“And I will keep on doing what I am doing in order to cut the ground from under those who want an opportunity to be considered equal with us in the things they boast about. For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve” (2 Corinthians 11:12-15).
Everything I have ever received from the Lord, including everything Jesus said the night He appeared to me, came straight from scripture. In fact, one of the many incredible qualities that captivated me about the Lord was that He was (is) the Word. However, I fear that many of my fellow Christians may be entertaining demons, whether knowingly or unknowingly, because they come to them as angels of light, with tidings that tickle their ears. But the Bible is a done deal; this cannot be stressed enough! Grave consequences await those who add to, or take away from, the Word of God (Deuteronomy 4:2-4; Revelation 22:18-19). According to J. N. Darby, Satan is never more satanic than when he carries a Bible, and I tend to agree.
“And I will keep on doing what I am doing in order to cut the ground from under those who want an opportunity to be considered equal with us in the things they boast about. For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve” (2 Corinthians 11:12-15). The apostle Paul writes of false apostles, even then, who had never been commissioned by Christ. Instead, they assumed the office themselves, or had the office conferred on them by man, and we still see this sort of thing going on today. Whomever Paul had in mind, he characterized them as boastful, as deceitful workers; therefore, let us heed the apostle Peter’s warning: “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). I believe the false apostles here were Judaizers seeking financial benefit, but in whatever form it comes, Paul tells his readers not to be surprised to find falsehood disguised as righteousness.
It’s easy to stop at John 3:16 and and not consider Jesus’ complete thought there, or do the same regarding His teaching on judging in Matthew 7. It’s easy to read what we want in the Bible and allow our feelings to fill in the rest. I still find it interesting, and by no means coincidental, the apostle Paul closing chapter 14 of 1 Corinthians with a pretty bold declaration: “If anyone thinks they are a prophet or otherwise gifted by the Spirit, let them acknowledge that what I am writing to you is the Lord’s command” (37). It’s tempting to reach the end of that chapter picking and choosing what is desirable, and explaining away the undesirable, essentially, in order to do as we please; hello Deuteronomy 4:2-4; Revelation 22:18-19. No wonder Paul was so harsh in his admonishment of the false apostles he wrote about to the Corinthians. Living by the Spirit will put us at odds with the world, both inside and outside the church, but in any event, we can trust God even when things seem hopeless. “And Elisha prayed, ‘Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see.’ Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha” (2 Kings 6:17).
I know what it means to really want something to be true, desperately even; Satan doesn’t make it easy, but the Holy Spirit helps me in my weakness. I am not alone.
I also wanted to take this opportunity to share the video below. I love this women’s testimony. I believe THIS is how we change the world, not by protest and certainly not by sword, but by sharing the Good News. We have a job, and God has a job. Let us do ours and believe God to do His.
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