August 26, 2005

• Just so you know, we will be traveling to Akron, Ohio on Sunday and returning late on Tuesday, this is for my husband’s job. We are bringing all the kids and have a short time to look around, open to any ideas. So far we are thinking of the aerospace museum as that should appeal to teenage boys.

  
  

  Back to the Bible study on the nature of evil.

  
  

  See the previous entry for part one.

  
  

  Genesis 3:1 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?’

  
  

  Satan is always on the prowl on earth to shed doubt in the minds of believers.

  
  

  Genesis 3:2-5 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of 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 net 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.”

  
  

  Satan used the same thing that took satan down from heaven (being like God) to take down Adam and Eve. He offered this to man as a temptation.

  
  

  Man then had the choice, take God’s possibility or take satan’s possibility.

  
  

  This is the basic root of evil, make yourself God in your decision and you will be evil like satan.

  
  

  Isaiah 14:13 For you have said in your heart; I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation on the farthest sides of the north.

  
  

  This is the order in which sin occurs: Pride, Arrogance, Jealousy, Rebellion.

  
  

  You make a prideful decision, which leads to arrogance that you are better than everyone, and you are jealous of what God is, and desire to be what He is, and that leads to rebellion against the very source . You are so arrogant that you only hear what your pride wants you to hear.

  
  

  Pride leads you to want to destroy the source that is greater than you.

  
  

  Lucifer could sell this possibility to 1/3 of the angels, who were cast out of heaven for listening to him.

  
  

  The rebellious angels are in a worst position than us, for they have seen God. Jesus said in John 20 that blessed are those who haven’t seen, but believe.

  
  

  Getting us to a point of self-deception is what satan does the best.

  
  

  Isaiah 14: 15-20 Yet  you shall be brought down to Sheol, to the lowest depths of the Pit. Those who see you will gaze at you, and consider you, saying: ‘Is this the man who made the earth tremble, who shook kingdoms, who made the world as a wilderness and destroyed its cities, who did not open the house of his prisoners? All the kings of the nations, all of them, sleep in glory, everyone in his own house; but you are cast out of your grave like an abominable branch, like the garment of those who are slain, thrust through with a sword, who go down to the stones of the pit, like a corpse trodden underfoot. You will not be joined with them in burial, because you have destroyed your land and slain your people. The brood of evildoers shall never be named.

  
  

  Satan, knowing where he is going, will do his utmost to tempt you with anything, drugs, money, power to bring you down, so that you too will be brought to the pit, to suffer with him.

  
  

  Isaiah 14:21Prepare slaughter for his children because of the iniquity of their fathers, lest they rise up and possess the land, and fill the face of the world with cities.

  
  

  Often people think that God is not nice when he puts a stop to evil, but the truth is that if evil is not stopped totally, it will take over the world.

  
  

  Isaiah 14:22-23 “For I will rise up against them,” says the Lord of hosts, “And cut off from Babylon the name and remnant; and offspring and posterity,” says the Lord. “I will also make it a possession for the porcupine, and marshes of muddy water, I will sweep it with the broom of destruction,” says the Lord of Hosts.

  
  

  This is what is happening now, Bablyon is swept with destruction.

  
  

  Isaiah 14:24 The Lord of hosts has sworn, saying, “Surely, as I have thought, so it shall come to pass. And as I have purposed, so it shall stand:”

  
  

  Purposes, God thought a thought and thought that thought is a in a purposeful manner. Some daydreams are God’s thoughts passing through our minds, and God wants you to give purpose to it.

  
  

  Isaiah 14: 25-27 That I will break the Assyrian in My land, and on My mountains tread him underfoot. Then his yoke shall be removed from them, and his burden removed from their shoulders. This is the purpose that is purposed against the whole earth, and this is the hand that is stretched out over all the nations. For the Lord of hosts has purposed, and who will annul it? His hand is stretched out, and who will turn it back?”

  
  

  To conquer evil and see it, purpose to release your faith to conquer evil.

  
  

  Lover comes from free will, satan does not give free will. We have free will to praise God, satan gets us to use our free will for pride, arrogance, jealousy and rebellion. Satan will make the offer seem attractive initially, but in the end you will be in bondage.

  
  

  Adam was cast out of the garden.
  God knows the deceiver is so good he can deceive us in one area, even though we cannot be deceived in another. What we must do is be so immersed in the Word of God, that we only believe on the One who is sent by God.

  
  

  God’s covenant, and the 10 commandments, and sacrifice were to hold us until the One sent by God comes (Jesus). We are not to worship any other god.

  
  

  Dealing with evil isn’t as hard as we make it out. We sometimes get so distracted with our eyes, that we don’t take the time to think about what we are looking at.

  
  

  
  Mercy and Grace of God allows us to realize from the scriptures what is evil and deception. We must never violate one New Testament principle, to know that the Father loves us.

  
  

  Pastor Don said that we would be looking more at the nature of evil in future Bible studies. Hope this has helped in discernment of the wiles of satan.

  
  

  Have a great weekend.

  
  

  Heather

  
  

   

  
  

   

  • 6:56 pm
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