DOES THE BIBLE REALLY SAY EVERY HEART IS DECEITFUL AND WICKED?

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Edward O’Hara Sun 3/8/2020 3:23 PM…

Have you ever thought about or been asked the question, Do you think the man is basically good? Is this what you have concluded about mankind from what you know and have experienced? Does this seem like a reasonable conclusion to you since there is so much evil in the world? Does it seem that there couldn’t possibly be this much evil in the world if not for man’s heart being deceitful and wicked above all things? Or is this even the right question we should be asking? For the believer in Jesus, shouldn’t our first question be, What does the Bible say about this? Of course, it should. And this is the question we will answer in this message. First, let me say that all the scriptures like the one I just partially quoted from Jeremiah17 that are usually given as proof that man is basically bad are scriptures used out of context. And because they are taken out of context they are made to sound like they are saying the man is basically bad. But, is this what these scriptures really say? I offer this example from Jeremiah17:9 that is often used to prove men are basically bad to see if this is what the scripture is actually teaching.

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When we hear a preacher quoting this scripture from Jeremiah that says “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?”, we think “Yeah, that explains why people are so bad”, right? “It’s because they are bad at their core. In their heart. In their very nature”. We think this because of the way the preacher forms the question. And not because of what the scripture plainly says. If he read the scripture in context he could never conclude such a thing. But, by presenting the verse in Jeremiah the way he does it forces one to the conclusion he desires. It is not because it is what the verse means in context. 


He does this by usually prefacing this verse with a diatribe on how bad people are by giving example after example of bad behavior. Even going so far as to say babies exhibit this when they cry. Nothing could be more ridiculous or be further from the truth. Then to explain why they are bad he quotes the verse in Jeremiah. By doing this when he asks the question of whether a man is basically bad, we right away think the verse means that men are basically bad. We arrive at this wrong answer just as he intended us to. Because by presenting it the way he does the only possible choices are that man is either basically good or basically bad. And with all the “evidence” he provided about man’s bad behavior it would be impossible to conclude that men are basically good. But, if we will go to the Bible where it is written and read the whole context we will come away with an entirely different understanding of what Jeremiah was talking about.


In the first 4 verses, we see that this is a declaration against the sin of Judah. So first and foremost what Jeremiah is saying here should not be understood as an indictment against all humanity as most preachers falsely teach. By realizing this first we will have the context in which we can then understand all that Jeremiah was conveying here. Next, we see Jeremiah tell them cursed is the man who trusts in the strength of his own arm. Why? Because man is not God. And God is in control, not man.

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And when his heart departs from trusting in the Lord Jeremiah says that man “shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited.” This shows that a choice about what one believes is what places one in either the category of the wicked or the righteous. The one who does not trust in the Lord or the one who does. And that this is what determines the condition of the heart. Whether it is a deceitful heart or a pure one. A heart that trusts in the Lord or does not. This shows that if a man’s heart is wicked it is so by choice, and not by nature. 


We also see this in the contrast Jeremiah makes to this man who trusts in the flesh by saying, “Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.” This fruit he yields is a fruit that comes from a good heart that yields good fruit as Jesus said in Mt.12:33-37. 


This contrast between the wicked and the righteous shows us who Jeremiah is talking about when he says “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” Adding that because the Lord is able to search the heart He knows which are wicked and which are righteous. He knows who believes and trusts in Him and who does not. Proving that in context Jeremiah is not indicting all mankind as having a deceitful heart. But, only those who trust in the strength of their own arm who do not trust in the Lord. So the choice regarding who we trust is what makes the heart either deceitful or good. So that it is a result of choice and not of nature as the false sin nature doctrine teaches. 


We also see that because the child is not born with the knowledge of either good or evil, the question “Is man basically good”, is the wrong question. Because it is a question intended to lead us to a preconceived wrong answer. Instead of what the Bible plainly teaches. So the question should be “what does the Bible say about a man”. And the answer to that is he is neither basically good or bad by nature. But, he is neutral because according to the scriptures he is born without any knowledge of good or evil. 


We see this in Deut.1:39 when we are told about the children who sinned with their parents who were obviously just imitating them and doing what they were told, “Moreover your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, and your children, which in that day had no knowledge between good and evil, they shall go in thither, and unto them will I give it, and they shall possess it.” This possession was the land of promise. This means that until a person reaches a time when they can make a decision informed by the knowledge of good and evil they are not held accountable by God for their decisions. Which means that no one is born a sinner by nature. Nor is he born righteous by nature. He is born innocent. 


We see Jesus saying this when He tells the disciples “Suffer little children and forbid them not to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.” He said this because He knew children have no knowledge of good and evil and so are not either basically bad or basically good. But, He knew that they are innocent. He knew that they have no ability in themselves to make an informed decision about right and wrong that God holds them accountable for. To the contrary, what children do is what they see others doing because that is how they learn. And until they learn good and evil they are not held accountable by God for their choices. Because they are still innocent. Which shows the truth in the axiom “innocent as newborn babes”.


So the next time you read or hear someone asking the question, is man basically good, think of what the Bible really says about this. Read the scriptures they twist in its context to see what the truth is that we find in scriptures like Isaiah53:6, Rom.3:23, Isaiah64:6, and Ps.14:3. Then you will know that this is the wrong question based on wrong assumptions to force you to the same wrong conclusions. Because the Bible says that man is neither good or bad from conception. But, is innocent just as Adam and Eve were in the garden when God made them. Because they too had no knowledge of good and evil were not held accountable by God for their choice to eat the fruit. Just as these children in the wilderness that Deut.1:39 says we’re allowed to enter into the promised land to possess it because sins were not imputed to them. 


The children inherited the promise, which is analogous to the believer in Jesus inheriting the spiritual kingdom of God that Paul spoke of in 1Cor.15:50, even though these children participated in the sins of their parents. But, their parents who sinned did not inherit the land. Why? Because these children did not have any knowledge of good and evil. While their parents did. And God judged them accordingly. So we see that what Jeremiah was describing for them is that the deceitful heart is that which chooses of its own free will not trust in the Lord as Judah did. And the good heart is that which chooses of its own free will to trust in the Lord. And we see Jesus in Mt.12:33-37 says that the out of the good heart proceeds good words. Words that justify a man. And do not condemn him. Words that confess Jesus as Lord and believe in His resurrection. 

Have you believed in Jesus? Have you been born of the Spirit so you too can inherit eternal life? So that you too can be led by the Spirit of God to be equipped by God to inherit God’s spiritual kingdom? If you are reading this God is calling you. He loves you and wants you to know Him. Because knowing Him is eternal life.John17:3. So if you do not know Him, but now would really want to, then please take the time right now to pray and confess Jesus as Lord of your life. And believe that He has raised from the dead. If you do believe in Him then pray something like this and you will be saved: Dear Jesus, I believe you. Thank you for joining with me in death so that by conquering death by your resurrection I could join with you in life. Thank you that you raised from the dead so that I could raise from the dead too by trusting in, clinging to, and relying solely on you. Thank you for giving me a new spirit now Lord so that I can live with you in heaven forever. In Jesus’ name, amen. 


By praying a prayer similar to this one and really meaning it from your heart you will be saved from death to life. From sin to righteousness. And from the wrath to peace with God. Now when you begin reading the Bible and believing what it plainly says it will begin to change the way you think and believe. Because when you trust in Jesus you leave the old life behind where you were only able to relate to and trust in what has been made. And now will be equipped for heaven because you are no longer only natural flesh and blood, but are made a spiritual being ready to inherit God’s spiritual kingdom called heaven. It is because of Jesus’ resurrection that He is the only WAY, THE TRUTH, AND THE LIFE. Because only Jesus has broken through the wall of death that the flesh and blood natural body can never get through. Only by the new birth are we made ready to receive the spiritual body that can go through the wall of death as Jesus’ did first. 

God Bless!
This message can also be heard at  https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mGtjLDI1Oro&feature=youtu.be

DOES THE BIBLE REALLY SAY EVERY HEART IS DECEITFUL AND WICKED? Man is neither good or bad by nature. So when someone asks if a man is basically good they are asking the wrong question For the purpose of getting you to focu…m.youtube.com
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1 Comment

  1. Peter on March 9, 2020 at 10:40 pm

    “Which means that no one is born a sinner by nature. Nor is he born righteous by nature. He is born innocent.”

    I thought the heresy that Paul and Jesus have different doctrines was bad enough, but now we have the heresy that “no one is born a sinner by nature.” This negates the whole requirement of the virgin birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ (the sin seed is carried through the man’s sperm; so yes, at CONCEPTION we are ALL sinners), and negates redemption through the law of kinsman redeemer.

    And then to top it all off, this article finishes off with the oh-so-popular last days’ heresy-of-heresies: the favorite, instant-salvation doctrine of the slothful, sluggard, fearful church of the Laodiceans: the lascivious, so-called “sinner’s prayer.” There are no “sinner’s prayers” in the Bible. Salvation is a PROCESS, a WALK, a WAY, just as Jesus commanded us in Matthew 7:13-14. It is a JUDGMENT walk for the sinner. Why? Because mankind’s heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked, just as the word of God plainly tells us. The Bible says salvation comes only at the END of the narrow way.

    The heresies taught in this article do not understand the heart at all. They are assuming that man can determine when, and if, he is “trusting in the Lord” with his own heart. Really? The same deceitful and wicked heart (that has NOT gone through JUDGMENT through the narrow way, and been born again in truth) is going to be the same heart that determines whether IT is “trusting in the Lord”? Nay, the blind are leading the blind here; if anyone is, sadly, following this deception.

    Jesus Christ said STRIVE to enter the strait gate. Paul preaches nothing but the strait gate/narrow way of the Lord. It is the crosswalk for the believer. To follow the Lord to Calvary. To die the death (“except a corn of wheat fall to the ground and die”). Paul is the exact ensample to us who will obey the Lord and enter in, and walk the narrow way. Their doctrines are IDENTICAL, as the narrow way judgment walk is THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE BIBLE, old testament and new.

    These teachings would be laughable in their error if not for the serious ramifications to anyone following them. They are written by someone who obviously has never entered the strait gate, nor walked the narrow way. Anyone with true, Biblical understanding would be horrified at these dishonorable false teachings.

    And to the website that countenances these doctrines:

    If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed: (2John 1:10)

    For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds. (2John 1:11)

    Repent. The time is at hand. The Lord will show you the truth IF YOU OBEY HIM. Big “if.” Jesus said FEW would DO what he said, and so it is.

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