Sneaky Demons

“That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.” — 2 Thessalonians 2:2

One part of that sentence doesn’t get a lot of attention. Paul reveals that someone might write a letter to the church as if from him. Imagine that! And we thought that emails and texts pretending to be legit were a recent phenomenon. The Early Church had to sort through many false letters when determining what to include in the Bible. Paul revealed in person and by letters what God wanted the churches to know. But he was likely warned by the Holy Spirit that people would attempt to deceive them. Few people would go through the bother in that period to do such a thing. Parchment was scarce and expensive, and sending it was costly. They were on a mission influenced by Satan. The goal was to discourage the Believers, cause division, and hinder Paul’s ministry.

When Nehemiah was restoring Jerusalem’s walls, Sanballat, his enemy, tried to discourage him with messages. In Sanballat’s fifth message, he falsely claimed there were rumors Nehemiah was building the wall so that he could become the king of Jerusalem.

Nehemiah replied,

“Then I sent to him, saying, ‘No such things as you say are being done, but you invent them in your own heart.’

“For they all were trying to make us afraid, saying, ‘Their hands will be weakened in the work, and it will not be done.’

“Now therefore, O God, strengthen my hands.” — Nehemiah 6:8-9

Social Media is fraught with people using fake accounts. I have heard about hackers mimicking someone’s page/account to send messages to their friends. More scurrilous is when the message contains vulgarity. People may unwittingly blame the page/account holder. Individuals use private messaging to “expose” people as evil. I cannot imagine God using a virtual gossip chain to expose an imposter when the Holy Spirit does that well. They design ads and pop-ups to lure people into sharing private information. Let’s not forget email, junk mail in our PO Box, and phone calls from people you don’t know and probably should not know. They are saying, “Pay attention to me—communicate with me.” You have something they want, and making contact is their initial step to get it.

The church at Thessalonica had something that Satan wanted—their souls. The same sneaky demons are working through people today. They claim, “God said,” and then put forth their spiel to snare souls. When people pretend, by any means, to be someone they are not, the motive is always to deceive.

It is an unbelievable, mixed-up world that will get worse. We do not need letters or emails to recognize that fact. Luke recorded a prophecy by Christ regarding the last days. I often think about it, and I wonder how weak Believers will survive.

“You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relatives and friends; and they will put some of you to death. And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake.” — Luke 21:16-17

“And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household.” — Matthew 10:36

Christ quotes Micah in the latter verse.

“Trust ye not in a friend, put ye not confidence in a guide: keep the doors of thy mouth from her that lieth in thy bosom. For the son dishonoureth the father, the daughter riseth up against her mother, the daughter in law against her mother in law; a man’s enemies are the men of his own house.” — Micah 7:5-6

Christ also said, “All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for it is written: ‘I will strike the Shepherd, And the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’” — Matthew 26:31

If the sheep scattered when they struck the Shepherd, how will they not scatter when they strike the Body of Christ? The time will come when the only way we will know who to trust is by the Holy Spirit. We cannot know Him more and clearer if we do not make the changes and effort to do so. Not to hear Him leaves a vacancy in our souls that sneaky demons are eager to fill. Influential people are speaking and writing to promote the comfort of apathy. It is what sells in the Christian marketplace. The demonically channeled book, “Jesus Calling,” sold over 30 million copies. The heretical “Purpose Driven Church” book sold about the same. What shall we say about those famous speakers and writers pretending to have exclusive messages from God? In a time when there needs to be a great awakening, impostors are busy soothing people’s fears and putting them back to apathetic sleep. God’s people must mark and avoid them. He has already given us what we need to know. If we should need to know anything further, the Holy Spirit will reveal it to us.

Professing Christians should cease sleepwalking or stumbling toward the finish line. Not only is the present a dangerous spiritual atmosphere, but the future will become increasingly worse. Many professing Christians accept that prospect but believe that God will shield them from suffering. American Christians do not have a special exemption from suffering. The

Apostle Paul wrote,

“The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.” — Romans 8:16-18

The Apostle Peter wrote,

“Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy.” ––1 Peter 4:12-13

Clever deceivers lure and shield professing Christians from that truth. Whether by deception or distraction, satanic minions will deceive many people into a the sleep of apathy and complacency. We must make certain Christ left the “footprints” we are following. God will order their steps of people who desire to follow Him.