The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe…
"No Immunity"
Someone seeks to deceive us today, tempting us to think, speak, act, and relate in ways foreign to God, truth, and reality.
"Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?" (Genesis 3:1).
"Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil" (Ephesians 6:11).
While we do not directly see, hear, or contact devilish entities, we live in the realm of their influence. Since our conception physically, and even more, since our new birth spiritually, our enemies have sought to inculcate beliefs, opinions, perspectives, and convictions in our minds that mislead us as to who God is, what He does, and why He does it. If successful, this results in our failure to rightly know ourselves, others, the world in which we live, and how we are to live our lives. We must all acknowledge our enemies have been able to deceive us in the past. We also likely wrestle in this day with remnants of their deceptions, and will face new challenges in days to come. Not a one of us bears immunity from the spiritually viral plague that infects the present world as "the god of this world" ever seeks whom he may devour with his darkness (II Corinthians 4:4; I Peter 5:8).
Every believer in the Lord Jesus Christ must acknowledge we may require rescue from devilish notions that influence our lives. We must also be aware that future attempts will be made to steal, kill, and destroy us with lies and deceptions (John 10:10). This must form in us the attitude of willingness to be redeemed, with corresponding prayers of "Search me, o God" (Psalm 139:23). Our foes may be defeated in ultimate terms. However, they are not yet bound, nor have they been cast into the eternal lake of fire that portends their destiny. God still allows spiritual enemies to "walk about," seeking to devour and to foment deception. How might they have been successful in the past, and how might remnants of their deception still influence our thoughts, attitudes, and ways? How might they presently seek to deceive, and how will they so act in days to come? These are questions to consistently direct to our Lord and which must lead us to His Word. No perfect immunity presently exists to devilish deception, and we must all regularly receive innoculations of God's light that drive away darkness already infecting us, and protect us from lies to come.
"We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand."
(Ephesians 6:11-12)
Weekly Memory Verse
Pray without ceasing.
(I Thessalonians 5:17)
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