Well, one of the things that you and I have to deal with is the deceitfulness of sin. Sin is deceitful, and guess who it deceives first? I have no trouble seeing the sin of my wife and children and my friends and my family, but I can be surprised when my sin is pointed out.
Psalm 36 is this contrast between the denial of deceitfulness and humbly resting in the love of the Lord, and it's sort of putting out in front of us, "Which way would you choose?"
Transgression speaks to the wicked
deep in his heart;
there is no fear of God
before his eyes.
For he flatters himself in his own eyes
that his iniquity cannot be found out and hated.
The words of his mouth are trouble and deceit;
he has ceased to act wisely and do good.
He plots trouble while on his bed;
he sets himself in a way that is not good;
he does not reject evil.
(And then the contrast:)
Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens,
your faithfulness to the clouds.
Your righteousness is like the mountains of God;
your judgments are like the great deep;
man and beast you save, O Lord.
What is the deceitfulness of sin? How does it work? Well, first of all, it's a matter of the heart. He says transgression is deep in the heart. It's our hearts that are deceived. You see, you have two vision systems, your physical eyes and the eyes of your heart. And if the eyes of your heart are blind, then your life won't go where God wants it to go.
Because of that deceitfulness of the heart, there is no fear of God in a person who is deceived. There are times when all of us act in rebellion as if there's no fear of God inside of us at all.
Psalm 36 talks about the self-flattery of the deceitfulness of sin. You know, none of us can say this, "No one knows me better than I know myself," because there will be pockets of inaccuracy in our knowledge of ourselves, because as long as sin is inside of us, the deceitfulness will still be operating.
It says, I love this, that this person's talk is trouble. The Bible says it's out of the heart that the mouth speaks. If sin has deceived you, then your words will go places where God doesn't want them to go.
What is next is pretty obvious. It says, because this person is deceived, he doesn't act wisely. It's impossible, if sin has deceived you, to be what you're supposed to be and to do what God has designed for you to do.
Because this person is deceived, he doesn't recognize evil, and so he doesn't reject it.
Now that's a pretty sad description: Transgression is deep in his heart, no fear of God, self-flattery, talk is trouble, doesn't act wisely, doesn't reject evil. Sin never does good things to us. Sin presents itself as pleasurable and attractive and good, but sin is a liar who will take you places God never meant for you to go.
The contrast is, rather than denying your sin, how about confessing your need and resting in the steadfast love of the Lord? He's the fountain of life. Life, true life, is only ever found in him. He's a light, and in him you see light, rather than living in the darkness. And he's a refuge to all who run to him.
I love the word picture of living in the shadow of his wing. A little weak and needy baby bird that cannot take care of itself finds shelter and sustenance under the wing of his mother. May God help us not to deny our sin but to run to the shadow of the wing of our Savior.
Questions for Personal Reflection or Group Discussion
1. Is it too easy for you to point out the sin in other people's lives who are close to you (your spouse, kids, friends, other people in your church, etc.)? Have you been overcritical and lacking grace with others recently?
2.Why do you think it's so difficult to see the sin in our own lives? Have you been surprised recently when someone pointed out sin (general or specific) in your life? If so, how did you respond when it happened?
3. How have you acted in a way that would demonstrate a heart of rebellion and no fear of God? What might be some of the areas of your heart that are currently blind? Where has sin lied and taken you to places God never meant for you to go? Take some time and pray that God would reveal to you the areas of your heart that are blind to him and his good direction for you. Now confess those areas to him and to someone else close to you, like your spouse, a good friend, or an accountability partner. Be sure to examine how your sin has deceived you into believing lies and how God wants what's better for you.
4. Why is admitting your neediness to God a good thing? Why do you think it's so hard at times for you to admit you are needy and incapable of doing the right thing in your own power? In the Christian life, where should neediness point you? Why do you think neediness feels like death when it really leads to life? How can you develop a posture of running to the shadow of God's wing in your admission of neediness?
Conversation Prompts to Use with Children
For Younger Children:
• When someone else does something wrong (like your brother or sister, friend, or family member), is it easy for you to notice and tell an adult? Do you like seeing other people get into trouble for the wrong things that they do?
• Have you ever done something wrong and had someone else tattle on you to an adult? How did that make you feel when you got caught for doing something disobedient or wrong? Were you quick to defend yourself when you got caught? Why or why not? Why do you think it's easy to see disobedience in other people but not in yourself?
• Is it good to need God? Why do you think we need God when we get caught in our disobedience? When we are in need of God, is he mad and frustrated with us that we're needy, or is he glad that we are coming to him in our neediness?
• When it's really little and weak, why does a baby bird need the protection of its mother's wing? Do you think the mama bird is annoyed with its baby when the baby needs protection? If the Bible says that God is like a mama bird and we are like his baby bird, how do you think God thinks and feels about us when we come to him in neediness?
For Older Children:
• Why do you think it's so easy to spot other people's failures and so hard to see our own? Can you remember the last time someone called you out on your own sin? How did you feel in that moment, and what was your initial reaction when it happened? Was it easy to admit your wrongdoing/failure, or was it difficult? Why?
• How does what we believe in our heart affect what we do in our day-to-day life? What's one area of my life that you think, I'm having trouble believing the truth about God's goodness, and can you help me replace the lie I might be believing with the truth of God's Word? Do you think I can change if I start to replace lies with God's truth? Why or why not?
• Why is it a good thing in the Christian life to admit that you're needy? How does admitting weakness drive a Christian to the only true source of lasting power? How can I help you admit areas of weakness in your life, and why is that a good thing, not a bad thing? How can we both be safe people for one another and encourage each other to run to the shadow of God's wing in our weakness?
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