Secular humanism can be generically defined as the belief that man is naturally good, and can improve on his own without the Lord because the intent to accomplish good works is wired throughout humanity. The belief of humanism which gained traction during the Reformation Era in history actually is the foundation to the legal and educational systems we are all familiar with today. Additionally, this includes the cognitive-behavioral models of psychological counseling because the roots can be traced back to this time period in history under the commonality of Aristotelian logic. Based upon this evidence of humanism from history, we as Christians can peer through the binoculars to comprehend our need for God, and how the transformation of our hearts begins by maintaining a constant relationship with Him.
To open, in order for us to understand how Satan uses temptation, our eyes, minds, and hearts need to be solely focused upon the Lord. When this is not the case, the truths within the Holy Bible remain hidden. Think of how we are born into this world as little children. Without our parents nurturing us to the point of obedience we would never learn right from wrong. This same principle applies to our relationship with our Father in Heaven. Dr Bob Jones Sr. stated, “The Devil did not tempt Adam and Eve to steal, to lie, to kill, to commit adultery; he tempted them to live independent of God” (Stewart). The very temptation of independence is all the Devil needs to create a wedge between us, and the Lord. To put it another way, Satan does not need to tempt us to do wrong because we have a sinful nature instilled in all of us from the curse of Adam and Eve sinning in the Garden of Eden. Remember, the definition of humanism begins with the belief that man is naturally good. The Bible, more specifically God, demonstrates that the ideology of humanism is false through the story of how the Devil tempted Adam and Eve in Genesis 2 & 3.
With the understanding of how the Devil tempts humanity in mind, let us examine the Scriptures further to see what is said about our hearts. The book of Matthew 15:19-20 (The King James Version) states, “For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man” (Holy Bible). Jesus was illustrating the war against sin itself. To clarify, our minds generally dictate the longings of our own hearts which leads us towards straying in our relationships with God. Simply stated, disobedience leads us down the wrong path of following deception. How can we prevent this straying? How does God transform our hearts?
Ultimately, God transforms our hearts with the Holy Spirit through our daily relationship with Him. In fact, the Bible repeatedly demonstrates and warns us of what can happen if we fail to do so. The book of Jeremiah 17:9-10 (The King James Version) states, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings” (Holy Bible). Furthermore, the book of Proverbs 4:23-25 (The King James Version) says, “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee. Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee” (Holy Bible). We are instructed to pursue a relationship with the Lord first, and as we do our relationship will go through a maturation process that He will use to help others come to Him. Our obedience and surrender to the Lord are the first priority to allow God to work within our own hearts. Be blessed.
Works Cited
Holy Bible.
Stewart, David J. Betraying the Word of God . October 2017. <http://www.soulwinning.info/bible/betraying_the_word_of_god.htm>.
