Are You A Victim Of Fraud?

I was out for my morning walk this morning. It was a beautiful, frosty morning, probably the coldest morning this Fall season. I was dressed in layers with a beautiful new tuque and some great gloves. So, of course my phone rang, somewhere under all those layers.

Normally I don’t answer my phone when I am out for my walk because this time doubles as my conversational time with Father. But this morning I felt compelled to respond because I am waiting for several important phone calls, and besides, it could have been my wife. Unfortunately it was none of these.

After digging down through the layers to find my phone, you can imagine my disappointment when I heard an automated message telling me that VISA had identified two fraudulent charges on my account and I only had to press one to cancel them and speak to their agent. Having had this same message before I promptly hung up. Then I heard the Spirit.

The Spirit loves to use all kinds of occasions to make a point with me. As I put my phone away he asked me, “What if it’s true?”

I chuckled, “I know it’s not true.”

“How do you know it’s not true?”

“Because I know this is not how VISA works.”

“How do you know this is not how VISA works?”

“Because I have read their policies and I have had past experience.”

“So why do you listen to the enemy’s fraud?”

Wait! What?

He left it there for me to consider because I knew what he was talking about right away. The enemy is always committing fraud against God’s children. The Garden is just an example of what he has been doing throughout the history of humanity. He promises to us what we already possess and he tries to trick us into thinking we are opposite of who Father says we are. You know those lies. His great desire is to separate us from Father.

Those lies are those disturbing thoughts that wake you up in the middle of the night. They tell you that there are charges against you on Father’s account. There aren’t. They have all been removed by the blood of Jesus. Yet, those seeds are enough to start a stream of doubt that we allow to become a river that undermines our incredible relationship with Father through Jesus. They convince us Father won’t provide, or forgive, or heal or any of the many things he has promised us.

How do we protect ourselves?

I knew the phone call I received was fraudulent because I knew the company’s policies, how they operate in this matter and also have personal experience. I have received phone calls from VISA to check on charges when I have been traveling in places that were not usual for me. Most of us have. So I know they do not use automated messages that tell me to press a number to get an agent. It is no different with Father.

I shouldn’t be able to fall victim to the enemy’s lies. I know my Father. I know his promises. I know how he operates. When he needs to bring correction he does not do it with disturbing thoughts in the middle of the night. He never calls me out. He always calls me up. When I have taken a misstep he reminds me who I am in Jesus. “Hey encourager, let’s consider this here.” “Hey man of prayer, let’s take a bit of time together this morning.” He always speaks to me by how he sees me, even in correction.

I also know that he never threatens me. He is not against me. When he does need to bring correction it is not to punish but to build up. His desire is to see me grow, to increase, to mature. If there is shame and condemnation it is fraudulent, from the enemy of my soul. He comes to steal, kill and destroy. I should be able to tell the difference and choose to listen to the one I worship and trust.

If you are one who gets disturbed by the frauds of our enemy, do yourself a favour, give it over to Father. Yes, report the fraud to Father and leave it with him. Don’t let it rob you of a single minute of your sleep or of your day. Know Dad. Know his promises. Trust what you have already experienced with him. 

The Truth Must Be Told

It is getting really confusing out there. It seems every day what we knew to be true is being challenged in one way or another. Some people isolate themselves from such going ons in the world but then don't know what to do when they are cornered by it. Others of us who have to wade through this sewage every day often have to take deep showers in the Spirit to keep our equilibrium. In all of this mess one thing is evident, people no longer believe in an absolute truth.

It is even hard to hold a discussion with people any more because they are arguing from their own abstract idea of truth, which seems to be constantly evolving. What is amazing is that we can pretty well convince ourselves that anything is true if we decide that is what we want to believe. This being the case, no one is interested in anything that would challenge their version of reality. Things haven't changed all that much over the millenniums.

Apostle Paul and his team had a great ministry in Asia Minor, headquartered in Ephesus. Then one day, just before he was planning to move on, there was a riot. The cause of the riot was the fact that the truth had been revealed to the people. Here is the accusation against the Christians, specifically Paul:

And you can see and hear that this Paul has convinced and misled a lot of people, not only in Ephesus but also throughout most of the province of Asia. He says that gods made by human hands aren’t really gods. (Acts 19:26)

There are many similar things in our age that could be considered like these idols. It is obvious to us that anything that we can make with our hands cannot be all that mighty and powerful, yet we continue to fashion gods after ourselves. The danger comes when we hold up the truth against these false idols in our lives.

No one is interested in the truth because truth accepted changes things, makes us uncomfortable, forces us into a reality we don't want. We would rather live lies that leave us comfortable and unchallenged. This is why the prophets of old were often killed, because people did not want to accept a truth that forced change. That is why the prophets of today are attacked and "killed" in the forum of public opinion. Their message is examined against the perception of the day, cutting out the elements that make it the truth based on a reality beyond the sight of this world. But that does not give us an excuse to remain silent.

Although we have a greater message than the prophets of old, we must develop the same fortitude in presenting the truth. To Ezekiel the Lord said:

Whether they listen or whether they refuse, since they are a household of rebels, they will know that a prophet has been among them. (Ezekiel 2:5)

It is not up to us to make them respond, we are only messengers and must be faithful in sharing the message. People hate the truth and will hate us for telling the truth but the truth must be told.

Is It Possible There Is More Than One Way To God?

As followers of Jesus we believe that every member of the human race is broken. This brokenness has left us in a state of rebellion, self-centeredness, and the thought we are in control of our destiny. It has also left us constantly, longing, searching, needing something more than ourselves.

No one wants to believe that our destiny has already been decided on and it doesn't look good. We know that Jesus was sent as a solution to all this and that it is through him that restoration of relationship with our Creator is possible for everyone. This is what we believe from what Jesus told us and now through our own experience.

The enemy of your soul is not content that this news is known, but unable to keep it from spreading, he has tried to muddy the waters. This is why we hear so many teachers talking about there being more than one way or that all religions lead back to the same god. Followers of Jesus cannot abide by this because Jesus told us differently, as did the Holy Spirit.

Jesus said:

Jesus answered, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (Luke 14:6)

I am not telling you anything you don't already know but in the face of the onslaught of false teaching, we must remind each other of Jesus' words. We don't live according to opinion but according to truth, which is Jesus. The Spirit also reminded us of this fact through the anointed words of Peter:

Salvation can be found in no one else. Throughout the whole world, no other name has been given among humans through which we must be saved. (Acts 4:12)

These were not the words of Peter but of the Spirit who was speaking through him:

Then Peter, inspired by the Holy Spirit, answered ... (4:8)

Peter was responding to the question of who's authority were they healing people. This was the truth that the Spirit wanted this authority to understand.

I state the obvious because we need the reminder in our daily lives that we are involved in real power. But in order to operate in that power we must be absolutely convinced of the truth that there is only one way and his name is Jesus. We make no apologies for this and we do not set the truth aside in the hopes of reconciling with man. If we did then we would be nullifying the mission of Jesus, the purpose of his death, and the answer to the ills of creation. Humanity cannot afford for us to hide the truth from them.

There is only one way, and Jesus is it.

Open Your Eyes To The Tricks Of The Enemy

It is amazing how we move through our day without much thought to what is happening beyond what we see. We worship our awesome God but set our minds against any thought of the unseen. We very much live "what you see is what you get" which is a bit frightening considering the forces that are at play. We don't seem to appreciate how much the enemy hates us and plans to destroy us any way he can. It isn't even so much about us as it is about what hurt he can inflict on Yahweh by hurting us.

Now I am not talking about being fearful or looking for demons behind every rosebush but we do need to consider our words and our actions. We need to consider the things we watch and participate in. We need to recognize the motivation behind some of the things that will come against us today. We need to consider how the enemy twists things for his own evil purposes, especially to bring confusion to the mind of a believer. If we are not solid in our reading and studying of the Word of God then we are wide open to the enemy's attacks of influence.

The enemy will use anything he can get his hands on to destroy the things of Yahweh. He loves to steal symbols of love and covenant from Yahweh and distort them for his own purposes. Just consider one of the most prevalent symbols of our day:

I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. (Genesis 9:13)

The rainbow is an ancient symbol of Yahweh`s covenant, with all living creatures, that he would never again send the flood waters to destroy:

It shall be, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow shall be seen in the cloud; and I will remember My covenant which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. (v. 14-15)

The thing about this covenant symbol is it is a symbol to remind Yahweh of this covenant:

The rainbow shall be in the cloud, and I will look on it to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth. (v. 16)

And this covenant is not just for us but for all living flesh on the planet. Now we have taken this ancient symbol and have turned it into something that represents the common, the unholy, a manifestation of a rebellious heart. You don`t think this was prompted and orchestrated by the enemy of our soul? Of course it was. If we can't see the obvious what hope do we have of seeing the subtle?

The enemy is defeated but he is hard at work to bring as much pain as he can to Yahweh. Don't let him use you today. Set your heart and your mind on the things above, not on this world. Fix your eyes on Jesus and be determined to run the race with all you have, trusting Jesus to provide all that you need. It is true that we can't do it in our own strength, which is why our relationship with Jesus must be strong and growing stronger, because we do it in his strength.

Understand what you are engaged in today, stand your ground, pray without ceasing, and allow the joy of the Lord to be your strength and his peace to be your constant companion. Do not fall for the twists, turns and lies of the enemy. Live by the Word of God. Open your eyes!








  

The Lies Of Rob Bell And Others Like Him

My heart is sick from the lies of the enemy coming from the lips of those who claim Jesus as King. There is some kind of marriage taking place between the world and God's children, a melange of truth and lies so something new is born. But it is not new. It is as old as time. It is the enemy again whispering in the ear, "Surely God did not say ..." but God's instructions are clear. They are clear, written down and plain for us to see.

Too many servant's of Jesus are falling for the temptation of the enemy when he says "Bow to me and I will give you the kingdoms of the world". For the sake of acceptance and popularity we are calling good evil and evil good. It isn't just Rob Bell and his sudden support of gay marriages. Come on now, the guy was already messed up, claiming there is no hell and even if there was, God's love wouldn't allow any of us to go there. One has to do some major re-writing of God's Word to come up with these lies. But that's what is all about, isn't it? Aren't we re-writing God's Word to be more "relevant" to our culture? At least that is what Rob Bell has to say. Him and a lot of other pastors are leading entire congregations, even denominations right through the gates of hell. I guess they can all try to deny it when they are in it but it's not going to go away.

According to Rob Bell we have no choice but to change and to call evil good or the Church will disappear. No, the Church will not disappear but we do know there will be a great falling away. We do know that many will be enticed away by the teaching of demons spoken through those whose consciences have been seared. Not my words but directly from the Word of God:

God’s Spirit clearly says that in the last days many people will turn from their faith. They will be fooled by evil spirits and by teachings that come from demons. They will also be fooled by the false claims of liars whose consciences have lost all feeling. (1 Timothy 4:1-2, CEV)

I also remind you of what we were looking at yesterday. It was a different lie but with the same result: people were being led back to death:

That sort of talk is like a sore that won’t heal. And Hymenaeus and Philetus have been talking this way by teaching that the dead have already been raised to life. This is far from the truth, and it is destroying the faith of some people. (2 Timothy 2:17-18, CEV)

It doesn't matter how popular it becomes.It doesn't matter how many pastors and congregations support it. It doesn't matter if the Church loses 90% of those attending, we have to stand our ground; we have to stand on the Word of God; we have to stand on God's truth.

God is not running a democracy. We do not get to vote in changes to laws. We do not get to re-write God's values. We do not get to tell God our terms for following him. Right and wrong are not defined by the majority or even a chosen powerful few. There are no lobbyists in the Kingdom of God. It is a Kingdom and the King decides. If you don't like it you have the freedom to leave but you leave behind the benefits as well. You don't to keep anything and death is the only certainty you will face. Not a loving God you say? The cross says other wise but the cross also demands choices to be made. You don't get to keep the world and Jesus.

Flee from evil and run to God's righteousness. Popularity and acceptance in this place are not reasons to sell your soul. I pray the conviction of the Holy Spirit will somehow penetrate the seared conscience of Rob Bell and all pastors and congregations like him. I also pray for the protection of the young sheep who follow this man and others like him. However, we are not surprised. The Word told us these days would come and they are here.

Liar, Liar

The habit of lying is a hard thing to stop once we have started. Why did we start? There are all kinds of reasons why people start. Sometimes it is a self-preservation thing. It started young when our mom's would ask us questions like "Who left the milk out?" Then there are the embellishment lies with our friends; the proverbial "fish story". These lies make us look good. There are the vengeance lies, to get an enemy in trouble. There are lots of different lies and lots of different reasons why we lie and once started it is hard to stop.

However, lying does not belong to the children of God. Our God hates falsehood and part of our transformation is to destroy the need for lies. It was part of our old nature, but now we are a new creation, with new and better habits; ones that glorify Jesus:

Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. (Colossians 3:9-10)

The reasons for lying have been taken away. No longer is self the center of our being. We have no reason for self-preservation. We do not need to make ourselves look good. We have no hatred or ill-will toward our enemy. Jesus has become our everything and our only desire is to bring him glory and to allow his character to shine through us. Everything has changed. What once was is no more. A creation never seen before stands in its place; a blending of God and us; transformed by the power of God. Our hearts and minds have been changed forever, and our bodies will soon follow.

Yet, you might still be stuck in that habit. The reason for it is gone but the habit remains. It is similar to smoking. There is usually a reason why people start. Could have been a rebellious act, a thing to still nerves, a response to depression or stress. The reasons are gone but the habit is fixed and hard to break. How do you break the habit of lying? By telling the truth.

Every time you catch yourself in a lie, stop and tell the truth. Apologize and reverse course. Yes, it is embarrassing but after a few embarrassing incidents you will start avoiding the lie and the Spirit of God will lend you strength. "I'm sorry, I have no idea why I said that. The truth of the matter is ...." "I'm sorry, that was a le. The truth is ..."

Take off the old self with it's practices and put on the new self.

The new creation that we are is made in the image of our Creator. The transformation happened and is continuing to happen. The cross changed us and gave us the capacity to carry God's image so the transformation is ongoing. As we gain more knowledge of him we become more like him. We are being renewed in this knowledge. Now you have the knowledge that lying does not belong to our new nature; go and sin no more.

Don't Get Lost Along The Way

A lie is not effective unless it sounds like the truth. None of us are stupid. If someone was to tell you that you could win a million dollars by writing a letter to Santa you are not going to believe it. But if someone were to tell you that you could win a million dollars by entering a contest you would believe them. You don't know anything about the contest but you know that there have been similar things that have happened in the past so you believe. It may be a complete scam where people are just gathering personal information from people who enter but you believe the lie in the hopes of winning a million dollars. The lie has the appearance of truth.

We live in an age of lies in the guise of truth. Some lies have been with us for so long that people don't even blink any more, it is simply accepted. The whole earth is being won over by fine sounding arguments, especially in the West. We seem to have "sucker" written all over us. If a famous actor states it as truth we gobble it up. When scientists state it as fact we treat it as a given. We are like sponges, sucking up whatever is offered to us, and passing it on to our children. Our society is falling apart put we hold on to the lies as a captain holds on to his sinking ship.

Followers of Jesus have no excuse. We have the Word of God and the Holy Spirit so truth is always in front of us. When something is stated as truth in the world we are able to test it against God's truth and all lies are revealed. It should be simple accept that the Word of God is under attack and has been for years. Many people are "interpreting" it to meet their own agenda. They want it to be more popular to the world, to be more attractive, to be accepted in certain circles. It is nothing new. Even in the age of when the Word was being given there were attempts to manipulate it. This is the reason Apostle Paul wrote:

I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by fine-sounding arguments. (Colossians 2:4)

Paul worked tirelessly to get the truth into the hands of Jesus' followers. He warned time and again that there were people who wanted to twist the Word and use it to manipulate people. Paul worked to keep people on course but he warned:

The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. (1 Timothy 4:1)

This is happening just as much in the Church as it is happening in the world. It is the reason we should take head to Paul's warning to Timothy:

Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers. (1 Timothy 4:16)

Most of us know better than to pass on those silly stories that we receive in our email but do we know enough not to pass on lies about God? Are we sponges or do we hold up to the Word of God what we are being taught? Do we know the Word well enough for ourselves to recognize a lie? Are we paying attention to the Spirit so we are not led astray? Too many of us seek the council of men over the council of the Word. Too many are being led back into rebellion by lies dressed up as truth. But we are without excuse.

Make it your purpose this new year to spend more time in the Word of God and less filling your mind with lies. Make it your purpose to check your doctrine, making sure it is truth so that others will hear the truth from you and not something watered down. We are not here to fit into society. We are here to carry the light of Jesus Christ into the darkness. Don't get lost along the way.

Have Nothing To Do With Lies

Truth. We think we want it but when it presents itself we hate it. We think we want to know it but we really don't. We would rather our version of truth. We would rather reality be what we perceive it to be. We would rather twist truth into something that matches the desire of our heart. We would rather it be something that doesn't have a cost attached to it.

We can't handle the truth. There aren't many sources of truth. There aren't many versions. Truth is not abstract. True is absolute. And what the world can't stand is that truth has one name:

"I am the way and the truth and the life". - Jesus the Christ (John 14:6)

Do you have any idea how many times Jesus is quoted as saying, "I tell you the truth ..."? Look it up.

It is Jesus who said, "If you hold to my teachings, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (John 8:31-32)

Truth is not found in the limited philosophy and knowledge of man. It is not even in our laws of "do" and "do not". We have a system that tried to make it a level playing field for everyone but there is no truth in it. There is no equality in our system, as hard as we try to believe there is. But there is a level playing field in Jesus. There is equality in Jesus. There is always equality in truth. There is freedom in truth. Freedom in Jesus.

We must hold to the teaching of Jesus Christ. We must do what he did. We must walk in his path. When we walk in the light we become children of the light. When we walk in the truth we become children of truth and no falsehood can be found in us. We cannot be of Jesus and speak lies. We cannot lie.

Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free. From the bonds of sin. From the life of lies. There can be no falsehood in a child of God.

"Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbour, for we are all members of one body." (Ephesians 4:25)

What does it matter that we are all members of one body, the Church? The Church must be the safest place in all the world to bring light to the dark; to reveal falsehood and lies by the truth. The Church is a place of repentance and forgiveness. It is not a place where we accept and tolerate sin but it is a place where sinners find freedom in truth and forgiveness in love. What is truth? We were all sinners. We all have fallen short of the glory of God. While we were still sinners Jesus died for us. Jesus set us free from the bondage of the dark, the bondage of sin, the bondage of lies.

Let's not speak about what we have done to the Church, what we have turned her into but instead let us bring healing to her by speaking the truth of what she is in the Spirit. Let us speak truth to the Church so she will be free from the bonds of man's religious thinking, from fear and judgement, from condemnation and death. Let's live this truth:

"So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed." (John 8:36)

Let us allow the Son to throw off the bonds of the lies that keep us from our destiny. Let us speak the truth to one another in love. Let freedom reign in our hearts, minds and Church. Let truth purify our lips. Let us throw away every word and deed that belongs to the darkness. Let us walk in the light, the truth which is Jesus and let us serve this dying world in love.

Truth: His name is Jesus.

The Lies Of Our Heart Are Re-enforced By The Lies Of Our Enemy

I really hate the enemy of our soul for what he has done to mankind. I know it was Adam's choice at the beginning that threw the whole race into rebellion against God, but it is the enemy who has kept us here. Satan hates God. He hates him with a passion and he wants to hurt God by robbing God of the object of his affection, us. He hates us too because God loves us, but his real purpose in the lies he convinces us are truths is because he wants to keep us separated from God to hurt God. This is the reason he works so hard to keep us in the dark and tries to keep blinders on us so we can't see God.

In order for us to be saved from this sin nature and from the enemy we have to get to the point of understanding and accepting the truth that:

... all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God... (Romans 8:23)

Maybe you think there are a lot of good people out there, and, compared to some people who commit murder, they appear good, but the fact is we all sin. Paul told Timothy:

The sins of some men are obvious, reaching the place of judgment ahead of them; the sins of others trail behind them. (1 Timothy 5:24)

In other words, some sins are obvious and the whole world can see, whereas others are hidden but will still be revealed in time.

All of us. Every single person ever born was born with this sin nature and have given into it, except the one who came to save us by defeating this sin nature, Jesus Christ. This sin nature will try to convince us of a lot of lies and the enemy is there to re-enforce them but sin still comes down to us and that is why we will be held accountable for it. God has given us enough revelation in nature itself to know there is a God, and he has given us his Word and the Holy Spirit to convict us of our need to be rescued from this sin nature. He has also sent Jesus as our rescuer, the one who can set us free. Romans 8 is a great chapter to read to give better insight into the power of this nature and the power of Jesus to break it's grip on us. Read this:

Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. (Romans 8:5)

When we turn our back on this sin nature by accepting the gift of freedom from Jesus and we dedicate our lives to him, he gives us another gift, the Holy Spirit, who is the power of God in us. The Spirit guides us away from sin and into all the wonderful blessings of God. He gives us the power to live godly lives to the honour and glory of God.

Jesus Christ is the only one who can save us from this nature we were born with. He is the only one who can reconcile us to God. He is the only one who can free us from our slavery. He is the only way we can come to the Father; there is no other way. We can't live a good life and earn our way. We can lie to ourselves and convince ourselves that God's love will save us even though we persist in our sins. We can convince ourselves that the Bible is outdated and God understands the current age in which we live. God understands alright, he understands that sin separates us from him. It always has and always will. We were given the Law so that sin would be defined, so that we could understand the difference between right and wrong, so that we would be convicted of our actions and the nature of our heart. Then he gave us Jesus to pay the price of our sin and set us free. Calling evil good and good evil will not save you. It is God who makes these definitions and we will be judged according to them, unless we have been set free from them by Jesus.

Do yourself a big favour today, set aside your opinions and thinking, set aside the lies of the enemy, set aside the blinders and let Jesus remove the scales from your eyes. Be willing to see the truth and then allow Jesus to rescue you from the slavery you were born in to. God created you but he did not create you to be like this. He has something better planned for you and you will find it in Jesus.