THE OTHER SIDE OF PRESUMPTION

Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD: even if hand joins hand, he shall not go unpunished”, Prov.16:5 

Presumption, like any other good or bad human characteristic or constitution, has its other side which, on its turn, looks like the opposite of what it is for real, without ever having changed at all. Presumption resembles humility mostly, or else it would never be presumption at all.

Presumption is a lie, it is a living which lies to itself or through itself. It takes lies as truths and truth as lies. It just can’t work otherwise. A sheep can’t deal through a wolf’s ways, nor can a wolf be sheeplike, unless outwardly alone. Therefore, once a truth emerges from within or without, it will be dealt with according to the lying heart it has an which prompts presumption. Presumption will say “God is with me” when He is not, but will say “God might not be with me” when He is for sure. Presumption just can’t deal on an equal level towards truth or through truthful issues once these are turned real. When God is doing something in a life, and unbelief emerges from there concerning it all, be sure to know unbelief is pride existing there which breeds that sour, agnostic fruit out to open light. Unbelief is a kind of pride, it is pride and presumption – all of it. It just can’t take truth as such; it will gladly receive any lie – or not – but, never a truth as a real, practical issue alone, finding rest by abiding with and in truth as it is. It may even take truth as such for a while till it goes back to its own, known former ways of dealing with things, becoming restless again.   

It is a mistake to think and preach that presumption speaks highly against God alone. It does speak just as highly and as presumptuous in favour of God. It has all to do so when God is not with it. Its feature is to be against God and not to speak against Him.

When God made us, we were made with features to appreciate greatness and live with it. God is great and consequently we have been created to deal with it realistically and with our hearts full of that glory. This characteristic remains with us, however, once God is gone and greatness is unknown to us. Then, we learn to extol illusion and, also, do it the wrong way, since it will become deformed and subjected to the winds of sin and its unconscious, unstable and prompting nature. It will be like a dry leaf which is carried either right or left on the floor, depending on to which side to wind blows. If it blows to church, it will go to church; if it blows to a disco, it will go there. One may not believe that, just because one goes to church the heart has changed. It might just show the opposite, because many people go to church so they do not need to change their hearts anymore, since church life appeases the stings sin inflicts on any kind of conscience and they believed wrath and truth is surely there to come.

This is mainly why John the Baptist cunningly and immediately said, “generation of vipers, who has warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance”, Mat.3:7-8. The old heart may mistake itself and learn to flee from wrath instead of changing and dying to its old ways. It is gladly baptised because it is unwilling to change and sees, in that act, a way off a sure death towards itself. Presumption and sin will hand itself over to captivity rather than die when it sees there is no other way to escape God’s wrath anymore. It chooses to flee in time instead of dying to be changed. It hasn’t counted the costs of repentance that well, Lk.14:21-31, it just sees as far as escaping wrath and save its own life which it will eventually loose anyway. Presumption thinks and believes salvation is to save self and not to do away with it – all of it. It thinks unconsciously it has got to save sin and not from sin and itself.

Presumption is there because we either do not see God or we have not God to see Him. Amen.

José Mateus
zemateus@msn.com