Have you ever wondered what it would have been like to sit and be taught by Christ in the flesh? How awesome it is that the Holy Spirit did as Jesus promised and brought to mind everything Jesus had taught them so they could pass those teachings to us in the New Testament!
On the other hand, what kind of teachings would we hear if, instead of Christ, a deceiver who had gotten his teachings straight from demons tried to pass him or herself off as a messenger of God? What kind of things would they teach as doctrine? Thankfully, the Lord, through the apostle Paul, told us how to recognize demonic deception when we hear it!

“Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared, who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer.” (1 Timothy 4:1-5 ESV)

Paul here says what is at stake if we are deceived. It constitutes “departing from the faith” and we must be on our guard to make sure we don’t let it happen to us or those we love. But how do we recognize such teachers? How do we discern that someone is a liar with a seared conscience? By what they teach as doctrine.
1. They teach abstaining from marriage. This can apply to two different types of teaching. First and foremost in the history of the church is the teaching of celibacy. While some choose to remain single, to bind upon those who would be elders (bishops) a requirement of celibacy flies in the face of the qualification listed in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1 that they be the husband of one wife and rule their households well.
But the other, contemporary application is those who teach that physical intimacy is permitted before marriage. They even recommend living together to see if couples are sexually compatible. By advising couples not to marry, they teach doctrine that Paul describes as demonic!
2. They teach that dietary laws are binding for today. Now please don’t misunderstand me. If you choose to follow a kosher, vegetarian or vegan diet for some health benefit, you are free to do so. You can even tell others how you think it is healthful to do so. But when anyone begins to advocate these dietary choices because it is a command of God, they have crossed over into the demonic. I know that sounds harsh, but don’t blame me. I’m not the one who wrote it!
In fact, these verses loose us from all dietary restrictions, as long as we receive the food with thanksgiving, because God has said we can eat it, and we have prayed over it. What more reason do we need to pray before meals? But remember this is for those who know the truth. A weak brother or sister that would be made to stumble is more important than exercising our rights to eat whatever we are served!

I would encourage you, if any of the demonic teachings described here sound like what you are being taught, to get out of there right away. Doctrines of demons are spiritually poisonous and lethal to your soul and your diet needs to change if you are to survive!

The First Sin

The Bible is clear that the first human being to sin was Eve, followed closely by her husband Adam. (By the way husbands, if you see your wife having a conversation with a snake, put a stop to it. But that’s a topic for another post.) Anyway, I was always taught that Adam and Eve committed the first sin. But I would like to ask you to reconsider that statement. We’re they really the first ones to sin? No!

You see, over in Isaiah chapter 14, God gave us a glimpse of the fall of the real first sinner, Satan.
“How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations! For you have said in your heart:
I will ascend into heaven,
I will exalt my throne above the stars of God;
I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north;
I will ascend above the heights of the clouds,
I will be like the Most High.
Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, To the lowest depths of the Pit.” (Isaiah 14:12-15 NKJV)

Lucifer was an angel created in perfection by Jehovah. The book of Ezekiel describes his this way:
“You were the anointed cherub who covers; I established you; You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked back and forth in the midst of fiery stones. You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created, Till iniquity was found in you.” (Ezekiel 28:14, 15 NKJV)

So what was the iniquity, or sin, that lucifer allowed to enter into his heart? Pride! Notice back in the Isaiah 14 passage the “I will” statements that were in his now-corrupted heart. Lucifer was no longer content to be in the presence of God and worship Him forever. He suddenly determined to decide for himself, to make his own rules, and to take for himself worship that belongs only to God!
Thus he fell and went from being the light bearer to being the slanderer and opposer of God. He also became the “accuser of the brethren” (Rev 12:10)
Not content to have fallen and taken 1/3 of the angels with him, he went to Eden and tempted Adam and Eve to commit this same sin. In pride that took the prerogative for themselves to determine right and wrong. They listened and heeded the lies of Satan, who told them that Jehovah God was holding out on them and didn’t have their best interests at heart.

While all of this is bad, how does it apply to us? Glad you asked!
When decide that we, as humans, are qualified to decide what is right and wrong, rather than to believe what God says on the matter, it is pride. And pride is spiritual poison! It is pride that keeps us from submitting to the lordship of Christ. It is pride that keeps us looking for specks in the eyes of others, when we have a plank in our own eyes. It was pride in their positions that kept most of the Pharisees and Saducees from recognizing the Messiah.

Pride is the sin that made a perfect angel into the Devil! As such, we must run from this lethal sin whenever we recognize it in ourselves. Because sin will cause us to lose the ability to admit our sin and repent.

Pride is deception’s welcome mat!

So let’s endeavor, with God’s help, to steer clear of pride. And run after our Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ.
“Instead of being motivated by selfish ambition or vanity, each of you should, in humility, be moved to treat one another as more important than yourself. Each of you should be concerned not only about your own interests, but about the interests of others as well. You should have the same attitude toward one another that Christ Jesus had, who though he existed in the form of God
did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped, but emptied himself by taking on the form of a slave, by looking like other men, and by sharing in human nature.
He humbled himself,by becoming obedient to the point of death – even death on a cross!
As a result God exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name,
so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow – in heaven and on earth and under the earth – and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord
to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:3-11 NET)