Watching my tomato plants grow taught me a very valuable lesson. There was this one plant that had a partially ripe tomato for a long time. I kept my eye on it and today I decided it was time to pick. I was so disappointed when I cut in to it. It was mushy. To the eye it was beautiful. To the taste it was terrible. It was deceptive. I was fooled. It made me wonder about all the things in my life that I thought I wanted. I thought I needed. I went by the outward appearance and was deceived. How many times have you been deceived by what something looked like?
1 John 4:1 (KJV) "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world."
Revelation 12:9 (KJV) "And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him."
Matthew 24:4 (KJV) "And Jesus answered and said to them, "See to it that no one misleads you."
I have read that the second largest industry in Nigeria is that of the con artists who email gullible Americans, promising to send them millions of dollars if they will send them their bank account numbers. I received several of those offers this week.
Con artists abound in this evil world, not just in the financial realm, but also in the spiritual realm. Satan is the master deceiver, “a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44). His false prophets disguise themselves as angels of light (2 Cor. 11:13-15). They promise people answers to their deepest problems, but they actually lure them to spiritual destruction.
Believers going through trials are especially vulnerable to spiritual con artists. Satan’s ministers of deception will say, “So, your God is good and powerful, huh? Then why did He allow you to go through this terrible tragedy? Either He is not very good, or He is not able to stop such trials.” Usually, along with that line of thinking, they direct your attention to people in the world, who do not follow God, but whose lives are going very well. If you take the bait, you will not persevere in your trials.
Be aware that natural things mirror spiritual things. Just like that tomato fooled me other things can fool me too. I need the Holy Spirit to show me truth and bear witness with my spirit.
Today I pray that you be filled with the Spirit of God and have discernment in all areas of your life.
RSS Feed