It Starts Small

When we get it into our hearts, that the sole purpose of satan is to destroy us to get at God, we have to understand his tactics. Yesterday I wrote about how he attacks the character of God by lying about the love God has for us. Satan wants us to believe Gods doesn’t love us or want goodness, joy, peace, happiness or the desires of our heart to be given to us. God’s supreme and absolute truth reveals this lie.

#2 God is not truthful

1 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? 2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: 3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. 4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: Genesis 3:1-4

Satan: hath God? (Doubt that leads to denial)

Satan: ye shall not die (denial)

Satan got Eve to doubt. He got her to think negatively about what God had commanded. He got her to be a skeptic, Did God say…..

We believe in Satan’s lies in five distinctive ways:

1. Relativism: there is no absolute truth. We believe there is no absolute truth in the universe.

2. Subjectivism: through a feeling of peace. Satan has limited power to bring peace over making the wrong choices or decisions. It feels right, so it must be truth.

3. Rationalism: being logical and intellectual with a worldly knowledge vs using spiritual truth.

We must always remember, where reason cannot wade, faith must swim. What we believe is not contrary to reason, it is beyond reason. By all logical reasoning, this house should have sold within days of it being listed. God spoke over this place and said it would not sell. That is impossible by reasoning, intellect and logic. This is where faith comes into play. I have to believe his truth is absolute and go beyond the limitations of logic.

4. Pragmatism: which is always questioning does it work?

5. Post Modernism: there is no one absolute truth, all truth is truth. Unlike relativism, this says all religions truths, philosophies, are truth.

The devil does not want us to have a fixed standard of truth. He wants to mingle our lives with worldly truth so that when the affliction of fire comes we can justify our sinful response by the lies he speaks.

#3 God is not righteous

4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: Genesis 3:4

Can’t you just hear satan use a tone of sarcasm and a little chuckle. Satan’s third is to get us to believe that God will not punish sin. I read somewhere, law without penalty is just advice. Satan wants us to believe there is no external punishment for sin. God’s commands are merely advice.

It’s just a few sips of alcohol. It’s not going to hurt anyone or anything. Go ahead and get a little buzzy, it’ll give you five minutes of quiet. Doesn’t God want you to experience peace joy and happiness?

It’s ok to tell that lie. No one is going to know anyways and it doesn’t hurt anyone.

It’s ok to look at that woman and imagine being with her. You’re not actually physically with her, so it’s not adulatory. It’s ok to flirt with that guy, it’s harmless right?

It’s ok to steal that 20.00 off the ground that man dropped. He should be more careful with his money.

God will not let sin go unpunished. He is not fair, he is just. There is no secret thing you can hide from him.

For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light. Luke 8:17

The most dangerous lie we believe is that we are better sinners than other sinners. I’m not a rapist or murderer, so these little things, God will over look because at least I’m not like them. No, you’re worse than them because you know you’re sinning and you don’t care.

But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are they, selfwilled, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities. 2 Peter 2:10

Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression. Psalm 19:13

This type of behavior is described as the sin of presumption. The biblical definition of it is, those who obstinately cling to habitual sins and then claim that they will simply rely upon God’s mercy when they die. It is continually willfully sinning but not caring and saying at least I know I’m going to heaven. I don’t care about doing God’s works or his purpose in my life. I’m going to live for myself and do what I want. This is a very dangerous road to walk and it is settled in the lie that you believe from Satan that God is not going to punish you.

#4 God is not gracious

4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. Genesis 3:4-5

Satan: you need to be your own god. You can never be all you ought to be until you are your own.

Satan convinces Eve, that she will never have all she desires until she takes control over her own life. Satan got Eve to believe God didn’t want her to have this knowledge and understanding because it would make her like him. God was stealing her desire and withholding knowledge and understanding.

We are to be like God, NOT as God. Sin deceives. Those who are in the deepest sins know the least about it. Satan’s lies get us to deny the goodness, truthfulness, righteousness, faithfulness, and graciousness of God. He wants us to believe that only we know what is best for us and that is to do our own will and seek our own pleasures and desires. He puffs our pride up in believing that we know what is best for us, not God.

Are you still with me? Those are some pretty heavy slimy sinister tactics Satan uses. He’s not changed since the day he confronted Eve in the garden. He doesn’t need to. His lies have worked since that day.

So what can we do to combat this sinister minister? We can put Jesus on!