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There’s an old saying, “If you don’t stand for something you will fall for anything!” This is especially true when it comes to your faith. And if you don’t KNOW what you stand for, you will find yourself being deceived and led down the wrong path. You MUST know what you believe…and you MUST stand firm on it.
There is a scripture found in the book of James (1:6) and it talks about faith and the second part of that scripture says, “…for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.” When I think of that scripture, I usually think of how unstable the lives of many people are. They seem to be bounced around and controlled by every circumstance that comes their way…their lives are battered and beaten by every little “wind” that comes along. You see this when people are swayed by what they hear or what they see or what somebody else tells them instead of studying and examining to find out truth for themselves. Their faith is baseless and they are apt to change with whatever stance is popular at any given time. It’s sad to live this way, and that kind of person will be the very ones who will be deceived and led down the path of destruction by the Satan…just like Eve was.
We are warned many times in scripture about false prophets and false teachers during the last days, and we are told to watch for them and to beware of them.
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.” (Matthew 7:15)
“Now I urge you, brethren, note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them. For those who are such do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly, and by smooth words and flattering speech deceive the hearts of the simple.” (Romans 16:17-18)
“Beloved, do 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)
“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.” (2 Timothy 4:3-4)
It is a fact that you cannot believe everything you hear…even on Christian TV! Just because a message or song or prophecy comes from someone who calls themselves “Christian” does not mean it is real. If it does not line up with the Word of God and the Character of God, you need to turn away from that untruth. The only foolproof way to be able to recognize false doctrines or false messages is to be very familiar with the Truth. God’s Word is Truth!
I once checked a book out in a church library because I was looking for something interesting to read, and this book had a very intriguing title…something about conversations with God. I had been seeking the Lord at the time about learning to listen to Him more intently and trying to learn to hear His instructions more clearly, so I thought this book would help me to know how to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit. When I got the book home, I curled up with a cup of coffee and was looking forward to reading this new book that I had borrowed. But as I began to read, something about the book just would not settle right with my spirit. It seemed the more I tried to read it, the more foreign it sounded to me and I just couldn’t grasp what it was trying to say. Finally I realized why…there was nothing Biblical about this book, and it was full of New Age teachings and principals that sounded very close to the truth. But because I was familiar with the truth and I believed all of God’s Word with all my heart, my spirit would not receive this teaching that was based on a lie. We MUST know the TRUTH in order to protect our spirits, especially in these last days when Satan is pulling out all stops with his lies and compromise.
Even in many churches today, you go there and the whole service revolves around a good feeling message with lots of worship choruses and lots of talk about good things, but Friends, if that church does not tell you about sin, and Jesus Christ and the price of death that He paid on the cross to forgive us of our sins…if it leaves out the Cross and the Blood sacrifice of Christ, then that church is not telling you the truth, it does not line up with God’s Word and the best thing you can do is to get out of there and find another church that is teaching and preaching the Truth. But to know this, you must also know the Truth for yourself!
I believe the very method that the False Prophet, spoken of in the book of Revelation, will use to convince the masses of people of his lies will be through compromise. He will not come out in the beginning and call the Bible a lie, but he will mix scripture with some things that sound spiritual such as peace, joy, love and unity, and people will follow him by the droves because of his “fluffy” messages. He will begin to cause people to question the Word of God and compromise with God just like the serpent did with Eve in the Garden of Eden. You remember the story:
“Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”
And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’”
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 3:1-4)
And as Mathew 24:24 tells us, he will show great signs and wonders and will deceive even the very elect if it were possible. Friends, if you do not KNOW the Word of God and if you are not certain about where you stand, you too will be deceived by the Enemy of your soul. It’s very vital to study what you believe in and be very sure of it.
Now I realize that there may be parts of the Bible that you don’t understand or even that don’t seem possible. I tell people all the time that I don’t know how a man can be swallowed by a big fish and remain in the fish’s stomach for 3 days and 3 nights, but God’s Word says it happened, therefore I believe it is true. I have no doubt! When the Bible says a man named Moses led about 2,000,000 people through the Red Sea on dry land, I believe it happened just exactly like God’s Word says it did. And in the same way, I don’t understand how the God of the Universe could love a horrible sinner like me so much that He gave His only begotten Son to die on the cruel cross of Calvary to pay the penalty for my sins. I don’t understand it, but by faith I believe it is true…in fact I have staked my eternity on that fact. And in these end times, you need to make a decision that you either believe every word of God or you don’t…and stand on it. That means you need to spend time studying it and learning it and trusting every word of it.
Prayer:
Father, we need something solid and unchanging to hold on to when the storms of life assail us and threaten to beat us down…and Your Word Lord, has never changed…it is absolute Truth and I can rely on it always. Help me Lord to learn Your Word, to stand on Your Word and to never doubt the validity of Your Word in my Heart. Help me to teach and preach Your Word with absolute authority, knowing that You will do everything You say You will do and I can depend on it always. Thank You Father that Jesus came as Your Word, to show us Who You are and what Your heart is like. Thank You always for Your Word Father. I praise You…in Jesus’ Name…Amen.
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