Satan's Plan/God's Answer
The Invisible Reality
In
the world of the living there is a spiritual battle for your Soul. You may have
felt or even got glimpses of this spiritual world at times, especially if you
are a spiritual person. What if it were the case that everyday illnesses and
“bad luck” were not that at all, but the results of the battle ragging around
you? Furthermore, what if an individual as a Christian has an amazing amount of
power over this world and that the Church has failed in preparing you for this
battle? Would you be angry and blame others? If so you just proved to yourself
that evil does exist.
The mission of this work is to take you on a
journey through the Spiritual world, and to leave you with understanding,
authority to overcome, and a deeper walk with God. A connection that is not
just emotional but eternal. Emotions are not facts. In fact, emotions are an
indicator of your spiritual health.
There is good news. As a Christian, Jesus has
already won the battle for an individual's soul. If you are not a follower of
Christ, then without the authority of Jesus, you are ill-prepared against
powers so cunning. In fact, the nonbeliever may be spiritually blind to
everyday attacks of the adversary, otherwise known as Satan.
Satan’s Plan
Since
the fall of Satan from heaven, he has tried to do one thing: corrupt the
bloodline of the “Lamb of God.” Every chance he was afforded, he has spent with
the ultimate goal of corrupting the bloodline. From the flood of Noah to
present day, he and his dominions are waging war against one thing: to deceive you
and take as many of God’s creation with him to the pit. You see, Hell (or
Tartarus, Sheol, Gehenna, Pit ect.) Was never meant for mortal man; it was
created for Lucifer and the fallen angels who wanted to be equals of God, thus
starting a war in heaven. Wherein, Lucifer and one third of the Angels were
cast out of the 3rd Heaven. So, at the time of Jesus, Satan was a
bit confused. For you see, he knows the Bible better than mankind ever could.
One can tell this as he is tempting Jesus, telling others not to tell people he
healed them. He, as well as the majority of Pharisees and Sadducees, were
expecting a different type of “savior.” One that came in might with the sword,
not that came with the power of love.
So,
since Jesus ascended to the right hand of His father. Satan has been hard at
work trying to convince the world that God is dead. He wants nothing more than
to not give Jesus Christ a reason to return, for you see it is prophesied that
Jesus will return to set up His Kingdom and defeat Satan ultimately by throwing
him into the lake of fire. He knows that if he can convince the world that God
is dead, there will be no need for Jesus to return for His bride, the Church.
He is assembling an army for Armageddon, which will consist of all that refuse
Christ as the messiah.
There
is, however, an even more sinister plan in the making. Many believers are
agreeing that these are indeed the “End Times”. The disciples asked when Jesus
would return? He stated that: “But no one knows about that day and hour— not
even the angels of the
heavens, nor the Son— except the Father alone. For
just as the days of Noah were, so will the coming of the Son of Man be. For
as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and
giving-in-marriage, until which day Noah entered into the ark, and did not
know until the flood came and took-away everyone, so] will the
coming of the
Son of Man be.” (Mt. 24:36-40) There are a plethora of
prophecies concerning the coming of the Lord. However, for our purposes, it is
important to recognize the phrase “As the days of Noah”. To understand this, we
must learn what the days of Noah were like.
The
days of Noah were filled with abominations. Remember, what is Satan’s main
concern? To corrupt the bloodline, thus; “And
it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and
daughters were born unto them, That the sons of God saw the daughters of men
that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose. And the
LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is
flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years. There were giants in
the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto
the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty
men which were of old, men of renown.” (Gen. 6:1-5)
The Watchers and
daughters of men had offspring known as the Nephilim. They were giants and
eventually turned on humankind.
Michael, Uriel,
Raphael, and Gabriel petitioned the Lord concerning the sections of lawlessness
and unrighteousness caused by Azazel and his minions. Their fornication and had
taught mankind the secrets of the Heavens. Satan had polluted the bloodline of
man. God
was so angry with what His creation had become. He swore to destroy all of
creation. However, one person found favor in His eyes, meaning this person’s
bloodline was not polluted. His name was Noah and God made a new covenant with
him and the other 7 members of his family. Noah built the Ark, and God flooded
the Earth to eliminate the contaminated bloodline. This is not a mythical
story, it is verifiable by recent archaeological findings, historical records,
science, and of course the scripture itself. Every culture in antiquity has a
global flood story. The only differences are the names of those who survived.
The
main thing to remember here is that we as human beings are special; we are
created in the image of God. Where we are all blemished, without Christ’s dying
on the cross, there would be no way for redemption. Only a person undefiled could eventually
become the “Lamb of God”. If Satan would have succeeded the sacrifice of Jesus
would not be valid for the redemption of mankind. Now, since we have
established the background and plan of Satan. We can move onto the Gospel of
Matthew and the Temptation of Christ.
In
this paper we are going to examine the Gospel of Matthew, Establish the Biblical
elements of a human being, explore the origin of Satan and expose His ultimate
plan, Examine the way evil is confronted by Jesus, and finally, explain the
Biblical response to protecting and refuting evil.
Then
main scriptures we will start and continue to exegesis is out of the gospel of
Matthew 4:1-11. Matthew was written later then the gospel of Mark, however
there is evidence that the author did draw from the gospel of Mark and the
Quellle document. Most scholars date the gospel towards the end of the period
70-100 CE. There is a reason why Matthew is listed as the 1st gospel
of the New Testament. Its theological content reveals a conviction from early
on that Matthew’s presentation of Jesus as both the fulfillment of scripture
and hope of human kind.
The
gospel begins with the genealogy which refers to His messiahaship as he is
referred to as “the son of David & the son of Abraham” (Mt.1:1) Matthew’s
gospel picks up directly after Malachi, the last book of the Old Testament.
Malachi ends with the prophecy of the return of Elijah before the great and
terrible day of the Lord comes.” (Mal. 4:5) As we will see, in the gospel of
Matthew, John the Baptist fulfills this prophecy, as he ushers in the “Day of
the Lord.” This gospel pronounces the fulfillment of the O.T. and the beginning
of the New.
The Mission of John the Baptist and the New
Covenant
The
importance of John the Baptist is essential in the “renewal of Israel” (1 Kgs
18:21) John is presented as “Elijah-like”, his preaching was the final
prophetic installment of covenant renewal (Mal. 4:5-6) John was in the
wilderness calling for people to acknowledge their current spiritual health. He
was ushering in a “new exodus” built
on Moses’ work and Isiah’s prophecy (Psalms 114; Isah. 40:3)
For
the multitudes who were repenting in the Jordan river was a mirror of Moses’
earlier covenant renewal at edge of the Jordan (Deut 9:11) Thus, the Baptism of
Jesus was not for repentance of His sin (For He was without sin), yet it was a
symbolic reference to bringing Israel out of exile. It was a model to
illustrate the submission and endorsement of John’s word. This and the
temptation of Jesus both ultimately full-filled Israel’s covenant requirements
(Mt. 3:15; 5:17)
Jesus’
actions actually prove as an example of obedience to God’s law, the very law
that He uses in His show down with Satan in the Temptation. Jesus was the
“Nation of Israel”, where they had failed, Jesus had come to set things
straight and establish a new covenant. He does this not only by repeating the
experiences of the “national son”, He actually resumes these experiences and
unlike Israel, he succeeds. (Exod. 4:22; Deut. 8:5) It is also important to see
how the Father’s testimony is integrated into the upcoming temptation of His
Son.
Although
John’s voice crying out in the wilderness is one of preparation, it is the
Father himself who speaks after 400 years of exile. Imagine being there when
Jesus is baptized and as He emerges from the water the Heavens open up and He
hears God say “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased!” What a
site that would have been. This event was also important due to the OT
requirement of having two witnesses. Important to note that “This is my Son” is
referenced in Psalms 2:7, this is a king’s personal testimony of his adopted
messiahaship and commission by the Lord. The voice of the Father officially
commissions Jesus as the all-powerful anointed Messiah (Psalms 2:2)
Another
important symbolic event was the dove that descended upon Jesus and remained.
Which was prophesied by the prophet Isaiah: “The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him—the Spirit of wisdom and of
understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge
and fear of the Lord.” (Isaiah 11:2) Similarly, we see that Noah sent out a
dove, which ushered in the new covenant, so as this ushered in the promised
Messiah. Now we see this as also another sign that the Son of God is here and
is bringing forth a new covenant. It is also important to recognize that the Dove/Holy
Spirit remained upon Him. Therefore,
fulfilling “God would rest on the Servant
and king who would bring about Israel’s restoration.” (Isah, 61:1-2)
So,
you see that the account of the Baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist was way
more then what at first reveals itself. It is a beginning to a new covenant,
the fulfillment of prophecy, and essential in understanding the anointing and
power that dwells in Jesus Christ. Strength that He would need in the near
future.
The Three Parts of a Being
Now
that we have established the importance of the baptism of Jesus and the
significance of John the Baptist. We will now explore the three temptations
that Jesus faced. Before we do this I want you to understand the 3 parts of a
human. According to the Bible, these three elements are the body, soul, and
spirit.
“And the LORD God formed man [of] the dust of
the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a
living soul.” (Gen.2:7) The Hebrew word for soul used here is nephew (feminine noun), the word dust in
Hebrew is afar (masculine noun), and
the Hebrew word for “the breath” is neshamah
(feminine noun) and it means
“breath, spirit”. (B.L.B. Gen. 2:7)
So,
with this verse we can establish that God created us out of aphar/dust, by breathing neshamah/Spirit of life/chay into our nostrils. So the body is made up of dust, God
breathes into us the Spirit, which creates the entire human being, which is a
soul.
So, as we can see here we truly are Spiritual beings having a human experience.
We must remember that Jesus himself was both fully God and human. He still
faced all the same temptations and emotions that we face. The reason it is
important to recognize what you are made of, is because the adversary attacks
us in different ways. Thus, it is imperative for you to gain self-awareness
just as important is for you to know your enemy.
The
temptation of Jesus was far more than three tests. At one level, it was a
challenge to His entire redemptive mission as the long awaited Messiah. If
Jesus would not have overcome the temptations set forth by Satan, then the
entire mission would have failed. Meaning that Jesus was to come and die on the
cross as an unblemished sacrifice for the redemption of all that believe in
Him.
Now
that we have identified what human beings are made of, we can have a better
understanding of the text in question or commonly known as the Temptation of Christ.
“Then Jesus was led-up into the wilderness by
the Spirit to be tempted by the devil. 2 And having fasted for forty days and
forty nights, afterward He was hungry. 3 And having come to Him, the one
tempting said to Him, “If You are[a] God’s Son, say that these stones should
become loaves-of-bread”. 4 But the One, having responded, said, “It has been
written [in Deut 8:3]: ‘Mankind[b] shall live not on bread alone, but on every
word proceeding-out through the mouth of God’” 5 Then the devil takes Him into
the holy city. And he stood Him on the pinnacle of the temple. 6 And he says to
Him, “If You are God’s Son, throw Yourself down. For it has been written:
‘Because[c] He will command His angels concerning You, and they will lift You
up on their hands that You may not ever strike Your foot against a stone’” [Ps
91:11-12]. 7 Jesus said to him, “Again[d], it has been written: ‘You shall not
put the Lord your God to the test’” [Deut 6:16]. 8 Again, the devil takes Him
to a very high mountain and shows Him all the kingdoms of the world and their
glory. 9 And he said to Him, “I will give all these things to You if, having
fallen-down, You give-worship to me”. 10 Then Jesus says to him, “Go-away,
Satan! For it has been written: ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve
Him only’” [Deut 6:13]. 11 Then the devil leaves Him. And behold— angels came
to Him and were ministering to Him. (Mt. 24:1-11 KJV)
Let’s
break this down. First, we see that after Jesus was baptized he immediately was
“led-up into the wilderness by the Spirit
to be tempted by the devil.” (1) The Greek word for “the spirit”
is pneuma, In this context it
actually refers to the Holy Spirit. So, as soon as Jesus had had a profound
spiritual experience. The Holy Spirit that descended upon Him at the baptism
actually led Him out into the wilderness too fast for 40 days.
When
I first realized that the spirit that led Jesus into the desert was not Satan,
I was dumbfounded. Of course this was during my early Christian years. Since
time has passed I have seen this happen to so many people. It is like the Parable of the Sower(2), which Jesus taught in Matthew chapter 13,
after the Temptation event. The Parable of the Sower:
“18 Hear
ye therefore the parable of the sower.19 When any one
heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the
wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he
which received seed by the way side.20 But he that
received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and
anon with joy receiveth it;21 Yet hath he not root in
himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth
because of the word, by and by he is offended.22 He also
that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care
of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh
unfruitful.23 But he that received seed into the good
ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth
fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.” (Mt. 13:18-23 KJV)
This
is a warning from Christ. He himself was led out into the wilderness to be
tested by the devil. He had just had a spiritual experience and immediately God
allowed Satan to test Him. So many people go through the same scenario. We must
remember that in the spiritual world, everything knows what is going on. So,
the last thing Satan wants is to loose grips on you. Therefore, as soon as you
hear the word of God or start serving Him. This makes Satan very angry and he
will attack you. Let’s see how he attacked Jesus Christ himself.
The Temptations
Jesus
had just finished a 40 day fast, so naturally He was hungry. Hunger is a need
of the flesh or the Body. So, we see
that the very first temptation is attacking the body element of the human
being. “3 And having come to Him, the one
tempting said to Him, “If You are[a] God’s Son, say that these stones should
become loaves-of-bread” (Mt. 4:3 KJV) We see that Satan was asking a
question as well as tempting him. He was trying to provoke Jesus into showing
His identity and testing His commitment to the spiritual rather the material
world. Satan wanted Jesus to exercise independent authority, rather than the Father’s.
It
is important to recognize Jesus’ response to this temptation. First, He
establishes and affirms His dependence on the Father. He used the law of His
Father found in Deuteronomy. His mission also affirms the priority of the
spiritual over the physical, while not denying the importance of ministering to
physical needs.
The
second temptation was to overall meant to test God. First by trying to get
Jesus to test God. Satan is trying to accomplish two things. The first was to
steer Jesus away from being the “Suffering
Servant”, prophesied by the prophet Isaiah in the 53rd chapter,
and the second to get Jesus to embrace the role of a political victorious.
Also,
notice that this time Satan had learned from the previous temptation and Satan
actually perversely quoted scripture to try and tempt Jesus (He left out part
of Duet. 8:3). Jesus responded with the appropriate scripture. He re-affirmed
His trust in God and His role as being the “Servant-King.”
The focus of this temptation was attacking His spirit element of the human
being. Satan was trying to inflate His ego or self to destroy God’s plan. It is
a testimony for us to learn from. Just because someone knows scripture, does
not mean they are Godly. For in the last days their will come a great Apostasy,
or a falling away of the true faith as stated in by Paul. “And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they
should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the
truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” (1 Thess. 2:11,12 KJV) Yet,
you see, even in the time to come God allows a strong delusion for those who do
not have the Spirit of Christ in their hearts. In those days, if not the days
be shortened, even the elect would be deceived. There is a reason why Jesus throughout
His teaching warned about having eyes and ears to see. In this modern day of
technology, you can guess how many people will be deceived and lost to evil.
That is why it is imperative that you draw close to Him while He is near. Not
only for your present life, but also for eternal salvation.
The
third temptation was directed at the mother of all sources of Sin-Pride. Satan
offered Jesus all the Kingdoms of the world. Which Satan did have the authority
to give. Satan wanted Jesus to lay down and give him praise. Imagine the nerve
of Satan! He still wants to be seen as an equal of God. He is attempting to
tear away Jesus’ total allegiance to His Father, by tempting Him to worship the
Devil. He tempted Jesus to give Him all the power of the kingdoms without
having to fulfill His persecution, death, and resurrection. Jesus responded
simply “Go-away, Satan!” Then as the two previous times He quotes scripture “For it has been written: ‘You shall worship
the Lord your God, and serve Him only” (Duet. 6:13). Then Satan left Him
and the angels came to minister to Him.
The
end game of this monumental step in the preparation of Jesus for His public
ministry is profound. Jesus through the temptations, became Satan’s sovereign
and established communion and provision from the Father. Jesus had indeed
overcome and succeeded where the previous attempt had failed.
It
is important to recognize the parallels to Moses in the text. The temptations
were confronted with Deut. 8:3-Bread, Deut.6:16-Danger, Deut.-Power. Jesus illustrated
His superiority in knowing scripture by quoting from the key elements that
Israel faced in their wilderness experiences. In the testing of Israel, He
desired humility. Jesus’ duel in the desert reveals His stewardship and
obedience as the new Moses. Not only was there a mirroring of the events of the
Israelites. Jesus used references that came from Moses “2nd Address”
(Duet. 4:44-28;68). In this exhortation Moses is calling for loyalty to God.
This is significant because Jesus could have just used the book of Exodus to
dispel Satan. However, He strategically used Moses’ words while he addressed
Israel in Deuteronomy. Jesus wanted to illustrate how covenant obedience to
God’s eternal Word was far more important than temporal things.
So,
we can know see how Satan attacked Christ in the three different elements of a
human being. We can learn from this that Satan is a formidable foe. He is
highly intelligent and was the most beautiful angel that God created. He was
there at creation and was the angel that all the praise for God would travel
through him, to the Father. For the time being this is Satan’s world. Remember,
he also has 1/3rd of all angels and a growing army he is preparing
for the “End of Days”, otherwise known as Armageddon.
We
cannot defeat Satan alone. We only inherited the power of the Holy Spirit after
Christ was crucified, buried, rose from the dead, and ascended to the right arm
of the Father. It was only then that the Disciples gathered in the Upper Room “when the day of Pentecost was fully come,
they were all with one accord in one place. And
suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it
filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them
cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.
And
they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other
tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” (Acts 2:1-4 KJV) The 3rd part of the Trinity, was now
accessible to all those who believed.
The
baptism of the Holy Spirit through our faith in Jesus Christ is our victory
over sin, and our source over evil. The gifts of the Spirit are found in Isaiah
11:1-2 and Paul’s letter to the Galatians. There are 7 primary gifts. Just as
there are 7 deadly sins, 7 petitions in the Lord’s Prayer, 7 Virtues, and 7
last words at the cross. Without these gifts, we simply are a body of believers
lacking our “saltiness.”
The Gifts of the Spirit
1. Wisdom: The capacity to love spiritual things more than material ones; it also
means the desire to understand God. It is the perfection of the theological
virtue of faith. (Catechism of the Catholic Church)
2. Understanding: In understanding, we comprehend how we need
to live as followers of Christ. A person with the gift of understanding is not
swayed away by the messages and dogmas of the world’s idea of how to live. The
gift of understanding perfects a person’s speculative reason in the
apprehension of truth. Is essential in discerning the Spirits.
3. Counsel: (rightful judgment) This gift enables the owner the ability to
discern between right and wrong, and to choose to do what is right. A person
with right judgment avoids sin and lives out the values taught by Jesus Christ.
It is the perfection of the cardinal virtue of prudence.
4. Fortitude: (Courage) With this gift we overcome our fear
and are willing to take risks as followers of Christ. A person with this gift
is willing to stand up for what is right in the sight of God, even if it means
accepting rejection, verbal abuse, or physical harm, the gift of courage allows
people the firmness of mind that is required both in doing good and in enduring
evil. It is the perfection of the cardinal virtue of Courage. This gift will be
necessary in the upcoming persecution.
5. Knowledge: With the gift of knowledge, we understand the
meaning of God. The distinction between wisdom and knowledge is that wisdom
gives the desire to know the things of God, whereas knowledge is the actual
power by which such things are known. The gift of knowledge is more than an accumulation
of facts; it also helps us to choose the right path through life
6. Piety: (reverence) With the gift of piety/reverence, we have a deep sense of
respect for God and the Church. A person with reverence recognizes our total
reliance on God and comes before God with humility, trust, and love.
This gift is essential for miracles and laying of the hands.
7. Fear of the Lord: (Wonder and Awe) With the gift of fear of the
Lord/wonder and awe, we are aware of the glory and majesty of God. A person
with wonder and awe knows that God is the perfection of all we desire: perfect
knowledge, perfect goodness, perfect power, and perfect love. This gift is the
perfection of the theological virtue of hope. (Vatican.va)
Paul extends these gifts in 1 Corinthians “There are different kinds of gifts. But
they are all given to believers by the same Spirit. 5 There
are different ways to serve. But they all come from the same Lord.6 There
are different ways the Spirit works. But the same God is working in all these
ways and in all people.
7 The Holy Spirit is given to each of us in
a special way. That is for the good of all. 8 To
some people the Spirit gives a message of wisdom. To others the same Spirit
gives a message of knowledge. 9 To others the same
Spirit gives faith. To others that one Spirit gives gifts of healing. 10 To
others he gives the power to do miracles. To others he gives the ability to
prophesy. To others he gives the ability to tell the spirits apart. To others
he gives the ability to speak in different kinds of languages they had not
known before. And to still others he gives the ability to explain what was said
in those languages.11 All the gifts are produced by one
and the same Spirit. He gives gifts to each person, just as he decides. (1 Corinthians 12:1-7 NIRV)
We are all unique and
God has equipped us all differently. There is a reason why He states that where
two or three are gathered, I am there. Jesus references the Church as a human
body. Each person is a different but essential part of this body. If one hand
is broken, then the other must do twice the work.
The beginning of protecting yourself from the
adversary is personal commitment to the interior life. Your personal
relationship and commitment to God. Remember the first temptation of Christ. He
had just spent 40 days in prayer and fasting. Similarly, we must devote our
life’s to the Father. We have to put on the full armor of God. Just as Paul
described: “Wherefore take unto you the
whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and
having done all, to stand.14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with
truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with
the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith,
wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And
take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of
God: Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and
watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints.
(Eph. 6:13-18 KJV) Let’s examine the armor of God.
Belt-Demonstrates the believer’s readiness for war
and stands for truth(aletheia). Knowing the biblical truth is essential without
it you will be "carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery
of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming" (vv. 4:14). Being “girded in
the truth” is renewal of the mind with God’s truth so as to become a living
sacrifice, acceptable to God.
Breastplate
of Righteousness- The mind
and the emotions are the two areas where Satan most fiercely attacks believers.
His goal is to confuse our minds with false doctrine, false information and
false beliefs. Satan also attacks our emotions with confusion. In doing this he
can pervert your morals, friendships, goals, and aspirations. His desire to
make you question the powerful word of God and succumb to his unholy and
perverse ideologies. He wants to take all the fruits of the Spirit and turn
them into immorality, greed, envy, hate, and pride. He wants us to become numb
to sin. He desires for us to become so numb that sin does not even register as
sin, but just life on life’s terms. The breastplate of righteousness, is not
for gaudy show, but rather a protective wrap around all three parts of a Human.
It protects all vital organs.
Shoes
of the Gospel of Peace: To
prepare for long battle march’s a soldier must have top notch protection of His
feet. Where you may have a carefully fitted loins with truth and a breastplate
of righteousness, none of that matters if you are not protected by the
assurance of the Gospel. You must know that you are indeed a soldier of Christ,
and that you are literally “dead to sin.” If you are not a follower of Christ
“The unsaved person is helpless, ungodly, sinful and an enemy of God.” (Romans
5:6) That is why it is so important that you reconcile yourself to God through
faith in His Son.
Shield
of Faith: While
Roman’s used a variety of shields. In this context it refers to the Greek word thureos. It was about two-and-a-half
feet wide and high, it was designed to protect the entire body of the soldier.
Satan is relentless on his “flaming arrows” being tossed at God’s children. We
recognize them in the form of pride, fear, despair, distrust, and other
temptations. The goal is to drive a wedge between us and our faith in God.
Helmet
of Salvation: Helmets in
those days protected the head and face from injuries. The main protection was
from that of large swords. Paul illustrates that while believers have the Sword
of the Spirit, Satan also has his counter weapon in the form of discouragement
and doubt. He constantly discourages us by pointing to our failures, mistakes,
and anything else that effects our self-esteem. He seeks to make us feel so
badly about who we are and what we have done, that we stop believing that we DO
belong and we ARE God’s children. If we allow doubt to take hold then
discouragement is just around the corner. Like all these gifts, we cannot use
them unless we are believers in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus
Christ.(Catholic Catechism)
The
Sword of the Spirit: The
one and only offensive weapon you need. This weapon is described as a dagger,
rather than a long sword. Sometimes referred to as “of the Spirit”, and
experienced by Jesus receiving of the dove who descended upon Him and for the
believers who are baptized with the Holy Spirit. God word is our weapon. When
His word is invoked the devils will flee. Just as Christ was precise in
combating Satan in the wilderness, so is the precision of the dagger. One must
know the Word of God, so to use the weapon accordingly. When we understand and
apply these protective gifts, it is only then that we can “Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might!” (vv. 6:10) For we do not wrestle with flesh and blood,
rather against principalities, against powers, and against rulers of the
darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. (Eph.
6:12)
If you question if
something is “of God” Please read this “This
I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and
these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that
ye would. But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law. 19Now the works of the flesh are manifest,
which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry,
witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, sedition, heresies,
envyings, murders, drunkenness, reveling, and such like: of the which I
tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such
things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness,
goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they
that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.”
(Gal. 5:16-24 KJV)
If the situation,
event, feeling, or doctrine does not include any of the fruits of the Spirit
listed above? Then it is not of God, it is of Evil. Resist Satan and he will
flee from you. Remember the example that Christ set forth, fall in love with
the Word of God, and spread this message of hope and deliverance with all who
have “ears to hear.”
Jesus suffered one more
temptation. It was the night before He was to be crucified for you and I ‘s
sin. Jesus had just told His disciples that He was going to be betrayed,
suffer, and die on the cross. Only to rise again to the Father on the third
day. Immediately, the Disciples grumbled and “Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, “Oh no, Lord! This will
never happen to You!” But He turned and told Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me because you’re not
thinking about God’s concerns, but man’s.” (Mt. 16:23) So, you see, just as
in the wilderness Jesus prepared himself through baptism, prayer, and fasting.
Then when Satan came to tempt Him. He merely stated, “Get behind me Satan.”
The Coming Delusion
In Noah’s time we are given a dramatic
view of what the world was like in the book of Enoch, although not canonized
into the protestant Bible, it still is in the Catholic Bible, and I assume that
since we did not have the complete text until the recovery of the Dead Sea
Scrolls, that it should be included as a “sign”, for the elect in these days. “Enoch a righteous man, whose eyes were
opened by God, saw the vision of the Holy One in the heavens, which the angels
showed me, and from them I heard everything, and from them I understood as I
saw, but not for this generation, but for a remote one which is 3 for to come.
Concerning the elect, I said, and took up my parable concerning them:
“The
Holy Great One will come forth from His dwelling, 4 And the eternal God will
tread upon the earth, (even) on Mount Sinai, [And appear from His camp] And
appear in the strength of His might from the heaven of heavens.
5 And
all shall be smitten with fear and the Watchers shall quake, And great fear and
trembling shall seize them unto the ends of the earth. 6 And the high mountains
shall be shaken, And the high hills shall be made low, and shall melt like wax
before the flame7 and the earth shall be wholly rent in sunder, and all that is
upon the earth shall perish, And there shall be a judgement upon all (men).8
But with the righteous He will make peace. And will protect the elect, And mercy
shall be upon them. And they shall all belong to God, And they shall be
prospered, And they shall all be blessed. And He will help them all, And light
shall appear unto them, And He will make peace with them'.9 And behold! He
cometh with ten thousands of His holy ones To execute judgement upon all, And
to destroy all the ungodly:And to convict all flesh Of all the works of their
ungodliness which they have ungodly committed, And of all the hard things which
ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.”(Enoch 1:2-9) So, God sent
out judgment upon the earth to cleanse it, saving only Noah’s family and two
kinds of all animals upon the earth. Noah’s Ark was actually found in the past
10 years. It was found in what the locals call “The Valley of the 8”, referring
to the 8 members of Noah’s family.
This is
where I believe our forefathers read Genesis and saw the accounts of
“Giants”,
hybrids, and other abominations as a figurative application to the texts. Due
to the time period and their lack of scientific understanding, it is
understandable that they themselves could not believe “such nonsense”, as
hybrids and Giants. Even though scripture clearly references giants before and
after the flood, such as Goliath, His brother, Og, and Samson.
Imagine the surprise of all, when
giant bones and unexplainable monoliths started being uncovered all over the
world? Suddenly, humanity that had adopted the evolutionary dogma had some
explaining to do. Especially when dinosaur tracks were found alongside human
tracks in Penrose, Texas? Then they must have been completely shocked when a
scientist actually found T-Rex soft tissue? How old was the Dinosaurs again?
Oh! And one of my favorite scientific discovers, quantum mechanics, which
advancements have shattered the scientific communities understanding of the
universe. Finally, the most significant development and most pertinent to this
paper, is the development of cloning and DNA manipulation. Yes, DNA is being
manipulated as you read this paper. The crazy part of this entire thing is that
the answer has been in front of us the ENTIRE time. The Word of God, literally
tells us and scientific discovers are proving a plethora of things in Bible to
be …. true. I even read an article the other day that major private scientific
think tanks are seeking out Biblical Scholars to advance their work. So,
suddenly the “Days of Noah”, do not seem to far-fetched. Do they?
The time has come for the Church to
break free from the parasitic movements of Moral Therapeutic Deism,
Scientology, Prosperity gospel, and grasp ahold of the living Word of God. It
is imperative that the Church invest many of its energy in teaching and learning
the word of God. We need to get back to the basics. The delusion of this time
is near.
Just imagine if tomorrow, the world
and the Catholic church comes forth with a confession that all the rumors about
UFO’s and Aliens are true. Not only are they true, but they created us. They
want to show us the “secrets of their religion”, I mean why would not you if
you found out that you were created by an alien? Well, if you are a Bible
believing Christian and you are warned about the “Days of Noah.” Then you would
recognize that those aliens and not aliens, but Demonic forces that are inter-dimensional.
Imagine the multitudes that would be deceived, especially if the body of Christ
is not educated and ready? Sound too “far-fetched?” Well, they have been preparing
us for this for decades. Through the media, politics, movies, and the degrading
culture that is numbing the Spirit of God through the Church. This entire world
is about to be swayed away, all the way into eternal damnation. What are you
going to do about it?
Going Forward
For us believers and
non-believers as well. There is power in the name of Jesus. Many in the times
of Jesus and up to the current day invoked the name of Jesus and preformed many
miracles and healings. When the Disciples spoke to Jesus about this, He told
them to leave them be, “Do not stop him,”
Jesus said. “For no one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment
say anything bad about me, for whoever is not against us is for us.” (Mark
9:39,40)
So,
it is rational that some may use the name of Jesus may do great wonders on this earth. However, it is like using a lawn mower without starting the motor. As well
as the most important aspect and decision of your entire life. When your time has come
and passed, and you meet your maker, will you be allowed to enter the presence of the
Lord? I beg you to heed these words from Christ himself,
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!” (Mt. 7:21-23)
The choice is up to you....I pray that you may be found worthy to escape the coming devastation.
Should there not be a level for mind. ?
ReplyDeleteSoul is mind/emotions... See the graphic pic
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