AVOIDING DECEPTION
AVOIDING DECEPTION
BY
SHARON DAUGHERTY
© Copyright 2005—Sharon Daugherty All rights reserved. This book is protected by the copyright laws of the United States of America. This book may not be copied or reprinted for commercial gain or profit. The use of short quotations or occasional page copying for personal or group study is permitted and encouraged. Permission will be granted upon request. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version of the Bible. All Scripture quotations marked AMP are taken from The Amplified Bible, New Testament, Copyright © 1958, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, California, or The Amplified Bible, Old Testament, Copyright © 1964, 1987 by Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids,Michigan. All Scripture quotations marked NASB are taken from the New American Standard Bible, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977 by The Lockman Foundation,La Habra,California. All Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from The Holy Bible: New Internahonal Version, Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by The International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers. All Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version of the Bible, Copyright © 1979, 1980, 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc., Publishers. All Scripture quotations marked TLB are taken from The Living Bible, Copyright © 1971, 1988 by Tyndale House Publishers,Inc., Wheaton,Illinois. Please note that Destiny Image’s publishing style capitalizes certain pronouns in Scripture that refer to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and may differ from some Bible publishers’ styles. Take note that the name satan and related names are not capitalized. We choose not to acknowledge him, even to the point of violating grammatical rules. Destiny Image Publishers, Inc. ® P.O. Box 310 Shippensburg, PA 17257-0310 “Speaking to the Purposes of God for This Generation and for the Generations to Come” ISBN 0-7684-2343-0 For Worldwide Distribution Printed in the U.S.A. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 / 10 09 08 07 06 05 This book and all other Destiny Image, Revival Press, MercyPlace, Fresh Bread, Destiny Image Fiction, and Treasure House books are available at Christian bookstores and distributors worldwide. For a U.S. bookstore nearest you, call 1-800-722-6774. For more information on foreign distributors, call 717-532-3040. Or reach us on the Internet: www.destinyimage.com
i CONTENTS I
Foreword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 Chapter 1
Where Did Deception Begin? . . . . . . . . . . . . .17
Chapter 2
Taking Heed to Ourselves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
Chapter 3
Pride Opens the Door to Deception . . . . . . .29
Chapter 4
Self-Deceived . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41
Chapter 5
The Deceitfulness of Sin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53
Chapter 6
Keeping Jesus Your Center of Focus . . . . . . .79
Chapter 7
Even the Elect Can Be Deceived . . . . . . . . . . .91
Chapter 8
The Word of God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .95
Chapter 9
Prayer (The Prayer Relationship) . . . . . . . . .109
Chapter 10
Right-Relatedness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .119
Chapter 11
Giving Out of Yourself . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .151
Chapter 12
The Backslider in Heart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .169 Closing Remarks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .181
i FOREWORD I
A
DECEPTION touches a critical area of need in the Body of Christ. This message must be heard, for millions are being blinded by the powers of darkness. VOIDING
Sharon speaks from her heart on the issue of deception. She has heard from God concerning what people must do to avoid being deceived. Weekly, we minister to people who are coming out of deception. She has over 24 years of firsthand, one-on-one experience guiding people into freedom. Sharon is a wonderful wife to me and the joyful mother of four children. Our two girls and two boys are saved, Spirit filled and serving God. Daily, Sharon is seeking God’s help in her own life to fulfill her call as a witness for Jesus, a wife, a mother, a co-pastor, teacher in the Bible school, worship leader, and author. This is an eye-opening book for those who are unaware of the last days’ deceptions. For some the message will make the difference between heaven or hell. All of us need God’s help to walk in the light. As you read these words, get ready for the darkness to flee. —Billy Joe Daugherty
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i INTRODUCTION I
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causes a Christian man or woman to leave what appears to be a solid marriage of several years for an affair with another person which costs them everything (children, finances, friends, job, and reputation)? HAT
What causes someone to begin feeding their mind on pornography (R- and X-rated television programs, movies, and videos), magazines and books, thinking that as long as they hide it, it’s okay? What causes a father to molest his daughter secretly, thinking he’ll never be caught? What causes someone to let their anger explode and physically abuse their family members, blaming their circumstances or their family members for it? What causes someone to believe that, though he or she was created physically one way, instead they are the opposite sex? What causes someone to habitually lie about everything in order to cover up what they don’t want others to know? What makes them fear being honest with people? Why do they think that lying will actually gain them position, friends, financial increase, or a better life? What causes someone, who desires to be a leader, to gather a few followers and then begin to control their lives, isolating them from others who might expose the leader’s deception? What causes someone to quit the church, quit reading their Bible, quit praying and quit doing what is right? What causes someone to blame everyone else and never examine their own hearts? What causes Christians to quit
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AV O I D I N G D E C E P T I O N
church and think they can survive without a relationship or fellowship with other Christians? All of these questions have one answer. Deception! Webster defines deceived as “to believe what is false or invalid to be true or valid; to be misled; or to be ensnared.”1 He defines deceive as “to deliberately misrepresent facts by works or actions in order to further one’s own interests.” Other words related in meaning include beguile, “to entice a prospect by giving them promises of gaining something for going along with the plan of action”; mislead, “to cause to follow the wrong course”; delude, ”to fool someone so completely that he or she accepts what is false to be true”; fraud, “a deliberate deception in dishonestly depriving a person of property, rights, etc.”; betray, “a breaking of faith while appearing to be loyal.”2 Each of the examples mentioned previously falls into one or more of these categories of definition. The adulterer is enticed or entices someone by giving the person promises of gaining a more exciting relationship for going along with their plan of action. They also break their word and covenant made with another person while appearing to be loyal. A lie is told in order to cover up their wrong. An old cliche says, “The grass always looks greener on the other side of the fence,” but after you get there, you’ll find some unexpected thorns. Also, an unfaithful person will reap unfaithfulness later on from the seeds he or she sows into a relationship they think they have gained, but which has been built in a wrong manner. The person who view pornography is enticed and misled, thinking the mental excitement he believes he gets doesn’t hurt anyone. Wrong! All sin first begins as a thought. If a thought is meditated upon, it will become an action. Jesus said,
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I N TRODUCTION
“If you even think of committing sexual sin in your heart, it is already sin� (Matt. 5:28). It must be repented of and the source of it cut off. First Thessalonians 5:23 says we are to avoid every appearance of evil. Get away from it. Go another direction to escape its influence. Someone who commits incest against another has misrepresented facts to further his or her own interests. They cause their victim to follow the wrong course of action as they proceed to violate them sexually. The victim believes that if he or she tells, they will get hurt. But instead, if they would reveal the truth, they would go free and the victimizer would be made to face responsibility for his or her actions. The physical abuser makes his or her victim believe what is not truth to be truth by telling them they are the cause of the abuse when, in reality, the abuser has never submitted his or her will and emotions to God and brought them into selfcontrol. The homosexual has allowed an unclean desire to become so strong that instead of resisting it, they’ve convinced themselves to believe what is not truth to be truth in order to further their own lust. The liar deceives people into believing what is not truth to be truth to further his or her own interests and appears to be loyal while misleading all the way. In the sphere of the church, the deceiver who desires a position of spiritual leadership misleads and misrepresents facts, usually not telling everything so as not to reveal themselves. Normally, they make others in leadership appear wrong or lacking in some way, believing they have all the answers in order to further their own interests. Sometimes they deprive
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AV O I D I N G D E C E P T I O N
people of property and rights saying it is for the benefit of everyone that they do this when it is for their own benefit. Christians who stop reading the Word of God and praying daily open themselves up to deception. Also, those who are not actively involved and rightly related to leadership and members within a church, as well as giving out of their lives to God and others, will expose themselves to the devil’s deception. They have misled themselves, thinking they know enough to coast into heaven. There are many other examples I could give. These are just a few of the deceptions people are facing in the world today. How a Christian recognizes and responds to satan’s tactics can determine his or her eternal destiny. Throughout the New Testament, the Scriptures warn us not to become deceived. If a Christian could not ever become deceived, then Jesus would not have warned us “not to become deceived.” Paul and James would not have written it in their letters to the churches. (Note: One characteristic of the last days is “...evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived” (2 Tim. 3:13). We’re living in what 2 Timothy 3:1 calls “perilous times” of the last days. It is also a time of the Holy Spirit being poured out upon the earth in every nation, and multitudes are being saved and filled with the Holy Spirit. (See Joel 2:28; Acts 2:17; Matthew 24:14.) Please let your heart be open to receive what I believe God is trying to alert Christians about in this crucial hour. One night in January 1990, I was abruptly awakened out of my sleep. There was no natural reason for me to be awakened. (Since I am a very sound sleeper, it was not normal for me to wake up in the middle of the night.) I knew immediately that it was the Lord Who had awakened me, and I was wide awake as
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I N TRODUCTION
if an alarm had gone off. However, no alarm had gone off! I arose from the bed. My family members were all sound asleep. Within my spirit, I heard the voice of God so strong that even though it wasn’t an audible voice, it could have been. He said to me, “You’ve wondered how the elect could ever be deceived. You’ve wondered how people, who are members of strong churches that preach the whole counsel of the Word of God, people who seemingly appear to be stable Christians, could ever be deceived in the last days.” He said, “I’m going to show you.” He spoke to my heart, “You are entering the last of the last days as you enter the 1990s.” He said, “You will see some Christians who appear to be established and faithful church attenders fall away from Me. Some will be restored by recognizing their sin and repenting. Others will become hardened, rejecting repentance. Their lives will be destroyed, but worst of all, they’ll go to hell.” He then showed me four basic ways people would become deceived. Neglect of: d The Word d Prayer d Right-Relatedness d Giving out of their lives. (We will cover each of these four areas in separate chapters of this book.) Amazingly, these are the four simple areas that ministers teach new converts on how to grow in their Christian lives. I was so shaken within over this experience because I had a godly fear or alarm regarding people I knew, as well as the entire Body of Christ. I shared this experience with my
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AV O I D I N G D E C E P T I O N
husband, and he felt it needed to be shared immediately with our own body of believers. After that, at each place I was asked to speak, I shared what God had spoken within my spirit. Over these past few years, He has shown me more regarding what He spoke to me that night. Isaiah 60:1-3 says though gross darkness will cover the face of the earth, God’s glory will come upon the Church (Zion) and multitudes will be drawn to the brightness of His rising. In these last days two things are transpiring. Much darkness (sin, crime, destruction, pain, heartache, etc.) is happening around the world, yet God is also moving in the greatest outpouring of His Holy Spirit in all of history, bringing in the last days’ harvest. It is exciting to see what God is doing. However, we cannot close our eyes to the darkness and think we will not have to face it, confront it, and bring the light of the Gospel into it. Second Thessalonians 2:1-3 even says for us not to be deceived. Before Jesus returns there will be some Christians who fall away from walking with Him. Jesus said as iniquity or sin abounds, some Christians will wax cold in their love for Him (Matt. 24:12). This is why I am so compelled to write and encourage believers to be sober and alert. While we are receptive to the wonderful workings of the Holy Spirit, we must also listen and be watchful in this hour. The wellbeing in our own lives, as well as the the salvation of other people, is dependent on how spiritually alert we are. I believe if we can guard our hearts from losing our fervent love for Jesus and His Word and maintain a servant heart, we can keep ourselves. We can also help keep those we are called to influence from becoming cold, lukewarm, or hardened.
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I N TRODUCTION
As you read the following pages, I pray that God will speak to your heart. If things are right in your life, I pray that you will sense the same urgency of the hour we are in and will reach out and help others to see. If things are not right in your life, I pray you’ll make the changes needed to prepare yourself for the soon coming of Jesus Christ.
i ENDNOTES I 1. Merriam Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary. Tenth Ed., Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster, Inc., 1996, p. 298. 2. Webster’s New World Dictionary, New York, NY: Simon & Schuster, 1982. (Deceive, p. 196; beguile, p. 67; mislead, p. 479; delude, p. 200; fraud, p. 298; betray, p. 71.)
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CHAPTER 1
WHERE DID DECEPTION BEGIN?
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first examine where deception began. Revelation 20:3 tells us that satan is the deceiver of the nations. We see in Isaiah 14:12-15 and Ezekiel 28:12-19 that satan (lucifer) was a created being whom God had created as an archangel to lead worship in heaven. Satan was created with musical instruments within his very being. But satan began to desire the position of God to lead. He desired the service and admiration of others. This is where pride entered his heart. (Anyone who leads out of jealousy and pride will fall from their position. Any gathering around them will be a small group and will be controlled by them.) ET’S
Obadiah verse 3 says, “The pride of thine heart hath deceived thee....” lmmediately satan and a third of the angels who followed him were cast down from heaven. This created chaos or confusion for a moment and order had to be restored. Some theologians believe this is why Genesis 1:1 has the statement of creation, and then Genesis 1:2 says the earth
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AV O I D I N G D E C E P T I O N
was without form and void and darkness covered the face of the earth. In the midst of all of this, the Spirit of the Lord moved over the face of the earth. God began to speak order into the chaos. He called forth every living thing into existence. (Note: God will never let confusion and darkness have the final say. He is always moving by His Spirit to counter and outdo the enemy.)
God is always moving by His Spirit to counter and outdo the enemy.
Satan didn’t give up. After creation he came to the garden of Eden. He knew if he could deceive mankind he could come against God Who had cast him down. In Genesis 3, you could say that satan waited until Adam (the husband, the protector and garden keeper) was preoccupied or spiritually asleep. (As Christians, we must stay awake spiritually so the enemy can be recognized and kept out when he tries to come in.) Satan then appealed to the lack of discernment in Eve, her desire to know more and her pride that she could be as wise as God. He first posed a question to her of God’s will by asking, “Has God said?” Satan starts deception by putting a thought in a person’s mind to question God’s will in an area. He creates doubt about it. He says to the mind, “God doesn’t really mean it that way.” Then, if he goes further, he appeals to a person’s pride by saying, “You’ll be better off, you will be smarter, you will become fulfilled in your identity, or you will have it all if you will listen and follow through with my thoughts.” Obviously, the deceiver distracted Eve from her partner. Satan pulls people away from those who love them and who can help them discern so he can feed them his thoughts. He attempts to pull believers away from others who can see
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W HERE D ID D ECEPTION B EGIN ?
trouble that they can’t see and to withdraw them from that close fellowship. (Note: Many times people have “blind spots” they cannot see. Policemen have said that every driver has a “blind spot” that requires not only looking in the mirrors but turning around to look so as not to pull out into oncoming traffic and cause an accident. Many Christians think they can see everything and sometimes they can’t see all. We all need help from others who’ve been driving, or walking with Jesus, longer than we have.) After Eve was deceived, she proceeded to convince her partner that the wrong she was in was “right.” If Adam had prayed immediately and listened to his heart, God would have told him differently. Instead, Adam listened to and acted on Eve’s deception. Without praying, he knowingly sinned. They both fell into sin and lost their home, their innocence, their carefree life, their dominion in the earth and their continual fellowship with God. Driven with shame into a land they had to work, sweat and cry over, their children became divided. Then the day came when one murdered the other. Cain thought no one would ever know, but you can’t hide sin. “...be sure your sin will find you out” (Num. 32:23). Cain was discovered, cast out, and marked for the rest of his life because he would not repent.
“...be sure your sin will find you out” (Numbers 32:23).
Through Adam and Eve’s failure to heed God’s instructions, deception and sin entered the earth and have been in the earth throughout time. However, there were those from that first family and in later generations who chose to walk in fellowship with God and turn from deception. God has
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AV O I D I N G D E C E P T I O N
always been drawn to help those who choose to listen to Him and obey Him. God loves man and is always reaching out to help anyone who will humbly reach out to receive His help and daily look to Him.
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