Deceived! (eBook)

How Demonic Deception has Infiltrated the Church

Larry L. Simmons (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2024 | 1. Auflage
232 Seiten
Bookbaby (Verlag)
979-8-3509-7735-6 (ISBN)

Infos

In the Book of First Timothy the Holy Spirit declared that in the latter times some would be led astray by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teaching of demons. The task of identifying those doctrines begins by determining the primary objective of Satan and the evil spirits-which is none other than self-preservation. From that understanding a host of schemes (wiles) are discovered, all of which are intended to forestall their prophesied judgment. Because Jesus Christ is the agent of that judgment, the schemes are all designed to prevent (or hinder) his second coming! Less than a century after the Lord's death, deceptive doctrines began to appear in Christian churches. Early on, foremost among the evil spirits' schemes was the plan to destroy God's chosen people. The spirits believed that by eliminating the Jews, the Lord's second coming would no longer be feasible. Through the centuries the evil spirits enlisted many nations to accomplish this. Moreover, the church was eventually enticed to join those efforts. History shows the early church fathers were virulent enemies of the Jews. Unfortunately, their influence has continued to the present day in the form of antisemitism and a belief that the church has replaced Israel. Also, in modern times, the church has often worked to destabilize the state of Israel, arguing that it has no right to the Promised Land, despite the provisions of the Abrahamic Covenant. But in addition to their attacks on the Jews, the devil and his spirits have sought to hinder 'her offspring,' those who hold to the testimony of Jesus. This they have done by making alterations to the gospel of Jesus Christ, the gospel of the kingdom, and the doctrine of eternal punishment. They also suppressed Biblical knowledge of the great tribulation. This was done to deprive the church of Biblical instructions needed to survive the period. This was done in two ways. First the evil spirits introduced a series of deceptive end-time prophetic system

Larry Simmons is an author and retired financial advisor who resides in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He is a graduate of Oklahoma Baptist University and has done post graduate study at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He has written three books on Biblical Prophecy.

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In 1 Timothy, the Holy Spirit declared that in the latter times, some would be led astray by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and the teaching of demons. The task of identifying those doctrines begins by determining the primary objective of Satan and the evil spirits-which is none other than self-preservation. From that understanding, a host of schemes (wiles) are discovered, all of which are intended to forestall their prophesied judgment. Because Jesus Christ is the agent of that judgment, the schemes are all designed to prevent (or hinder) His second coming!Less than a century after the Lord's death, deceptive doctrines began to appear in Christian churches. Foremost among the evil spirits' schemes was the plan to destroy God's chosen people. The spirits believed that by eliminating the Jews, the Lord's second coming would no longer be feasible. Through the centuries, the evil spirits enlisted many nations to accomplish this. Moreover, the church was eventually enticed to join those efforts. History shows the early church fathers were virulent enemies of the Jews. Unfortunately, their influence has continued to the present day in the form of antisemitism and a belief that the church has replaced Israel. Also, in modern times, the church has often worked to destabilize the state of Israel, arguing that it has no right to the Promised Land, despite the provisions of the Abrahamic Covenant. In addition to their attacks on the Jews, the devil and his spirits have sought to hinder "e;her offspring,"e; those who hold to the testimony of Jesus. They have done this by making alterations to the gospel of Jesus Christ, the gospel of the kingdom, and the doctrine of eternal punishment. They also suppressed Biblical knowledge of the great tribulation. This was done to deprive the church of Biblical instructions needed to survive the period. This was done in two ways. First, the evil spirits introduced a series of deceptive end-time prophetic systems, most of which contained no mention of a "e;great tribulation."e; The second way was through the introduction of a doctrine known as the pre-tribulation rapture of the church. The pre-tribulation rapture is a belief that did not appear until the 1840's, though it has since gained wide acceptance, particularly in the United States. You will not find this belief explicitly stated anywhere in Scripture! Its adherents seek the doctrine's acceptance through a series of arguments linked together to create the illusion of a true Biblical doctrine. Though these arguments utilize actual Biblical passages, they are nevertheless constructed as sophistries "e;reasonings that seem plausible on a superficial level but are actually unsound, or reasonings that are used to deceive."e;The writings of two leading proponents are analyzed using a discipline known as informal logic. By this means, it is determined that every argument they advanced is, in fact, a logical fallacy. Therefore, they are of no use in validating the pre-tribulation rapture as a true Biblical doctrine.

Textauszug

CHAPTER ONE

The motivation behind all the devil’s actions

As a young man I served as a soldier in Viet Nam. This meant I participated in that war on two levels. My training prepared me to fight against individual enemy soldiers. But, at the same time, I was engaged in a larger struggle—a multi-national effort aimed at combating the spread of communism. It is the same in the life of a Christian. We put on the whole armor of God so we may “stand” as individuals against the schemes of the devil. But, at the same time we are participants in a larger cosmic conflict; that is to say, we must also wrestle, not against flesh and blood, but “against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:12). There are several helpful resources for recognizing and resisting the devil’s assaults on individuals. The Christian Warfare by Martin Lloyd-Jones is a thorough, Bible-based manual of immense value. Several works by Jessie Penn-Lewis are also useful for gaining practical hands-on knowledge in personal spiritual warfare. What I do not find, however, are any treatises on what it means to “wrestle” against the rulers and authorities of Satan’s kingdom. What does this suggest? Is it merely resisting temptation? Or is there more to it? As is often the case in Scripture, a subject is offered, then later an explanation is added. Ephesians 6:11 is a good example. First, we are introduced to the concept of the whole armor of God. Then we skip down to verses 13-18 for the full explanation of what all that entails. In between, however, we are provided with entirely new subjects to consider—namely, the rulers, the authorities, the cosmic powers, and the spiritual forces in heavenly places. Some think this is merely calling the same beings by different names for literary effect. But the fact that the Greek uses different words for each entity belies this thinking. Rather, it appears the intent is to describe a hierarchy of spiritual beings who function as administrators in Satan’s kingdom. This should not come as a surprise. God has myriads of beings around his throne who do his bidding. In the same way, the devil has emissaries and underlings who function in his realm. What does this added information suggest? The implication is that, due to their exalted status, these beings are likely engaged in activities far more complex than those of common tempters. As will be developed, their expertise lies in designing and implementing deceptive doctrines and teaching.

For insight into the background of these rulers and authorities we look to the event known as the Tower of Babel. This much overlooked episode entailed far more than confusion of languages. It was the point at which God ceased leading the people and instead handed them over to lesser beings known as the sons of God. “These are nonhuman beings whose domain is (to the human eyes) an unseen realm. And because he created them, he claims them as his sons.” What is their role? They are the “task force of divine beings who carry out God’s decisions.”1

According to Deuteronomy 32:8, after the Tower of Babel these lesser spiritual beings were made rulers over the nations. “When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, when he divided mankind, he fixed the borders of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God (beney elohim).” What effect did this have on these newly created nations? Things immediately deteriorated as these sons of God failed to lead the nations toward godliness. Instead, they “judged unjustly and showed partiality to the wicked.” Moreover, they neglected to “give justice to the weak and the fatherless, maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute, and rescue the weak and needy so as to deliver them from the hand of the wicked.” As a result, the people had “neither knowledge nor understanding, so they walked about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth were shaken.” (Psalm 82: 2-5). This is the Scriptural record of their betrayal.

This brings us to the incredible task at hand. Believe it or not, it is these powerful spiritual beings against whom we must wrestle! We are talking about beings such the Prince of Persia, whom the arc-angel Gabriel reported “withstood him for twenty-one days.” (Daniel 10:13). So, we pose the question, if our foes are as mighty as the prince who “withstood” the angel Gabriel, how can we possibly hope to succeed? To formulate a successful Biblical response, we must first determine the enemies’ end game. By that I mean, what exactly are they trying to accomplish? Is their malevolence simply random, or is there some underlying objective behind all their activities?

A good example of this approach can be drawn from World War II. Historians regard the Battle of Midway as the turning point of the conflict in the Pacific. A small group of code breakers used radio traffic analysis to determine Japan’s next target was the Island of Midway. With that information the U.S. Naval forces formulated a surprise counterattack. This led to the defeat of Japan’s superior forces, turning the tide of the war. In the same way, believers can gain an advantage over the rulers and authorities simply by determining their main objective. Once that is known, we can be far more effective in “withstanding” them and thus providing a greater measure of resistance to their plans. This is how we will approach our task of “wrestling” against the rulers and authorities. In the words of Sun Tzu, The Art of War, “Success in warfare is gained by carefully accommodating ourselves to the enemy’s ultimate purpose.”

One of my most revered authors has written, “Satan’s object is to diminish, to obscure, and if possible, to take away God’s glory.”2 No doubt this is something the devil strives for, but it is not his only motivation. What’s more, I would argue it’s not even the primary reason he persists in his rebellion. Ask yourself, does diminishing God’s glory provide a path to victory in this conflict? Of course not. At best it’s a sop to the devil’s pride. Moreover, depriving God of his glory is a chimera—a hoped-for goal that is impossible to achieve. It seems reasonable that there is something more basic, more primal, that drives their actions. The answer is to be found in the time before creation, when only the Trinity existed. It was then that God willed other beings to be created. First came the sons of God (beney elohim) as mentioned in the Book of Job. Then the earth with its fish and fowl and creeping things. Then finally man. These are examples of what we call conscious life. One thing all conscious life has in common is the will to live. Wikipedia puts it this way. “Self-preservation is essentially the process of an organism preventing itself from being harmed or killed and is considered a basic instinct in most organisms.”

This brings us to the heart of the issue. We’ve already touched on Psalm 82 and the dismal record of the sons of God (beney elohim). What we didn’t mention is that God has proclaimed he will judge them for their unrighteous management of the nations. Here is the record of his decree: “I said, ‘You are gods, sons of the Most High, all of you; nevertheless, like men you will die, and fall like any prince.’” (Psalm 82: 6-7). It appears these rulers are faced with a much more pressing issue than eclipsing God’s glory; in fact, they are desperately trying to save their own skins! As mentioned, self-preservation is basic to all conscious life, which of course includes these spirit beings.

As confirmation of this understanding, consider the comments of the demons who were suddenly confronted by the presence of Jesus: “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us?” (Mark 1: 24). Or observe the account recorded in Luke: “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me.” (Luke 8: 28). Avoiding death and torment was foremost in the demons’ minds, and we can assume it was the same for the rulers and authorities. That being the case, the ultimate focus of their actions must be one thing: Their only hope lies in denying (or at the very least) delaying the coming judgment! A prominent theologian of the last century echoed the same belief. “The present time is, to Satan, the struggle for his own existence…The warfare is no passing amusement for him, for he, in desperation is facing a terrible and awful judgment if he cannot succeed in his purpose; he knows there is no ground for mercy, only the terrible destruction so long predicted.”3

Revelation confirms the fate of Satan is the same as that of the sons if God (beney elohim)—one day he will be “thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet are, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.” (Revelation 20: 10). Verse 21:8 defines the lake of fire as the second death. This, however, does not signify they will die, as in ceasing to exist; the earlier passage states their torment will be never ending.

But that is not the only calamity that awaits them. Scripture discloses there is another judgment to be imposed on evil spirits. Before Satan is cast into the lake of fire, a confinement lasting 1,000 years is mentioned. During that time, the devil is bound by a chain in a bottomless pit, in...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 19.11.2024
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Geisteswissenschaften
• ISBN-13: 979-8-3509-7735-6 / 9798350977356