Flee from Delusions of Strength
00:00:00.000 | (upbeat music)
00:00:02.580 | - We're honored to be joined again by author
00:00:07.160 | and speaker Paul Tripp on the Ask Pastor John podcast.
00:00:10.020 | He is the author of the outstanding book, Sex and Money.
00:00:14.020 | And in the book you say this,
00:00:15.220 | when it comes to sexual temptation, you say,
00:00:17.480 | "Run from the pride that says you are stronger
00:00:20.820 | "than you really are."
00:00:22.720 | Wow, explain this pride that says,
00:00:25.380 | "We are stronger than we really are
00:00:27.620 | "in the face of sexual temptation."
00:00:30.540 | - Wow, wow, wow, I think this is so important.
00:00:35.500 | I would say it this way.
00:00:36.900 | Generally, it's not my weakness that gets me in trouble.
00:00:41.900 | It's my delusions of strength.
00:00:44.380 | The Bible is all about the beauty
00:00:49.380 | of God's grace for the weak.
00:00:53.100 | In fact, you could argue that there is no such thing
00:00:57.940 | ever considered in scripture as human autonomy
00:01:02.140 | and human self-sufficiency.
00:01:03.940 | I'm neither independent nor self-sufficient.
00:01:06.900 | So even in the pre-fall condition,
00:01:11.160 | Adam and Eve were not so powerful as to not need God.
00:01:16.160 | They were created to be dependent on God.
00:01:20.660 | Now, we don't like dependency.
00:01:22.980 | If you're a parent, those arguments your children have
00:01:25.540 | with you about what to eat and about what to wear
00:01:28.620 | and about when to go to sleep are not about those issues.
00:01:31.260 | That's that child saying, "You will not rule me.
00:01:35.100 | "I'm gonna make my own decisions.
00:01:36.360 | "I'm gonna set my own rules.
00:01:37.640 | "I'm strong enough and I'm wise enough to do that."
00:01:41.820 | And so we all do that in some way.
00:01:44.420 | We all swindle ourselves into thinking
00:01:47.340 | that we're wiser, stronger, and more righteous
00:01:51.980 | than we actually are.
00:01:53.540 | And that really makes us susceptible to temptation
00:01:56.840 | because we don't prepare ourselves
00:02:00.260 | for weakness and foolishness
00:02:03.460 | because we don't believe it exists in us.
00:02:06.040 | Let me say it this way.
00:02:07.060 | I think this is a practical way of talking about this.
00:02:10.540 | I think that we're called to live
00:02:13.140 | in a constant state of prepared spontaneity.
00:02:16.220 | What that means is I don't know the temptations
00:02:19.000 | I'm gonna face today because I'm not sovereign.
00:02:21.160 | I'm not omniscient.
00:02:22.000 | I don't see the future,
00:02:23.220 | but I know everything God says
00:02:25.280 | about the fallen world and its dangers.
00:02:27.820 | And I know everything God says
00:02:29.380 | about the sin that's in my heart
00:02:30.980 | that makes me susceptible to those dangers.
00:02:33.580 | So I prepare myself for what I don't know is coming
00:02:38.580 | so when it comes, I'm ready.
00:02:41.180 | And the way that you prepare yourself
00:02:43.540 | is you preach yourself a positive theology
00:02:48.780 | of spiritual weakness coupled with a positive theology
00:02:53.780 | of sufficient grace.
00:02:55.760 | And you never stop preaching that to yourself.
00:02:58.960 | I wanna say what I say all the time.
00:03:01.420 | No one's more influential in your life than you are
00:03:03.680 | 'cause no one talks to you more than you do.
00:03:05.580 | You're in a constant conversation with yourself.
00:03:07.780 | And that's either a gospel-driven conversation
00:03:10.840 | that acknowledges weakness and seeks grace
00:03:15.240 | or it's a delusional, self-swindling conversation
00:03:19.060 | that promotes delusions of human strength
00:03:21.500 | and delusions of human righteousness
00:03:23.340 | that sets me up for temptation.
00:03:24.940 | - That is very humbling.
00:03:26.740 | Thank you, Paul.
00:03:27.560 | That was Paul Tripp, the author of the book,
00:03:28.940 | "Sex and Money."
00:03:30.700 | You should check it out.
00:03:32.160 | Get everything you wanna know about this podcast
00:03:33.940 | at our landing page.
00:03:35.000 | Go to desiringgod.org/askpastorjohn.
00:03:39.880 | We return tomorrow with John Piper
00:03:41.540 | who will explain why God sometimes takes away things
00:03:45.060 | from our lives.
00:03:46.460 | What is God doing to us in our losses?
00:03:49.620 | I'm your host, Tony Reinke.
00:03:50.740 | I'll see you tomorrow.
00:03:51.860 | (upbeat music)
00:03:54.440 | (upbeat music)
00:03:57.020 | [BLANK_AUDIO]