WHAT’S INFLUENCING YOU?
Do people manipulate each other?
Are we vulnerable to be deceived by information that is not truthful?
Do we tend to listen to the first thing about someone or something without challenging it?
Do we tend at times to do what we desire as opposed to what God desires?
Do we have the capacity to minimize God’s Word among all the “noise” and options the world has to offer? Or our own fleshly desires?
Do we need one standard to guide us through the abundance of opinions, ideas, beliefs, and ungodly ways presented to us?
Do we value God’s Word enough to study it and to be obedient to God’s desires for us and His constant, unwavering standards for us?
Main Scripture: 2 Samuel 15:1-12
Notes:
2 Samuel 15:1-12 NLT
After this, Absalom bought a chariot and horses, and he hired fifty bodyguards to run ahead of him. 2 He got up early every morning and went out to the gate of the city. When people brought a case to the king for judgment, Absalom would ask where in Israel they were from, and they would tell him their tribe. 3 Then Absalom would say, “You’ve really got a strong case here! It’s too bad the king doesn’t have anyone to hear it. 4 I wish I were the judge. Then everyone could bring their cases to me for judgment, and I would give them justice!” 5 When people tried to bow before him, Absalom wouldn’t let them. Instead, he took them by the hand and kissed them. 6 Absalom did this with everyone who came to the king for judgment, and so he stole the hearts of all the people of Israel. 7 After four years, Absalom said to the king, “Let me go to Hebron to offer a sacrifice to the Lord and fulfill a vow I made to him. 8 For while your servant was at Geshur in Aram, I promised to sacrifice to the Lord in Hebron if he would bring me back to Jerusalem.” 9 “All right,” the king told him. “Go and fulfill your vow.” So Absalom went to Hebron. 10 But while he was there, he sent secret messengers to all the tribes of Israel to stir up a rebellion against the king. “As soon as you hear the ram’s horn,” his message read, “you are to say, ‘Absalom has been crowned king in Hebron.’” 11 He took 200 men from Jerusalem with him as guests, but they knew nothing of his intentions. 12 While Absalom was offering the sacrifices, he sent for Ahithophel, one of David’s counselors who lived in Giloh. Soon many others also joined Absalom, and the conspiracy gained momentum.
Other examples
- 10 Spies influencing a whole generation with their bad reports
- While Moses and God interacted
Exodus 20:22-23
Then the Lord said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites this: ‘You have seen for yourselves that I have spoken to you from heaven: 23 Do not make any gods to be alongside me; do not make for yourselves gods of silver or gods of gold.”
Moses goes to the Lord on the mountain.
People become impatient and ask Aaron to make idols
Exodus 32:7-8
Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go down, because your people, whom you brought up out of Egypt, have become corrupt. 8 They have been quick to turn away from what I commanded them and have made themselves an idol cast in the shape of a calf. They have bowed down to it and sacrificed to it and have said, ‘These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.’
- Solomon to become king
His brother Adonijah wanted to be king
Provided himself with chariots and charioteers
Recruited 50 men to run in front of him
(To give him “royal” appearance)
Took key men and priest away from David to help him
David never knew – but it was exposed
- Pilate manipulated into doing something he did not want to do – crucify Christ
Crowds manipulated to say Barabbas
Our reality:
Ever since Adam & Eve were manipulated and submitted to the deception, our own nature has wanted to listen to what is best for us and not God.
All God asked the Israelites and us today is to listen and follow His Word and not to idols or beliefs that pull us away from Him.
We have to realize several things to avoid being pulled away from God:
1. We have to realize that there is a war for our soul and it is up to us what we allow to influence us.
The Battle is real!!
Galatians 5:16-17 NIV
So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want.
Ephesians 6:10-12 NIV
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
Galatians 5:19-21 NLT
When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, 21 envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.
1 John 2:15-17 NLT
Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. 16 For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. 17 And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever.
There is also an entity that directly opposes us!
We have an enemy that pursues us: Satan
Do you believe this??
Look at this shocking finding by George Barna:
(From the American Worldview Inventory – Cultural Research Center Arizona Christian University 2025)
Participants were asked:
Which if any, of the following gods, spiritual deities, supreme beings, higher powers, or supernatural authorities do you believe exist and affect human lives?
Jesus Christ
Self-Identified Christians – 78%
Theologically identified born again Christians – 82%
Satan/Lucifer
Self-Identified Christians – 21%
Theologically identified born again Christians – 26%
1 Peter 5:8-9 NLT
Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. 9 Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are.
NIV – Be alert and of sober mind. Be self-controlled and alert.
AMP – Be sober (well-balanced and self-disciplined), be alert and cautious at all times
KJV – Be sober, be vigilant
How do lions hunt their prey?
Use a combination of stalking and ambush
(So does Satan)
Approach prey slowly and carefully, keeping low to the ground with their ears flattened and using available cover to remain hidden and to avoid alerting the prey to the imminent danger.
(Satan also remains hidden and attacks without alerting us.)
Lions are most active at night
(Satan operated in darkness as well)
Prefer to hunt when conditions are less favorable for their prey, such as during storms, when the noise can mask their approach
(Satan distracts us to conceal what he is doing to us)
In group hunts, lions often employ a “pincer” or “surround” strategy, with some lions flanking the prey while others position themselves to cut off escape routes. Outer lions funnel their prey towards the best hunters in the center.
(Satan does the same. If we are not wise, we will drift from one sin to greater sins. Also reduces our conviction to get us to be comfortable in our sinful nature.)
The second thing we need to realize to avoid being pulled away from God:
2. We are vulnerable to be manipulated and deceived.
If Adam and Eve were, we can be also.
Consider the following:
1 Corinthians 3:18-19 NLT
18 Stop deceiving yourselves. If you think you are wise by this world’s standards, you need to become a fool to be truly wise. 19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness to God. As the Scriptures say, “He traps the wise in the snare of their own cleverness.”
Proverbs 18:17 NLT
The first to speak in court sounds right— until the cross-examination begins.
AMP – The first one to plead his case seems right, until another comes and cross-examines him.
Proverbs 14:12 NLT
There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death.
1 Corinthians 10:23 NLT
You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is good for you. You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is beneficial.
1 Corinthians 6:12 NLT
You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is good for you. And even though “I am allowed to do anything,” I must not become a slave to anything.
We need to realize that the very first thoughts and actions are not always right.
Negativity bias exists in our brains and our sin nature:
Perceptions repeated over time can become more and more distorted.
*How do we keep things from being deceived and believing the wrong things?
Takeaway #1
Trust God’s Word to be the truth to stand on
Hebrews 4:12-13 NLT
For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. 13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes, and he is the one to whom we are accountable.
2 Timothy 3:14-17 NLT
But you must remain faithful to the things you have been taught. You know they are true, for you know you can trust those who taught you. 15 You have been taught the holy Scriptures from childhood, and they have given you the wisdom to receive the salvation that comes by trusting in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. 17 God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.
2 Corinthians 10:3-5 NIV
For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
Romans 12:1-2 NLT
And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. 2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.
John 8:31-32 NIV
To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. 32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
Takeaway #2
Know and study the truth of God – The Bible
Human nature has bucked God’s standards ever since the Fall.
*Standards are safe – opinions take us away
Know the objective and safe Word of God.
Trust it as God’s voice
Track its application in our lives
Think about it often and passionately
Remember, we were created to know only one truth – God’s
Note the tree Adam & Eve ate from – the knowledge of good & evil
Takeaway #3
Reject what does not measure up to God’s Word
There are so many opinions and beliefs in the world that have no standard of truth.
Listen, but don’t always trust what people say.
Use critical thinking skills
Think for yourself – challenge what you hear. Avoid group think.
Sharpen our consciences – know right from wrong
Discern
When something doesn’t seem right the Holy Spirit will let us know to measure it up to God’s truth.
Use God’s Word as a check and balance to what you hear.
Know God’s character and ways.
1 Corinthians 2:13-14
When we tell you these things, we do not use words that come from human wisdom. Instead, we speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit’s words to explain spiritual truths. 14 But people who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means.
Discussion
What is one thing from the message that resonated with you?
Why do you think we are often quick to believe the first thing we hear, as Proverbs 18:17 warns against?
In what ways have you personally experienced or witnessed people being manipulated by false narratives or distorted truths?
Why do you think so many self-identified Christians struggle to believe in Satan's active influence (as noted in the Barna study)? What are the consequences of that disbelief?
What does the fall of Adam and Eve teach us about how deception often appeals to our desires rather than truth?
What additional notes did you make during the sermon?
What can we pray for regarding the sermon? Do you have any prayer needs?
The most important decision you will ever make!
If you’re ready to trust in Jesus for salvation and eternal life, we encourage you to process this decision with a strong believer and when you’re ready, say a simple prayer like this from your heart: Dear God, I acknowledge and admit I have sinned. I see my need for Jesus Christ. I believe in Jesus as my Lord and Savior. I believe I am forgiven and cleansed of my sin by His death. I also believe I have eternal life because of His resurrection from the dead. I repent, I turn away from my old ways and I choose to live my life to worship you and follow Jesus, Amen!
We would love to know if you decided to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Let us know here.
Pray Together
We hope you found this AFTER THE SERMON discussion helpful for your walk with Jesus. We pray you can find ways to apply it this week!
