The deceit of self-flattery⤒🔗

The historic occasion of Psalm 36 is unknown to us. This simple, beautiful psalm extols the Lord, and con­trasts the righteous and the wicked. David explains why the wicked have no proper idea of God nor respect for Him. Whereas the God-fearing see and grieve over sin, the wicked are blind to their sins or else excuse them. Let's meditate today on what he says of the wicked in the second verse of Psalm 36, namely: "For he flattereth himself in his own eyes, until his iniquity be found to be hateful."

The wicked person, David asserts, escapes reality espe­cially by means of self-flattery. The wicked man gives himself the respect that is due to God. He sees all of life in his own eyes rather than through God's eyes that is, God's Word and will.

He who makes little of God will make much of himself. He who refuses to bow in adoration before God will bow in adulation of himself.

The wicked man forgets that God sees the heart. He pretends that God will wink at sin. He has no awareness of the holy and majestic character of God.

The wicked man "flattereth himself in his own eyes" (Ps. 36:2a). The word translated flattereth is derived from a Hebrew word which means "to smooth over."

Thus, the picture painted by David is powerful: The wicked man glosses over his wickedness. He paves a smooth way to self-destruction. He walks a smooth road straight into hell. He deceives himself. He speaks peace to himself when there is no peace. He is destitute of a sense of his own sins. He overrates himself. He polishes himself with a smooth gloss.

Charles Spurgeon put it this way: "The descent to eternal ruin is easy enough, without making a glissade of it, as self-flatterers do." To perform a glissade means "to slide in a standing or squatting position down a snow-covered slope without the aid of skis."

Does not this describe all of us by nature? As reckless youth may dangerously slide rapidly down a steep hill of hard-packed snow without the aid of sleds or skis, so we by nature dangerously slide straight down toward hell of our own accord without opposing our own destruction.

If we were not deceiving ourselves by self-flattery, few of us would live so contentedly unconverted as we do. Self-flattery enables us to live on carelessly. Through one means or another, we flatter ourselves that we will not ultimately end in hell, notwithstanding our dangerous unconverted state and condition.

The variety of self-flattery←⤒🔗

All roads to hell are really one in essence. They are all part of that broad road of numerous lanes which leads to destruction (Mt. 7:13). Thus, as self-flatterers there are many glissades or lanes which we can use to slide or travel straight into hell. I want to detail briefly five of these glissades. As I do so, please remember that Satan is content if we will hide behind only one of the following methods of self-flattery; for each of these will lead us like a glissade to condemnation.

Outward morality←⤒🔗

The first method of self-flattery is to make a glissade of outward morality. This self-flatterer speaks like this: "I lead a decent life. I go to church regularly. I read the Scriptures daily with my family. We pray together. I read Biblical books and periodicals. I agree with and follow the teachings of my church. I indulge in no known sinful vice. I don't smoke or drink. I don't use bad language or work on Sunday. I'm content to be with my family and to walk outwardly in the ways of the Lord. I hope for the best for eternity. What more can a person do?"

Dear friend, though your outwardly moral life is commendable as far as it goes, there is nothing saving in it. To rely on outward morality for eternity is to lean on a righteousness that does not exceed the righteous­ness of the Pharisees, of whom Jesus said, "They trusted in themselves that they were righteous.... Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven" (Lk. 18:9; Mt. 5:20). No case means no case. Leaning upon outward morality for eternity is to build on a slippery glissade which will only prove to be a smooth road to hell in the end.

Religious self-righteousness←⤒🔗

Secondly, some self-flatterers lean upon the righteous­ness of their spiritual impressions, convictions, and fears for eternity. They speak like this: "I have had and con­tinue to have many religious impressions. I live with an open conscience; often I have had solemn fears of death and hell. Sermons sometimes move me to tears. On occasion, the Lord in His providence has answered my prayer. From time to time, certain texts are fastened upon my conscience with profound conviction. I am busy with the means of grace. I try hard to fear God. I pray that all will be well for my soul on the Judgment Day"

All of these things rest short of God's only foundation for salvation, Jesus Christ and Him crucified (Acts 4:12). If you have never become a lost sinner before the holy God, you have never stood in dire need of Christ. And if Christ, the Rock of ages, has never become precious to you, how dare you build your hopes for eternity on the sands of your fluctuating feelings and impressions (Mt. 7:24-27)?

Good intentions←⤒🔗

Thirdly, many rely on good intentions for their eternal destiny. They rest their hopes for eternity, like Felix, on a future "convenient season" (Acts 24:25). Some day they hope to reform their lives, to earnestly seek after God, and to join the church. They aim for future faith and repentance.

"The road to hell," Martin Luther wrote, "is paved with good intentions." Future faith is simply today's unbelief. Future faith is a self-flattering glissade that slopes straight into hell.

Providential circumstances←⤒🔗

Numerous self-flatterers rely on a great variety of providential circumstances. Some build upon being members of a conservative, Bible-believing church.

Others rely on God-fearing parents who have often wrestled for their souls, acting as the Pharisees who confessed, 'We be Abraham's seed; Abraham is our father" On. 8:39). These forget that Jacob could not live out of his father Isaac's conversion nor out of his grand­father Abraham's remarkable experiences, but had to wres­tle with God for himself: "I will not let thee go, except thou bless me" (Gen. 32:26).

Others build their hopes on God's goodness to them in their business. Still others think that it is a good sign that they have not been prosperous or that the Lord has sent many afflictions their way. One man put it to me like this, "I don't know what it is, but I just have a feeling the Lord will convert me before I die. Why else would He have afflicted me so much?"

All of these forms of reasoning and feelings are most dangerous for our souls. Concerning prosperity, Jesus said, "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God" (Mt. 20:24). And of adversity we must confess that if God does not sanctify it, we are not saved but only hardened beneath it.

In short, all leaning upon providence rather than on Christ's atoning blood will flatter us into hell.

Excuses←⤒🔗

Finally, self-flattering excuses are endless in their variety:

1. Some hide behind their inability contrary to Ezekiel 33:10-11, acting as if their inability is someone else's fault and guilt.
2. Some hide behind God's sovereignty and secret will, contrary to Deuteronomy 29:29. They abuse the precious doctrines of grace.
3. Some simply minimize their sins. They compare themselves to others, and tragically conclude that a holy sin-avenging God will take scant notice of their iniquities. They confess with the wicked, "The Lord shall not see: neither shall the God of Jacob regard it" (Ps. 94:7).
4. Others deny reality. They flatter themselves by acting as if there were no God, no judgment, no eternity.
5. Still others simply deny plain reasoning. They know that they are in a Christless condition. They know too that Scripture says, "He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him" (John 3:36). Nevertheless, they persevere in sin, flattering themselves that somehow they will arrive in heaven but how they do not know.
6. And then there are those who turn a blind eye to life's brevity. They place death a long way off, and persuade themselves that they will be converted in the intervening years. "Their inward thought is, that their houses shall continue for ever, and their dwelling places to all gen­erations; they call their lands after their own names" (Psa. 49:11). They forget that they have no assurance of living until old age, as well as that few are converted in their senior years.

The punishment of self-flattery←⤒🔗

The self-flatterer thinks that God will not discover, hate, and punish his iniquity. Nor does he himself hate sin. He does not see guilt in what he is doing nor in who and what he is. He is blind to the real nature of sin. He suppresses all fear of God so that he may indulge in his lusts with minimal pangs of conscience.

But the day is coming, says our text, when his iniquity will "be found to be hateful." The self-flatterer will expe­rience that his sin shall "at last bite like a serpent, and sting like an adder" (Prov. 23:32).

"Until his iniquity be found to be hateful." What a blessing if this "until" is experienced penitently in this life! When God convicts a sinner ravingly, he shall dis­cover that iniquity is "found out" not only by his own conscience, but especially by God. Then he confesses with Judah, "How shall we clear ourselves? God hath found out the iniquity of thy servants" (Gen 44:16).

When God discovers our iniquity, we experience that sin is hateful. Like Joseph and Daniel, we are brought to a point where, out of love to God and hatred against sin, we would rather die than sin. And yet we find nothing but sin within. The best of our best righteousnesses becomes as filthy rags (Is. 64:6). The need for a Savior who can cleanse us from sin and satisfy God's justice on our behalf becomes both an urgent necessity and a holy impossibility.

Yet how tragically few are brought personally to this confession! How few become thoroughly condemned by God's holy justice and learn to confess that God would be just were He to cast us away forever! How few learn to cry "Give me Jesus, else I die!" How few experience that God Himself must and does grant us faith to believe in His only-begotten Son!

My friend, if we do not find iniquity to be hateful in this life, we will definitely find it to be hateful in the life to come. On the day of judgment, four "books" will be publicly opened for the self-flatterer: the book of remem­brance, containing all God's providential invitations and admonitions (Mal. 3:16); the book of the law, "As many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law" (Rom. 2:12); the book of the gospel, "In that day God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel" (Rom. 2:16); and the book of conscience, which will not provide one answer upon a thousand questions (Job 9:3).

Tragically, on the Judgment Day it will be forever too late for the self-flatterer to seek for mercy. Heaven shall resound, "Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels" (Mat. 25:41). Every word of that judgment shall pierce the soul of the self-flat­terer, but the day of repentance will have passed him by.

This solemn judgment will be final. There will be no bail. No reduction of sentence. No parole. No escape. No intermission. No end.

In that day, the self-flatterer will be undeceived. Then conscience will be convinced. Sin will appear in its true colors. The ungodly will become a terror to themselves. Self-flattery will prove to be our unspeakable folly. It will be an aggravation of our condemnation. It will be hell within hell.

The wages of self-flattery are hell. Hell means to be without God's favor forever, to be forever under His unmitigated wrath. Hell is a continual dying, yet never being fully dead. Hell is unceasing pain, agony, torture. In hell, all of our sins will torment us all the time. The damned will be unable to comfort one another, due to the internal pain felt in each conscience. Hell is the place of absolute loneliness. Hell will feel like eternal solitary confinement.

Oh, dear friend, do not allow Satan to allure you down the slippery slope of self-flattery into hell! Redeem the time God has given you. Do not delay like Felix. Pray for grace to crucify self-flattery and self-deceit. Rest assured that if the damned in hell could speak with you, they would tell you that the same self-flatteries you possess brought them to eternal condemnation as well. Before it is forever too late, seek grace to flee to God's only refuge, Jesus Christ, in whom God's blessed people are safe in the "book of the Lamb" and the "book of life." Let nothing encourage you to go on in sin. "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Rom. 6:23). Make haste for your life's sake.