The Father of Lies

There are some things that simply cannot be ignored. One being the fact--the FACT!--that we have an enemy in this world. His name is Satan. The Devil. What you believe about him will put you in one of two categories:

1. Winning Warriors.
2. Vulnerable Victims.

I refuse to be a victim!


Jesus has known Satan from the very beginning of time. If you understand that Jesus is God and God is Jesus, then you also understand that Jesus created Satan. But God didn't create Satan for evil. Satan chose it. He was given the same freewill that you and I have. Satan willingly gave up his place in heaven because he was jealous and wanted all the glory that is given to God for himself. He took a bunch of misguided angels with him and now he's trying to take as many of us down as he possibly can.

Why?

To spite God. To outdo God. To say, "Haha, God, you lost that one!"

(See Isaiah 14:12-14 and Ezekiel 28:11-19 for further reference)

How do we know Satan is for real?    


Well, first and foremost, Jesus himself spoke of Satan.

"I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven." Luke 10:18

When speaking to the Pharisees in John 8:42-47, Jesus said:

"Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies."


Satan has been telling us lies since Adam and Eve lived in the Garden. What makes us think he isn't still telling us lies today?! It's arrogance on our part to believe we are somehow smarter and more enlightened these days to the point that we can't be deceived by Satan. That is utter foolishness! (Titus 3:3)


Job 1 and 2 gives us a chilling account of what Satan is up to every single day:

"One day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them. The Lord said to Satan, "Where have you come from?" Satan answered the Lord, "From roaming through the earth and going back and forth in it." (1:6-7; also 2:1-2)


Paul says in Ephesians 6:12 to "Put on the armor of God so that you can take a stand against the devil's schemes. 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."


Peter warned us in 1 Peter 5:8, "Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith..."


When we go up against Satan, he gets mad. Recently I've experienced some of his attempts to derail me from what I firmly believe God has called me to do. Next week I'll begin leading a ministry at church that I know Satan isn't happy about. I know he'll try to mess with me and my family because of it. But I cannot and will not let that stop me. Like the little saying I have posted on my blog's sidebar says, I want to "Be the kind of woman that when your feet hit the floor in the morning, the devil says, 'Oh crap! She's up!'"


So, what's it gonna be? Winning Warriors with Jesus and Truth on our side or Vulnerable Victims with Satan and his many, many lies.

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This week's Prayer Shout-Out countries are:
USA, UK, France, India, Netherlands, Australia

Part 2: Put on Your Armor!

I love museums. I like looking at really old stuff. One of the items I find interesting is armor. You know the type. The big ol' heavy suit men wore back in the days of jousting. I can't imagine trying to walk around in that thing let alone riding a horse! Over the centuries there have been many different types of armor worn for many different reasons. But the one thing they all have in common is that they were made to protect the wearer. To protect the head, the heart, the body, the arms, the legs, the feet. Every inch of a person could be covered to prevent an injury or worse.

The Apostle Paul used armor to illustrate to us and the believers in Ephesus what we need to do in order to protect ourselves from attacks.

Attacks by whom?

See my last post for a better explanation, but the short answer is: Satan and his demons.

In Ephesians 6:10-18 we find the best advice ever given to Christians. It's a little long but well worth reading the whole thing!

"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 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. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all of this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints."

First of all, notice who you are fighting against. It's not your spouse, your kids, your in-laws, your parents, your neighbors, your boss or anyone made of flesh and blood. Verse 12 clearly tells us who we are fighting against: the rulers, authorities, and powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. None of us is equipped to fight that on our own! That's why we need the armor God provides. Secondly, notice it says "when the day of evil comes" not "if" it will come. Satan will attack you! He is the enemy. And like any soldier in battle, you have to be ready to fight at all times. That's where the Armor of God comes in.

Belt of Truth. Jesus is truth. (John 14:6) Satan is a deceiver. (John 8:44) Gird yourself with Truth!
Breastplate of Righteousness. The breastplate protects the heart, lungs and other vital organs that keep us going.  (Romans 3:22) We are made righteous by Jesus. Wear Him!
Feet fitted with readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. Only Jesus brings true peace. (John 14:27) Where your feet go...the rest of your body has to follow. Protect your feet!
Shield of Faith. Our faith in Jesus gives us access to the supernatural power of God. (1 Corinthians 2:5) Flaming arrows are extinguished when we are "soaked" in Faith!
Helmet of Salvation. A helmet protects our brain, eyes, mouth. (Romans 10:9) Our mind is the greatest plunder Satan is after!
Sword of the Spirit. Jesus himself used the Word of God to defeat Satan's temptations. (Luke 4:1-13) READ YOUR BIBLE DAILY!

It's vital that you have all your pieces of armor in place. A crafty enemy knows how to find weaknesses. Paul writes in verse 18: "And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints."

My prayer for every person who reads this blog post is that you will:

1) Know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior!

2) That you will put on your Armor of God every single day so that you can stand firm!

We're in this thing together!

Part 1: Is Spiritual Warfare for Real?

I will never, ever forget the one and only time I watched the movie "The Exorcist." I was about 15-years-old and it scared the bee-hee-bee-gee-bee's out of me! All these years later I can still clearly recall Linda Blair's head spinning around her body and the green vomit that exploded from her mouth. Hollywood continues its fascination with all things demonic. In the past few years a number of movies have come out that involve evil spirits and demon possessions. I can't tell you what they're about because I have not and will not see them. In my old age I've come to this sensible conclusion: demons and Satan are not something to mess around with. They are certainly not fodder for entertainment or to be made light of in any way.

Why?

Because spiritual warfare is real. Very real. Satan is a real spiritual being and so are demons. Let's take a look at what the Bible says about them. Genesis 3: 1 says:

"Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made."

The Bible never calls the serpent "Satan" in Genesis but we know it's him. Revelation 12:9 identifies him:

"The great dragon was hurled down--that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray."

From the beginning of time Satan has been deceiving humankind. "Did God really say?" he asks Eve in Genesis 3:1. That is the exact same question he is asking people today! "Did God really say not to have sex unless you're married? Did God really say two men shouldn't lie together? Did God really say we could only worship Him?"

Satan is the great deceiver. Jesus called him "the father of lies" in John 8:44. But a serpent telling lies doesn't seem so bad, does it? I mean, we can just ignore him and go on about our business, right?

If that were all he did, yes, he would be easy to ignore. But Satan is not just a liar. He is actively looking for ways to thwart God's perfect will for mankind. Job 1:6-7 is a passage that gives me chills when I read it:

"One day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them. The Lord said to Satan, "Where have you come from?" Satan answered the Lord, "From roaming through the earth, and going back and forth in it."

I don't know about you but that absolutely creeps me out! Satan is roaming our earth, actively seeking ways to mess with us. Peter wrote this about Satan in 1 Peter 5:8:

"Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour."

Picture a hungry lion on the hunt for prey. Stalking. Teeth and claws bared. Ready to pounce. You, my dear, are Satan's prey! We all are. And he's not alone in his hunt. He has helpers. We call them demons. The New Testament is full of eyewitness accounts of demon possession. It was apparently a fairly common problem and even the teachers of the Law recognized the need to drive out demons. Jesus had a notable encounter with a demon possessed man in Luke 4:31-37 where the demon recognized Jesus and his authority. Which makes sense because James 2:19 says,

"You believe there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that--and shudder."  

People, Satan is real! Demons are real. Demon possession is real. Judas Iscariot, the disciple who betrayed Jesus, was taken over by Satan himself. Luke 22:3 says, "Then Satan entered Judas..." We all know how that turned out. Judas betrayed Jesus with a kiss and then went off to hang himself.

But it's not just physical possession we need to worry about. It's the lying, the deceiving, the tempting, the drawing us away from God that is Satan's ultimate goal. Satan knows the end that is coming for him described in Revelation 20. He knows his time gets shorter every day. And guess what? He doesn't want to go down alone. He wants to take as many of us with him as he possibly can.

So now what? What do we do once we realize Satan and demons are real spiritual beings that are out to destroy us?

Stay tuned for:
Part 2: Put on Your Armor

Do Not Be Deceived!

Our dog does not like to go outside when the weather is sketchy. Cold, wind, rain and especially thunder make him cower under a blanket. But because the world is his potty, he has to go out at times no matter what the weather may be doing. Like this morning. It was windy. Leaves were blowing and he did not want to go out the backdoor. So my husband tricked him. "Let's go get the mail, Copper!" Immediately Copper jumped off the couch and ran to the front door. He was excited to go outside now. Yes, we had to deceive our dog to get him outside, but it was for his own good.

Yet deception in real life is never a good thing. Merriam Webster defines 'deceive' as:

Ensnare; to be false to; cheat; to cause to accept as true or valid what is false or invalid

I hate it when someone tells me a lie! I canNOT stand it when I know someone is lying to me or trying to trick me into doing something. It makes me distrustful of them from that point on. And like I tell my kids, once trust is lost it is not easily gained back. But the truth is we get duped all too often in this world. Sometimes by people, businesses and governments. Sometimes, however, we get duped by someone far more sinister.

The very first reference in the Bible to deception comes in Genesis 3:13. God has created everything beautiful and perfect, including mankind. Adam and Eve are living in paradise in the Garden of Eden. They want for nothing. But, like most of us at one time or another, that isn't good enough. God's best was not enough for Adam and Eve. It didn't take long for The Enemy to figure that out. He slithered into the Garden, approached Eve and told her the first of many, many lies he would tell from that point on. And Eve, like most of us at one time or another, bought into his lie. When God confronts her about it, she says,

"The serpent deceived me."

Folks, the serpent is still deceiving people today.

"There is no God."

"The Bible is just an ancient book of fairy tales."

"Cheating isn't wrong as long as no one gets hurt."

"God made me gay."

"I fell in love with someone else so divorce is okay."

On and on. There isn't a human around that hasn't fallen for his lies. Paul knew this was true. In 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 he writes:

"Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? DO NOT BE DECEIVED! Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God." (Emphasis is mine.)

(For those like me who need to know what the original Greek text said, here is a link.)

Do not be deceived! Do not buy into the lies the Enemy is telling. In John 8:44 Jesus himself calls Satan "a liar and the father of lies." That tells me that 1) Satan is real! and 2) we need to beware of his lies. The Enemy tells us what is not true or valid. And when we accept it as truth we jeopardize our place in the Kingdom of God.

How do you know when you've been deceived? How do you know what is truth and what is a lie? Ask youself one simple question: Does what you're doing and/or believing align with the Bible? Are you on the same page as biblical teachings? If not, then you've been deceived, plain and simple. God will never, ever trick you. He is truth. Sometimes we don't want to hear the truth He offers and that's when the Enemy steps in.

DO NOT BE DECEIVED!

Your very life may depend on it!