DOCTRINES OF DEVILS AND FALSE TEACHERS
The King James Bible speaks of the devil sixty-two times, devils fifty-four time and Satan fifty-two times
1 Timothy 4:1 Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, (in direct terms) that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines (or teachings) of devils;
Paul is saying here the Holy Spirit tells us clearly that in the last days some will turn away from what we believe.
They will follow lying spirits and teachings that came from the doctrines of devils. False teachers were and are still a threat to the church.
Jeremiah 23:31-32 31 Behold, I am against the prophets, saith the Lord, that use their tongues, and say, He saith.
32 Behold, I am against them that prophesy false dreams, saith the Lord, and do tell them, and cause my people to err by their lies, and by their lightness; yet I sent them not, nor commanded them: therefore they shall not profit this people at all, saith the Lord.
Even today it is not enough that a teacher, minister or evangelist appears to know what they are talking about or says she or he is speaking for God.
If their words contradict what the bible says they are teaching false. These hypocrites, false teachers are lying spirits that are teaching what come from demons.
We are guided by Demonic spirits, or we are guided by the Holy Spirit.
The devil deceives people by offering a clever imitation of the real things of God. Don’t be impressed with a teacher’s style or credentials, his teaching must line up with the word of God.
Colossians 3:16-17 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
17 And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.
Let the truth of Gods word dwell in you richly in all wisdom and understanding, always what so ever you do, do it in the name of Jesus, giving thanks to God and the father through him.
Because we still live in the flesh, we sometimes get weak in our thinking and that is very fertile ground. It leaves room for the devil to work on our minds.
Eph 4:23-27 23 And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;
24 And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.
25 Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another.
26 Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath:
27 Neither give place to the devil.
Your mind is what you think with,
Your will is what you want,
Your emotions are what you act on.
We need to be careful about what we think, what we want, and what we act on.
Our old way of life before we got saved should be completely in the past. We must put on the new nature, go in a new direction and have a new way of thinking that the Holy Spirit gives us.
Don’t give place to the devil. Why, because it is his goal to deceive you. It is so important to avoid the worthless deeds of evil and darkness and stay away from evil influences.
Matthew 5:14-16 14 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.
15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.
16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
We are the only spiritual light on the planet. God needs us to shine for him. Don’t hide the light that God has made available for you through his son Christ Jesus, let it shine in you so people will have hope.
Let it shine before men so that they may see your good works and glorify your heavenly Father.
When things don’t work out the way we think they should or the way we want them to, that is when wrong thoughts start coming into our minds. That is when we start thinking of things. Satan fights with lies and sometimes his lies sound like truth.
John 8:42-43 42 Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me.
43 Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear my word.
I know you are Abrahams seed. I speak that which I have seen with my father, and you do that which you have seen with your father. You would love me if God were your Father. I did not come of myself, but he sent me. Why do you not understand my speech, because you cannot hear my word.
Satan often attacks our heart, the very center of our emotions… self worth… and trust. He wants us to think the good news of the gospel is worthless and hopeless.
Satan wants to make us doubt God. Never doubt in the enduring power of the heavenly realm.
John 8:44-47 44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
45 And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not.
46 Which of you convinceth me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe me?
47 He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.
Jesus is saying because you cannot hear his word you are of your father the devil, and the lust of your father you will do. He was a murderer from the beginning and he lives not in the truth, because the truth was not in him, for he is a liar and the father of it.
And now I try to tell you the truth and you believe me not. Even if I say the truth; why don’t you believe me? If you could only hear Gods word but you hear them not because you are not of God.
Did you ever have a bad habit that you actually hated, and know in your heart that it is wrong? Sinfully wrong. In your heart you would say, I am never going to do that again.
But as sure as we declare it, this nagging thought would drive you crazy, and without thinking you would do it again. The temptation was so strong that you could not stop yourself.
You are not alone, that probably describes a lot of the population. Bad thoughts lustful thoughts and thoughts of wrong desires only come from one source, the flesh way of thinking.
We all have areas where temptation is strong and habits are hard to conquer. These weaknesses give the devil a foothold. We must deal with our areas of vulnerability.
We still live in the flesh; most people struggle with a particular sin. The sin is bad enough but the big problem is when we try to justify it.
1 Peter 5:8 8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
Your adversary, the devil, is always on the prowl, seeking someone to devour. Just like a real lion who seeks out the young and feeble (the young of spirit and the weak of spirit) to attack.
John 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
Who is the thief? The one who comes to kill, steal and destroy. How does he kill steal and destroy? He does it by deception, getting you to doubt yourself and God. He may not physically kill your body, but he does want to kill your spirit, your connection with God.
This deception does have a good ending, Jesus says I am come that you might have life and that they might have life more abundantly.
Yes, you will be tempted, Jesus was tempted, yes there will be thoughts that come to your mind, some not so good, some worse.
You need to consider the source; you know these thoughts are not of God so they must be from the adversary the devil. Or wrong thinking on your part.
James 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
Resist the devil and he will run from you. Tell him as Jesus did to get behind you.
