Delusional

Lately I have seen on social media people's discussions debating heaven and hell, and other Biblical truths. While the Bible is still the most read Book in the world, we are seeing more and more that people are walking away from its truths, and choosing instead to believe what scripture calls dangerous "delusions". As used in the New Testament, the Greek word for delusion is plane/planos meaning "a wandering, a straying about, one led astray from the right way, that which leads into error, deceit or fraud/corrupter, deceiver, imposter, seducing". However, accepting the deception is a choice: "There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death (mavet - death, dead, place of death (hades)." (Prov. 14:12, 16:25). Death, as we see above, is not just a condition, but includes the place of death, which is hades or hell. Hell exists. God never intended Hell for people, but for the devil and his angels. God does not send anyone to Hell, but it is a choice made by the individual to reject the gift of salvation in Christ and His everlasting life, and instead choose to remain separated from God. Death and the place of death are the results of separation from God, Who is life. Jesus also taught that this place of death is a place of torment as well. The LORD revealed this to His prophet Ezekiel: "Say unto them, As I live, saith the LORD God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye, from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?" (Ezek. 33:11), This prophetic Word is being delivered to God's people, telling them to turn away from their ways that lead to death. Second Chronicles 7:14 states the same thing: "If My people...turn from their wicked ways...I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." Sin is defined as "missing the mark", as if an archer were aiming at a target, but misses that target. God swore on His own life (above) in concern for His people and their sins, yet the church accepts wickedness! Paul wrote that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23). He also wrote: "But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life. For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." (Rom. 6:22-23). The church is not meant to be the house of sin and death, but of the holiness of God and life. Paul wrote also in Romans when discussing the evil doers of the world, "And such were some of you..." (1 Cor. 6:11). We who are in Christ are no longer to be of that wickedness. Delusions and deceptions will appear as the return of Christ draws nearer. We have already seen cults, false teachers and false messiahs. Paul wrote in order to correct misconceptions, and to lay out the true order of events before the coming of Jesus Christ: "...be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God." (2 Thess. 2:1-4). We see now the "falling away" from faith that Paul spoke of above: falling away from truth, changing scripture instead of changing ourselves. Paul wrote above of the son of perdition (as Christ said of Judas the betrayer also), whom we call "the antichrist". The son of perdition's coming "is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish (apollymi - destroy, put to death, to give over to eternal misery in hell); because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause, God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a (the) lie: That they all might be damned that believed not in the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness." (v. 9-12). "Deceivableness" accompanies unrighteousness, and they will believe THE lie (in Greek), which is the lie first told to man in the garden by Satan: "Hath God said...?" Deception which leads to death starts with questioning, doubting and twisting the Word of God, as it did with Adam and Eve. This delusion comes upon them from the Lord because they chose to hate the truth and prefer the lie. The Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming both the son of perdition, who is the antichrist, and those who are deceived into following him (v. 8). Calling out sin and unrighteousness is not being judgmental. It is what God says in His Word. There is pleasure in sin for a season, scripture says, but you will pay with eternity. The world doesn't just want us to be silent about sin, but to celebrate sin. Don't be deceived. As Paul wrote in Colossians: "...lest any man should beguile you with enticing words...As ye have therfore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith." (Col. 2:4-7). Paul warned further: "Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ." (v. 8). There are many philosophies and traditional knowledge of men, but as they are without Christ, none of them can save anyone from death. Only the understanding, knowledge and wisdom hidden in Christ can do that and with full assurance ( v. 2-3). It is too easy for men to be deceived - wake up! Jesus revealed to religious people the source of their rejection of truth: "You are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not...He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God." (Jn. 8:44-46). The Book of Hebrews tells us to heed what we have heard: "How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him. God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?" (Heb. 2:1-3). Not only did Jesus Himself bring the news of salvation for men, but He was heard by those who gave witness to His words. God confirmed the truth of those words of the witnesses with miracles, signs and the baptism of the Holy Spirit, and the manifestation of His spiritual gifts. Knowing the truth, do we remain silent to the lies and their delusion? When we speak the truth of the Word of God, and His salvation delivered to man by Jesus, is it judgmentalism or love? I say it is love. *Based on Dr. Kenneth E. Stevenson's 4/23/23 message to the church. 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