Dear friends, do not believe everyone who claims to speak by the Spirit. You must test them to see if the spirit they have comes from God. For there are many false prophets in the world. This is how we know if they have the Spirit of God: If a person claiming to be a prophet acknowledges that Jesus Christ came in a real body, that person has the Spirit of God. But if someone claims to be a prophet and does not acknowledge the truth about Jesus, that person is not from God. Such a person has the spirit of the Antichrist, which you heard is coming into the world and indeed is already here.” 1 John 4:1-3 NLT
Not everyone who claims to know the Lord does. There are plenty of strange and false spirits that speak "things of God". I have sat and watched some on television. They say things like "call now and order your special bottle of holy water." Nonsense!! Often, people will flock to a location to receive a "special touch". My brothers and sisters, let me be so bold as to say that the Lord Jesus can reach you where you are. You don't have to order "special" things or go to special places". Jesus forewarned us about deceivers who would draw men to themselves. “for many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah.’ They will deceive many.” Matthew 24:5 NLT “And many false prophets will appear and will deceive many people.” Matthew 24:11 NLT “For false messiahs and false prophets will rise up and perform great signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even God’s chosen ones.” Matthew 24:24 NLT (See also Mark 13:6 and 22). Paul warned the Romans in this manner: “And now I make one more appeal, my dear brothers and sisters. Watch out for people who cause divisions and upset people’s faith by teaching things contrary to what you have been taught. Stay away from them. Such people are not serving Christ our Lord; they are serving their own personal interests. By smooth talk and glowing words they deceive innocent people.” Romans 16:17-18 NLT He further warns Timothy, the young protege pastor, with these words: “But evil people and impostors will flourish. They will deceive others and will themselves be deceived.” 2 Timothy 3:13 NLT Satan is the father of deception. He is, himself, deceived. Genesis 3:1 says that Satan embodied the serpent and presented himself to Eve as a deceiver. “Now the serpent was more crafty (subtle, skilled in deceit) than any living creature of the field which the LORD God had made. And the serpent (Satan) said to the woman, “Can it really be that God has said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?” GENESIS 3:1 AMP In Isaiah 14:12-14 we read of his fall from heaven, where he once served God as the chief angel. Rebellion filled his heart and he made a free will decision to try to take the throne of God. His attempted overthrow failed (obviously). In Ezekiel 28 we read that Satan was cast out of heaven because of sinful pride. Since his fall, he attempts to taint the truth in order to mislead people. His goal is to steal, kill, and destroy (see John 10:10). The one foundational truth that Satan attempts to distort is the incarnation and Lordship of Jesus Christ. Jesus was God in a human body (Colossians 2:9) and was born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14 and Matthew 1:23). He lived a sinless life (2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 4:15) and died for our sins (John 3:16-18; Romans 5:6-8). The devil knows the only way to stop the truth is to water it down and compromise its absolute clarity. We MUST preach Jesus, His Divinity, and His Superiority to all. He is the hope of the world!!! He precedes all others in His priority. He exceeds all others in His Superiority, and succeeds all others in His Finality. I am convinced in who He is. I am honored to preach Him crucified, dead, buried, and risen again. Jesus is Lord!!
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![]() Rev. Curtis Norris Archives
March 2020
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