Excellent Post Regarding Who Is From God and Who Isnt...
I love this email list that I am posting, and they are usually 100% right on the money! This is an excellent post that I am sharing because if there is one battle I am having a HUGE hard time with in my own life, is finding the PROOF of how satan will sugar coat, half truth, paint or personalize (not in a good way, but in a way WE would want) God, Jesus or Heaven to be:
ANGELS OF LIGHT -- 2 Corinthians 11:13-15 NIV
"For such men (and women) are false apostles, deceitful workmen, masquerading as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve."
Sometimes it's extremely difficult to believe that a person is a deceiver, and in reality, is nothing more than a servant of Satan himself. I met a practicing witch one time (yes, the world is full of them, believe it or not!) who belied the common image of a witch that is portrayed by Hollywood . She was, instead, cute, blonde, blue-eyed, and looked like the ideal college cheerleader type - bouncy and beautiful (think Nicole Kidman in “Bewitched”). Then there was the man who was Comptroller of a company I worked for. You never saw that man without a Bible under his arm, and he never missed a Sunday at church. But other than those two things, there was nothing in the man's life that reflected Jesus. Then there are those people who seem to be good as gold, who spend most of their time "doing good", whose every action seems to be done to benefit others. These deceivers are, by far, the most difficult to discern.
So how do you and I know who the servants of Satan are? How can we tell in advance and avoid being pulled into their deception? By being obedient ourselves to God's Word. 1 John 4:1 (NIV) says, "....do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world." How do you "test the spirits"? John goes on to say, "This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God."
To put any person or organization or church to the test, ask three questions. First, does the person or organization or church proclaim that Jesus Christ is God Incarnate… the only begotten Son of God who came into the world as a man to save people from their sins? Do they change any aspect of who Jesus is – like denying the virgin birth, or saying He was married, or that He is “one of the gods.” Remember, Satan knows who Jesus really is and will cause people to state partial truths to mislead you.
Second, emulate the Bereans in Acts 17:11 who were commended for checking what Paul said against the scriptures (our Old Testament) to see whether Paul was telling the truth.... Does what that person or church or organization say affirm the Bible? In the alternative, does anything at all go against God’s Word in any way? Do they proclaim that His work on the cross was all sufficient, and there is nothing left for us to do but accept His free gift of salvation, period? Or do they give you a long list – or even a short list - of “do’s and don’ts” that you must adhere to in order to be saved? Remember, Satan sugar-coats his lies with smatterings of the truth, so examine everything carefully.
And third, does that person or organization or church advocate and practice a lifestyle that is consistent with Biblical morality? Does it glorify God in everything it does?
The world is full of angels of light. Be watchful and don't be deceived.
For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/takeaminute
General correspondence or to subscribe to Take a Minute: J-R-and-Bonnie@dogwoodministries.org
Donations to Dogwood Ministries: http://www.dogwoodministries.org
ANGELS OF LIGHT -- 2 Corinthians 11:13-15 NIV
"For such men (and women) are false apostles, deceitful workmen, masquerading as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve."
Sometimes it's extremely difficult to believe that a person is a deceiver, and in reality, is nothing more than a servant of Satan himself. I met a practicing witch one time (yes, the world is full of them, believe it or not!) who belied the common image of a witch that is portrayed by Hollywood . She was, instead, cute, blonde, blue-eyed, and looked like the ideal college cheerleader type - bouncy and beautiful (think Nicole Kidman in “Bewitched”). Then there was the man who was Comptroller of a company I worked for. You never saw that man without a Bible under his arm, and he never missed a Sunday at church. But other than those two things, there was nothing in the man's life that reflected Jesus. Then there are those people who seem to be good as gold, who spend most of their time "doing good", whose every action seems to be done to benefit others. These deceivers are, by far, the most difficult to discern.
So how do you and I know who the servants of Satan are? How can we tell in advance and avoid being pulled into their deception? By being obedient ourselves to God's Word. 1 John 4:1 (NIV) says, "....do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world." How do you "test the spirits"? John goes on to say, "This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God."
To put any person or organization or church to the test, ask three questions. First, does the person or organization or church proclaim that Jesus Christ is God Incarnate… the only begotten Son of God who came into the world as a man to save people from their sins? Do they change any aspect of who Jesus is – like denying the virgin birth, or saying He was married, or that He is “one of the gods.” Remember, Satan knows who Jesus really is and will cause people to state partial truths to mislead you.
Second, emulate the Bereans in Acts 17:11 who were commended for checking what Paul said against the scriptures (our Old Testament) to see whether Paul was telling the truth.... Does what that person or church or organization say affirm the Bible? In the alternative, does anything at all go against God’s Word in any way? Do they proclaim that His work on the cross was all sufficient, and there is nothing left for us to do but accept His free gift of salvation, period? Or do they give you a long list – or even a short list - of “do’s and don’ts” that you must adhere to in order to be saved? Remember, Satan sugar-coats his lies with smatterings of the truth, so examine everything carefully.
And third, does that person or organization or church advocate and practice a lifestyle that is consistent with Biblical morality? Does it glorify God in everything it does?
The world is full of angels of light. Be watchful and don't be deceived.
For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/takeaminute
General correspondence or to subscribe to Take a Minute: J-R-and-Bonnie@dogwoodministries.org
Donations to Dogwood Ministries: http://www.dogwoodministries.org
Labels: Chrisitanity - Reminders - Encouragements - Inspirations - Devotionals
posted by Plowlady at
12:56 PM
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