Tuesday, February 9, 2016

Scriptures that expose the devil's lies, part 2

This is the third in a series of posts about the deceptive techniques of the devil.  He routinely lies, deceiving people in order to lead them away from the Lord.  In my first post of this series, I identified 12 common lies which he tells over and over.  Last time, we debunked three of these lies.  Today, we will debunk three more.



The scriptures below are all from the NIV unless otherwise noted. 



Devil's lie #4.

God doesn't care.

Truth:  God cares very much about his children.  He invites us to cast our cares on Him because He cares for us.  He is attentive to our prayers and zealous for our salvation.  He cares so much, He fights for us, on our side. 

Scripture:
  • 1 Peter 5:7 ~ Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
  • Psalm 55:22 ~ Cast your cares on the Lord
        and he will sustain you;
    he will never let
        the righteous be shaken.
  • Psalm 34:15The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
        and his ears are attentive to their cry;
  • Isaiah 26:11 ~ Lord, your hand is lifted high,
        but they do not see it.
    Let them see your zeal for your people and be put to shame;
        let the fire reserved for your enemies consume them.
  • Exodus 14:14 ~ The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.
  • Psalm 20:7 ~ Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
        but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.
  • Psalm 33:16-22
    No king is saved by the size of his army;
        no warrior escapes by his great strength.  A horse is a vain hope for deliverance;
        despite all its great strength it cannot save. 
    But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him,
        on those whose hope is in his unfailing love, 
    to deliver them from death
        and keep them alive in famine. 
    We wait in hope for the Lord;
        he is our help and our shield. 
    In him our hearts rejoice,
        for we trust in his holy name. 
    May your unfailing love be with us, Lord,
        even as we put our hope in you.

Devil's lie #5.

God won't (or can't) help you.

Truth: God is for us, so who can stand against us?  He comes to the aid of His people.  Nothing is impossible for God.  God is sovereign, omnipotent, almighty, attentive and kind.  He has delivered His people from sin, and ultimately He will deliver us from eternal death.  God can and will help His people. 

Scripture:
  • Exodus 14:14 ~ The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.  (~worth repeating!)
  • Psalm 3:8 ~ From the Lord comes deliverance.
        May your blessing be on your people.
  • Psalm 18:2 ~ The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
  • Psalm 32:7 ~ You are my hiding place;
        you will protect me from trouble
        and surround me with songs of deliverance.
  • Psalm 34:7 ~ The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him,
        and he delivers them.
  • Romans 8:31 ~ What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
  • Romans 8:32 ~ He who did not spare his own Son, but gave Him up for us all—how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?
  • Matthew 19:26 ~ Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
  • Luke 1:37For nothing will be impossible with God.   (ESV)

Devil's lie #6.

There is nothing to look forward to.

Truth:  There is everything to look forward to.  Home in heaven.  Restoration of everything that is good.  The end of everything that is bad.  A new heaven and a new earth.  A perfect relationship with God.  Perfect relationships with all others who, like you, will also have been perfected in eternity.   Eternal life in paradise.

Scripture:
  • Zephaniah 3:20 ~ At that time I will gather you;
        at that time I will bring you home.
    I will give you honor and praise
        among all the peoples of the earth
    when I restore your fortunes
        before your very eyes,”
    says the Lord.
  • Psalm 16:11 ~ You make known to me the path of life;
        you will fill me with joy in your presence,
        with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
  • John 14:1-3 ~ Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me.  My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.
  • Romans 8:18-21 ~ I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.  For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed.  For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.
  • 1 Corinthians 15:51-53 ~ Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed—in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.  For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality.
  • 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 ~ For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.  So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
  • Philippians 3:20-21 ~ But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.
  • Colossians 3:4 ~ When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
  • 2 Timothy 4:8 ~ Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.
  • 1 John 3:2 ~ Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
  • Jude 24-25 ~ To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy—to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.
  • Revelation 21:1-4 ~ Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.  I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.  And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
  • Revelation 22:1-5 ~ Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.  No longer will there be any curse.  The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him.  They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.  There will be no more night.  They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light.  And they will reign for ever and ever.

2 comments:

Shawn said...

I think this is my favorite of your series.

Ruthie said...

Well thank you. I wasn't sure if anyone would read, since this is dense stuff, and kind of heavy. For me, it has been extremely helpful and fortifying. I guess whether people will dig through it depends on how badly they might need it. Me, I need it. So I'm just sharing along the way.