Even Good Things Have a Dark Side

Even Good Things Have a Dark Side”
I. Introduction
A. This sermon is building on the last two:
1. There are two kinds of sin
2. Religion is just as dangerous as un-
B. In one sense what I’m saying today is the same thing looked at from a different angle.
C. One of the important things I’ve learned over the past 30 years is that even good things have a dark side. Many things which we uphold as virtuous and esteem as trustworthy can also be evil and demonic.
D. Things we saw the last two weeks in Matthew 23:1-28 — Good things which are sinful
1. Evangelistic zeal
2. Going out of your way to advance the kingdom
3. Telling people about the Lord, and convincing them to follow Him
4. Tithing
5. Being scrupulous, obeying the Lord in all the details of life, not being willing to be disobedient even in the small things
6. Jesus isn’t saying that these things are good but not enough. He is saying that these things are a part of their evil lifestyle. They look like virtues, but in their case they’re actually vices.
II. A few more passages: mostly from Jesus
A. “Woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. Woe to you who are full now, for you shall be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep. Woe to you, when all people speak well of you, for so their fathers did to the false prophets.” (Luke 6:24-26)
B. “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’” (Matthew 7:21-23)
C. “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.” (1Cor.13:1-3)
D. “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:26)
III. Explanation
A. “Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness.” (2Corinthians 11:14-15)
1. E.g, Satan disguised as an angel of light.
a. This means that even light has a dark side.
2. “Servants of righteousness” false apostles
B. Satan has his counterfeit version of God's things. Satan uses even the best truths and best things to get us.
1. Quoting Scripture to tempt Jesus.
2. He always has a counterfeit version of the things of God.
3. Using Scripture to entice Jesus
C. Why did Satan quote Scripture to Jesus? Because he knew Jesus was a righteous man. And you can only lead a righteous man astray by something that looks righteous.
1. Trojan horse: After besieging the city for 10 years, the Greeks left this gigantic horse at the gate of the city of Troy, and sailed away. That night, the soldiers inside came out and opened the gates of the city to let in the Greek army, which had returned under cover of night.
IV. Other examples
A. The dark side of ministry joy
1. The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!” 20 “Do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” (Luke 10:17, 20)
B. The dark side of love
1. “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:26)
C. The dark side of joy
1. “Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.” (James 4:9)
D. The dark side of serving (Luke 10:38-44 “Martha, Martha”)
E. The dark side of righteousness (Rom10:1ff.) Filthy rags (Is.64:6)
F. The dark side of zeal for God - Acts 22:3, Phil.3:6, Rom.10:2
G. The dark side of contentment
H. The dark side of diligence
I. The dark side of disciplining children
J. The dark side of gentleness
K. The dark side of courage
L. The dark side of mission
M. The dark side of grace
N. The dark side of ecumenicalism
O. Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace.
1. This implies there’s a time NOT to, there’s a time when these good things are actually bad.
V. Disclaimers
A. Now don’t think I’m calling good evil. I’m saying that some things which LOOK good, or are thought of as good, are actually evil.
B. This is not cynicism. Cynicism is when you come to conclusion that the dark side is all there is.
VI. Application
A. Life is not simple. It is very nuanced. It is not just black and white.
1. There are some things which are black and white, but there are many that aren’t.
2. "Discernment is not knowing the difference between right and wrong. It is knowing the difference between right and almost right." – Charles Spurgeon
B. We have a sly and crafty opponent. He can trip you up in a million different ways.
1. “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.” (Ephesians 6:10-13)
2. We need to be fully engaged and alert.
3. “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves.” (Matthew 10:16)
a. Yes, even shrewdness, which we need so desperately to be able to deal with the devil’s craftiness, has a dark side. And so we must also be innocent as doves.
C. In the end, believers in Christ must walk humbly before their God. (Micah 6:8)
1. One more good thing that has a dark side is confidence.
2. Why don’t we spend time with the Lord? Not self-discipline, not busy-ness, not even laziness. It’s pride. It’s self-confidence. It’s a failure to live in the knowledge of how much we need Him every hour.