How can you defeat an enemy you can’t even identify?  What do you do if you’re fighting a war, and the enemy soldiers don’t wear uniforms, but they blend in so well with the civilian population, you don’t know who is the enemy and who isn’t?  That’s a major problem, isn’t it? You’re being deceived into thinking the enemy is not present.  Well, guess what? That’s exactly what our most powerful enemy, Satan, is doing to all of us.  You see, whether we realize it or not, we’re in a war with him for our soul, only he stays so well camouflaged we get duped into thinking there is no war at all.  That is, until we take a hit, and for some it’s fatal.
Many are in denial that there’s a war for our soul.  They say Jesus died to redeem us from our sins.  Well, that’s true, He did.  But the enemy tries to tell us, “There’s nothing to worry about, Jesus came to save you, so you can just live however you like and do whatever you like, you’ll be saved because after all, it is written in 2 Peter 3:9, “The LORD is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish….” And so the devil spouts his deception.  He even tried twisting the scriptures against Jesus.  Fortunately, Jesus didn’t fall for the devil’s lies.  But what about the REST of us?  Maybe we didn’t consider the part of the verse which the devil conveniently left out, which adds, “but that all come to repentance.”
The power of deception is very great, and very much at work today, just as it has been ever since the devil showed up in the Garden of Eden and deceived Eve.  You can read all about it in Genesis chapter three, and in fact you need to do so to get an idea how slick the devil is.  You may say,” He can’t deceive ME.” I wouldn’t bet on it if I were you. The devil is the father of lies and he’s had a long time to sharpen his skills, and if we think WE can’t be deceived, then we already ARE.
Consider this scenario, we’ll say someone puts an ad in the paper for a used washer that says, “For sale: used washer $40, you pick up, call 555-555-5555 for directions”. Sounds good, doesn’t it? Everyone likes a bargain, so you ask a few questions:  How old is it?  Well, I’m not sure, not very old.  How does it look?  It has a couple little scratches, but otherwise appears fine.  What brand is it?  Uh, there’s no brand showing, so I can’t tell you.  Ok, does it work?  Yes, it does exactly what it was designed to do.  Ok, I’ll give you $40 for it, where do I go to get it?  And he gives you the address.
So you arrive to buy your washer.  Only you find it’s a washer that you use with a bolt and nut!  Yet everything the seller told you was true.  He didn’t say it was a washing machine, he only advertised it as a used washer. You only ASSUMED it was a washing machine (your error).  And indeed, it is used.  It has a couple little scratches but otherwise appears fine.  There’s no name brand on it, and yes, it does what it was designed to do.  And you agreed to give $40 for it. Feel a bit deceived?  I would.  How can this happen to someone like YOU?  You’re pretty smart and savvy.  Well, it’s because you were deceived by the deceiver, and maybe by yourself as well.  Happens all the time, but should it?  No.
Another example; most every church denomination says, If you’re not in OUR denomination, you’re wrong, you’re lost, and you aren’t going to be in God’s Kingdom. Don’t think I’m crazy!  I’m right and you know it, unless you’ve never stepped foot in a church!  You see, the enemy has crept into their camp and spread his lies and the very members of the body of Christ have bought those lies hook, line, and sinker.  And yet, God has made the Holy Spirit available to all His children, if we will make use of Him.
All this strife among members of the body of Christ is the result of deception, and instead of acting like we’re all on the same team, we are constantly at war with one another.  My friends, it should not be so.  And yet, when I teach stuff like this, I get criticized for it, like people don’t really WANT to know the truth, and that they’re happy being deceived.
That’s one reason I teach so strongly on healing.  Nobody likes being sick, and yet many believe God made them sick.  And even though Jesus came to earth to represent His heavenly Father and HEALED the sick among the people where He was, and the scriptures clearly tell us we are (and were) healed by the stripes of Jesus.  They run to doctors in hopes of being cured of whatever ails them, yet the Word of God clearly states in Psalm 107:17-21,
Psa 107:17  Fools because of their transgression, and because of their iniquities, are afflicted.
Psa 107:18  Their soul abhorreth all manner of meat; and they draw near unto the gates of death.
Psa 107:19  Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saveth them out of their distresses.
Psa 107:20  He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.
Psa 107:21  Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!
God didn’t send the sickness!  The devil did.  God sent you the CURE, His Word.  He didn’t send the doctor, He didn’t send the pharmacy, He sent the Word.  And of course the devil says, You can’t be healed by just the Word of God, if you could, everyone would be well.  You got to go to the doctor and take your medicine. After all, God gave us doctors and hospitals and medicine to heal us. Is that right?
This I can tell you for sure.  God is true, and the devil is a liar, and they never switch places, so ask yourself, If I’m sick, what’s the cure?  Don’t take MY word for it, search the scriptures daily so you will know the truth.  I’m not trying to sell you MY version of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  I’m trying to make you open your eyes and read your Bible for yourself so you can enjoy the BENEFITS of being a child of God.  You know some of my favorite scriptures by now, they are Psalm 103:2-6.
Psa 103:2  Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:
Psa 103:3  Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;
Psa 103:4  Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;
Psa 103:5  Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
Psa 103:6  The LORD executeth righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed.
Benefits; we ALL love benefits, right?  Yet the devil is daily trying to deceive all of us into giving them up.  Now, if YOU’RE willing to give up YOUR benefits, all I can say is, Go for it. But as for me, I’m going to keep searching the Word of God until I’m living in every benefit that God has provided us.  I lived forty five years allowing the devil to deceive me, only I didn’t know I was being deceived.  As the light of the Word of God shined on my life revealing the schemes of the devil,  the Word showed me how the devil had been working all those years freely in my life bringing waste, ruin, and destruction.  Like everyone else, I was so deceived, that I not only didn’t know the truth,  I didn’t even want to hear the truth, and got mad at those who tried to tell me I was being suckered.
So when I get “unsubscribes” from those I’m trying to help get free from their oppression, I am saddened how they have been deceived  into thinking God’s Word is not sufficient for their needs.  God’s word is not “sufficient”, it’s “overwhelming”, but only if you believe and use it, enough said there.  The power of deception can and indeed WILL ruin your life, and indeed IS ruining your life if you are not taking an active stance to reject the devil’s lies.  You can get free, and right now, if you really want to. Don’t be deceived, you can’t be a part of the Kingdom of God while rejecting the truth.   Call upon the Lord Jesus to give you a hunger to study His Word.  His Word is truth, and often the Lord Jesus said, If any man have ears to hear, let him hear. Don’t fall for the power of deception.