Speaker: Deception

Matthew 24:4 | TPT (4) Jesus answered, “At that time deception will run rampant. So, beware that you are not fooled!

Deception – to convince someone that something is true and valid when it is actually untrue and invalid.

Deception is not just one of the ways that the enemy can bring the effects of the curse into your life. It is the only way.

Main Point – If Satan cannot deceive you, he cannot defeat you.

Luke 22:40 | NKJV (40) When He came to the place, He said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.”

Luke 22:46 | NKJV (46) Then He said to them, “Why do you sleep? Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation.”

Notice that Jesus said that a failure to pray could lead to temptation.

God is never the tempter.

James 1:13-16 | TPT (13) When you are tempted don’t ever say, “God is tempting me,” for God is incapable of being tempted by evil and he is never the source of temptation. (14) Instead it is each person’s own desires and thoughts that drag them into evil and lure them away into darkness. (15) Evil desires give birth to evil actions. And when sin is fully mature it can murder you! (16) So my friends, don’t be fooled by your own desires!

Satan cannot force you into temptation.

Satan cannot draw you into temptation unless he can deceive you.

He has to deceive you into choosing to enter into the temptation by your own will.

We can safely render Luke 22:46 as follows: “Rise and pray, lest you enter into deception.”

Prayerlessness in a believer’s life is one way that deception can come in and cause us to falter.

Prayer has the power to close the door on every form of deception Satan tries to promote in your life.

When Jesus walked the earth, He revealed the truth.

After He was raised from the dead and ascended into Heaven, He sent the Holy Spirit to be the revealer of truth.

John 16:13 | NKJV (13) However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.

John 14:26 | NKJV (26) But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.

If you are lacking truth in some area or don’t understand a certain passage of scripture, the Holy Spirit’s ministry is to bring the Word of God to your remembrance and reveal the meaning of scriptures that you don’t understand.

Remember, the more truth that you have in an area, the less vulnerable you are to deception in that area. 

Prayer is the way that you access this ministry of the Holy Spirit. It is the way you receive revelation of the truth – truth by which you recognize deception and choose not to enter into it.

Satan will see to it that tests, trials, and temptations come, but the proper application of the power of prayer in your life will keep you from being deceived.

How do you pray for this revelation knowledge?

1 Corinthians 2:6-8 | TPT (6) However, there is a wisdom that we continually speak of when we are among the spiritually mature. It’s wisdom that didn’t originate in this present age, nor did it come from the rulers of this age who are in the process of being dethroned. (7) Instead, we continually speak of this wonderful wisdom that comes from God, hidden before now in a mystery. It is his secret plan, destined before the ages, to bring us into glory. (8) None of the rulers of this present world order understood it, for if they had, they never would have crucified the Lord of shining glory.

The word mystery means something that is initially hidden from your natural or intellectual understanding.

1 Corinthians 2:9-10 | TPT (9) This is why the Scriptures say: Things never discovered or heard of before, things beyond our ability to imagine—these are the many things God has in store for all his lovers. (10) But God now unveils these profound realities to us by the Spirit. Yes, he has revealed to us his inmost heart and deepest mysteries through the Holy Spirit, who constantly explores all things.

God will also keep things about His plan for our lives a mystery for the same reason that He kept the plan of Redemption a mystery: To keep Satan and his team from being able to concentrate their efforts in trying to stop it from coming to pass.

1 Corinthians 2:10-13 | TPT (10) But God now unveils these profound realities to us by the Spirit. Yes, he has revealed to us his inmost heart and deepest mysteries through the Holy Spirit, who constantly explores all things. (11) After all, who can really see into a person’s heart and know his hidden impulses except for that person’s spirit? So it is with God. His thoughts and secrets are only fully understood by his Spirit, the Spirit of God. (12) For we did not receive the spirit of this world system but the Spirit of God, so that we might come to understand and experience all that grace has lavished upon us. (13) And we articulate these realities with the words imparted to us by the Spirit and not with the words taught by human wisdom. We join together Spirit-revealed truths with Spirit-revealed words.

1 Corinthians 2:13 | AMPC (13) And we are setting these truths forth in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the [Holy] Spirit, combining and interpreting spiritual truths with spiritual language [to those who possess the Holy Spirit].

Notice the reference here to those who possess the Holy Spirit meaning there were some in the Church who did not.

The word “possess” comes from the Greek which means, “embracing in all His fullness”.

1 Corinthians 2:13 | NLT (13) When we tell you these things, we do not use words that come from human wisdom. Instead, we speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit’s words to explain spiritual truths.

Of course, we know that we do not receive all of the Spirit when we are Born Again but there is the experience subsequent to the New Birth. (Acts 19:2-6; Acts 8:5,12,14-17)

Tongues are clearly the evidence that proves that you have received the Baptism of the Holy Spirit.

The key to avoiding deception is walking in revealed truth and the level of revealed truth you walk in is a function of having the fullness of the Holy Spirit’s operation in your life. 

His ministry is to reveal to you the things that God has prepared for you. You cannot know them without Him because it is a mystery to your natural mind.

1 Corinthians 14:2 | NKJV (2) For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries.

According to the Bible, when you pray in tongues, you speak the mysteries of God that are hidden from your natural understanding. One of those mysteries is God’s plan and purpose for your life.

When you pray in tongues you may be talking with God about the wonderful things that He has prepared for you.

If you are praying in other tongues and your understanding is unfruitful, then how can you know the plans God has made for you?

1 Corinthians 14:13-14 | NKJV (13) Therefore let him who speaks in a tongue pray that he may interpret. (14) For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful.

Your understanding does not have to be unfruitful.

If you will just ask for the interpretation when you pray in tongues, He can reveal it to you without revealing it to the enemy.

When you spend time praying in other tongues (praying in the spirit), you are allowing the Holy Spirit to bring insight, and revelation of truth into your life.

Remember, the more of God’s truth that you have in your life, the less you are susceptible to the deceptions that Satan tries to bring into your life.

If Satan cannot deceive you, he cannot defeat you!!

Matthew 24:4 | TPT (4) Jesus answered, “At that time deception will run rampant. So beware that you are not fooled!

Deception is not just one of the ways that the enemy can bring the effects of the curse into your life. It is the only way.

Main Point – If Satan cannot deceive you, he cannot defeat you.

Deception – to convince someone that something is true and valid when it is actually untrue and invalid.

The Danger of the Second Word

Satan does not have to go through much effort to deceive someone who is not even born again because their minds are already darkened. (2 Cor. 4:4) There is no light or revelation in them because God’s Spirit does not live in them.

But how does he work in the life of a believer that is hearing the Word of God? How does he endeavor to affect the decisions that a believer is making who is consistently exposed to the truth of the Word of God?

Ephesians 4:17-18 | TPT (17) So with the wisdom given to me from the Lord I say: You should not live like the unbelievers around you who walk in their empty delusions. (18) Their corrupted logic has been clouded because their hearts are so far from God—their blinded understanding and deep-seated moral darkness keeps them from the true knowledge of God.

When someone is hearing the Word of God, the only way that Satan can have any influence on the decisions of that person is to bring a second word.

This second word in a way that is deceptive or subtle enough to get you to buy in and believe the second word over the first Word from God.

In the Beginning…

God brought the first Word to Adam and Eve:

Genesis 2:15-17 | NLT (15) The LORD God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to tend and watch over it. (16) But the LORD God warned him, “You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the garden (17) –except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die.”

Genesis 3:1-6 | NLT (1) The serpent was the shrewdest (KJV “cunning” – characterized by wiliness and trickery) of all the wild animals the LORD God had made. One day he asked the woman, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?” (2) “Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,” the woman replied. (3) “It’s only the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat. God said, ‘You must not eat it or even touch it; if you do, you will die.’” (4) “You won’t die!” the serpent replied to the woman. (5) “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.” (6) The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too.

Satan manages to bring a second word that is subtle and cunning to produce the deception to Adam and Eve.

There are some earmarks that will be consistent with the second word when the enemy brings it to you:

1. The second word always begins with a question.

Genesis 3:1 | NLT (1) The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the LORD God had made. One day he asked the woman, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?”

To the extent that you truly know what God has said, you are vulnerable to the question marks that the second word will bring to you.

Eve misquoted what God said because it was a little fuzzy in Eve’s mind as she really was not sure what God had said (reflection on Adam).

Genesis 3:2-3 | NLT (2) “Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,” the woman replied. (3) “It’s only the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat. God said, ‘You must not eat it or even touch it; if you do, you will die.’”

2. With the second word, there will always be a direct contradiction.

Genesis 3:4 | NLT (4) “You won’t die!” the serpent replied to the woman.

Along with the contradiction, it very often will be accompanied by a direct shot at the character of God.

Genesis 3:5 | NLT (5) “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.”

3. The second word always appeals to the flesh.

Genesis 3:6 | NLT (6) The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too.

The second word will always cost you dearly in life. 

When Adam and Eve gave in to the second word that Satan gave them, it cost them everything.

Most likely Satan is not going to come to you through a serpent. You are probably too smart for that and would not give in to that. He can and will use people to bring you a second word and it might even come from people that you esteem or respect. But just because you respect someone does not always mean they are right. They are human too, as we all are.

What is the defense against the second word?

1. Know beyond any shadow of doubt what the written Word of God has said for yourself. You must be grounded in the Word of God.
2. God never deals in second words. He always has the best idea the first time.
3. God always comes to you with a conviction and a knowing in your heart.

Romans 8:16 | ERV (16) And the Spirit himself speaks to our spirits and makes us sure that we are God’s children.

4. Confess and believe in your heart that you know, hear, and follow the voice of your Shepherd.

John 10:3-4 | TPT (3) …And the sheep recognize the voice of the true Shepherd, for he calls his own by name and leads them out, for they belong to him. (4) And when he has brought out all his sheep, he walks ahead of them and they will follow him, for they are familiar with his voice.

Deuteronomy 30:19-20 | NKJV (19) I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live; (20) that you may love the LORD your God, that you may obey His voice, and that you may cling to Him, for He is your life and the length of your days; and that you may dwell in the land which the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them.”

The overall quality of our lives today is largely based on the decisions that we made in the course of our lives yesterday. 

God is always endeavoring to move in our lives to help us to make the right decisions that will allow His blessing and His life to be our life experience. 

Deception is not just one of the ways that the enemy can bring the effects of the curse into your life. It is the only way. 

Main Point – If Satan cannot deceive you, he cannot defeat you. 

Deception – to convince someone that something is true and valid when it is actually untrue and invalid.

Matthew 24:4 | NKJV (4) And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you.

Matthew 24:4 | TPT (4) Jesus answered, “At that time deception will run rampant. So beware that you are not fooled!

Self-Deception

Two ways one can become self-deceived:

1. By being lifted up in pride.

1 Corinthians 3:18 | NKJV (18) Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise.

Galatians 6:3 | NKJV (3) For if anyone thinks himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.

The remedy for this is to humble yourself.

1 Peter 5:5-6 | NKJV (5) Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for “GOD RESISTS THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE.” (6) Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time,

2. By not being a doer of the Word of God.

James 1:22 | NKJV (22) But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.

Every time you and I hear a portion of scripture and receive the revelation of it and fail to do it, we leave a door wide open to deception. Actually, Satan doesn’t even have to be the agent of that deception, you deceive yourself. 

Four reasons that some are not doers of God’s Word: 

1. The lust of the flesh. 

This does not necessarily have a sexual connotation but rather is a strong desire of our flesh that is contrary to the Word of God.

Mark 4:18-19 | NKJV (18) Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, (19) and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.

Un-forgiveness and selfishness are examples of lust of our flesh that we have a tendency to want to hold on to and they will block us from hearing and doing the Word.

2. Fear of what others will think about them.

This has many from receiving the powerful truths of God’s Word such as the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, or healing or even God’s provision in prosperity.

People in their desire to be accepted will not act on these truths for fear of being mocked or rejected.

3. Simple procrastination – “I will do that tomorrow”.

When we fail to be doers of the Word of God our conscience will bother us. To silence what, we will reason with ourselves that we will do that later and open the door for seeds of destruction to be planted in our life.

4. Not keeping before us what we “see” in the Word.

James 1:23-25 NKJV (23) For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; (24) for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. (25) But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.

We simply forget (put out of mind) the truths that we see and hear and thus let them slip and never do them.

How do I become a doer of the Word?

1. Make the simple decision that you want to be a doer of the Word.
2. There is a principle in the Word of God that is: the power of the Word of God is available to help you do it.

Hebrews 4:12 | NKJV (12) For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

3. Believe that the power to do the Word is present.

4. Keep the Word before you and in your mouth.

Joshua 1:8 | AMPC (8) This Book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe and do according to all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall deal wisely and have good success.