male and female. He made them in his image. But even just the trickery that they use that, oh no, gender affirming surgery is really good at saving lives. It's helping people who feel trapped in a different body to have this new body. And through modern science and through you know, you know puberty blockers, whatever this is helpful.
Speaker 1:These are deceitful schemes from the enemy and this is something that we have to understand how people are being led astray with that type of falsity that's coming from the enemy. In fact, one of the commentaries said Paul's fear is that, as Eve was led astray by the cunning argumentation of the serpent, the minds of his converts may be similarly seduced by the tricker of his rivals. And so we find ourselves as Christians that have been deceived by the cunningness of the enemy to believe things that run contrary to the Bible. And is that not what Satan is always tempted to do? From the beginning, did God really say and that's the challenge really say and that's the challenge?
Speaker 1:And notice, the reason why Paul makes this such a big point is because he wants to keep that sincerity and that pure devotion to Christ. Why? Because we've been washed, we've been made pure, and Satan wants to destroy that. He's an intruder. His mission is to remove a wholehearted devotion to Christ. That's why this led astray, this, this shriveling, this withering away or this decaying that we see oftentimes with people.
Speaker 1:I'm telling you, my friends, if you have a case like that in your family life, with somebody who started strong and then you saw just this gradual decline in their lives, it's because the deception and the cunningness of the enemy has led them astray and they're believing a lie. And we who stand in the gap, like Paul's doing here for the Corinthians, want to win them back in the Lord. We are praying for their sincere and pure devotion to be of Christ, for them to pursue wholeheartedly the Lord and make sure that they're not living in sin. That's our heart's desire. And so Paul says here, for if someone, in verse four, comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough. Now, this is interesting because, as we've laid the groundwork, what Paul talks about, about this fear that he has and I love this because, as he comes to them as a father in the faith and so they're like his children, he's a true shepherd and these are his sheep, he says in verse three. But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve, so the same cunningness that we see in the garden all those years ago, we're still seeing the enemy doing that right now, because, even though he's a defeated foe, he's the principal of the air. His time is not up yet, and so as long as he has reign in this world, he's gonna use it again to bring destruction, to remove us from the Lord. And so Paul is now going to get into these specific areas where this cunningness is taking place that is trying to remove people from having a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. And so that's why, when you and I get into all these ideologies and all these isms and all these different things that run contrary to the gospel, or all these ideologies and all these isms and all these different things that run contrary to the gospel, or all these new spirituality issues, this is all related to what Paul's talking about here in verse four, and I don't want us to miss this. In fact, as I'm looking at it, I'm gonna close out in this verse and then we're gonna pick things up in verse five in the next podcast.
Speaker 1:But I wanna point out here in verse four of what Paul's doing Because, as he's talking about the cunningness, as he's talking about them being led astray, he's now confronting the various gospels. This is so important because oftentimes people will talk about false teachers in generalities but they don't give specifics. And Paul's going to look at three different aspects here. You guys, of cunningness that comes from the enemy, because these various gospels that these false teachers were preaching, again, they don't align with the gospel. They didn't receive this from the Lord. So you think about how many people say oh, thus, saith the Lord or God spoke to me, god told me, and it doesn't align to scripture.
Speaker 1:Paul preached Christ, remember, and him crucified. Go back to 1 Corinthians 1, verse 23. Go back to chapter two, verse one through five. Chapter 15, one through four. That's the gospel. We see that clearly in the first letter that the Corinthians received.
Speaker 1:And so Paul now is gonna challenge the Corinthians that these interlopers, these people that were presenting a different Jesus than the one he was preaching, again, if they continue to go down this path and pursue that platform of these false teachers, they're going to receive a different spirit which inevitably will lead to a different gospel altogether. And so this is the process. So let's start with the first thing that Paul warns them. He says for if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, so anything that presents Jesus in a way that differs from his identity in Christianity is false. So we as Christians believe Jesus is the God man. He's fully God and he's fully man.
Speaker 1:In the Greco-Roman times many regarded Jesus as a Hellenistic wonder worker who advocated reform and was arrested for insurrection. That's false, not the Jesus that we as biblical Christians worship. Another perversion the interlopers presented about Jesus was that he was victorious in his power, in a spiritual sense. But if you exclude anything related to suffering and death, and and then. But if you exclude anything related to suffering and death, then then that's that's, that's your gospel or that's the jesus that you need to be worshiping totally false. If you've never read my book hijacking jesus, one of the things I do is I show how progressive christians take on different false portrayals of jesus. He's either a jewish mystic, you know again, as I mentioned here in the greco-roman era he was was an insurrectionist. You know he was a revolutionist or a socialist, or you know the popular version with a lot of these celebrity pastors and progressive. You know predominantly woke cultures in the church focus on an inclusive Jesus. That's a false version of Jesus as well.
Speaker 1:So anything that goes against what we see in scripture about Jesus, do not follow, but notice. He says, not just it's another gospel, but notice. He says and if you receive a different spirit so in one sense he's talking about them proclaiming, so they're giving a message of Jesus and if you are being led astray to believe that you will receive a different spirit. Now, when we look at the language that Paul uses about spirit because it's not really, you know, conclusive as to what he's referencing here Some commentaries believe that it's about demonization.
Speaker 1:Some believe that it's the spirit of slavery that Paul talks about in Romans 8, verse 15, or just talking about the spirit of the world in 1 Corinthians 2, verse 12,. That is foolishness. With God right Pride, you know the spirit of pride, or the spirit of boastfulness, and of course, in context he's talking about you know, level with me here this level of foolishness, if you will, but not boasting in the flesh, because no flesh will boast in the presence of the Lord. He said that back in 1 Corinthians 1, I believe, in verse 29. I tend to believe in the context here. If he's talking about another gospel. It leads to a different gospel or, excuse me, another Jesus. It leads to a different gospel. That he is, in a sense, yes, talking about all of it an evil spirit, the spirit of slavery, the spirit of the world that can also bring about the spirit of pride, which then leads to a different gospel. He says or if you accept so, someone's proclaiming another Jesus, you receive a different spirit and you accept a different gospel. It's not the good news, that's what he's saying. It's not the good news. That's what he's saying. It's not the good news. It's not from Jesus Christ.
Speaker 1:The message that these false teachers were delivering was filled with prosperity, teachings that lacked any true acknowledgement of salvation that's only found in Jesus Christ.
Speaker 1:In fact, a lot of the Gnostic teachings were becoming more prevalent all the way into the fourth century, which is why a lot of times, they would have these creeds or they would have these opportunities where they would gather, have a council to refute these false gospel claims.
Speaker 1:Remember, going back to Galatians, chapter one, verses six through nine.
Speaker 1:Paul warned the Galatians not to listen to false doctrine. He says I'm astonished that you are so quickly deserting him, who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel. Not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. And that's what Paul's warning here and that's a warning for all of us today that we are not falling prey, we're not being led astray to believe in a different Jesus other than what we see in the word of us today. That we are not falling prey, we're not being led astray to believe in a different Jesus other than what we see in the word of God, that we're not submitting to a different spirit, but rather we are submitting daily to the power of the Holy Spirit, that we're walking in step with the Holy Spirit, that we would not fulfill the lust of the flesh and that we're not giving into a different gospel. So be blessed, my friends, until next time. Keep standing strong in the word of God.