Let's take our Bibles and turn
with me to the book of Proverbs, chapter 22. Proverbs 22. Proverbs
22, verse 14. The mouth of strange women is a deep pit. He that is of horde of the Lord
shall fall therein." This is a subject that we deal
with often. And the reason we deal often
with this subject is because the scripture deals often with
this subject. This is a warning, a warning
given to mankind concerning the deception of the devil, Satan,
from the garden, from Adam's fall in the garden. Satan has
had one purpose, in his hatred and resentment
toward God and God's people. And that one purpose is this,
to deceive and devour men. 1 Peter 5.8, the Spirit of God
warns, be sober, be alert, be vigilant. Because your adversary, the devil,
as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour. The Lord told Peter, Simon, Simon,
behold. Take note of this, Simon. Listen
up. Beware. Be advised. Satan hath desired to have you
that he may sift you as wheat. You remember the Lord's words
of encouragement to Peter. He said, but I prayed for you
that your faith fail not. Now here's the reason for his
deception. In all mankind, They're found
within the ranks of humanity, a people that have been everlastingly
loved of God and chosen unto salvation. The scripture declares that they're
found in every kindred and tongue and people and nation. The Apostle
Paul, under the inspiration of God's Spirit, says in Romans
11, 5, Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant
according to the election of grace. Now, we know this. God's got a people. And we don't
know where they are. The Lord knows where they are.
But He's commissioned preachers. to go into all the world and
preach the gospel, what, to the elect? To every creature. Preach the gospel to everybody. Tell all men, call on the name
of the Lord. Now we realize we don't have
the ability to give men a heart, to call on the name of the Lord,
but if the Spirit of God is pleased to bless those words, God will
call them out. We're called to be faithful.
So the reason of the deception is because Satan knows that God
has a people. He hates God. Therefore hates
God's people. He's going to try to deceive
them. What's he doing? Remember in
Job chapter 1, I'll read this to you. The Lord asked Job, Job
chapter 1. And it says in verse 6, there
was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before
the Lord, and Satan came also among them. And the Lord said
unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the Lord
and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking
up and down in it. What he's saying, I've been all
over the world just seeking whom I may devour. The reason he does
it is because he hates God. And the means of his deception
is through the proclaiming of heresy, a lie, an untruth. But it is an untruth that this
world calls the gospel. This is what the world calls
the gospel. It's a lie. What this lie is,
is nothing more than man-honoring religious language proclaimed
by false preachers meant to do nothing more than to deceive
the masses. Now, this is why I said I'm going
to deal with the subject tonight that I deal with all the time.
But as we go verse by verse through this book or any other book,
We deal with that which the Spirit of God deals with. So this is
what God deals with. So it obviously is extremely,
extremely necessary to continually set forth. You think of the people
that you know, I know. People that we know and we love
and we care for them. We've got family, we've got neighbors,
we've got people. And you know, you know, if God's
taught you the truth, you know this. If they die in unbelief,
and it doesn't matter how sincere they are, I'm telling you, I've
said before, Hitler was sincere. But it doesn't matter how sincere,
how dedicated. Oh, I grew up, I grew up. with a grandma, my grandma, granny's
mama, one of the most sincere women. I mean, she was just like
granny, you know, just sweet, sweet, sweet. Oh, she's just
so sincere, she's so dedicated, dope kid. And she died in unbelief. And I know what these scriptures
say. I know, I know. Someone say, well, I don't know. Let God be true. Every man a
liar. What Satan does is he takes the
scriptures. There's always just enough truth
in there to where people hear it and they say, well, you know,
they say a lot of good things. Whenever you hear that, they
say a lot of good things, that means a little leaven leavens
the whole lump. That's what that means. They
rest the scriptures. Now let me read something, Revelation
22, 22, 18, 19. Now listen to the penalty of
taking these scriptures and changing anything. Revelation 22, verse
18, 19, for I testify unto every man that heareth the words of
the prophecy of this book. Now this is the Lord speaking,
I testify unto every man that hears these words, if any man
shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues
that are written in this book. And if any man take away from
the words of the book of this prophecy, if any man minimizes
it or fails to preach it, God shall take away his part
out of the book of life, out of the holy city, from the things
that are written in this book. What happens is when a false
gospel is preached. Let me tell you what you're going
to hear. They say that though man fell in the garden, and they'll
admit that. Did man fall in the garden? Yes,
absolutely. But he's not dead totally. He's not dead spiritually. Well, God said he was. In the
day that you eat thereof, thou shalt surely die. Now, a false gospel says that
man still possesses the potential by the exercising of his free
will to obtain spiritual life by being obedient to God's offer, by keeping God's law. While the
scriptures clearly declare, not by works of righteousness that
we have done, but according to his mercy, He saved us by the
washing of regeneration and the renewing of the Holy Ghost. Does
man have the ability to have his own free will to
accept or reject? John 1.13 says he doesn't. Not
by the will of the flesh. The lie of Satan proclaims that
salvation originates before God. I read something this morning.
I was reading something somebody was writing. And he was talking
about the Book of Life. The Lamb's Book of Life. And he said, there are many spaces
left in the Lamb's Book of Life. There's many blank spaces left
to be filled in as men accept God's offer of salvation. And
their names will then be written in the book of life. That's what
a false gospel says. Now I grew up hearing that. I
bet you many of you did too. There was a recording angel. Why should I doubt it? A preacher
said it. A recording angel. took and recorded the names of
those that accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal
Savior. So they say that there's entries
being made today. And men are being saved before
God when they accept. 2 Timothy 1.9 says, Who has saved
us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our
works, according to His own purpose and grace which was given us
in Christ Jesus before the world began. Salvation does not originate
before God, with man. The Scriptures declare that we're
bound to give thanks all the way to God for you, brethren,
beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen
you to salvation through sanctification of the spirit and belief of the
truth. A false gospel declares that
the Lord Jesus Christ died for every man's sin and therefore
every man's debt before the law is paid and satisfied if man
will but accept it. Therefore, in saying that, You're
saying that salvation is not finished. And that when the Lord
declared that it was finished and bowed his head and gave up
the ghost, that he was gravely deceived or lying. One of the
two. Now somebody's lying. A false gospel sets forth that
men have the power to accept or reject, and when it pleases
God to offer salvation to them and they accept it, they then,
because of their free will, are now at peace with God. The scripture
declares that God Almighty gives them a new will in the day of
His power. Thy people shall be willing in
the day of thy power. And a false gospel declares that
man's final perseverance and acceptance with God is founded
on his own merit and ability and power. The scripture declares
that we're kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation
ready to be revealed in the last time. So Satan and all of his
ministers profess to be preaching a Christ-honoring message. Everybody talks about the Lord
Jesus Christ. Everybody talks about the crucifixion. Everybody talks about the sufferings
of the Lord. They're saying that it is a Christ-honoring
message, but their message is actually an evil masterpiece
of subtlety. And it's proclaimed for one reason,
to rob Christ of his glory and to make him less than who he
is. To make man the author and finisher
of his faith. And the penalty for believing
a false gospel is catastrophic. Like I said, There's people all
over this world, and but for the grace of God, we'd all be
there. The only difference between a
believer and an unbeliever is the grace of God. That's the
only difference, because we're all dug out of the same pit.
Here's the penalty. Paul says, though we or an angel
from heaven preach any other gospel unto you than that which
we preached unto you, let him be accursed. So knowing that,
this is what verse 14 is all about. The mouth of a strange
woman is a deep pit, and he that is abhorred of the Lord shall
fall therein. The mouth of a strange woman,
now it actually means adulterous. The mouth of an adulterous woman
is a deep pit." Young's literal translation declares this, a
deep it is, the mouth of strange women. And the abhorred of Jehovah
falleth there. This is repeated in Proverbs
23, 27, for a whore is a deep ditch. and a strange woman, a narrow
pit." Now, humanly speaking, I'll make one statement on this
and I'll just be it. No one would ever question or
doubt the danger of succumbing to the natural advances of an
adulteress or a harlot. Many have done so and thereby
their lives and homes Families have been destroyed by such wickedness. Nobody doubts that. You know,
thou shalt not commit adultery. Somebody say, well, buddy, I
kept that commandment. I've never done that. If a man
looks on a woman to lust after her, he's committed adultery
with her in his heart. So therefore, when it comes to
the natural thoughts of adultery, no one is without guilt. But
this woman, this strange woman, is actually the dangerous woman
whore of deception, the true spiritual harlot, mystery Babylon
the Great, the mother of harlots and abominations of the earth.
This harlot is the divine revelation and complete summation of all
false religion and she's got one weapon, one weapon, and it's
a dangerous one, and this weapon of destruction is her mouth. By the seductive words of a false
gospel, She entices man to the destruction of not only his body,
but his soul. This is her weapons. By her words of flattery and
deception, she appeals to man's ego. Now, how much do you think
the word love is spoken of in false religion? It just permeates
false religion. We love you. We love your kids.
We love your family. We have all kinds of things for
you. We've got programs for you. We've got this, that, and the
other. We love. We're going to go knock on doors.
We're going to hand out tracks. We'll give you tapes. We'll do
whatever it takes. What the mouth of this strange
woman does is tells man that he's capable of avoiding the
wrath and death of Almighty God by merely doing something to
please God. Hath the Lord said that you'll
surely die? You're not going to die. In the
day that you eat, God knows that you'll be likened to Him. Knowing
good and evil, you'll be God's. That's what free will says. You're the God. You're the God. You're the one. You make the
decision. You're the one that has the power to do so. This
mouth of this strange woman never tells a man that he's truly without
strength because he's dead and trespasses in sin, because she's
a liar, like her father the devil. Never speaks of the necessity
of the law being satisfied. Do you know I never heard that
one time? that the law had to be satisfied. All I knew was that God wants
to save me. He wants to save everybody. He doesn't want anybody to go
to hell. He's a loving God. He's not a
God that's angry with men. He wants men to be with Him. This mouth of this strange woman
never tells a man that except his righteousness exceed the
righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, he would in no
wise enter into the kingdom of heaven. Why? Because her mouth
is a trap. Instead, Proverbs 17, she catches
him. Proverbs 7, I'm sorry. She catches
him, kisses him, lies to him liberty
that she offers. She speaks so religiously, trying
to blind the simple's conscience and gratify, you know, his vanity. Tells him that he's her lover,
the one she's been looking for. Come, let us take our fill of
love till the morning. Let us solace ourselves with
love, comfort ourselves in this time of distress. The mouth of
a strange woman It says, is a deep pit. I looked that up. It's the
depth. It's the depth. A pit that once
a man falls into, but for the grace of God he cannot retrieve
himself. Listen to Proverbs 2.19. None
that go unto her return again. Neither take they
hold of the paths of life. What's the only hope that we've
got? Is that one strong man, stronger
than the strong man that holds her captive, has to go in and
bind the strong man and then take captive those that the devil
had captive. taketh captivity captive and
gives grace unto men. Can a man, a woman, by their
own ability, will, conscience, works, can they ever retrieve
themselves out of the clutches of a strange woman? False religion? No. Nope. None that go unto her. But thanks
be unto God, there's hope for sinners. in the God of all grace. There comes a time when it pleases
God that the vessels of God's mercy, they cross paths with
a message that doesn't give honor, glory, and praise to man. But
it tells the truth as it is in Christ Jesus. And they proclaim
the message that the Lord has sent and the Lord has taught. concerning God's will and God's
choice and God's purpose and God's counsel, how Almighty God,
according to the covenant of God's grace, chose to show mercy
and gave those that He's loved everlastingly to the Son, who
eternally stood for them to rescue them from the pit of the spiritual
death, that pit that they never could have gotten themselves.
And before they're converted, they are totally ignorant of
their despairing position, no idea. Look at Proverbs 2, verse
10, Proverbs 2.10. Here's what happens. When it pleases God, and it's
going to be in a place like this, where God has raised up the gospel
of God's free and sovereign grace, where Almighty God has given
a heart For the love of Christ and the glory of this blessed
Savior set forth in this book has been pleased to meet together
and hear the gospel and be taught of God and the Spirit of God
settles them and they hear it over and over and they're assured
and they're assured and they're assured. because we're all full
of doubts. But we hear that truth again, say, yeah, that's it,
I know that's it, I see that. Spirit of God, here's what happens
whenever God's pleased to rescue one from the mouth of this strange
woman. Proverbs 2.10, when wisdom entereth
into thine heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul. When wisdom himself, that's wisdom,
When wisdom himself enters into thy heart, when Christ is formed
in the heart in regenerating grace, Christ in you. Isn't that amazing? That's an amazing thought. Christ
in you, the hope of glory. Then will all the gracious evidences
of the fruit of God's Spirit, they'll be there. And the knowledge
of His grace to that helpless sinner is going to be sweet unto
that sinner's soul. He's going to hear that gospel,
and God's going to teach him. He's going to take that stony
heart out. It's not going to rule anymore.
That heart of rebellion, He's going to give him a new heart.
And he said, I'm going to write my law, the law of the love of
Christ. I'm going to write my law on
your heart. I'm going to be your God. You're going to be my people.
And they'll all be taught of God. And then, okay, when wisdom
enters into thine heart and knowledge, the knowledge of God, the knowledge
of God and the knowledge of ourselves. Now let me tell you something.
It's comforting to a child of God for the Lord God to teach
him what He is in Himself. I'm thankful for that. I'm thankful
that God Almighty would teach us what we are by nature, causing
us to realize, Lord, if you didn't save me, I'd never be saved.
Lord, if you'd have left me to myself, I'd have never come had
you not come to me first. Lord, I'd have never loved you
if you didn't love me first. I wouldn't have done that. But
then he's going to agree with God. Knowledge is pleasant unto his
soul. He is in agreement that salvation
is of the Lord. Is there a believer that doesn't
believe that? No. Every believer believes that. Salvation is of the Lord. Salvation
is by grace. through faith, and not of ourselves. It was the gift of God. He'll
know that he's a helpless sinner, like Peter, sinking in the water. Lord, save me. Save me. Verse 11, discretion shall preserve
thee. Understanding shall keep thee. God's discretion to show mercy
shall hedge thee about. keep you, and his wisdom to be
just and justify a sinner will keep the vessel of God's mercy. Look at verse 12, to deliver
thee from the way of the evil man. To deliver thee from ourselves. Paul said, oh wretched man that
I am, I need deliverance from me. to deliver thee from the
way of the evil. The man there is in italics,
to deliver thee from the way of evil. Rebellion against God,
thinking that I am the final say. From the man that speaketh
froward things. Lord's been pleased to not allow
his people to die in their sins and delivers His people from
themselves and then keeps them from the lies of froward men. The fraud of a lying gospel. The mouth of a strange woman.
Who leave, verse 13, the paths of uprightness. To walk in the
ways of darkness. They love the darkness of sin
and rebellion against God rather than the light of Christ. And
the amazing thing about it is that they're deceived. They don't
know. They love darkness. You tell
a false religionist, one that puts all of his hope in himself,
in his work, in his baptism, in his walk down the aisle. There's
so many things that they do, but they put all of their trust
in what they've done And you tell them that you love darkness
rather than light, and they'll hate you. They hate you for that. You tell someone out of the very
deception that you were called out of, and I was called out
of, you tell them that's a lie. That's a lie. And they hate you. Verse 14, who rejoice to do evil
and delight in the frowardness of the wicked. They take pleasure
in their ignorance and they delight in the fraud of wickedness. Now this is the truth. This is
the message that the Spirit of God has moved upon Solomon to
put in this book over and over and over again. It is absolutely
necessary to be honest with men and women. Verse 15, whose ways
are crooked and they froward in their paths where there's
no regeneration of the heart. No grace, no principle of true
life, no teaching or influence of God's Spirit. There's nothing
but confusion in every evil work. God Almighty has ordained that
we tell men that. You tell them. You tell them
what I told you to tell them. Don't tell them what you think
they need to hear. What do you say? What did Paul
tell Timothy? Preach the Word. And what do
we do? We go line by line, line by line. We take this book, we go right
over here and we line by line, line by line. We tell them what
God says. It's not left up to us to dictate. Verse 16 and 17. To deliver thee. This is why we tell them. This
is why, because Almighty God is going to bless what God said.
To deliver thee from the strange woman Even from the stranger
flattereth with her words, who forsaketh the God of her youth
and forgetteth the covenant of her God." Here's the only escape. This is it. This is the best,
safest thing that you could possibly do for anybody. Tell them the
truth. Tell them the truth. Oh, I don't
believe they'll believe. Tell them the truth. Yeah, but
I tell you what, you don't understand, they won't like it. My friend,
they're going to hell. They're going to go to hell.
If God doesn't deliver them, and He's only going to deliver
them, invite them to come. Why don't you come? Why don't
you come just sit? That's why I tell people, why
don't you come sit? You don't have to do anything. You don't
have to do anything. That's the first thing I told
you, David. David came to talk to me one day. I said, why don't
you just come? You don't have to do anything.
Just come sit. That's what I tell all of them. That's what I tell
everybody. Just come sit. You don't have to do anything. You're
not obligated to do anything, believe me. Just sit. This is the only way that Almighty
God has been pleased to deliver from the deep pit, the mouth
of a strange woman, that harlot of false religion that flatters
with her words and has no part in the covenant of God's grace.
The Lord must deliver. The Lord Himself has come into
this world and has entered into the strong man's house and bound
him and spoiled his good. He was made flesh. He dwelt among
us. He lived before Almighty God
in absolute holiness. Almighty God said concerning
the Lord on the Mount of Transfiguration and at His baptism, this is my
beloved Son, and whom I'm well pleased you hear Him. Now He
has come and He's lived before God in every jot, in every tittle,
every demand of the law. That you and I, we don't even
know what it is. We talk about keeping the law, we don't even
know what it is. I mean in word, in thought, in deed, attitude.
But he did, he did absolutely live before God and earned, this
amazes me, the man, the man, Christ Jesus. He walked before
God and established the righteousness of God. The man, Christ Jesus. the righteousness of God, and
then robes His people in that righteousness. And we stand before
God in Him as righteous as He. Righteous, that they should be
holy and without blame before God in love. came into this world,
bore their sin in His own body, made what they are under the
penalty of God's law, and delivered them from the debt of that sin
by dying. That's the penalty. What's the
wages of sin? Death. What happened? He died. They died in Him. And then in
regenerating grace, He gives them life that Adam lost. That's what Adam lost. I restored
that which I took not away. Man did. Man gave it back to
him. God-man. And imparting life,
giving them a new will, a new purpose, a new love. They now
cast themselves upon Him for mercy that He's already shown
them. Calling upon Him for life. that
they already have, that's why they're called. The mouth of
a strange woman is a deep pit, and he that is abhorred of the
Lord, everyone left to himself, everyone found without Christ,
God's angry with the wicked every day, all that take pleasure in
rebelling against him shall fall therein. But I can tell you something,
all the almighty God has been pleased to show mercy and compassion. The Lord's promised, he's promised
this, all that the Father giveth me, they're coming, they're coming.
And he that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out. What do
we do? We tell men what God says. We tell men what the spirit of
God is written. We set forth man's depravity
and man's rebellion, and we tell that man that Almighty God's
been pleased to save sinners. And if God's pleased to save
a sinner, He's gonna save him. And He's gonna do it for His
glory and for the eternal good of that vessel of His mercy.
I pray God bless this word to our hearts for Christ's sake.