(Continued from FAQ Page...)
When the subject of demonic doctrine or activity is brought up, the first thing that comes to the mind of many persons is all the dark paranormal activity that has been around since the beginning of time, but is hardly ever perceived as taking place WITHIN the Christian Community. As forewarned, the introduction of false gospels, false doctrines, and false practices has always been an issue within the Christian Community at large (Gal. 3: 1), and is only going to increase as the dispensation of the Church Age comes to its prophesied conclusion (Matt. 24: 14).
“But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons (1 Tim. 4: 1 NASB).”
This verse of Scripture comes from a letter written by the Apostle Paul to one of his understudies (Timothy) addressing several issues that he (Timothy) in the capacity of pastor-teacher would have to address.
Sin needs to be addressed, but it is not sin that poses the greatest threat to the success of the Church at large. The progressive damage that sin can generate can be instantaneously addressed via the 1 John 1: 9 and John 8:11 process and principles. False Gospels and false post salvation doctrines can be accepted and passed on for generations with both temporal and eternal consequences.
The spiritual need (salvation) for each soul of each generation of the Church Age has not changed, neither has the true mission of the Church.
The apostasy spoken of in 1 Timothy 4:1 has been an issue from the very beginning of the Church Age (Gal. 3: 1), but will not reach its pinnacle until just before the Rapture (1 Thess. 4: 15, 16) takes place, bringing the Church Age to its prophesied end (Matt. 24: 14).
“And this gospel of the Kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a witness to all nations, and then the end shall come (Matt. 24: 14 NASB).”
Note that the Gospel would be preached, and not necessarily be believed by the whole world. Matthew 7: 13, 14 implies that only a minority within each generation of Man will believe (and be saved), and that only a minority of those who are born again will entertain discipleship. It is for this reason that doctrines taught by demons are promoted.
Note that it is the end of the Church Age, and not the end of the Church that takes place at the Rapture. The final generations of the Church who alive and here on Earth at the time will be instantaneously taken up and united with the majority of the Church already in Heaven. The Church, as a whole body, will return to Earth with the Lord Jesus Christ at the Second Advent.
Success (or failure) of the Church at large or of each individual believer is to be measured by the “fruit” it produce. The fruit being referenced here is the human souls that are saved through evangelism and edified through post salvation discipleship. These were the marching orders articulated in the Great Commission (Matt. 28: 19, 20).
The unauthorized involvement in many political, social, environmental, and humanitarian goals has proven to be a great distraction from the primary work that the Church was established and commissioned to accomplish.
Bed partnering with politics is what brought the Christian Community at large to some of the darkest periods of time in its history.
Scripture (James 2: 15, 16) acknowledges that there is a place and purpose for engaging in human good, but such endeavors are no alternative or substitute for the primary mission that God gave to the Church. What we do for our body or the bodily needs of others come to an end when the soul departs. What we do for our soul and or the souls of others will continue on for all of eternity.
There are categories of believers from past dispensations (specific periods of time) in Heaven. There will be believers that will be in Heaven who will come from the tribulation dispensation that follows the Church Age. However, it is only the believers saved during the Church Age dispensation that are members of the “Church”.
The Church Age began at the Feast of Pentecost in Jerusalem, Israel, shortly after our Lord’s Ascension. In our day, the majority of the Church is already in Heaven, having gone home to be with the Lord after having been given the opportunity to learn of and do their individual part in the master plan of God. The primary part that the Church plays in the master plan of God is to fulfill the Great Commission.
For the most part, there are only 3 or 4 generations (children, parents, grandparents, and great grandparents) of any given natural family here on Earth. Being a descendant of a Church Age believer does NOT, it itself, make one a Christian. There are no “family coverage” plans with God.
Once presented with the true Gospel Message, Eternal salvation or damnation is a choice that each soul must ultimately make for oneself.
I believe that God has a plan to cover all souls who do not reach the age or stage of moral accountability (1 Sam. 12: 23), or who are never given the opportunity to hear the Gospel. God judges ALL human souls on their chosen response to believe (Gen. 15: 6) or not to believe in God and the things of God to the extent that they were exposed to the truth, beginning with the concept of eternity that God places in EVERY soul that He creates (Eccl. 3: 11).
What IS crystal clear in Scripture, is that ALL believers (in the true Gospel) are assured of experiencing eternal life in Heaven (John 3: 16), and that ALL unbelievers (in the Gospel) are equally assured of spending eternity in the lake of fire (Rev. 20: 13, 15/John 3: 18).
Likewise, each and every born again believer also chooses to respond to or reject the call to post salvation discipleship. One does not serve God to be rewarded, but in addition to the eternal life that ALL born again believers will experience in Heaven, there are additional rewards and privileges to be received in Heaven for born again believers who choose to entertain post (after) salvation discipleship during their time here on Earth.
The portion of the Church that is here on Earth does not consist of buildings or “religious” organizations. The true Church on Earth is made up of the collective body of intangible souls who has been born again (John 3: 5, 7) and has not yet gone home to be with the Lord. The local assemblies of believers are the places or the means by or through which the local believers gather together (Heb. 10: 25) for the kind of worship (John 4: 23) that God desires. The worship of God is a post (AFTER) salvation issue, and therefore as NOTHING to do with being saved or retaining salvation.
If the law of the land allows for it and there are no laws of God being broken or compromised, individual church members in the capacity of a CITIZEN or in the capacity of a member of society can involve themselves in such things as politics, civil rights, social engineering, environmental, and humanitarian projects. Under the same guidelines, Church age believers can pursue secular careers and/or engage in private business.
Atheists and non-Christians can engage and accomplish these same things! If an atheist can do something, then it is NOT a part of Great Commission (John 15: 5).
Christians need to know that ALL such activity is NOT a valid substitute or alternative for the Mission (aka The Great Commission) that was given to the Church a large, nor are such things a substitute or an acceptable alternative for individual (1Cor. 12: 7, 11, 18) part that God has selected for him/her to identify and execute.
Have you identified your spiritual gift? How much of your days are devoted to executing it?
While it is true that every day we wake up is another opportunity to “get with the program”, but it is equally true that every day we wake up brings us closer to the day when we will no longer be here on Earth. One could say that the time left to serve God is getting shorter with every day we wake up!
All the political correctness, social changes, civil equality, international peace, racial harmony and humanitarian achievements in the world will not generate (Titus 3: 5) one millisecond of the eternal life. It is eternal life that one must receive in order to live in Heaven when life here on Earth comes to its end. All of the secular education and temporal success in the world will NOT save anyone.
In the words of the Lord, “What does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul (Mark 8: 36 NASB)?” The phrase, “the whole world” can refer to achieving the highest level of success in any area (good or evil) of activity that one might entertain while here on Earth. While many pursuits of life here on Earth can provide great benefits, it will all be for nothing if one ends up in Hell as an unbeliever (Rev. 20: 13, 15), or in Heaven as a born again believer, but without reward (1 Cor. 3: 12-15).
The same principle can be applied to giving others “the whole world”, but contributing nothing to their spiritual needs.
Only a very small minority of Church Age believers are called to serve as full time (compensated) evangelists and pastor-teachers, but EVERY born again believer is called to identify his/her assigned (1 Cor.12: 7, 11, 18) role in the fulfillment of the Great Commission. While the focus of human attention may be on the pastor or evangelist, God acknowledges the assigned role that each and every soul plays. It is by discovering one’s individual gift and accompanying ministry (service to others) that he/she is where God wants him/her to be and doing what God wants him/her to be doing.
Have no doubt about it. The LAST thing that the devil wants is for you to be is where God wants you to be and doing what He wants you to be doing.
For some, one’s spiritual gift and role will be to serve in a supportive role in or with a local assembly that is involved with the fulfillment of the Great Commission. This role is in addition to one’s time of public worship.
For the overwhelming majority of Church Age believers, his/her purpose in attending a local assembly will be for the purpose of worshiping God and being trained or edified to serve God outside of the local assembly. By “outside”, I mean in the midst of one’s secular career, labor, business, domestic, social, political, humanitarian work, and recreational activity. It will be there that God desires one to exercise his/her spiritual gift for the common good of everyone else with whom he/she, as Christ’s ambassador (2 Cor. 5: 20), share these activities.
If one is only spiritually “in gear” for one hour in “Church” and then in neutral for the remaining 167 hours that God gives to each one of us a week for His glory, it is time for a 2 Cor.13: 5 examination to see if you’re even “in the faith” (spiritually alive)!
The world offers its own scale of values and the means through which one’s success or failure is to be evaluated. Such things are found in the doctrines taught by demons.
The Biblical (Matt. 7: 16, 17) standard for evaluating the spiritual success or failure is the “fruit” (or lack of it) that God (John 15: 5) accomplishes through him/it. The “fruit” that is produced in the TRUE Church consists of the born again (John 3: 5, 7), and then, edified (Matt. 7: 24-27/2 Pet. 3: 18) souls.
OK, but what does the doctrines taught by demons has to do with me, or my part in the Great Commission?
False information, accompanied by false practices, is what poses the greatest threat to the success of the Church at large, and to the spiritual productivity of its individual members. This is where the doctrines taught by demons play their diabolical role.
God has chosen to use born again and edified (Matt. 7: 24, 27) human souls to preserve and to promote the true gospel and accurate post salvation doctrine (Matt. 28: 19, 20) outside of and within the Christian Community.
The devil uses human souls that he deceives to promote false gospels (Gal. 1: 6) and false religion (Psalms 96) to counteract or to undermine any forward progress of the Church (or its members) in the fulfillment of the Great Commission.
The devil’s strategy includes creating false gospels and/or a perverted interpretation of the True Gospel Message. A false Gospel is any piece of information that disputes the integrity of the atoning Work of the Lord Jesus Christ and/or the need to believe it. False Gospels also include any information that proposes that there are additional requirements to either obtain or to retain salvation, which is another way of saying that faith in the TRUE Gospel is not enough. There are MANY false gospels, false doctrines, and false practices that have evolved WITHIN the “Christian” Community throughout the course of “Church” history.
The devil’s strategy includes creating false post (after) salvation doctrines and practices. This strategy includes creating alternative means as substitutes for what God has ordained for the Church Age.
ALL of these strategies BEGIN with false or inadequate information. A doctrine of demons, therefore, consists of ANY information that would serve to promote the devil’s agenda. Scripture (Hosea 4: 6) concedes that it is the lack of correct information is what destroys the people of God.
Although it is through human beings that the information (good or evil) is usually disseminated, the presence, endorsement, and activity of BOTH divine and/or diabolical power and activity is clearly documented in Scripture (2 Tim. 3: 16/John 15: 5/Gal. 3: 1/John 8:44/2Cor 11: 14, 15 ).
Taking what God said and/or perverting what God actually said is a diabolical strategy that goes back to the Garden of Eden. It worked well then, and continues to do a fairly good job in the devil’s favor. Even Scripture (2 Cor. 4: 4/Rev. 12: 9) refers to the devil as being the “god” (small “g”) of this /world/Age, and accredits the devil with having deceived (the majority of) the whole world!
The objective of rejecting, perverting, and /or diminishing the TRUE Gospel and accurate post salvation doctrines WITHIN the Christian Community is an area of spiritual warfare in which the devil has had considerable success. The Gospel is rejected when it is not believed. The Gospel is perverted and/or diminished when the products of religion are added to it in order to “finish the job” or as the means to retain the salvation that one has already received.
Doctrines taught by demons include teachings and related practices whose long term goal is to cause the rejection, the perversion, or diminishing of the TRUE Gospel Message. Such demonic activity clearly takes place inside as well as outside of the Christian Community at large.
Paul tells Timothy that in the “later times” there will be believers who will fall away from the faith. The “later times” refers to the period of time just prior to the prophesied end of the Church Age. Many believers, as do I, have concluded that we are presently living in these “later” times, but only time will tell.
Throughout the course of the Church Age, there have been believers who either return to or begin to engage in the products and the practices of various “religious” (but non-Scriptural) practices in order to “make sure” they are really saved, or to retain their salvation, being deceived and convinced that such things as the Titus 3: 5 work of God can be undone through human sin or effort. The “need” to make sure is a clear indication that one has either not heard the TRUE Gospel, or does not truly believe it.
If one truly believes the Gospel, he not only will see that there is no further action beyond belief (John 3: 18) in order to be saved, but will also see the blasphemous principles that are behind the products and practices of religion that say otherwise. They are blasphemous, in that they promote the false message that faith in the Person and the Work of the Lord Jesus Christ is NOT enough to be obtain or to retain salvation.
Such things come to be highly esteemed in the eyes of those who participate in them. But in the eyes of God, they are no more than detestable (Luke 16: 15), filthy garments (Isa. 64: 6), traditions of men (), and are among the things that are taught and promoted in the doctrines taught by demons.
“You (the “religious police” of His day) are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows (what’s in or not in) your hearts; for that which highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God (Luke 16: 15 NASB/parenthesis mine). “
“…all our righteousness deeds are like a filthy garment (Isa.64: 6 NASB).
“Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men (Mark 7: 8 NASB).
In the Mark 7:8 scenario, the subject matter concerns the sin of dishonoring one’s parents in order to comply with giving support to God, but as further noted in Mark 7: 13, “you do many things such as that.” Elevating the traditions of man to equality with what God has ordained has been an issue thought the history of the Church Age, and is the basis of much apostasy and subject matter associated with doctrines that are taught by demons.
Here in the Church Age, “religious” authorities have established non-Scriptural traditions of men that promote “religious” activity from the cradle to the grave. In truth, the post salvation spiritual life does not even begin until the individual is born again, and there is no post mortem ritual or activity that can change the location of where the departed soul has ALREADY gone. Wakes and funerals can provide such things as closure for the ones left behind, but do NOTHING for the departed soul.
The devil, being a master in the art of deception, puts salvation (that requires no further action) and discipleship (that requires much) in the same bag. It IS true that much more is required for discipleship, but discipleship is NOT for the purpose of either obtaining or retaining salvation. Spending time being focused on trying to retain what cannot be lost comes from listening to doctrines taught by demons. Living as if nothing matters once one is saved comes from the listening to doctrines taught by demons. The long term diabolical objective is to distract and to destroy the potential production of the believer’s post salvation spiritual life.
The presence and future appearing of false teachers WITHIN the Christian Community was a common theme in both the New and the Old Testament Scripture. Its diabolical impact has plagued the human race from the very beginning, and will continue to do so until the creation of the new heavens and the earth takes place.
There are both Old Testament and New Testament prophecies that still remain unfulfilled. The last set of prophecy appears in the last Book of the Canon of Scripture (Revelation) that was composed around the year 96 AD.
The doctrines taught by demons include all of the numerous false interpretations and predictions as to when the remaining prophecies will be fulfilled, and what they actually will involve.
In this regard, I believe the Church should be aware of these prophecies, as ALL Scripture is there for our spiritual edification (2 Tim. 3: 16). At the same time, such interests should not get in the way of the primary mission that was given to the Church.
It would be of no value to know exactly when and how the “end of the world” as we know it to be will take place, if one is not prepared for it. Salvation is never lost, but there will be rewards forfeited (1 Cor. 3: 15)by many who knew what the Great Commission was all about, but did little to promote it.
As do many others, I believe that we are presently in the End Times, and that the Rapture could be a lot closer than what many Christians would care to consider. At the same time, rather or not it takes place today or not for another millennia, all each one of us have is our own appointed span of earthly time in which we can glorify God. We cannot go back and redo our past, and no one is assured that any one of us will still be here on Earth tomorrow!
The reality that ANY day turning out to be our last day on Earth (for a variety of reasons) should be enough to keep the advancing disciple focused on the DAILY purpose for his/her presence on Earth.
Accordingly, the Church (and its members) would be well-advised not to allow current political, social, economic, or “religious” conditions to distract us from remaining focused on the primary mission given to the Church.
The Lord Jesus Christ was criticized (and in some cases, rejected as the Messiah) for His choosing NOT to address in the social, racial, or political issues of His day. He had bigger fish to fry, and so does His Church. The truth is, to the extent that what His doctrines teach is accepted and applied, the social, racial, and political realms will be relieved of the issues that have plagued Man throughout history.
There might be some brief periods of time when the problems of Earth seem to be under better control, but until the Second Advent takes place, the concepts of lasting interpersonal and lasting international peace and harmony are a farce. The peace on Earth spoken of at the First advent refers to peace between God and the individuals who come to accept the Gospel.
In fact, the Gospel has been and will be the cause of conflict between individuals, family members, societies, and nations (Matt. 10: 34).
Among the doctrines taught by demons, are all the “promises” that allegedly have come from God, when in truth, no such promises were ever made. Although in most cases, there will be temporal blessings along the way, advancing in the true spiritual life will result in adversity and persecution, not always peace and/or prosperity.
The devil will use such doctrines that falsely promote such things as the “guarantee” of blessings, or personal or familial deliverance from harm to set the stage for the destruction of the spiritual lives when such “promises” (that God never made) go unfulfilled. All things, including our prayer requests, are subject to passing through the filters of God’s direct, permissive, and/or overruling will and authority. Whatever God does or allows IS a manifestation of His will!
I have learned a long time ago not to ask, “Why?”, but for what is/was the specific purpose has God sent or allowed some of the things that have happened. The universal answer to the Why question is that everything takes place for God’s ultimate glory. Sometimes God will let us know what the specific purpose was that He had in mind, and at other times we are called to accept it in an act of faith and leave it in God’s hands. One’s faith will grow the most is times of adversity, not blessing.
In our pain and grief, we might cry out asking where God was when this or that happened. In truth, He was in the exact place when His innocent Son was falsely accused, convicted, abused, and crucified for a world that to this day largely disregards Him!
Everything that the devil does has “destruction” in mind, whereas everything that God does (or doesn’t do) has a divine purpose.
There is hardly a person (or a family member of a person) who is in a hospital who does not pray for a healing. There is not a godly parent that does not pray for the protection of his/children, especially those who are in placed in harm’s way on a daily basis. There are many who choose to live a moral lifestyle for the sole purpose of receiving personal prosperity from the hand of God.
Yet, it in the midst of our prayers and good behavior, the answer to these prayer requests in, No!” and the overt result of one’s “righteous living” is loss, suffering, and in some cases, death.
I am NOT saying that prayer is not effective. I have personally benefited from having my own prayer life and from the intercessory prayers that others made in my behalf. What I am saying, however, is that one should be aware of the false teachings that make “assurances” where God has made no such commitment.
While it IS true that unless God permits it, NO THING and NO ONE can forge an effective weapon against a servant of God (Isa. 54: 17), but it is also true that God will lift His hand of protection from around us in order to achieve a spiritual objective (See book of Job).
Consider the hardships and the suffering of believers (2 Cor. 11: 23-27/Hebrews 11: 37), and all those who have risked or lost life and limb in order to promote the Great Commission down through the centuries of the Church Age. Some of the greatest persecution has come from WITHIN the Christian Community itself by persons and organizations believing themselves to be doing the will of God (John 16:2)! Such persecutors are clearly functioning under the influence of doctrines taught by demons.
If God has a purpose for it, Christians can be the victims of such things as disease, accident, war, and criminal activity just as much as our disbelieving counterparts with whom we share this planet. In some cases, it is because they are Christians that believers become the target of attacks.
I personally know of several cases where individuals have turned a cold shoulder away from God because of something that had happened to them and/or to someone close to them. On the other hand, some of the greatest disciples that I have ever known have suffered much, but have chosen to continue on with his/her post salvation spiritual life regardless (Heb. 11: 36-38).
Recipients who benefit from miraculous activity should thank God and share their experiences, as such testimonies (when true) can impact the faith of others. At the same time, Satan and or those who do his bidding are known to counterfeit divine activity (Ex.7: 11).
Some of the greatest diabolical victories have been achieved by distorting what God has actually said or done.
God is not the only source of temporal prosperity (Luke 4: 6). To the extent that God allows, the devil and or his agents can produce VERY convincing events (Matt. 24: 24).
My advice when viewing or being asked about such things is to begin by asking who it is that is being glorified? Is it God, a human being, or an alleged intermediary? If it is from God, then God is one who is being glorified. The second question is if such activity can be found in Scripture, or does any of the alleged activity contradict Scripture? In any event, the most important thing is to NOT to allow the event to take one’s primary focus of attention away from Great Commission.
When things do not the way we desired or anticipated, it is the time when the challenging principle of (Luke 22: 42) can put us through a test of faith in a VERY personal way. Keep in mind that tests of faith are not for the purpose of God finding out how well we are progressing, as God already knows that. The tests of faith are for US to see how we are progressing, and/or to point out to us area(s) without soul structure that needs to be addressed.
By promoting promises that God NEVER made is how the devil will use such doctrines of demons to set the stage for destruction. It is when the promises that one anticipated do not materialize, many believers lose their interest (or even reject) God and/or the things of God.
The classic example of how the devil puts a different spin on what God has said (or promised) is the false teaching that by praying “in the name of Jesus Christ” that God the Father is then obligated to do “anything” that the petitioner asks. This is NOT what (John 14: 14) teaches.
What John 14: 14 and Phil 4 teach is that God will supply all that we need to fulfill His plan, not OURS!
Depending on what the individual plan that God has in mind for any one of us, one’s earthly experience can differ greatly.
In order to fulfill God’s plan, Adam walked on the Earth for 930 years, whereas the Lord Jesus Christ walked on the Earth for only 30-33 years. David’s baby’s life was relatively brief (2 Sam. 12: 14).
For an advancing disciple, he/she does not wish to depart this world before finishing all that the plan of God calls for, but neither does he/she wish to remain here, once his/her work is done. Death is NOT an end, but merely a change in bodily form and location. It is NOT how long we spend on Earth, but what we do with the time we are given.
While the earthly life span of any one of us could come to an end today, we can live with the confidence that until we have completed everything that God planned for us, we aren’t going anywhere! Depending on one’s circumstances, one might be praying to live whereas some come to the point that they are literally praying to die, but neither prayer will speed up or slow down the course that God has ordained. As long as we are sucking, the presence of every disciple here on Earth is serving a divine purpose.
Suicide and assisted suicide are among the doctrines taught by demons.
In order to fulfill the plan of God, men like Solomon were greatly blessed with much earthly prosperity and many temporal opportunities, whereas the plan of God for the Lord Jesus Christ called for a human body that would not have the sin nature passed down to it and that He had to keep from ALL sin in order to retain the status of the Lamb of God. God’s plans called for Him to be false accused; rejected by His own people; condemned by the secular authorities and suffer one of the most brutal forms of execution of His Day.
In BOTH scenarios, God provided His Servant/servant with all that was needed to fulfill God’s will.
There are some whom the plan that God will find themselves in environments of great prosperity or great suffering, but the majority of Church Age believers will not find themselves in a position of either of these two extremes. God sends His greatest warriors into the greatest conflicts.
It is a great honor for God to trust us with a mission in which His glory is on the line. To some degree, every believer faces this challenge every day as we choose to make decisions that glorify (or dishonor) Him as His disciple/ambassador.
Deceitful ways to secure earthly prosperity are among the doctrines taught by demons.
Misapplication of Scripture to garner logistical support for Church Age ministries are among the doctrines taught by demons.
If all one needed to do was to pray to have things his/her way, the post salvation spiritual life would be like a walk in the park.
All one would have to do is just ask for “anything” in Jesus’ “name”, and according to a popular, but false, interpretation of such passages of Scripture as John 14: 14, God would be obligated to do it.
Some add salt to the wound by asserting that one’s prayer is denied because of one’s lack of faith. But again, I cite the “NO” responses to the multiple prayer requests of Paul (2 Cor. 12: 8) and the prayer request of Lord Jesus Christ (Luke 22: 42) on the night of His betrayal, whose level of faith no one can question.
The English word “name” speaks of the a-u-t-h-o-r-i-t-y that a born again believer has to approach the throne of God in prayer and to make requests. Praying “in the name of Jesus Christ” can also refer to prayers that are in the interests of the plan of the Lord Jesus Christ. The plan of the Lord Jesus Christ, as the Head of Church, calls for the fulfillment of the Great Commission.
Concluding our prayers with such phrases as, “in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we ask these things” is not for the purpose of obligating God to respond, but (should be) to acknowledge the authority given to us to access to the throne of grace to make prayer requests, and that have the interests of God (not ourselves) in mind.
The more spiritually mature an advancing disciple becomes the less self-centered and the more Christ-centered one’s prayer requests will become. One of the indications that a believer has reached the higher levels of spiritual maturity is (if) when he can say that the number one prayer request he has is to learn of and to do the will of God at all costs.
If one truly believes in the promises that God has actually made, there will be no need to ask for what one has already been given. God has already promised to supply such believers will everything they will need (not want) to fulfil His plan, WITHOUT the asking!
“…seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things (logistical needs- vs. 31) shall be added to you (Matt. 6: 33 NASB/parenthesis mine).”
The only prayer that an advancing disciple needs to make is to say thank you when God delivers.
Engaging in activities that “obligate” God to us is among the doctrines that are taught by demons.
God’s response to ALL prayer requests is subject to the will and plan of God. It is when the prayer requests line up with the will and plan of God that there is a guarantee of a yes answer.
All prayers are immediately answered with a yes, no, or not right now response.
The Apostle Paul prayed three times for relief from a tormenting (2 Cor. 12: 7, 8) condition, but the answer was NO! The Lord Jesus Christ asked if there could be another way (other than the cross) to accomplish His mission (), but the answer was No.
There are perhaps millions of prayers made every day “in Jesus’ name” to which the answer is or will be No!
I do not dispute the power of prayer, nor the critical part that prayer should play in our own walk with the Lord. I have been the personal benefactor of intercessory prayers made by others in my behalf.
The point I am making is that John 14: 14 is NOT a means to obtain “prayer insurance.” The promise we do have is that whatever the outcome of our prayer requests turn out to be, they will all work out for the best for the believer who desires to live, serve, suffer, and even die if that is what the plan of God requires of him.
The doctrines taught by demons will leave us with the impression that our good behavior, “religious” rituals, and good deeds for others place God in debt to us. God has chosen to give us much, beginning with the soul that He (not our parents -John 3: 6) creates, but He “owes” us nothing; not even as much as an explanation if He so chooses to keep it a secret (Duet. 29: 29).
The true spiritual life is a battle, and there are casualties and loses in both sides of every war! The concept that only good things happen to good people, is one of the doctrines taught by demons.
It wouldn’t take the mind of a great theologian or historian to conclude that the majority of each generation of Man has chosen to reject the Gospel and/or the true post salvation spiritual life of God. Despite all the “advances” that Man has made, the world (in a spiritual sense) will continue to go downhill making the final years that precede the Second Coming to be so horrific that if they were not cut short by the Second Advent, no life would survive (Matt. 24: 22).
Contrary to what many Christians are deceived into thinking, the devil at this time is NOT in Hell. The devil is alive and relatively well, prowling around seeking someone to destroy (1 Pet. 5: 8), waging spiritual warfare with his Eph. 6: 12 forces of evil. The devil’s future and eternal destination is the lake of fire Rev. 20: 10! He is willing to share his destiny with as many human souls (Rev. 20: 13, 15) that he can deceive. This is just another reason why he promotes doctrines that are taught by demons.
The doctrines taught by demons promote the concept that the devil is presently in Hell to make Man last perceptive of his true location (this world) and activity (1 Peter 5: 8).
There is a doctrine of demons that disputes the concept of their being a Hell altogether. If one can be deceived into believing there is no Hell and that we all get to Heaven eventually, he will fail to see the urgency or need to worry about what eternity has in store.
The doctrines of demons promote atheism that not only denies the existence of God, but denies there is a Heaven or a Hell, and that the soulless human being comes to its end at physical death. Again the idea being that if there is no God or eternity, there is no need to concerned about such things now or then.
The present location, objectives, and activity of the devil and his forces of evil are kept relatively concealed through the false teachers and false doctrines, many of which are, sad to say, promoted within the Christian Community.
Granted, many such spokespersons do so unwittingly in the name of religion, but a bullet fired in ignorance can be just as lethal as one that is fired with malicious intent.
We have NO control over WHEN the fulfillment of future prophecies of will Scripture will take place. We can only acknowledge that they will take place at the precise time that God has established. Many pastors and ministries have raised doubts over their credibility making such predictions that later proved to be false.
There is nothing wrong with teaching on prophecy, but one must learn to stay within the parameters of what the true interpretation of Scripture reveals.
While promoting false information has been the devil’ stock and trade, the devil will capitalize on the false interpretations of others to downplay the inevitable manifestations of such events, citing all the false predictions that have failed to materialize. His secondary objective is to raise credibility issues of ministers in the remaining areas of theology that they do have straight.
While we have no control over the timing of end time prophecies, we do have control over, and are accountable for having made the best of the time (Eph. 5: 16) that we have been given to participate in the Great Commission. The opportunity began on the day one was born again, and will end on the day of one’s departure from this Earth.
In summary, the doctrines taught by demons consist of all the false teachings that are promoted to dispute, replace, and/or to distort the truths that are to be found in the Word of God. Just as God primarily uses born again, Church Age, believers to engage in the Great Commission, the devil uses human souls that he can deceive to promote his contradicting or alternative agenda, knowing what the end result will be.
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