Monday, December 29, 2014

ZECHARIAH 10-12:

Zechariah speaks of the coming destruction of opposing kingdoms as well as God's care for his people through the coming Messiah.

And I will pour out on the house of David and inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication.  They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son. (12:10)

REVELATION 20:

Satan is bound and locked up for a thousand years.  Then those that were beheaded during the tribulation period are brought back to life and reign with Christ for a thousand years.  After the thousand years Satan is released and once more he roams the earth, gathers followers through deception and stages an attack on God's people.  He is finally defeated and thrown into the lake of burning sulfur with the beast and the false prophet.

And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown.  They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever. (20:10)

JOURNAL: 

Deception: beguilement, deceit, bluff, mystification and subterfuge are acts to propagate beliefs of things that are not true, or not the whole truth. Deception can involve dissimulation, propaganda, and sleight of hand, as well as distraction, camouflage, or concealment.

In all of the scriptures Satan's mode of operation is through deception. Using means to disguise truth into something that will lure people away from God and obedience. The lures of Satan will therefore never be things that are unpleasant or unnatractive.  They will mostly be things that are attractive and give a sense of pleasure and goodness.  

Sun Tzu, the great military tactician stated:

If you know your enemies and know yourself, you will not be imperiled in a hundred battles; if you do not know your enemies but do know yourself, you will win one and lose one; if you do not know your enemies nor yourself, you will be imperiled in every single battle.

I don't like thinking of the world or my life this way.  I don't want to believe that there is an enemy that wants my destruction...yet I must believe based on scripture that this is the the truth, and realize that my disdain for this truth is part of the deception.

On my own, out in the world, the probability for deception is great. It just makes sense that I be linked to the truth (God's word) always and together with other believers that will keep me honest and less likely to be lured to paths away from God.  

"God loves you! So do I! Make it a great day!