WORLD NEWS & PROPHECY
Are You Being
Manipulated? Few people are aware of the great unseen spiritual battle taking place throughout the world. Fewer still realize that the main battlefield is within their minds! by Mike Kelley
22 Beyond Today
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B Tm a g a z i n e . o r g
While many think the devil is a myth, he is very much a force to be reckoned with. Satan’s very name means adversary or enemy. He is at war with us and out to defeat us. He works invisibly to influence the thoughts and attitudes of billions of human beings. Most scoff at Satan’s influence Satan’s greatest weapon may be the fact that most people either don’t believe he exists or don’t believe he has a great impact on society. (If you doubt his existence and influence, download or request our study guide Is There Really a Devil? to learn more.) Your Bible reveals that Satan has throughout time been the author of confusion, hatred and all the evils that plague mankind. Every day he targets human minds with a coordinated attack on our understanding, thoughts and attitudes. A master of thought influence and control, he spiritually “broadcasts” his own influence while also working through influential people in society, with millions following their lead. To begin to understand his influence over mankind we must realize that this world, this modern society, is under his control for the time being. Your Bible describes Satan as the “prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience” and “the god of this age” (Ephesians 2:2; 2 Corinthians 4:4, emphasis added throughout). Invisible and undetected, Satan manipulates and controls much of mankind’s thinking.
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s Americans closed the books on a turbulent 2020, many hoped for a better 2021. But as things look early in the year, that doesn’t seem likely. All around us we see chaos, confusion, strife, animosity, hatred and violence. The nation seems to be spinning out of control, disrupting the lives of people who want nothing more than to live peacefully, enjoy their families and savor what good our lives have to offer. The chaos is nearly impossible to escape in our interconnected world. One would almost have to hide out in a cabin in the mountains to shut out the noise. But millions who’ve been told for a year to stay home and avoid outside human contact over Covid-19 concerns are hungry for contact with others and the outside world. Those stuck inside find TV, the Internet, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and other media their only companions in a world seemingly gone mad. Perhaps you’ve wondered, What’s really going on here? Is it just coincidence that America, the greatest nation on earth, is wracked by all this turmoil? Everything seemed normal until just recently. What, or who, is behind it all? The fact of the matter is that an extremely powerful instigator is stirring the chaos, confusion, hatred and division between peoples. He is a thoroughly evil spirit being who’s lived for eons—since before the world existed. The Bible refers to him as Satan and the devil, along with other descriptions.
