WISDOM FOR LIVING DAILY DEVOTIONAL
NOVEMBER 18, 2022
TOPIC: BEWARE OF SATAN’S DECEPTION!
BY T. O. BANSO
“Then the serpent said to the woman, ‘You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil’” (Genesis 3:4-5 New King James Version).
Satan’s deception comes through sinful thoughts or desires and negative influences from peers, authority figures, loved ones, and relations or the world system! Many times, people don’t easily notice his deception. If Satan appears as a deceiver, hardly will he be able to deceive anyone. But the Bible says Satan transforms himself into an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14).
In the Garden of Eden, when he appeared as a serpent to deceive Eve, the Bible says the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made (Genesis 3:1). Satan doesn’t appear as a fearsome figure before you to deceive you. He comes in friendly and attractive ways through your thoughts and desires and people you’re unlikely to reject.
The Bible says each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. When the desire conceives, it gives birth to sin, which when it is full-grown, brings forth death (James 1:14-15).
How did the serpent, a cunning beast, deceive Eve? It started with a suggestion to Eve. He said to Eve, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden?’” (Genesis 3:1 New King James Version).
Eve replied that they were forbidden from eating and touching only the fruit of the tree in the midst of the garden. Though Eve added to the word of God by saying they were not to touch the fruit, why touch what you’re not permitted to eat?
Satan eventually convinced Eve to disobey God’s instruction not to eat the fruit. “Then the serpent said to the woman, ‘You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil’” (Genesis 3:4-5 New King James Version). Don’t let anyone convince you against God!
Eve ate the fruit and influenced Adam, her husband. The devil still does that today by using especially those people who are not likely to turn down their suggestions or influence. That is how many people have gone into error.
In Revelation 12:9, Satan is described as the great dragon, that serpent of old, called the Devil, and Satan, who deceives the whole world. Beware of Stan’s deception.
Don’t let Satan use anyone, especially those you’re likely to listen to, to seduce you to do evil. Satan used the old prophet in Bethel to mislead the young prophet to go back and eat contrary to the instruction of God. The young prophet could handle the inducement of the king but not the enticement and deception of the old prophet (1 Kings 13:15-19).
The Bible says the old prophet lied. So is it possible for a prophet to lie? Yes. This prophet lied to him and brought his life and ministry to an abrupt end. Satan used the person he wouldn’t say “No” to – a senior colleague.
Sadly, the person that Satan used against him was the same person that brought the Word from the LORD that condemned him for disobeying God (1 Kings 13:19-22). The prophecy of this wicked old prophet came to pass (verses 22-25).
Accept responsibility for your failure if you allow anyone to mislead you. The old prophet buried the young prophet and mourned over him calling him his brother. What kind of a brother was he? (Verses 30-32)
Satan wanted to use Peter to discourage Jesus from going to die on the cross. But Jesus told him, “Get behind Me, Satan!” (Matthew 16:23a New King James Version).
Don’t let anyone, no matter his spiritual credentials, change God’s personal instructions to you. Don’t let Satan deceive you through sinful thoughts, negative influence from peers, authority figures, loved ones and relations, and the love of the world, to disobey God.
Colossians 2:8 says, “Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ” (New King James Version). The apostle Paul says evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived (2 Timothy 3:13). Beware of Satan’s deception!
Many people are being deceived today not by those who do not profess to be Christians but by those who claim to be and call themselves ministers of God. Be careful! In the words of the apostle Paul, as the Spirit expressly said to him, in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, and having their own conscience seared with a hot iron (1 Timothy 4:1-2).
As we have seen earlier, Satan preached another message to Eve, different from the message God had delivered to Adam. She believed the lie of Satan and ate the forbidden fruit. Beware of his deception coming through anyone preaching a different gospel to you.
The apostle Paul warned the Corinthian Christians, “But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted — you may well put up with it!” (2 Corinthians 11:3-4 New King James Version).
He says such people will forbid others from marrying and command people to abstain from foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth (verse 3). Run from these agents of Satan. The Bible has warned you.
Don’t respect anyone’s words above what the Bible says. The apostle Peter and the other apostles told the Sanhedrin, the highest Jewish ruling body and court of justice in the day of Jesus Christ, they must obey God rather than human authority (Acts 5:29). Don’t let anyone use his ecclesiastical position to deceive you by his unscriptural interpretation of the scriptures!
With regard to the prophecies in the Bible, the apostle Peter says no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit ( 2 Peter 1:20-21).
2 Timothy 3:16-17 says, “All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. 17 God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work” (New Living Translation).
The apostle John says believers should not believe every spirit but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world (1 John 4:1). Be guided by the Holy Spirit, the spirit of truth; He will guide you into all truth (John 14:17; 15:26; 16:13). In addition, judge everything by the Word of God for His Word is truth (John 17:17).
Beware of Satan’s deception! Talking about the events that will precede the second coming of Jesus Christ, the apostle Paul says concerning “the lawless one” or “the man of lawlessness” (the Antichrist), “This man will come to do the work of Satan with counterfeit power and signs and miracles. He will use every kind of evil deception to fool those on their way to destruction, because they refuse to love and accept the truth that would save them. So God will cause them to be greatly deceived, and they will believe these lies. 12 Then they will be condemned for enjoying evil rather than believing the truth” (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 New Living Translation). Beware of unrighteous deception. Beware of Satan’s deception!
Beware of the world system! Don’t love the world. “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world — the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life — is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever” (1 John 2:15-17 New King James Version).
Judas Iscariot knew the implications of loving the world. He committed suicide after he had betrayed his Master for thirty pieces of silver (Mathew 27:3-5). I believe Demas, Paul’s fellow labourer, also knew the repercussion after he had forsaken Paul because he loved the world. He went to Thessalonica obviously to enjoy the world! (Colossians 4:14; 2 Timothy 4:10; Philemon 24).
Don’t love the world. James 4:4 says that friendship with the world is enmity with God and whoever wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Instead of loving the world, love God. And you love God by keeping His commandments which are not burdensome (1 John 5:3). Love is the fulfillment of the law; love satisfies all of God’s requirements (Romans 13:10). Love God and love fellow human beings. Beware of Satan’s deception!
TAKE ACTION!
If you are not born again, you need to give your life to Jesus now. I urge you to take the following steps: *Admit that you are a sinner and you cannot save yourself and repent of your sins. *Confess Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. *Renounce your past way of life – your relationship with the devil and his works. *Invite Jesus into your life. *As a mark of seriousness to mature in the faith, start attending a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church. There they will teach you how to grow in the Kingdom of God.
Kindly say this prayer now: O Lord God, I come unto You today. I know I am a sinner and I cannot save myself. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died on the cross to save me and God raised Him on the third day. I repent of my sins and confess Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. I surrender my life to Jesus now and invite Him into my heart. By this prayer, I know I am saved. Thank You, Jesus, for saving me and making me a child of God.
I believe you have said this prayer from your heart. Congratulations! You will need to join a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church in your area where they will teach you how to live your new life in Christ Jesus. I pray that you flourish like a palm tree and grow like a cedar of Lebanon. May you grow into Christ in all things and become all God wants you to be. I will be glad to hear from you. The Lord be with you.
PRAYER POINTS: Father, deliver me from Satan’s deception. Holy Spirit, help me to recognize Satan’s deception. I receive love for the truth. I shall not become a victim of false prophets and lying wonders. I reject unrighteous deception and strong delusion; I shall not believe the lie of Satan and his agents. I shall continue to believe the truth; I shall have no pleasure in unrighteousness in Jesus’ name.
(For over 800 in-depth and powerful messages by T.O. Banso, visit www.cedarministry.org).
T.O. Banso is the President of Cedar Ministry International, Abuja, Nigeria.
Phone No: +2348155744752, +2348033113523
WhatsApp No: +2349081295947
Email: cedarministryintl@yahoo.com,
cedarministryng@gmail.com
Website: www.cedarministry.org
