Be on Guard Against Idols | 1 John 5:20-21

The Conclusion of First John and the Call to Guard Against Idols

Okay, beloved, let's turn for quite possibly the last time, for a while at least, to the book of 1 John, the letter of 1 John, chapter 5. I guess I shouldn't have said that, because even if I preach in another book, I'll still refer to this one, but as going through the book itself, that is.

So 1 John, chapter 5. We'll begin in verse 19. 1 John, chapter 5, verse 19. God's word says, We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know Him who is true, and we are in Him who is true, in His Son, Jesus Christ.

This is the true God and eternal life. Little children, guard yourselves from idols. Guard yourselves from idols. This is God's word. Amen. So we made it. We made it, beloved. We made it to the very last verse of 1 John.

It's been an amazing journey. I've learned a tremendous amount. This has really deepened my walk with God and my understanding of Him, and it has been a tremendous blessing and privilege to preach through the entire letter of 1 John.

It took five years to get here, but that's because I had dealt with other issues and preached on other sermon series, on Scripture and on the world, the flesh, and the devil, which actually came out of this letter because of 1 John 2 .15 -17 about the world and the flesh and all of those things, the lust of the flesh and the world, and the evil one, which is also addressed.

They're all addressed here in this letter. And so the previous Lord's Day, we left off on how verse 20 specifically really, in a way, sums up the entire letter. It brings everything together with a strong emphasis, repeated emphasis, on knowledge, right?

We've seen that over and over again, knowledge and God and His Son and His Spirit in other places as well, but here specifically His Son and what God has done for us, is doing for us, and on the incarnation of Christ, and on union with Christ, and on the doctrine of revelation, but especially illumination, because God gives us understanding, right?

And eternal life. That's the last part of verse 20. This is the true God and eternal life, amen. So this leads us to verse 21 now, and today's message, I actually had to adjust it a little bit because I changed it to, be on guard against idols.

Be on guard against idols. It's not quite correct, or it doesn't quite capture everything that John is speaking to us by saying, beware of idols. That's not really the only thing he's saying there. That's a part of it, but it's not all of it.

Because the apostle concludes this very letter with, it's with an exhortation, but really this is composed of two commands, not just one. It's to do something and to not do something, right? To abstain from something else.

And so it is to guard yourselves, to protect yourselves, that is something we are called to do, we are commanded to do, from idols, from idols. So not partake of idolatry. Do and don't, right? Guard yourselves from idols and do not participate in idol worship or idolatry.

All Believers Must Guard Themselves From Idolatry

So, one of the things that I want us to think about as I'm going through this message is, ask yourselves an important interpretive question, how? How do we guard ourselves against idols? Very important question.

He leaves that statement as it is, in part because he's dealt with that heavily already. He's just really summing things up and concluding them at this point. But how? Think about that. And also, we see that this verse, verse 21, it's a sharp, it's an attention grabber, right?

It grabs our attentions immediately because it seems a little unexpected at first. He's talking about idols. Guard yourselves, little children, from idols, children from idols. But he has not explicitly mentioned idols before in the letter.

This is the first time he at least mentions the word idols specifically. That's, however, that doesn't mean that this is a completely new topic that he's bringing up at the very end. None of this is completely new.

But it is stated in a different way, right? It's stated differently and sharply in a very sober and sobering call to action. It's a twofold call to action, to do something and not do something. That is the overall force of this verse.

Children, guard yourselves from idols. And notice, again, this is one of the apostles' favorite terms of endearment that he uses repeatedly throughout the letter. Children, the Legacy Standard Bible translates it little children, but it's not necessarily little children.

It could also be just children. And in other places, he uses it to distinguish demographics within the people he's addressing. Little children, men, and so on. But this is just a general address to all believers.

All believers are commanded to do this. And which is also very revealing when you see what he's getting at. It's very revealing. You'll notice that he refers to us believers as children and commands us to guard ourselves, right?

Now, there's the question of how, but also the question of why. Why do we need to guard ourselves? Why is that? And the answer to that question is pretty plain from the whole teaching of Scripture. And what the Apostle John also teaches us is that we are still vulnerable as believers.

As believers, we continue to be vulnerable to idols, to idolatry, and to sin in general, right? So this is something that we wrestle with on a daily basis. We are still vulnerable, and that's why we need to guard ourselves.

We need to protect ourselves against idols, idol worship, idolatry, all of those things. Now, remember what the Apostle says in verse 19. We know that we are of God and that by contrast, on the other hand, the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.

The whole world of unbelievers, right? There's two contrasting worlds there. But that does not mean that we cannot be tempted. We can still be tempted to idolatry, to sin, and we do still sin, even as believers.

Then the Apostle acknowledges that earlier on in the letter, right? He who says he has no sin is a liar. He doesn't have the truth in him if you don't say that you don't have sin. There's a balance that we have to understand here as a result of being sojourners in this world.

This is not our final destination. We still have to live in this evil world, though we are not a part of it. That's our challenge as believers in this last and evil day, which the Apostle also warns us against.

The Antichrist and so on, which you'll note. Take careful note of that because it's going to be relevant and directly tied to verse 21 here, which what he called out in chapter two and so on. Now, this is a very popular quote from John Calvin, and rightly so, because he encapsulates human nature in a very simple and profound way.

John Calvin said that the fallen sinful human heart, remember what the heart is, right? I've preached on this before on the world, the flesh. The heart is the inner man, right? It's our inner man, primarily our mind, our will.

And he says that the fallen sinful human heart is an idol factory. It's a factory of idols. We are, in our fallen nature, idol factories. It's a pretty stunning description of human nature, but we can't deny it, right?

The scriptures speak of that very clearly. No one seeks after God. If they're not seeking after God, then what are they seeking after? They're seeking after idols, false gods. Amen? This is the plain teaching of scripture.

Many will deny it. Many will say, no, some people are born good and they do good all their life, and no, it's a lie. That's a lie from the pit of hell. That's the idolatry of man, thinking that man is perfectible in this life.

And there's a quote here from a very good Ligonier article, which says that although Calvin understood that man's nature, his sinful nature, is a perpetual factory of idols, ongoing factory of idols, nonstop, and that the mind begets an idol and the hand gives it birth.

That's another powerful, strong statement. And that fallen man's heart is deceitfully wicked above all things. Jeremiah 17 .9, right? The heart, the heart. He could do nothing, Calvin could do nothing but present his heart to God with outstretched hands, offering himself wholly to him.

And amen, so should we. That is what we are called to do, right? We are to trust in God as our complete and all-sufficient Savior. Amen? He is the only final, complete, and all-sufficient Savior. That is what we need.

Because apart from Christ, we are utterly helpless, lost, wretched, guilty, and condemned by God. One of my favorite sections in the Belgic Confession is Article 22, which is the Righteousness of Faith, and it says this.

We believe that for us to acquire the true knowledge of this great mystery, the Holy Spirit kindles in our hearts a true faith that embraces Jesus Christ, the mystery being the Gospel. With all his merits, and makes him its own, and no longer looks for anything apart from him.

For it must necessarily follow that either all that is required for our salvation is not in Christ, or, like many would say, many false religions say, Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, many other false religions say, Christ is not enough.

Or, on the other hand, if all is in him, then he who has Christ by faith has his salvation entirely, completely. Amen? That is God's Word right there, summarized. Therefore, to say that Christ is not enough, but that something else is needed as well, is a most enormous blasphemy against God.

For it would then follow that Jesus Christ is only half a Savior. Blasphemous idolatry, to add to that, fitting in light of verse 521. And therefore, we justly say, we rightly say with the Apostle Paul, that we are justified by faith alone, or by faith apart from works of any kind.

Even works of salvation, like we read in the Catechism question today. Highly relevant. We are justified in the sight of God. Faith justifies a sinner only in the sight of God, only as an instrument by which a sinner receives Christ and applies Christ's righteousness.

Not because of any other grace that accompanies faith, including good works. Or because of any good works that result from faith. Nor is it the case that the grace of faith itself, or any action springing from it, is imputed to the sinner for his justification.

None of it is. It's only the work of Christ that is credited, imputed to us, to our account. Like, remember, I preached on the doctrine of imputation the previous Lord's Day. It's the heart of the Gospel.

Defining Idols and Idolatry

And if you don't have that, you don't have the Gospel. It's a false Gospel. It's an idol. It stems from an idol. A false understanding of God and His salvation. So, what then, beloved, is an idol? What is an idol?

We always have to define our terms, especially the key terms. The word idol actually comes straight from the Greek. And what does that mean? What does idolatry mean? And what does the apostle mean here by idol, specifically?

Now, to put it plainly, an idol is really just a false god. Right? An idol is a false god, or goddess for that matter, too. There's plenty of them going around in the spirit of the age of feminism. Right?

But an idol is a false god. Or a false representation of God. Even if it's a so-called representation of the true God. It's a false representation of God. Whether physical one, a statue, whatever, or mental one.

A picture, whatever it might be. Or a false conception of God. Right? Or false ideas of God. Of who He is. Or false worship of God. Now that pertains more to idolatry. Right? Idolatry is more, it's false worship.

Or false worship of God in the name of God. All of these things are at the core of what idolatry is. Right? It's a false god. Or a false representation of God. Or a false conception of God. False ideas of God.

False worship of God. Right? And like I mentioned, they can be physical idols. They can be mind idols. Idols of the mind. Or it could be the biggest idol of all. Think, what might that be? What might the biggest idol of all be?

Beloved, think about that. Think carefully about what that might be. As we continue to plow through God's Word here. Now, to help us with this. To further understand what an idol and idolatry is. We have to understand something very important.

And that is, I should have named this a public service announcement. This is the first public service announcement for today. I have a few more. The first one is that the sin of idolatry. The sin of idolatry is a fundamental sin.

It's a core sin. It's a root sin. Right? It's a root cause sin. It is a major sin. It is so fundamental. That it is directly addressed by God. In not one, but two of the Ten Commandments. And not just any two commandments, but the first two.

Directly deal with the issue of idolatry. Right? Let's turn in our Bibles over to Exodus chapter 20. To see more carefully what the Word of God says there. In his Decalogue. My kids love that word, Decalogue.

They've been learning it in their homeschool catechism classes. The Decalogue. The Ten Words. The Ten Commands. What does God have to say about this matter? Exodus 20, chapter 20, verse 3. He begins by saying, I am the Lord your God.

And so on. You shall have no other gods before me. No other gods before me. What's the next one? You shall not make for yourself an idol. Or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth.

You shall not worship them. Which is idolatry. Or serve them. Which is also idolatry. Or anything or anyone. Else. For that matter. For I, Yahweh, your God, am a jealous God. Visiting the iniquity of the fathers and the children.

And on the third and fourth generations of those who hate me. But showing loving kindness to thousands to those who love me. And keep my commandments. Wow. That's a powerful admonition from God's word.

And this is still the law of God that is binding today, beloved. Idolatry is still a sin. It's a sin now more than ever before. We have all kinds of idols these days. That people didn't even come up with in the past.

As well as the old ones. Though many of the false gods have died. Because people move on. People are fickle and they move on. To other false gods. Now, notice the consequences of idolatry. They are severe.

Idolatry is also generational. And God punishes idolatry in a generational way. This is a very severe thing. That's why he dedicates two commandments to it. Have no other gods. And do not make idols. So, what then is required in the first commandment?

The first commandment requires us to know and acknowledge God. To be the only true God. And our God. The only true God. Alone. And to worship and glorify him accordingly. With proper worship. According to his word.

What is forbidden in the first commandment? The first commandment. The first commandment forbids the denying or not worshiping and glorifying the one true God. As God. And our God. And the giving of that worship and glory to any other which is due unto him alone.

Amen. That's from the Baptist Catechism. Questions 51 and 52. Excellent summary of what the first commandment requires and forbids. But that's not all, beloved. Even the third and fourth commandments.

Which all deal directly with our duty to God. The first four pertain to our duty towards God. The last six are duty towards man. Even the third and fourth are also about idolatry. Indirectly so. Exodus 20 verse 7.

If we move to verse 7. We have here the third commandment. You shall not take the name of Yahweh your God in vain. For Yahweh will not leave him unpunished who takes his name in vain. Amen. To take the Lord's name in vain.

Is to take God in vain. Which is another form of idolatry. It's idolatry. It is to think of God's name as less than or contrary to what and who he truly is. Such that we dishonor his name. And therefore we dishonor God.

It should be no wonder then that the Reformed Baptist larger catechism. As well as the Westminster larger catechism. They both include supporting false doctrines. And pretending to be religious. Or using religion for evil purposes.

Especially in the name of God. In the name of God. As idolatrous sins forbidden in the third commandment. In this commandment. They list them there. It's a huge list. I encourage you all to check out the larger catechism.

And Baptist larger catechism on these questions. They are outstanding summaries of what all of this entails. But among that is hypocrisy. Religious hypocrisy. And using religion for evil purposes. In the name of God.

That's taking the Lord's name in vain. Like the Pharisees did. Hypocrites. Hypocrisy. Doing falsehood in the name of God. Or teaching it and so on. And this is not all that. This is really not much different at all.

From what Aaron. The high priest of Israel. During the time of Moses. Making an idolatrous golden calf. In the name of Yahweh. It was in the name of Yahweh. As a false representation of Yahweh. And the Israelites.

Consequently claiming that these idols. Are your gods. Oh Israel. Who brought you up from the land of Egypt. I mean they just went and fashioned a god. And called it Yahweh. The golden calf. In direct violation to.

Really. The entire first table of the law. The first four commandments. And then some. From Exodus 32. Now. The fourth commandment. Says. The version in Deuteronomy says. Observe the Sabbath day to keep it holy.

As Yahweh your God commanded you. Yahweh commands it. So then to disregard. The Sabbath. Is to disregard who? It's to disregard God. Beloved. Which is also what? That itself is idolatry. To disregard God.

His laws. His Sabbath. Is. Idolatry. That's like saying that we know better than God. We know how to spend our time better than God. Do we know better than God? Who is this who darkens counsel? So. It's idolatry.

The four commandments are all tied to their idolatry. Either directly or indirectly. It's pretty. It's pretty. Powerful stuff. All of this is progressively showing us more and more things about. The nature of idols and idolatry.

Greed, Possessions, and the Pervasive Reach of Idolatry

Did you know also beloved. That greed. Greed itself is idolatry. Greed. Let's turn to Colossians 3 .5. Colossians 3 .5. As we see what. The God breathed apostle Paul. Has to say about. This matter. Colossians 3 .5.

I'm going to read from the amplified. Bible that has a good rendering of this verse. Colossians 3 .5. So. Put to death. Put to death. Mortify. And deprive of power. The evil longings. Of your earthly body.

With its sensual. Self-centered. Instincts. Sexual immorality. Impurity. Sinful passion. Evil desire. And greed. Which is what. Which is idolatry. It is idolatry. Because it replaces your devotion. To God.

It replaces your devotion to God. But not only that. Greed. Redirects trust. In God. To something else. Because greed. Is a false God. Greed is an idol. And remember what Jesus said. You cannot serve to what?

You cannot serve two masters. For either you will love the one. And hate the other. Or despise the one. And be loyal to the other. You cannot serve. Both God. And mammon. Possessions. Greed. You might say.

That's an idol. It's an idol. And. This is very important. Many of us lose sight of this. We think that. Well. You know. Idolatry is mainly just worshiping statues and stuff. No. It goes way. Far deeper than that.

Far deeper than this. Than that. And not only that. But this is my. Brings me to my next public service announcement now. We. As we've seen more clearly. Idolatry is a pervasive sin. It is pervasive. It is a widespread sin.

Why? Why do I say that? Because. It motivates. Many other sins. It drives many other sins. It encompasses several other sins. Like we've seen. That's the nature of idolatry. It is pervasive. I appreciate what Gordon Clark said in his commentary on.

This verse. He says. This exhortation. To guard ourselves against idols. Is not. Such an abrupt and disconnect conclusion. As it first appears to be. We are likely to think of the silver images of Artemis.

In Ephesus. Or the wayside statues in Achaia. But nothing in the epistle prepares. For this. The idols John has in mind. Are. The heretical doctrines. Of Corinthus. Who was a Gnostic heretic. He denied the divinity of Christ among other things.

Or other false teachers. The emphasis is still on truth. The enemy. Is false teaching. Inspired by the evil one. Right. By the antichrist. And the antichrists. Plural. Let the truth prevail today. Also.

Amen. This. This is an important thing to keep in mind. There are idols. Of the mind. Idols of. Of. That have a more physical manifestation. But. Some of the most pernicious ones. Are. Of the mind. Because every idol.

Begins in the mind. It all starts here. Beloved. Right. It all starts in the heart. When you bow down before a statue. It's because you're worshipping it up here. In your heart. In your mind. So. The apostle John's primary.

God breathed focus. Is on guarding against. The idolatry of false doctrine. False knowledge. Especially if it contradicts. The doctrine of Christ. And in part. Because he was addressing. The antichrist teachings of Gnosticism.

Like that of Corinthus. He's like a proto Gnostic type of. False teacher. Which also taught that matter is evil. Right. So the Gnostics taught that matter is evil. And so they may have actually discouraged.

The use of physical idols. But that doesn't spare them from idolatry. Because they had false teaching. They had mental idols. That they erected. And they claim that the God who made the earth is evil.

An evil God. It's blasphemy. It's idolatry. So this is what the apostle. Is. Addressing specifically. In a in a in a particular sense here. But nevertheless. We are still commanded to guard ourselves.

Against idols. Period. Idols. Any idols. Primarily a false teaching in this context. But also against any other idols. Physical doctrinal. Whatever they may be. And it also raises another question. What is one of the dominant.

False teachings. Inspired by the evil one. What is one of the most dominant. False teachings inspired. By the evil one. By the devil himself. Think carefully about that. Beloved. Remember that I said before.

There are physical idols. There are mind idols. And the biggest idol of all. What might that be? The biggest idol of all. Of them all. And now. But I do want to make a clarification here. Because some people talk about.

Some false teachers. Like Tim Keller and Doug Wilson. These kind of guys. They tend to talk about doctrinal works. Or doctrinal heresy. In the sense of idols of doctrine. You can make a. They say things like.

You can even make an idol of sound doctrine. That's just absurd. And false. Okay. You cannot make an idol of sound doctrine. That's a contradiction. If you make an idol out of anything. It's not sound doctrine.

That's just a blatant contradiction. We have to be careful with that. And. Any sin that we commit. Requires sound doctrine. Any sin. The remedy for any sin. Requires a right understanding. Of the doctrine of what scripture teaches.

How to remedy. Any sin. Whether it's pride or anything else. Doctrine beloved is what saves us. That's what Jesus said. The truth will set you free. The doctrine of Christ. Is eternal life. My words are spirit in life.

Amen. Don't let this pietistic nonsense. Confuse you. Or. Create an actual idol. Of false teaching in your mind. That's nonsense. Now. This question the biggest idol of all. Inspired by the devil by the evil one.

The Idol of Self and the Origin of Sin

This brings me to yet another. Public service announcement. Because. Now that we're seeing the nature. Of the case if it is. There is a sense in which. All idolatry. All sin. All sin is idolatry. Right.

All sin in a sense. Stems from idolatry. All sin. Now that's that's a pretty bold statement. Why do I say that? Why do I say that? All sin is idolatry. And stems from idolatry. At its core. If you think about it.

Why? Because this is a very simple answer. The answer is. Because the self can be an idol. The biggest idol of all. Is the self. That's the biggest struggle. That we have in our human nature. It is the idol of self.

That's that's the bottom line. And. To prove that from scripture. Let's go to some passages here. That are elucidate. Illuminate this for us. Turn with me to 1st Samuel chapter 15. 1st Samuel chapter 15.

Verse 23. This is a very insightful passage. From from God's Word. That. Very clearly illuminates. Elucidates for us. The nature of idolatry. There's more to it. First. Memory verse 2. It's a very important passage.

That teaches us a great. Much about sin. And how sins are related. 1st Samuel 15 23. For rebellion. Rebellion. Is as the sin of divination. Of fortune telling. Of trusting other things. Besides God for our future.

And insubordination. Is as wickedness. And what? And idolatry. Now. Are rebellion and insubordination. Related? Rebellion and insubordination. That's. That's basically a Hebrew. That's a form of a Hebrew parallelism.

Right? To rebel. Is to be insubmissive. Insubordinate. Right? You're disobeying. The one who you owe. Obeisance to. And it is as the sin of divination. Because you're trusting. Someone else. For your future.

Besides God. And insubordination. Is as wickedness. And idolatry. That is a profound statement. And that's why I said what I said. Because insubordination. Is. A symptom of being. Self-willed. You're self-willing.

This is one of the things that. Elders are prohibited from being. You cannot be self-willed. Because being self-willed. Is insubordination. That's what it is. It's the idol of. It's an expression. It's the idolatry of.

That stems from the idol of the self. Of making yourself. God. Or think that you know better than God. And that. You know what to do. You don't need God to tell you what to do. So you won't listen to him.

You won't submit to him. You won't subordinate yourself. To him and his law. Because you saw have rejected the word of Yahweh. He also rejected you from being king. I mean. This is all throughout the history of Israel.

They were stubborn and stiff necked. That's not a compliment. They constantly turn to their own devices. Their own fleshly lusts and desires. And idolatries. All stemming from the idol of self. That is why beloved.

So insubordination rebellion. Those are idolatry. It is stubborn disobedience to God's law. Persistent disobedience to God's law. And that is why. All sin. At its core is. A form of idolatry. Because it stems from idolatry.

Of self. There is a way which seems right to a man. But its end. Leads to what? It leads to death. The Bible condemns that. All throughout scripture. Now. Back to the issue here. Or the question of. What is that dominant false teaching that.

The evil one inspired. The most dominant false teaching. That the. Was inspired by the evil one. The way Clark puts it. Is none other. Than the wicked idolatry of self. Right? This should start ringing bells in your mind.

Right? Where am I getting this from? The wicked idolatry of self. Where does this come from? It's the very sin. Which brought guilt and condemnation. To all men. Right? To the entire world. What did the serpent say?

To Eve. You shall be. Like God. Right? You shall be. Like God. Knowing good and evil. Knowing good and evil. That beloved. Is false teaching. It's a false distorted knowledge. Of the self. And of God.

That's the devil's first and most dominant false teaching. The idol of self. You shall be like God. Make your own decisions. Your own rules. And this is. What everybody. Outside of Christ essentially does.

This is what the law. The satanic credo is. Do what thou wilt shall be the whole. Whole of the law. That's the satanic. Law. Do whatever you want. Is the whole of. The whole of the law. According to satanism.

That's the devil's law. Be your own God. Your own idol. Now. I look. Thomas Manton. A. Brilliant. English Puritan. Highly recommend. His writings to you all. He has. 22 volumes. Of just. Solid meat. Outstanding stuff.

And he was also Oliver. Cromwell's chaplain. Interestingly enough. I know. Because my kids were studying. Oliver Cromwell. But. He was a Puritan. English Puritan. He has this to say. Now self. Is the great. Idol.

Of the world. Amen. I mean that's. Ouch. Really. Self. Is the great. Idol. Of the world. How fitting. How fitting. A description. That is. Beloved. Right. In light of 1st. John. 5. What did we just read.

In verse. 19. The wicked world. That lies. In the power. Of the evil one. Is swimming. In the idol. Of self. It is drowning. In the idol. Of self. Just like. The evil one. Himself. Who said. In his own heart.

I will ascend. To heaven. I will raise. My throne. Above the stars. Of god. And I will sit. On the mount. Of the assembly. In the recesses. Of the north. I will ascend. Above the heights. Of the cloud.

I will make. Myself. Like the most. High. That's the satanic. Credo. I want. To be my own. God. Not. The real. God. I want. To replace. God. With myself. From Isaiah. 14. So. This. At the core. Of what idolatry. Is.

Again. The Puritan. Thomas. Manton. Excellent. Description. Of this. He says. Of this. Issue. Of self. As. God. As. Idol. A man. Is not. Easily. Dispossessed. Of an inordinate. Love. To himself. That means. That.

It is hard. For. A man. To not love himself. Selfishly. Inordinate. Means. Disorderly. It's an. It's an. Unbiblical. Love. Of himself. Selfish. Love. Right. Selfish. Love. This. Is a corruption. So deep. In the heart. Of man.

That it may be called. His natural. Inclination. And it must be changed. Into a new. Concrete. A new. Nature. A new moral nature. That is. Which principally. Consists. In the love. Of God. Instead. Of a love. Of. Self.

Which. Leadeth. And directeth. All our actions. To his glory. But. Self. Love. On the other hand. Is the heart. Of. Original. Sin. That's what we just covered. You shall be like. God. As the love. Of God.

Is the heart. Of the new creature. So that. This considered. You may easily know. What man. Is. By. His fallen. Sinful nature. He is. An inordinate. Self. Lover. And self. Esteemer. And as he is. So will. He act.

And think. And say. And do. Right. That is man. In his fallen. Sinful. Nature. He's a self. Lover. And a self. Esteemer. That's a powerful. Way of describing. The sin of. The idol. Of. Self. Notice how Thomas. Manton.

Also very. Very. Properly. Contrast. Between natural. Sinners. And born. Again. Believers. Just as we saw. In first. John five. We are not. Of the world. We are. Of God. The world. Does. These things.

But we. Are striving. And are no longer. Wicked. Participants. In that. Idolatry. In that. Worldliness. Of self. Ourself. Has been. Dethroned. By the regenerating. Grace of God. A new. Nature. A new moral. Nature.

And a new creation. Like the Bible says. Regenerated. So that we now. Seek. God. And his word. And yes. We still sin. But that's because of our. Sinful flesh. That has yet to be redeemed. That's why we have to fight.

Mortify it. And put it to death. This is why. Remember. The apostle. Paul's. Stern. Rebuke. To the Galatians. In chapter four. Eight. And nine. Chapter four. Verses eight through nine. Turn with me there.

Beloved. So that we can see. His. Very. Important. Directly. Relevant. Rebuke. To the Galatians. Against. Idolatry. God's word. Is very powerful. Many applications. I preached on this last week. And. Here we see.

It's. It's applicable. In a very particular sense. Galatians. Four. Eight. Through nine. However. At that time. When you did not. Know. God. You were. Slaves. To those. Which by nature. No. Gods. But now.

Having known. God. Or rather having been known. By God. How is it that. You turn back. Again. To the weak. And worthless. Elemental. Things. To which you want. To be enslaved. All over. Again. Ouch. That's a sharp. Rebuke.

And this is in part. Exactly. Why. The apostle John concludes. His letter. With a similar warning. Children. Guard. Yourselves. From. Idols. Be on guard. Against. Idols. Protect. Yourselves. From. Idols.

Because they will enslave you. To the. Old man. And his. Desires. The old self. They will lure you back. Into the past. Your fallen. Nature. And so. By way. Of application. Now. Remember. The question. That I asked.