Topic: Deception
Today in our generation, we see that there are many bad news are appearing around the world. If we turn on the News or reading the daily newspaper, we see many tragedies on people, community, and country. If we turn on one of daily Talk Show programs, such as Jerry Springer’s Show, we see many families are breaking apart from each other because they cheat and fight each other within their homes. According to David Millers, a youth minister of Rock Church in Fredericksburg, Virginia , he pointed out that there were major declination rates of Christianity during the previous four generations. We, as Christians, went down from 60 percent in 1960s to only 4 percent in today’s generation.
Why? What is the reason of declination of Christianity?
According to the Book of Revelation, God will let the people would receive deception from Satan in the last day. Of course, this event would happen after the rapture of Church by God. I believe we are in the midst of it now before it would happen—the Antichrist would plan to make a peace treaty with for seven years, but he will break this treaty at the end of the first three and an half of seven years of the tribulation.
In this series, we will study five messages that we need to aware to receive deception. In this century, we would receive lie either from people who we love or people in the community. Sadly, we sometimes receive lies from the churches. For example, many church leaders may teach us that celebrating Easter and Christmas are to celebrate the birth, life, ministry, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, even though these two holidays were stolen from Babylonian holiday traditions, by the earliest Roman Catholic Popes.
First, I would like to discuss the “Basic Understanding of 1st Timothy 4:1-3.” We need to understand the basic knowledge of Satan’s deception, so we can protect ourselves and loved ones and know what is the truth and what is not. Second is the “Deception from Modern Days of Bible Versions.” There are at least 200 new Bible versions published each year and most of them may misplace of words or verses for us to easy to understand and read God’s Words. I’m going to explain why the KJV is the only represented true to God’s Words. Third message is the “Women Preachers in the Church.” God gave different responsibilities for men and women to lead the household and church, but we lost the leadership position since Adam and Eve deceived by Satan. In this message, we will discover why the most male preachers avoid teaching us I Timothy 2:8-15 and allow women to lead the church congregations. Fourth message is called “Examination from the Movie, The Passion of Christ, to the Biblical View.” Most people believe that Mel Gibson’s version of the passion of Christ portrayed the accuracy from the four Gospels of Jesus Christ. Is the movie portrays the biblical view of passion of Christ? We will discover the real truth of behind Mel Gibson’s movie, The Passion of Christ. And last and final message is called “Deception in the End.” What would happen if the people receive the promise from Satan and decide to take the Mark of the Beast on their right hand or forehead? Is the number 666 real bad news for anyone who would be here when Antichrist would lead the New World Order, One World Currency, One World Government, and One World Religion?
Now, let’s read I Timothy 4:1-3:
Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron, forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. (NKJV)
In this passage, Apostle Paul warned us what the Spirit told him about in the latter days, which is now, because he wrote what the Spirit said in his time. As we read in verse 1, the Spirit predicted that there will be some of godly people will give up their faiths in God; instead, they will follow the doctrines of devils (KJV) and give their ears to deceiving spirits. Let us define the deceiving of spirits and doctrines of devils.
The deceiving of spirits and doctrines of devils has the same job, but the deceiving of spirits comes from us and not from Satan. Of course, we can receive spirits from Satan if we were not listening to the Holy Ghost that Jesus brought down to us. We each have spirit within ourselves, too, is called conscience. God gave us conscience, so that we can decide what is good or not for ourselves and in the eyes of God. But our spirits are not strong enough to grasp what is the truth, because we have sinned and come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). We can have conscious (spirits) alone, but that will make us dumb or doing stupid things. Without the Holy Ghost in us, we can deceive from ourselves and from others, even from Satan. Jesus said that He will bring us another Comforter that He may dwell in us and bring us to remembrance what Jesus told us (John 14:16-17, 26).
The doctrines of devils are the promises and truths, from Satan and his angels, which constrict with the Word of God. Their doctrines are all untrue. Since the serpent (Satan) deceived Eve in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3), we all have learned to lie or listened to the false promises and believe what the others or Satan said to us. The satanic doctrines come not from God, but from Satan himself. His goals are trying to deceive God’s people, so they can run away from Him as far as possible and let them find their ways to eternal death.
The method of deception that Satan is using from our habits, what we enjoy, what God gave to us, or in the media. There is nothing wrong what we like to do or what God gave to us. The Bible said that there is a time of laugh, receiving, playing that God gave us. But if Satan learn that our jobs are the most priority than to serve God, then he will use this method to trap us.
Another way that Satan uses to deceive the godly people is through your family, neighbors, friends, and/or co-workers to deny yourselves and your relationship with God and others. If you are a disabled person, for example, and your family would say that you cannot walk or become a career profession, you might feel down and believe what they said. That’s what Satan does to pull down on godly people. And nearly most children listen what the devil say through their well-known people. That’s why there are more homeless children throughout the world. That’s why the American people decide to enter the TV Talk Shows to deal with their problems and may decide to damage their relationship completely.
In the next verse, verse 2, said that speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron. The word “iron” is a heated metal implement used for branding or cauterizing. In I Timothy 4:2, to speak lies is like a really hot metal comes out of the mouth that it can destroy someone’s relationship. As we read in verse 3, Satan is trying to make us to do something that neglects the stuff that God created.
Even today, many of us don’t realize that the devils are still trying to deceive the people, especially those are within churches. Satan begins to deceive the people in the churches, because the church is where the people can to worship God as a unifying body. Now, the most churches can be found on the radio, TV, and web cast, because that’s where the church leaders can be popular to the world and makes a bigger profit of money. Most TV and radio ministries would possibly make almost to half of million dollars a year. This is not from God, but from Satan. Although God commanded us to go to the nations to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ, He didn’t say that we need to make a TV or radio ministry to reach the lost souls. Jesus said in Matthew 28:19, “Go…” It means that we need to use our feet to go to destination to reach the lost souls. If we’d decide to make a TV or radio ministry, it means that we don’t like to take a long destination to save the lost. Building a mega churches may seem okay, but it must build only for one main purpose and not because of TV or radio production.
Now, let us listen to what Matthew Henry, a great preach in 1600s/1700s, said on I Timothy 4:1-3. This quote is from Matthew Henry Commentary on the Whole Bible (1706-1721).
“1. One of the great instances of the apostasy, namely, giving heed to doctrines of demons, or concerning demons; that is, those doctrines which teach the worship of saints and angels, as a middle sort of deities, between the immortal God and mortal men, such as the heathen called demons, and worshipped under that notion. Now this plainly agrees to the church of Rome, and it was one of the first steps towards that great apostasy, the enshrining of the relics of martyrs, paying divine honours to them, erecting altars, burning incense, consecrating images and temples, and making prayers and praises to the honour of saints departed. This demon-worship is paganism revived, the image of the first beast.
“2. The instruments of promoting and propagating this apostasy and delusion. (1.) It will be done by hypocrisy of those that speak lies, the agents and emissaries of Satan, who promote these delusions by lies and forgeries and pretended miracles, v. 2. It is done by their hypocrisy, professing honour to Christ, and yet at the same time fighting against all his anointed offices, and corrupting or profaning all his ordinances. This respects also the hypocrisy of those who have their consciences seared with a red-hot iron, who are perfectly lost to the very first principles of virtue and moral honesty. If men had not their consciences seared as with a hot iron, they could never maintain a power to dispense with oaths for the good of the catholic cause, could never maintain that no faith is to be kept with heretics, could never divest themselves of all remains of humanity and compassion, and clothe themselves with the most barbarous cruelty, under pretence of promoting the interest of the church. (2.) Another part of their character is that they forbid to marry, forbid their clergy to marry, and speak very reproachfully of marriage, though an ordinance of God; and that they command to abstain from meats, and place religion in such abstinence at certain times and seasons, only to exercise a tyranny over the consciences of men.
“3. On the whole observe, (1.) The apostasy of the latter times should not surprise us, because it was expressly foretold by the Spirit. (2.) The Spirit is God, otherwise he could not certainly foresee such distant events, which as to us are uncertain and contingent, depending on the tempers, humours, and lusts of men. (3.) The difference between the predictions of the Spirit and the oracles of the heathen is remarkable; the Spirit speaks expressly, but the oracles of the heathen were always doubtful and uncertain. (4.) It is comfortable to think that in such general apostasies all are not carried away, but only some. (5.) It is common for seducers and deceivers to pretend to the Spirit, which is a strong presumption that all are convinced that this is the most likely to work in us an approbation of what pretends to come from the Spirit. (6.) Men must be hardened, and their consciences seared, before they can depart from the faith, and draw in others to side with them. (7.) It is a sign that men have departed from the faith when they will command what God has forbidden, such as saint and angel or demon-worship; and forbid what God has allowed or commanded, such as marriage and meats.”
As we see, some churches have fall onto Satan’s traps, such as I described few on the preceding paragraphs. Why? Satan wanted to take control over the earth (see Isaiah 14:12-14). He wanted to take over God’s creation while he was at Garden of Eden and he is still trying to aim for taking control the earth. Now, he is trying to deceive Christians through Roman Catholicism (or Roman Empire , a pagan nation in Babylon ). If we study on this subject of study, we will find out the relationship between Roman Catholicism and Paganism, which it describes in Jeremiah 44.
Okay, let us stop here to define the word “deception” in I Timothy 4:1-3. Let’s now discuss how we can avoid from the satanic deception or deception from our minds or others.
First ones is this: Don’t let your conscience be your guidance of your soul. Our conscience is too weak to guide each of us. Even though our conscience is from God, He wants let us to make a decision for ourselves, but most of times we take turn to wrong path or -360 degree and that’s not from God.
Second: Don’t let your people deceive you through their words. If you want to know if your friend is speaking the truth or promise, you need to see their actions through their words. The word and action must always put together.
Third: Don’t let Satan comes to your life to deceive you. By doing that, you need to ask Jesus Christ comes into your life. Jesus says in John 10:10, “The thief (Satan) cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they (or you) might have life, and that they (or you) might have it more abundantly.”
Are you saved? Are your love ones and friends saved in the grace of God through Jesus Christ? The purpose of this study is to help you to become closer relationship with Jesus Christ. As Jesus said, "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms, if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am." (John 14:1-3.)
If you are lukewarm in your relationship with Jesus Christ and want to know Him as your personal Savior and Lord of your life, please consider asking Him to forgive your sins and invite Him into your life. Paul says, "That if you confess with your mouth, `Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believed and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved." (Romans 10:9-10.) If you have done in your private room or workplace, then you need to tell to your friends or love ones about what you have done, so they may rejoice with you and want to have that relationship with Christ in their own life. There are many occults in the world, which do not know the love of God and His great plan for those who believe in Him. As it is written in John 3:16, "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
