He posed a question at the beginning of the sermon, asking, "Have we underestimated satan?" It is a question that I believe has a resounding 'yes' for an answer. I recommend the sermon, which is unvarnished truth about satan, satanic schemes, and the demonic horde, combined with a look at the grace of Jesus. Meanwhile, here are some transcribed excerpts,
Paul wrote, "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 Timothy 4:1)
These doctrines of demons, Pastor Green said, are "not necessarily going to be fiery displays of evil, it will be things cloaked in things that sound palatable to the human ear, things that sound plausible. Things that give you the sense that you can work your way into heaven, or that ultimately God is going forgive everyone and no one will go to hell. Or perhaps that God isn’t as holy, or that you’re not as bad as the scripture says you to be. The vast diversity of evil that the devil propagates through so many different systems shouldn’t confuse us to the ultimate fact that there is a common root."
Pastor Green made the point that there are only two sides. There is the Spirit of truth, and the father of lies. There is no in between. He said, "Satan is the father of every lie that opposes the Gospel. He is a liar and the father of lies."
You know that if someone is not from God, they are of the devil. Truth is not relative. Biblical truth is either/or. (Mark 9:40).
Pastor Green explained,
When we see false doctrine being taught, we need to understand there is more going on than a man who is mistaken. There is a spiritual force at work whether the man is aware of it or not. Men become the mouthpiece of the deceiver of souls. What should frighten us is that satan has the supernatural capacity to make himself look like, to present himself as one who is bringing light, not darkness.
In my never-ending quest to starkly illustrate the truth of the bible's words, and that it is the same evil behind all that opposes God, no matter how 'gentle' it first appears, here are a series f paired photographs.
The same evil that spurred Charles Manson to become a cult leader and a murderer is behind the Pope, too, who is also a cult leader and a murderer of truth and souls, creating sons of hell. (Matthew 23:15)
The same evil that whispered to Hitler to roast Jews in ovens
is behind the Catholic Mother Teresa, whose refusal to share the Gospel sent many to roasting in hell forever, and who said, "There are so many religions and each one has its different ways of following God. I follow Christ".
The same evil that is behind Timothy McVeigh and his bombing of the Murrah building in Oklahoma City, killing children in the daycare there along with many others,
is behind Joel Osteen, whose doctrines of demons delude millions every week. Many wither on his vine and die weekly
Too awful to contemplate? Yes, it is. The murderous, unsaved men such as Manson, Hitler and McVeigh are children of the father of lies and it is the same spirit that popes, preachers, and religious workers in false religions serve, too. When they die, unless they repent, they all will go to the place where the father of lies is prepared for, hell. Popes, "Mother" Teresa, and Joel Osteen all present themselves as workers of light, but they are in fact all darkness and their evil deeds are the same as the aforementioned men in the murderous category. They all have a common root. Satan.
Here is another either/or:
Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life." (Galatians 6:7-8)
The good news is that satan has been vanquished by our holy and wonderful Jesus. Jesus came to live as a man for 33 years, teaching and preaching for the last three. he was unjustly killed, shedding His blood for sinners, and exhausted God's wrath for us. Please with His Son's sacrifice, Jesus was raised from the dead by the power of God on the third day, and has ascended to the father. Jesus will return in glory to judge the living and the dead.
I'll paraphrase what Pastor green said about the urgency of the message. I don't know if you will be here tomorrow to read these things on this blog or any other blog. I don't know if I'll be here tomorrow to repeat them. Your eternal soul is at stake. Please take this seriously. Satan is real, he is a devourer of souls, and if you're not in Christ at this moment, you're blinded to the fact that you're standing on a gossamer web hanging over hell. Your foot shall slide in due time, and your fate will be sealed. Come to Christ now,
"And working together with Him, we also urge you not to receive the grace of God in vain-- for He says, "AT THE ACCEPTABLE TIME I LISTENED TO YOU, AND ON THE DAY OF SALVATION I HELPED YOU." Behold, now is "THE ACCEPTABLE TIME," behold, now is "THE DAY OF SALVATION." (2 Corinthians 6:1-2)
