DECEIVED EVE

The word "DECEIVE" means "to trick, to fool, to hoodwink someone, to make a person believe as true something that is false." MAGICIANS deceive people into thinking that their tricks are for real.

Are you deceived about yourself?
Are you deceived about the Saviour?
Are you deceived about sin?
Are you deceived about society?

Don’t think that you are not. You very well may be. IT’S VERY EASY TO BE DECEIVED!

Think about the people in the world →

Are most people NOT DECEIVED or are most people DECEIVED (Matthew 7:l3-14)? _______________________ Do most people think that they are on the right road (Proverbs 14:12)? ______ Are they? _____ ARE YOU?

Did the Lord Jesus ever warn people about being deceived (Matthew 24:4)? _____ Will only a FEW be deceived (Matthew 24:5,11)? _________________________________________

We are told that in the LAST DAYS (as we get closer to the coming of the Lord) the deception will get worse and worse.

There are a few, like Timothy, who are not deceived because they know the truth. Where is the TRUTH found (2 Timothy 3:15)? _______________________________________

EVE

Let’s learn about the first person who was ever deceived (not including the angels that were deceived by Satan, even prior to the creation of man).

READ 2 CORINTHIANS 11:3. What word means the same as "DECEIVED"? ________________________ Who was the DECEIVER? _______________________ Who was DECEIVED? ___________ If she was deceived, can we be deceived too? _____

Let’s go back to GENESIS and see how this happened. In Genesis chapter 1, how many times do you find these words: "GOD SAID...AND IT WAS SO!" ? (Write down the verses in Genesis 1 where you find these words: _____________________________________________) Everything God said came to pass.

As we come to Genesis chapter 2 we learn that GOD SAID SOMETHING that was very important. SEE GENESIS 2:17. God was saying, "IF YOU EAT...WHAT WILL BE SO (what will happen)?" ___________________________________________________

DOUBT

What are the first 4 words the DECEIVER said (Genesis 3:1)? ________________________________ The devil wanted Eve to DOUBT God’s Word. "Did God really say that? Are you sure?"

DENIAL

The devil not only wanted Eve to DOUBT God’s Word but he also wanted her to DENY God’s Word.

This danger sign flashes whenever we begin to play with God’s Word. First we begin to doubt it and later we actually start to deny it. Then we try to get others to join in with us. Remember, DANGEROUS GROUND ALWAYS SEEMS SAFER IF I CAN GET OTHERS TO STAND THERE WITH ME!

READ GENESIS 3:6--"COME JOIN ME ADAM!" Eve involved another person. She drew in someone else.

According to 1 Timothy 2:14, was Eve deceived? ______ Was Adam deceived? _____ Why not?

Eve was tricked into doing something but not Adam. He knew what he was doing (he did not enter into sin blindly) and even though he knew, he still did it. Eve never saw a person disobey God but Adam did. He saw Eve. He not only saw her, he followed her.

Eve drew away another person. Today there are many that can be drawn away from the truth and from God. According to 1 Corinthians 15:12 there were some that said there was no R_____________________ (see also Matthew 22:23). Some were so deceived and so blinded (by sin) that they called Jesus "that D_______________ (Matthew 27:63). Who were the real deceivers (Matthew 28:11-15)? _______________________

"YE SHALL BE AS GOD"

In tricking Eve, Satan promised her that she would be as God (Genesis 3:5--the word "gods" should be translated "God"). Eve fell for this lie and was tricked. And people have been tempted by Satan’s lie ever since. Why is this so? Is it because people really want to be GOD? No, that is a goal far beyond the average, normal person. The real issue is this: PEOPLE DO NOT WANT GOD TO BE GOD. People do not want God to be the final authority and to have the final say. People do not want God to say what He says. "If someone else can be God, then we can fool ourselves into thinking that God does not have to be God anymore."

This is illustrated in 1 Samuel chapter 8 when the children of Israel wanted to have a KING like all of the other nations (verse 5). It is not that the people wanted to be kings, but the real issue was that they did not want GOD to "R____________ O _________ T________" (see the last 3 words in 1 Samuel 8:7). "We will elect you as king. We would rather have you as our king than God!"

During the Great Tribulation, men and women will elect a man to be GOD (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4). This will be Satan’s man! He will set himself up as God and will demand worship from everyone (see Revelation chapter 13). Instead of believing the truth, men will be deceived into believing the lie.

THE LIE

THAT A CREATURE CAN TAKE THE PLACE OF GOD
(2 Thess, 2:4,11; Rom. 1:25)

THE TRUTH

NO ONE CAN TAKE GOD'S PLACE. HE ALONE IS THE CREATOR
(Rom. 1:25)

HOW CAN I KEEP FROM BEING DECEIVED?

God does not deceive, He always tells the truth. His word is to be believed--not doubted or denied. We need to stay in the Word of God and walk in the truth, lest we be deceived also.

Mary was a woman who was not deceived. When God spoke to her she believed His Word (Luke 1:30-38). She did not understand what God said, but she believed it and she said, "Let it be unto me according to ______ __________" (Luke 1:38). "GOD HATH SAID!"

GOD SAID IT!		And even if I did not believe it, would it still be so? _________
I BELIEVE IT!
THAT SETTLES IT!

In Luke 11:4 we learn that our great God is able to deliver us from evil, AND ALSO FROM THE EVIL ONE! In 2 Corinthians 2:11 we are told that we are not to be ignorant of SATAN*S DEVICES.

In this lesson we will look at one of Satan*s subtle strategies designed by him to bring us into slavery. May God deliver us from the evil one and his tactics.

Genesis 3:1–"Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?"

In Ezekiel 28 we have a description of an angelic creature named Lucifer before he fell into sin. It says that he was "FULL OF WISDOM AND PERFECT IN BEAUTY."

When the devil fell into sin, he did not lose his wisdom, he merely stopped using it for the glory of God. As perverted as his wisdom is, it is still wisdom! The devil is very smart and we will see this in the way he skillfully deceived Eve.

Gen. 3:1-- Here is Satan’s paraphrase of what God said: "Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden." Is this really what God said? The answer is both YES and NO!

There*s a sense in which that is what God said! It is true that they were NOT to eat of EVERY tree in the garden. There was one tree they were forbidden to eat from. The devil paraphrased what God had said (he did not quote word for word what God had said). He did not render an exact quotation of Genesis 2:16-17.

Satan’s paraphrase is not the way God said it, AND THE DEVIL EMPLOYED A SUBTLE SHIFT OF EMPHASIS which really began to work on Eve*s mind.

Let*s see what God really said! In Genesis 2:16 a very positive statement is made by God: "Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat." You can’t get more generous than that! Think of the liberty Adam had! Think of all the variety of fruit he could enjoy ("of every tree")! He could have apples and oranges and pears and peaches and bananas, and you name it! God gave him all these things richly to enjoy!

In Genesis 2:17 we find that Adam was given one restriction. There was one tree, and only one tree, which he was told not to eat from. He could eat from all the other trees.

Remember, there was only one forbidden tree in the garden. There were multitudes of "non-forbidden trees" given to man to enjoy. There was only one forbidden tree given to man as a test of obedience.

Suppose you walk into one of those ice cream shops which has 30 or more flavors of ice cream. Suppose the owner of the shop wants to reward you for being a faithful customer and he says, "Of all the flavors of ice cream in my shop you may freely eat to your full, all except for the chocolate chip flavor." Wouldn*t that be a good deal? Who cares about the one flavor I can*t have. There are at least 29 flavors that I can have. I*m going to enjoy the 29 flavors that I can freely eat! I*m sure the owner has some good reason why he does not want me to have the chocolate, but I*m so thankful for his goodness in what he has allowed me to have! It would be stupid of me to get all upset about the one flavor that I cannot have while not appreciating the 29 flavors that I can have!

God*s command given in Genesis 2:16-17 was very positive. The devil took it and made it sound very negative:

What was the devil*s strategy? HE WANTED EVE TO PAY ATTENTION TO THE ONE RESTRICTION! He wanted Eve to focus upon the ONE TREE she was not to eat from.

Consider again the ice cream shop. The owner had said, "OF ALL THE FLAVORS IN THE SHOP YOU MAY FREELY EAT, EXCEPT THE CHOCOLATE CHIP ICE CREAM."

That owner in saying this had been very gracious and generous. However a very negative person could come along and say, "Hey, wait a minute, YOU CAN*T EAT OF EVERY FLAVOR. That owner is restricting you. He is not letting you eat every flavor. You are really missing out on something. He will not let you taste THE DELICIOUS CHOCOLATE CHIP ICE CREAM." All of a sudden this kind and generous owner is made to appear as a restrictive killjoy who is seeking to spoil the pleasure of others.

We lose sight of the THOU MAYEST FREELY EAT, and all we pay attention to is the THOU SHALL NOT!

As young people, you have restrictions that have been placed on you by parents who fear the Lord and are concerned for your welfare. Perhaps there are certain activities that you are not allowed to do. But have you ever thought about all the things that you are allowed to do? Perhaps there are certain places that you are not allowed to go. Have you ever stopped to consider all the places where you can go? Perhaps there is something your parents will not let you have. Think of all the things they do allow you to have. The devil*s strategy is to get us to focus in on the restrictions and to forget all the freedom that we have. All we think about is the chocolate chip ice cream and how cruel the owner is for not allowing us to have it! HAVE YOU BEEN INFLUENCED BY THE DEVIL*S NEGATIVISM?

Eve was! The answer that Eve gave clearly shows that she had already taken the bait! The devil*s negative approach had affected her. In Eve*s answer you will see that 1) SHE MINIMIZED HER GOD-GIVEN FREEDOM (verse 2); 2) SHE MAXIMIZED HER GOD-GIVEN RESTRICTION (verse 3).

See verse 2-"And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden."

By omitting these words, she took the very positive statement of God and made it less positive.

See Verse 3-"But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die."

She took God*s one restriction and made it EVEN MORE RESTRICTIVE! What words did she add?

Satan*s negativism had its effect on Eve and she (perhaps unknowingly) took away from her freedom and added to her restriction!

Do you ever get very negative as you think about God and the Christian life? Do you ever say things like this:

"GO TO CHURCH, READ THE BIBLE, PRAY--THESE ARE THE ONLY THINGS CHRISTIANS CAN DO." Is that really so? Is that really all we are allowed to do?

See Gen. 3:4-5, "And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil."

Satan’s strategy was to make Eve focus on what she might be been missing: "Eve, you*re missing out on something! God is keeping something from you! Eve, God has something very good which He does not want you to have. God is keeping you from what is really good! God wants to deprive you!"

So Eve followed the advice of her "good friend" the serpent. And what benefits did Eve receive? What were the good things that she gained? All Eve received was SIN, SHAME, GUILT, FEAR, SORROW AND A CURSE!

Be not deceived! Don*t be ignorant of his devices! The real killjoy is not God, but the devil himself. The devil is the one who wants to bring sin and misery and sorrow to every member of the human race. He wants to keep you from knowing the joy of obedience!

Paul wanted only the highest and best for the Corinthians: " For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ" (2 Cor. 11:2). He wanted them to have the good things of God!

But Paul also had a great fear: "But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ" (2 Cor. 11:3).

How did he beguile Eve? We have just studied this in Genesis 3! Don*t ever say it couldn’t happen to you!

Psalm 34:8–"O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him." The serpent attacked the goodness of God. "God is keeping you from something good. God is keeping you from something that you need!" That*s a lie and he was a liar from the beginning!

"O fear the LORD, ye his saints: for there is no want to them that fear him" (Psalm 34:9). There’s nothing you need that God will keep from you! "The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger: but they that seek the LORD shall not want any good thing" (Psalm 34:10).

"For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness" (Psalm 84:10). We need to chose what side we are going to be on!

If you are walking on the path of obedience, what is God keeping from you? "For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly" (Psalm 84:11).

Thank God for what you have and don*t complain about what you don*t have and can*t do, etc. "But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content" (1 Tim. 6:6-8). "Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy" (1 Tim. 6:17).

"And the LORD commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always" (Deut. 6:24). Why does God give us commands? So that He can be a killjoy? To restrict us? To keep us from what we really need! No, God only has our good in mind. The devil’s lie is that those who obey God are miserable! Every believer has the privilege of showing that this is not true!

"And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, to keep the commandments of the LORD, and his statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good?" (Deut. 10:12-13).

"And I will give them one heart, and one way, that they may fear me for ever, for the good of them, and of their children after them" (Jer. 32:39).

Is God keeping something back from you, or has God given you His everything? See Romans 8:32.

Chapter 1

Deceived Eve

EVE

DOUBT

DENIAL

"YE SHALL BE AS GOD"

HOW CAN I KEEP FROM BEING DECEIVED?