["Pomp and Circumstance"]
Good morning and welcome to Verity Baptist Church here on this beautiful Sunday morning for our Sunday AM service.
gonna have you guys come on in take your seats come on in take your seats and
we're gonna sing song number 24 this morning song number 2 4 and can it be
that I should gain this is a big song we got to sing it out with some power we
can't sing this song week this morning song number 24 2 4 and can it be that I
should gain let's sing it out on the first
and can it be that I should gain an interest in the Savior's blood died he
for me
ah
Amazing love, how can it be that thou, my God, just died for me?
Amen.
Let's sing it out on the second song, number 24, 2-4.
And can it be that I should gain song number 24 on the second?
He left his Father's throne above, so free, so infinite,
his grace, emptied himself of all but love,
and bled for Adam's helpless race.
Tis mercy, all, immense and free, for, oh, my God,
it found out me.
Amazing love, how can it be that thou, my God, just died for me?
You guys are singing well this morning.
Let's sing it out on the third with some power.
You guys are in your chairs.
Let's do it on the third song, number 24.
Long my imprisoned spirit lay, fast-bound in sin and nature's
night, thine eye defused a quick, mean ray.
I woke the dodge and flamed with, sing it out, my chains.
My chains fell off, my heart was free.
I rose, went forth, and followed the amazing love,
amazing love, how can it be that thou, my God, just died for me?
Amen.
Amen, and we want to welcome you to Verity Baptist Church this morning.
We're so glad that you are with us.
We had a wedding, of course, this weekend in Fresno,
so we've got several of our church families still in Fresno.
They stayed there for the weekend, so be in prayer for them.
We're running a little bit of a skeleton crew today,
but we are glad that you are here.
And let's go ahead and bow our heads and have a word of prayer,
and let's begin the service together.
Heavenly Father, Lord, we do love you, and we thank you
for allowing us to gather together today.
Lord, we pray that you would bless the time that we have set aside
for singing and preaching and fellowship.
Lord, we do pray for the families that are in Fresno,
that you'd bless them while they're there,
bring them home safely as they travel home.
And Lord, we ask that you would meet with us today.
In Jesus' name we pray, amen.
Amen, all right, let's go ahead and take our song books,
turn to page number 84.
Page number 8484, we're going to sing Jesus is Coming Again,
another powerful song this morning.
So let's sing it out with some power on the first.
Marvelous message we bring,
Glorious carol we sing,
Wonderful word of the King,
Jesus is coming again,
Coming again,
Maybe morning, maybe noon,
Maybe evening, and maybe soon,
Coming again,
Coming again, sing it out,
Oh, what a wonderful day it will be,
Jesus is coming again,
Amen, on the second,
Forest and flower exclaim,
Mountain and meadow the same,
All earth and heaven proclaim,
Jesus is coming again,
Coming again,
Maybe morning, maybe noon,
Maybe evening, and maybe soon,
Coming again,
Oh, what a wonderful day it will be,
Jesus is coming again,
Amen, you guys are singing well,
as Pastor said, we have some folks in Fresno,
I can't hear you, you guys make up
for their absence this morning,
let's sing it out on the third,
sing it out as loud as you can,
Standing before him at last,
Trial and trouble all past,
Crowns at his feet we will cast,
that's better, Jesus is coming again,
Sing it out on the chorus,
Coming again,
Maybe morning, maybe noon,
Maybe evening, and maybe soon,
Coming again,
One more time, sing it out,
Oh, what a wonderful day it will be,
Jesus is coming again,
Amen.
Amen, good singing, let's go ahead
and take our bulletins,
we'll look at some announcements real quickly,
if you do not have a bulletin,
just raise your hand,
and one of our ushers can get one for you,
if you need a bulletin,
just put your hand up,
and we will get one for you,
the verse is sweet, Colossians 3, one,
If ye then be risen with Christ,
seek those things which are above,
where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God,
and that's a good verse there,
we like that, if you open up your bulletin,
you'll see our service times,
Sunday morning service, 1030 a.m.,
we are glad, of course,
you're with us on Sunday morning
on the Lord's day for church,
we do invite you to be back tonight
for the evening service,
and the evening service is different
than the morning service,
different songs that are sung,
different sermon that's preached,
just one more opportunity to be in God's house
with God's people under the preaching
of the word of God,
and then of course we have our Wednesday evening
Bible study at 7 p.m.,
and we'd love for you to join us
on Wednesday night for that,
if you look over at the,
of course we have our soul winning time,
Saturday morning, 10 a.m.,
Thursday soul winning, 2 p.m.,
and then there'll be a soul winning time today at 2 p.m.,
if you'd like to go soul winning,
we'd love for you to be a part of that,
if you look at the announcements and upcoming events,
this Thursday is our harvest party,
October 31st at 6 p.m.,
so we want you to not forget about that,
we'll have our annual chili cook off,
and we'll have games for all to play,
so we'll have the chili cook off,
of course we'll have a $50 gift card
for the first place winner,
$25 gift card for the second place winner,
if you're planning to participate in the chili cook off,
you need to have your chili here by 6 p.m.,
you can start bringing your chili,
of course earlier than that,
I think there'll be somebody here from 5.15,
if you want to bring it that early,
I guess you can,
but between 5.15 and 6 p.m.,
but you have to have the chili here by 6 p.m.,
if you bring it after that,
obviously we'll still have it as part of the potluck,
but it cannot be part of the actual competition,
because we need to get all the judges samples
from each one of the chilies
before we can allow people to eat,
so make sure you're here by 6 p.m. with that,
and then we'll have the ladies and men's basketball game,
of course there's a sign up sheet in the back,
and we're just gonna have all sorts of games,
we'll have the giant Jenga game set up,
and ping pong, and corn hole,
and there'll be sack races for the kids,
and I think there's gonna be a petting zoo or something,
so all sorts of things that you can look forward to,
if you'd like to sign up to bring cornbread or dessert
to help with that,
there are sign up sheets in the back,
we'd appreciate your help with that,
of course we've got our sermon series
that we're continuing today,
we've been studying the spirit world,
we've studied heaven, hell, angels, demons,
today just in time for Halloween,
we're gonna study the devil in the Bible,
and I think it's good for us to be aware of the devil,
and then tonight we're continuing
this election sermon series,
God's not a Republican but the devil's a Democrat,
and we're gonna be in part two of that tonight,
so I encourage you to be here for that,
we do want you to save the date for an upcoming wedding
for brother Adam Ritchie and Miss Emily Gessler
on Saturday, January 18th at 2.30 p.m.,
we just want you to mark this on your calendar,
so you know that it's coming up,
and also it would help them to get an idea
of who's coming to the wedding,
so if you are planning on coming,
if you already know you're coming on the communication card,
on the back, there's a place for you to let them know,
so you can just let them know if you're coming,
how many are coming,
that way they can make plans for that,
and we'd appreciate your help with that.
Choir practice is starting on Sunday, November 10th,
that's for the adult choir,
and they're gonna be practicing for Christmas,
and children's choir is going to begin
on Sunday, November 24th,
and they're also gonna be practicing for Christmas,
so if you'd like to be part of the adult choir
or the children's choir, make note of those times there.
There's other things there of course for you to look at,
if you look at the back of the bulletin,
birthdays and anniversaries for the month of October,
this week we had my brother, Abraham Jimenez,
had a birthday yesterday on October 26th,
and Miss Abby Urquiza has a birthday tomorrow, October 28th,
Brother Ron Kolak has had a birthday on the 26th as well,
it looks like it's out of order there,
and then James, Brother James Villa has a birthday
on the 30th, and then my daughter, Ruth Ann Jimenez,
has a birthday on October 31st,
so all of those are this week.
Praise Report, Money Matters,
all those things are there for you to look at.
I do have one baptism certificate to hand out real quickly,
and I'll go ahead and read this,
it says certificate of baptism,
this certificate is awarded to Vanley Roberson
in recognition of her baptism
on the sixth day of October of the year 2024,
presented by Verity Baptist Church
with the verse to Romans 6-4,
therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death,
that like as Christ was raised up from the dead
by the glory of the Father,
even though we should walk in newness of life,
and then we have pictures here for Miss Vanley
to remember the day of her baptism,
and we're gonna go ahead and hand that to her,
let's give her a round of applause.
And okay, I think that's it for the announcement,
so let's go ahead and we're going to sing
the chorus of the week as we prepare
to receive the offering this morning,
and this is the kind of song you sing on purpose
and with passion, all right?
So let's go ahead and sing it out,
his eye is on the sparrow, sing it out,
on the first.
Why should I be discouraged?
Why should the shadows fall?
Why should my heart be lonely?
Long for heaven and home
When Jesus is my portion
My constant friend is he
Is on the sparrow
And I know he watches me
His eye is on the sparrow
Know he watches me
I sing because I'm happy
I sing because I'm free
For his eye is on the sparrow
I know he watches me
Good, we're gonna sing it out on the second,
I'm gonna ask the instrumentalist,
just to slow it down a little bit,
follow me, I'd like to sing these songs
almost like a prayer, all right?
Sing it out to the Lord,
and let's sing it out on the second.
You follow me.
Whenever I am tempted
Whenever clouds arise
When songs give place to sighing
When hope within me dies
I draw the closer to him
From care he sets me free
His eye is on the sparrow
And I know he watches me
His eye is on the sparrow
And I know he watches me
Good, sing it out.
I sing because I'm happy
I sing because I'm free
For his eye is on the sparrow
And I know he watches me
Amen, good singing.
We'll have the guys come up
and help us with the offering at this time,
and let's go ahead and bow our heads
and have a word of prayer.
Heavenly Father, Lord, we do love you.
We thank you for lying us together today.
Lord, we pray that you'd bless
the offering, the gift, and the giver.
We ask, Lord, that you meet
with us as we take time to open up your word
as we study the Bible together.
In Jesus' name, we pray.
Amen.
Turn your Bibles to Genesis chapter 3.
Genesis chapter 3.
If you do not have a Bible,
please raise your hand,
and Usher will bring you one.
Genesis chapter 3.
We will read the entire chapter as our custom.
Genesis chapter 3.
Just keep your hands up,
and Usher will bring you a Bible.
Genesis chapter 3, the Bible reads,
Now the serpent was more subtle
than any beast of the field
which the Lord God had made.
And he said unto the woman,
Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat
of every tree of the garden?
And the woman said unto the serpent,
We may eat of the fruit
of the trees of the garden,
but of the fruit of the tree
which is in the midst of the garden,
God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it,
neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
And the serpent said unto the woman,
Ye surely shall not die,
for God doth know that in the day
ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened,
and ye shall be as gods,
knowing good and evil.
And when the woman saw
that the tree was good for food,
and that it was pleasant to the eyes,
and a tree to be desired
to make one wise,
she took of the fruit thereof,
and did eat,
and gave also unto her husband with her,
and he did eat.
And the eyes of them both were opened,
and they knew that they were naked,
and they sowed fig leaves together,
and made themselves aprons.
And they heard the voice of the Lord God
walking in the garden of the cool of the day,
and Adam and his wife hid themselves
from the presence of the Lord God
amongst the trees of the garden.
And the Lord God called unto Adam,
and said unto him,
Where art thou?
And he said,
I heard thy voice in the garden,
and I was afraid,
because I was naked,
and I hid myself.
And he said,
Who told thee that thou wast naked?
Hast thou eaten of the tree,
where I have commanded thee
that thou shouldest not eat?
And the man said,
The woman who thou gavest to be with me,
she gave me of the tree,
and I did eat.
And the Lord God said unto the woman,
What is this that thou hast done?
And the woman said,
The serpent beguiled me,
and I did eat.
And the Lord God said unto the serpent,
Because thou hast done this,
thou art cursed above all cattle,
and above every beast of the field.
Upon thy belly shalt thou go,
and thus shalt thou eat all the days of thy life.
And I will put enmity between thee and the woman,
and between thy seed and her seed.
It shall bruise thy heel,
and thou shalt bruise his heel.
Unto the woman he said,
I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception.
In sorrow thou shalt bring forth children,
and that desire shalt be to thy husband,
and he shall rule over thee.
And unto Adam he said,
Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife,
and hast eaten of the tree,
of which I commanded thee,
saying, Thou shalt not eat of it,
cursed is the ground for thy sake.
In sorrow shalt thou eat of it all thy days of thy life.
Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee,
and thou shalt eat the herb of the field.
In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread,
till thou return unto the ground,
for out of it was thou taken,
for thus thou art, and unto thus shalt thou return.
And Adam called his wife's name Eve,
because she was the mother of all living.
Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God
make coats of skins and clothe them.
And the Lord God said, Behold,
the man has become as one of us to know good and evil,
and now, lest he put forth his hand,
and take also of the tree of life,
and eat, and live forever.
Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden,
to till the ground from whence he was taken.
So he drove out the man,
and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden cherubims,
and a flaming sword which turned every way,
to keep the way of the tree of life.
Let's pray.
Almighty Father, thank you for church this morning and for this day.
Please give pastor your wisdom,
and let the sermon edify us and glorify you.
In the name of Jesus Christ I pray, Amen.
Amen.
Alright, we're there in Genesis chapter number 3.
And of course, on Sunday mornings,
we've been going through a sermon series entitled The Spirit World.
And we've been studying what the Bible teaches about the Spirit World.
And if you remember, we had an entire sermon on the subject of Hell,
an entire sermon on the subject of Heaven,
an entire sermon on the subject of Hell,
an entire sermon on the subject of Angels,
an entire sermon on the subject of Demons.
And then this morning, we find ourselves here in week 5 of this sermon series,
and we're going to study the devil.
And of course, it's good timing this week.
The country will be celebrating the devil,
and I think it's good for us as Christians to learn what the Bible actually teaches about the devil.
And the devil is not something to play with.
It's not something that's fun.
And the Bible says that we need to be aware and we need to not be ignorant of his devices.
And we begin here in Genesis chapter number 3.
Of course, this is where we are first introduced to the devil,
and where we first meet him.
And the Bible says, of course, of the famous passage about Adam and Eve,
it's interesting that in the Bible there is this law first mentioned.
And whenever something is mentioned for the first time,
it's extremely important.
Oftentimes, God gives us a picture, an idea, an identity of someone the first time that they're mentioned.
And here the first time we meet the devil, of course, in the form of a serpent,
the Bible says in verse 1,
Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made.
And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said.
It's interesting that the first time we hear the devil speak in the Bible,
he's questioning the word of God.
And he says, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden.
And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden,
but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden,
God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die.
First time Satan speaks in the Bible, he questions the word of God.
The second time he speaks in the Bible, he changes the word of God.
He says, Ye shall not surely die, for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof,
then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food,
and that it was pleasant for the eyes and a tree to be desired to make one wise,
she took of the fruit thereof and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her, and he did eat.
And what we see here, just at the outset of learning about the devil,
the Bible talks a lot about the devil.
In fact, I'd like you, if you would, to go with me to the book of Isaiah,
towards the end of the Old Testament.
If you find right the center of your Bible is the book of Psalms, right after Psalms,
you have Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon, then Isaiah.
Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon, Isaiah.
And while you turn there, let me just say, in Genesis 3,
what we see right at the beginning of our introduction to the serpent, to the devil, to Satan,
is this, that he is at war with God, and he is at war with man.
He's at war with God. We see him questioning the word of God.
We see him corrupting the word of God.
And we see that he is at war with man, tempting Adam and Eve, and causing them to fall.
And I'd like to give you, we're going to look at a lot of passages this morning.
It's going to be just a very thorough Bible study on the subject of the devil.
It will be a Bible study. I'll give you applications as we go along.
But I'd like to give you several thoughts with regards to the devil.
And if you're taking notes, and I do encourage you to take notes on the back of your course of the week,
there's a place for you to jot down some things.
I'd like to begin with the devil's fall. The devil's fall.
And I'd like for us to see that the devil obviously fell, what we might call, fell from grace.
Of course, he was an angelic being.
In Isaiah chapter 14 and verse 12, we find probably the best description of this in the Bible.
Isaiah 14, 12. The Bible says this,
How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer?
And by the way, here in Isaiah 14, 12, it's the only place in the entire Bible that we get his original name, Lucifer.
If you do not have a King James Bible, then that name has likely been removed from your version of the Bible,
because the devil doesn't want his name in the Bible.
So, corrupted versions have removed that.
But here, the Bible says, How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer?
Son of the morning, how art thou cut down to the ground which didst weaken the nations?
And what you'll notice is that we see that the devil was cast down.
He was an angelic being in heaven, created by God.
And then he was cast down. He was cut down.
The Bible says here in verse 12, How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer?
Art thou cut down to the ground which didst weaken the nations?
And the reason that the devil was cast down is because he was full of pride.
Notice verse number 13. The Bible says, For thou hast said in thine heart.
So here's God telling us what it is that Lucifer said in his heart.
And here's what he said. I want you to notice this.
In fact, if you don't mind, if you haven't underlined this in your Bible,
or if you don't mind marking in your Bible, maybe you can mark these words.
The Bible says in verse 13, For thou hast said in thine heart.
I'd like you to mark these words. He says, I will. I will.
Here's what Satan, here's what Lucifer said in his heart. He said, I will ascend into heaven.
And I want you to notice the next statement he makes begins this way. I will.
You've got to mark that in your Bible if you don't mind.
He says, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God.
And I'd like you to notice the third statement that the devil makes.
He says, I will. Mark those words. I will sit upon the mount of the congregation in the sides of the north.
Verse 14, notice the next statement he makes. He says, I will. Mark those words.
I will ascend above the heights of the cloud. Notice the last statement he makes.
He says, I will. You've got to mark those words. I will be like the most high.
I want you to notice that in these verses we see these statements.
I will. I will. I will. I will. I will. Five different times that we get insight into the mind and heart of Satan.
These are the words that come out of his mouth. I will. I will ascend into heaven.
I will exalt my throne above the stars of God. I will sit upon the mount of the congregation in the sides of the north.
I will ascend above the heights of the clouds. I will be like the most high.
What I want you to see here is that the devil was cast down and the devil was cast down because of the fact that he was full of pride.
He was full of pride. I feel like I'm just a little echoey. If you could help me with that I'd appreciate it.
He was cast down and he was full of pride. The Bible says pride goeth before destruction.
And this is why the devil was cast down. This is why he was fallen from heaven.
This is why he will ultimately be destroyed because pride goeth before destruction.
And I would say to you that that is true of the devil but that is also true of us.
If we allow ourselves to become full of pride, destruction is your next stop.
And you know we get some insight here as to how the devil speaks.
This internal dialogue that the devil has in his own mind and his own heart goes like this.
I will, I will, I will, I will, I will and I wonder what the internal dialogue inside of your mind sounds like.
And you ought to consider are your thoughts constantly about I and what I will and what I want.
Notice verse 15 the Bible says yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.
So we see that the devil was cast down. The devil was cast down because of pride. He was full of pride.
You're there in Isaiah. Turn with me if you would to the book of Ezekiel, Ezekiel chapter 28.
You're in Isaiah. You go past Jeremiah, Lamentations, into the book of Ezekiel.
Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Ezekiel chapter number 28 and look down at verse number 13.
In Ezekiel 28 we have another famous passage about the devil that gives us some insight into the devil
and into the fall of Satan. Ezekiel 28 verse 13. Notice what the Bible says. Thou has been in Eden the garden of God.
Now in Eden we just read the story in Genesis and there were only three people there. Adam, Eve and the serpent, the devil.
And this is a reference. This is God speaking, the prophet speaking to the devil.
He says thou has been in Eden the garden of God. Every precious stone was thy covering.
We just read in Genesis 3.1 the serpent was more subtle than any beast in the field in the garden.
Every precious stone was thy covering. The Sardis, the Topaz and the Diamond, the Barrow, the Onyx, the Jasper, the Sapphire, the Emerald and the carbuncle in gold.
I want you to notice what the Bible says about the serpent, about Satan.
The workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou was created.
So of course we see that the devil like every other creature was created by God. He's a created being, verse 15.
Thou was perfect. So at one point he was complete. He was whole. There was nothing wrong with him.
Thou was perfect in thy ways from the day that thou was created, but notice the fall, till iniquity was found in thee.
Till iniquity was found in thee. And what was that iniquity? Well we read about it in Isaiah 14 when he allowed his pride to get the better of him.
When he decided that I will ascend into heaven. I will exalt my throne above the stars of God.
I will sit upon the mountain of the congregation and the sides of the north. I will ascend above the heights of the clouds.
I will be the most high. That's the iniquity that was found in thee.
But the Bible says thou was perfect in thy ways from the days that thou was created, till iniquity was found in thee, verse 16.
By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence and thou hast sinned.
Therefore I will, notice now we get God's I will. This is God speaking.
I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub.
So we see that Satan was an angelic being and here we're told that he was actually a covering cherub.
We're going to talk more about that next week when we talk about spiritual warfare.
But he was a covering cherub and God says that I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.
But again we see, till iniquity was found in thee, I will cast thee as profane. I will destroy thee.
We see that the devil was cast down because of the fact that he was full of pride.
He allowed pride to enter his heart. He allowed pride to enter his mind.
Now just to give you a little sequence here or time frame.
The Bible says about the devil that he was perfect till iniquity was found in thee.
So here's what we know. In Genesis 1 God created the heaven and the earth and all that in them is.
Satan or Lucifer was created along with the angelic beings at that moment or at that time.
And at the end of that creation week the Bible says that God looked at all his creation and he said that it is good.
So at that point of course Lucifer was created, all the angels were created.
And then when we get to our story here in Genesis chapter number 3.
Of course Genesis 2 is just a recap of the creation week and we get more details.
When we get to Genesis chapter 3 the serpent is now tempting Eve.
So we don't know how much time went on between creation and the fall of man.
We don't know how long Adam and Eve lasted in the garden of Eden.
But we do know this. That between creation and between, between the end of Genesis 1 and the beginning of Genesis 3.
At some point Satan, Lucifer fell. At some point what we read about in Isaiah 14 happened.
Where he decided to try to go against God because of his pride and he fell.
So we see the devils fall. He was cast down and he was cast down because of pride.
And I think the lesson for all of us is this. Keep your pride in check.
Because it doesn't matter how good you are. It doesn't matter how great you are.
It doesn't matter how beautiful you are. Your pride will destroy you.
It doesn't matter how close to God you are. I don't know that any angel was closer to God than the covering cherub.
But yet your pride will destroy you. Go back to Genesis chapter 3 if you would.
Genesis chapter 3. So we see number 1 the devils fall.
And then I'd like you to notice secondly this morning. Not only do we see the devils fall.
But we see the devils facade. The devils facade.
And as you study characters in the Bible and as you do character studies.
You find that often times certain characters are known for certain things.
And I would say about the devil. When you study the devil throughout scripture.
Because there's a lot that the Bible talks about regarding the devil.
There is one thing that keeps coming up over and over and over about the devil.
And it is this. His deceit. His deceptiveness.
We already read Genesis chapter 3 a couple times now verses 1 through 6.
But I just want you to see verse 1 again. The Bible says now the serpent. That's Satan.
And we'll see that in another passage how the Bible identifies the serpent as Satan.
Now the serpent. I want you to see these words. Was more subtle than any beast of the field.
The Bible says he was more subtle than any beast of the field.
The word subtle means cunning or wily or crafty.
Look at verse 13 of the same chapter. Genesis 3 13.
And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou has done?
And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me and I did eat.
The word beguiled means to deceive. It means to mislead.
By trickery or flattery. It means to cheat someone out of something.
Deceive someone out of something.
Now I want you to notice that here in Genesis 3 when we first meet the serpent.
We're told that he's more subtle than any beast of the field.
Meaning he's more cunning. More crafty. More wily.
And then Eve tells us the serpent beguiled me. The serpent deceived me.
Misled me. Tricked me. Cheated me.
Go with me if you would to the New Testament book of 2 Corinthians.
2 Corinthians chapter number 11. In the New Testament you've got Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians.
2 Corinthians chapter number 11. And look down at verse number 3.
2 Corinthians chapter number 11 and verse 3.
And do me a favor when you get to 2 Corinthians put a ribbon or a bookmark or something there.
Because we're going to leave it and we're going to come back to it.
And I'd like for you to get to it quickly.
And like I said I've got a lot to cover this morning so we'll try to move as quickly as we can.
2 Corinthians chapter number 11. And look at verse number 3.
Here's what Paul said to the Corinthian church.
He said, but I fear less by any means. Notice what he says. This is a reference back to what we read in Genesis 3.
As the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety, he beguiled her, he tricked her, he misled her, he deceived her.
How did he do it? Through his subtlety. Through his craftiness.
Something that's subtle is something that is difficult to perceive.
You don't see it. They're doing it. They're tricking you. They're manipulating you but you don't see it.
As the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety, so your mind should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
And again, I just want you to notice whenever we see the devil in the Bible, what we see highlighted is his deceptiveness.
He's subtle. He beguiles. Go to Ephesians chapter number 6. Keep your place there in 2 Corinthians. We're going to come back to it.
But go to Ephesians. If you're in 2 Corinthians, you'll go pascalations into Ephesians.
Ephesians chapter number 6. Pascalations into Ephesians. Ephesians chapter 6. Look at verse 11.
Of course, Ephesians chapter 6 is the great passage on the armor of God.
It's the great passage about spiritual warfare. It's the great passage about the fact that we need to put on the armor of God
because we are engaged in spiritual warfare against the devil and against his demons, against his devils.
And here's what the Bible says in Ephesians chapter 6 and verse 11.
Put on the whole armor of God that ye may be able to stand against, notice the words, the wiles of the devil.
The wiles of the devil. What's the word wiles mean?
It's defined as a trick meant to fool, a trap, a beguiling behavior, deceitful, cunning, trickery.
Whenever I read this, I always think of this and I bring this up. If you remember the old cartoon, Wile E. Coyote.
What's Wile E. Coyote trying to do? He's trying to trap the roadrunner, trick the roadrunner.
And this is how the Bible describes the devil. He's subtle. He beguiles. He has wiles.
We need to put on the whole armor of God that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
Look at verse 16, same chapter. Ephesians chapter 6, verse number 16.
Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
Look, you and I are in a war against the devil or let me say it this way because the truth of the matter is, excuse me,
most Christians aren't at war with the devil but whether you like it or not, the devil is at war with you.
The devil wants to destroy you. He wants to destroy your life. He wants to destroy your reputation.
He wants to destroy your marriage. He wants to destroy your children. He wants to destroy your ministry.
And we need to take the shield of faith wherewith ye shall be able to quench the fiery darts of the wicked.
We need to put on the whole armor of God that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
So we see that he is deceitful and look, this is something you and I need to understand
because when the devil comes for you and he's coming for you, you will not see it coming
because he's subtle, because he's cunning, because he's wile
and we need to be aware of his facade. First we see his deceit but then I'd like you to notice secondly,
not only do we see his deceit but we should be aware of his disguise.
In 2 Corinthians chapter number 11, if you kept your place there, I'd like you to go back there if you would
and please continue to keep your place there. 2 Corinthians chapter 11 and verse 13, the Bible says this,
For such are false prophets, notice this word, deceitful, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.
This is talking about false prophets who are deceitful and they put on this facade, they put on this show,
they transform themselves into the apostles of Christ and then here's what Paul says in verse 14,
he says, and no marvel, he says that shouldn't surprise you.
It shouldn't surprise you that false prophets like Joel Osteen get up and people say, but he looks so nice, I mean look at that smile.
Well yeah, I mean if you were driving a Ferrari and making 25 million dollars a year, you could probably afford a nice smile like that too.
And here he says, and no marvel, look at it, for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
This week our nation will be celebrating Halloween, they'll be celebrating death and demons and devils, they'll be celebrating the devil.
And you know, it's this joke that the devil wants you to think that he's this scary, you know, in red and has blood all over his face,
and he has a pitchfork and he has sharp teeth and he looks evil.
That's the trick he wants to play on you so that you don't see him coming when he comes to you transformed as an angel of light.
See the devil has a facade and we need to be aware of his deceit and we need to be aware of his disguise and no marvel for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness whose end shall be according to their works.
And then I want you to notice why Paul even says this to the church at Corinth.
If you go back up to verse number 11, 2 Corinthians chapter 2 and verse 11, here's what he says.
He says, lest Satan should get an advantage of us, for we are not ignorant of his devices.
You say Pastor Mendez, why would you preach a whole sermon on the subject of the devil?
Why even preach a whole sermon on the subject of the spirit world?
Why learn about demons and why learn about the devil?
Why learn, like we will next week, about spiritual warfare?
Here's why. We need to not be ignorant of his devices.
We need to know that the devil is deceitful and we need to know that he has a disguise.
We need to know that he has a facade and we need to be aware of these things lest Satan should get an advantage over us.
Because look, whether you realize it or not, whether you like it or not, whether you want to admit it or not,
you are engaged in spiritual warfare and if you're not at war with the devil, it doesn't matter, he's at war with you.
So we see the devil's fall and we see the devil's facade.
But I'd like you to notice thirdly this morning, the devil's fight. The devil's fight.
Now you're there in 2 Corinthians, I'd like you to keep your place there, but go with me to the book of Matthew,
the first book of the New Testament, Matthew chapter 4.
And while you turn there, let me just remind you of a couple of verses.
The Bible says in 1 Peter 5a, be sober, be vigilant because your adversary, the devil,
as a roaring lion walketh about seeking whom he may devour.
The Bible says that the devil is our adversary and he wants to devour, he wants to destroy, he wants to annihilate.
The imagery here is of a lion who's devouring his prey.
The Bible says that he walketh about seeking whom he may devour.
We are at war with the devil. We've seen his fall, we've seen his facade, but I'd like you to notice the devil's fight.
Now I mentioned to you that when you see the devil brought up in scripture,
you see this overwhelming characteristic about the devil and it is this, that he's deceitful.
Beguile is a word the Bible uses, wily is a word the Bible uses, deceit is a word the Bible uses.
These are all words, cunning, crafty, this is how the devil is.
When you look at the devil's actions though, there is an overwhelming action that is brought up over and over again about the devil.
And that is this, when we think about the devil's fight, you say okay, I get it, the devil is at war with me, he's coming for me.
When he comes for me, I'm not going to necessarily see him coming because he's not coming with a pitchfork, he's not coming looking angry,
he's coming looking like an angel of light, he's coming in deceit, he's coming in craftiness, he's coming in subtleness.
Then what do I look for? Here's what you look for, the next major characteristic about the devil we find in the Bible is this.
We already saw it in Genesis chapter 3, the first time we're introduced to him we get acquainted with this, and it is the fact that the devil is a tempter.
He tempts us with sin. Matthew chapter 4, are you there? Look at verse 1.
Now we already saw Genesis chapter 3, I mean that's the most famous temptation in all of scripture.
The fall of man, where the devil tempts Eve with the forbidden fruit.
Notice Matthew 4 and verse 1, the Bible says this,
Then was Jesus let up of the spirit into the wilderness, notice these words, to be tempted of the devil.
So why don't you notice that when the devil is brought up, here are the things that are brought up about him.
He's subtle, he's wily, he beguiles, he's crafty, he disguises himself.
But then you say, but he does that to do what? To do this, to tempt.
The serpent tempted Eve. Here even Jesus, even the Lord Jesus Christ, God in the flesh.
The Bible tells us that he was led of the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.
I want you to notice that in this famous story, and I could preach a whole sermon just on this story, we could preach a whole sermon series on this story.
But I just want to quickly show you, because I believe everything in the Bible is in there for a reason.
And I think God shows us the story about Jesus being tempted of the devil.
Because it shows you the types of temptations that the devil brings.
Notice the first is a temptation of appetite.
Look at verse 2.
And when he, talking about Jesus, had fasted forty days.
So Jesus had been out in the wilderness, he's been fasting for forty days.
What does that mean? It means he has not eaten in forty days.
The Bible says that when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, notice these words, he was afterward and hungered.
I would say so. If you hadn't ate for forty days and forty nights, I'm sure you are hungry.
He has a physical appetite, literally, to eat.
So what does the devil do to tempt him? Verse 3.
And when the, notice how the devil is referred to, when the tempter came.
That's what he's called.
He's referred to as the tempter. When the tempter came to him, he said,
If thou be the son of God, notice again, every time he opens his mouth, he's questioning the word of God.
If thou be the son of God, you know he's the son of God.
There's no question about it.
He came with all, with infallible proofs.
But he says, if thou be the son of God, notice the temptation, a temptation of appetite.
He says, command that these stones be made bread.
Jesus is literally, physically hungry. What are you tempting him with? Bread.
If thou be the son of God, command that these stones be made bread.
What's the response of Jesus? Verse 4.
But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
But I want you to notice that we see here that the devil is going to tempt you with physical appetites.
And of course this is a legitimate physical appetite of bread.
But our flesh has all sorts of physical appetites and the Bible teaches that the devil will tempt you using these appetites.
Keep your place there in Matthew 4. We're going to come right back to it.
Go back to 1 Corinthians chapter 7.
If you kept your place in 2 Corinthians, right before 2 Corinthians is 1 Corinthians, 1 Corinthians chapter 7.
I think it's interesting that every time Satan comes up in scripture, he's either being described as beguiling,
tricking, deceiving, or he comes up as someone who's tempting, or both.
Notice 1 Corinthians 7 and verse 5.
1 Corinthians 7 verse 5, the Bible says, Defraud ye not one another, except to be with consent for a time,
that ye may give yourselves to fasting and prayer and come together again.
Notice the last part of verse 5.
Every time Satan comes up in the Bible, it's always the same thing.
That Satan tempt you not.
He's the tempter. This is what he does.
That Satan tempt you not for your incontinency.
What does the word incontinency mean?
It means your inability to restrain yourself.
And here specifically Paul is referring to married couples and he says, Defraud ye not one another,
except to be with consent for a time, that ye may give yourselves to fasting and prayer and come together again.
And what Paul is talking about is the fact that husbands and wives ought to engage in the physical relationship of a husband and wife on a regular basis.
And you say, why?
Here's why that Satan tempt you not for your incontinency.
Because Satan is the tempter.
And what's one way that he's going to tempt you?
He's going to tempt you through appetites, through physical desires.
But I want you to notice there's a second way that the devil will tempt us.
Go back to Matthew chapter 4.
Not only does he tempt through the appetites and physical desires, but he also tempts through pride.
Look at verse 5 of Matthew chapter 4.
Matthew chapter 4 and verse 5.
The devil taketh him up into the holy city.
This is Jesus during the temptation of Christ.
And seteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, and saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down.
Now you say, well why would he tempt him to cast himself down?
Here's why.
The devil's going to quote the Bible.
Now he takes it out of context.
This is not true.
But he's quoting scripture.
He says, for it is written, he shall give his angels charge concerning thee, and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.
So he quotes from Psalms out of context.
And he says, here's the thing Jesus, if you're really the Son of God, he's questioning that he's the Son of God.
He says, but if you're really the Son of God, here's what the Bible says.
The Bible says that God will send his angels.
He says, it is written, he shall give his angels charge concerning thee, and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.
He says, if you throw yourself off the pinnacle of this temple right now, if you're really the Son of God, God is going to send angels and make sure that you don't die.
So why don't you just do that to prove.
What is he appealing to?
He's appealing to his pride.
Or he's attempting to appeal to Jesus' pride.
Of course Jesus was humble and lowly.
But he's trying to get Jesus to bow up.
What do you mean if I'm the, of course I'm the Son of God, I'll prove it right now.
That's what he's trying to get him to do.
A temptation of pride.
But Jesus is obviously too smart for this.
Look at verse 7.
Jesus said unto him, it is written, thou shall not tempt the Lord thy God.
He said, look, just because God says, just because, the idea is this, just because the Bible says safety to the Lord, doesn't mean you should go play on the highway.
We're not going to put God to the test.
The idea is this, God is the boss, not us.
So we're not going to put God to the test.
You know, if you say, I'm going to tithe.
And then because God said that, I'll prove me now here with safety to the Lord, if I open you not the windows of heaven.
You know, I'm going to go spend the rest of my money at the casino and God's going to have to take care of me.
No, that's not how it works.
You don't tempt God.
You don't put God in a corner and say, you do this and use his word against him.
But what is a temptation?
It is a temptation of pride and I'm going to tell you something.
Look, you say, if I don't know when the devil's attacking, if I can't see him because he's subtle, because he's wily, because he beguiles, if he's going to look different than what I'm looking for, then what should I be looking for?
Here's what you should be looking for.
When someone is tempting you with a physical appetite, you ought to think to yourself, I need to not be ignorant of the devil's devices.
When he's tempting you to bow yourself up with pride, to walk with pride, I mean there's nothing more devilish than that.
I will, I will, I will, I will, I will.
When you and I walk in pride, just know this, we are walking straight into the trap of the devil.
I often think of this because when I come across people like this, I think to myself, your life experience must be totally different than mine or than just a normal person's.
I mean it must be an interesting way to live your life to just be filled with pride.
To say you're never wrong, you never do anything wrong, you never have to take responsibility for anything, you never have to say I'm sorry to anyone, you never have to apologize for anything, you never have to admit any wrongdoing.
That must be a really interesting way to live your life.
I mean I would imagine it would be extremely just freeing because I'm the exact opposite to be honest with you.
Like and I take it to an extreme that I don't think is godly either. I just, I have PTSD because of the ministry or whatever.
So I'm just like constantly like doubting myself and I have to just remind myself like no that's what the Bible says.
And I'm just constantly like I'll make a decision and I'm like did I make the, I'm talking to my wife like did I make the right decision, maybe I was wrong.
But then it's like no, no this is what the Bible says, this is what God's word says.
I have to like find my confidence in the word of God but then there's people out there who are just like every decision I make is the right decision.
That must be interesting. Now here's the thing, maybe that's freeing but you're falling into the trap of the devil because you know what happens when you live your life that way is you burn bridges, you destroy relationships, you turn people against you.
This is what the devil does. So you say how do I know if the devil is attacking me? Are you being tempted with a physical appetite?
Are you being tempted to not humble yourself? I mean because Jesus says I don't have to prove anything to you.
I am the son of God and I don't have to throw myself off this pinnacle to prove that to you.
Jesus said I know I'm the son of God, God knows I'm the son of God, that's all that's needed.
But you and I have this need to be constantly defending ourselves and proving that we're right and we're this and we're that.
Pride goeth before destruction. So we see that it's a temptation of appetites, we see that it's a temptation of pride but then notice thirdly there's a temptation of power.
Look at verse 8, Matthew 4 and verse 8.
Now how can it be that Satan is saying to Jesus all these things will I give thee? The reason for that is because Satan is the prince and the power of the air.
He is the lower case g god of this world for now. There's coming a day when he will be removed from that but he says all these things will I give thee if thou wilt fall down and worship me.
What does he tempt him with? He tempts him with power, he tempts him with status, he tempts him with fame, he tempts him with success.
He says I'll give you all these kingdoms if thou wilt fall down and worship me.
Then said Jesus unto him get thee hence Satan for it is written thou shalt worship the Lord thy God and him only shalt thou serve.
Look I'm just telling you do whatever you want with it. It doesn't make a difference to me. You ruin your life if you want but when you start being tempted by some podcaster about how great your status is going to be and you're going to be so amazing.
You are being set up by the devil to destroy you. To destroy your reputation, to destroy your Christian life, to destroy your marriage, to destroy your family.
You're like no this is great. He beguiles, he's crafty, he has wiles, he deceives you, he sets you up and then causes you to fall.
Now here's the interesting thing. You say well the craftiness I don't get it. Here's the thing. The devil is the tempter. He's the tempter.
But then here's what makes the whole thing, here's what makes the whole thing to me I don't know if this is the right word but scary.
You want something to get scared about for Halloween? Go to Revelation chapter 12.
See remember his overwhelming characteristics are what? He's subtle? What does subtle mean? It means difficult to perceive.
Isn't that what the word subtle means? You're not obvious, you're subtle. He beguiles, he deceives, he misleads, he manipulates, he flatters you.
The Bible says he's subtle. The Bible says he beguiles. The Bible says he has wiles. What's a wile? A trap. A trap. That's what a wile is. Right?
Wally Coyote walks up to some big boulder and draws a tunnel. There's no real tunnel there. He's just trying to trick him into hitting it. Right?
You say well what's the big deal about being tempted with physical appetites? What's the big deal about having the devil lead me down the road of pride?
What's the big deal about being tempted with success and status and money and power? What's the big deal? Here's the big deal.
While you're being tempted, he's an angel of light. While you're being tempted, he's a beautiful temptress or a handsome tempter.
While you're being tempted, everything looks good. Everything looks great. Everyone's having fun. Everyone's making money. Everyone's being successful.
While you're being tempted. But where the beguiling happens is when he turns around and he goes from tempter to accuser.
Look. Revelation 12, verse 9.
And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent called the devil and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world.
He was cast out into the earth and his angels were cast out with him. Verse 10.
And I heard a loud voice saying, in heaven now is come salvation and strength and the kingdom of our God and the power of his Christ for the accuser of our brethren is cast down.
Which accused them before our God day and night.
See, the thing about the devil is this. He's not only the tempter, he's also the accuser.
He says, hey come here. You deserve something better than that.
No, no, no. Don't let him treat you like that. Don't let him treat you like that.
And he entices. And then when you do it, he turns around and says, look what he did.
Look at him, God. Remember what he said about Job to God? He said, he will curse thee to thy face.
The devil is not your friend, my friend. He is your adversary. He might look like a friend. He might look like a lot of fun.
But he is the tempter and he is the accuser. And the truth of the matter is, he is the matador.
Which by the way, the word matador is just a Spanish word, matador, which means the killer.
He is the matador holding out the red cape and you're the bull.
And you say, but I took a hit of it once and nothing happened. But I met her at the hotel once and nothing happened.
But I went through it once and nothing happened. And look, the matador is going to let you run through that cape and run through that cape and run through that cape a few times to build up your confidence.
But there's coming a day, you won't see it coming, when you run through that cape one more time and a sword will be stabbed into you.
Don't believe me? Ask Samson.
He fell asleep on Delilah's lap. Every time he woke up and he growled and he was strong and he got rid of him. Every time. Until he couldn't.
Until the Bible says he wished not that the Lord had departed. And the devil, that's what the devil does.
He tempts, he entices, he builds up your confidence. If I'll be the son of God, well prove it, go ahead. You deserve this.
And then as soon as you do it, he steps into his next role and says, look what your, look God, look what your son did, look God, look what your daughter did.
He's the accuser of our brethren. So we see the devil's fall. We see the devil's facade. We see the devil's fate.
I'd like you to notice, fourthly this morning, I'd like you to notice the devil's fate. The devil's fate.
If you're there in Revelation 12, I'd like you to go to Revelation chapter 20. The Bible tells us in Revelation chapter 20 and verse 1.
And I saw an angel come down from heaven having the keys of the bottomless pit. The bottomless pit is a reference to hell.
And a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on, here we get all his titles.
The dragon, that old serpent, why is he called an old serpent? Because he's so old he was in the garden of Eden.
That old serpent which is the devil and satan and bound him a thousand years. This is after, just for context, you can study this out on your own, this is after the battle of Armageddon during the millennial reign of Christ.
The Bible says that this angel came down from heaven having the keys of the bottomless pit and he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, the devil and satan and bound him a thousand years, verse 3.
And cast him into the bottomless pit, that's hell, and shut him up and set a seal upon him that he should deceive the nations no more. Notice the word there, deceive the nations no more.
That's what he does. Till the thousand years should be fulfilled and after that he must be loosed a little season.
So we see that the devil is cast into the bottomless pit for a thousand years. This happens after the battle of Armageddon, this happens during the millennial reign of Christ.
At the end of the millennial reign of Christ, verse 7, Revelation 20 verse 7, and when the thousand years are expired, so after the thousand year reign of Christ, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, which is the bottomless pit, hell, and shall go out to, notice what he does, it's all he does, deceive the nations.
Which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, the number of whom is as the sand of the sea, verse 9.
And they went up on the breadth of the earth, encompassed the camp of the saints about. Before the millennial reign of Christ, we have the battle of Armageddon.
The devil gets bound for a thousand years in the bottomless pit during the thousand year reign of Christ. At the end of the thousand years, he's let loose, he deceives the nation, and we have another battle, this is a battle known as the battle of Gog and Magog.
Verse 9, and they went up on the breadth of the earth, encompassed the camp of the saints about, and that beloved city, and fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them.
You say, what does the devil end, verse 10, and the devil that, notice it's just consistent, the devil that deceived them.
He's been deceiving mankind since Eve, and he'll be doing it all the way until after the millennial reign of Christ.
And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night, forever and ever.
I want you to notice that the fate of the devil is that he will end up in the lake of fire being tormented day and night, forever and ever.
Listen to me, the devil's not going to be in hell, partying, or running the place, he's going to be tormented day and night, forever and ever, along with the beast, along with the false prophet, along with every unsaved person that rejects Christ.
That's his fate. And I don't know about you, but it does something for me when I consider the fact that the devil has been at war with mankind since literally the beginning.
When I consider the fact that he beguiles, that he's wily, that he's deceitful, that he has a facade, that he transforms himself into the angel of light.
He comes subtly and hidden and tempts and allures with appetite and pride and power and status, gets you to sin and then condemns you and then goes to God and says, he will curse thee to thy face.
When you realize that the devil has laid traps and destroyed families and ministries and Christian lives for all of humanity, it's reassuring to me.
To know that he's going to get what's coming to him. That he will be cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are and shall be tormented day and night, forever and ever.
The songwriter said, lives day will soon be o'er, all storms forever past. We'll cross the great divide to glory safe at last.
We'll share the joys of heaven, a harp, a home, a crown. The tempter will be banished. We'll lay our burdens down.
See the devil's at war with us, but the good news is this, that God is at war with him and he will have coming to him what he deserves.
I'd like you to go, you're there in Revelation, if you go backwards to the book of 1 Peter, I'm going to show you two verses and we're going to be done.
1 Peter chapter 5. I already quoted it for you, but I want you to see it. Revelation, Jude, 3rd, 2nd and 1st John, 2nd and 1st Peter, 1st Peter chapter 5.
We're studying the devil this morning. We've seen the devil's fall. He was cast down because he was full of pride. We've seen the devil's facade, his deceit and his disguise.
We've seen the devil's fight. He's the tempter. He temps with fleshly appetite. He temps with pride. He temps with power. We've seen that he's the accuser.
Which is why he beguiles, which is why he's wily, which is why he's subtle, which is why he's crafty and cunning.
Because he tricks you, he allures you, he manipulates you into tempting you to sin and then turns around and accuses you in this fight.
And we've seen the devil's fate, that the devil will spend a thousand years in the bottomless pit and then all of eternity in the lake of fire when God finally is done with him.
But I'd like to conclude this morning with a warning of warning and an advice to win.
The advice for warning is this. We've already talked about it, but I think you should see it. The devil wants to destroy you.
1 Peter chapter 5, look at verse 8. The Bible says be sober. Be sober. This is a serious matter. This is not something we play with. This is not trick or treats.
Be sober. Be vigilant. Why do I have to be so vigilant? Because he's subtle. Because he disguises himself and you don't see him coming.
Be sober. Be vigilant. Because your adversary, the devil, you may not be at war with him. Most Christians aren't.
But he's at war with you. He hates you. Because your adversary, the devil, as a roaring lion walketh about seeking whom he may devour.
It's not just destroy. It's annihilate. It's to leave nothing behind. Just a couple thoughts.
The thing about the devil, and I think the reason that we don't take him seriously, part of it is because he's created a culture to cause us to not create him, take him seriously.
Right? When you see Porky Pig with the pitchfork and the little horns and, you know, it's funny. Halloween's funny. All these scary movies, they're funny.
So it's meant to cause us to bring our guard down. But I think one of the reasons we don't take the devil seriously is because the devil often allows us to win.
He sets these temptations and allows us to win, like the matador. And it builds our confidence. And we start thinking, oh, well that's not so bad.
I mean, yeah, he tried this and, I mean, we didn't resolve it. We didn't fix it. Nothing actually, no one actually got right with God but we got past it and we're fine.
I mean, he just added a little pride here and he created a little discord there and he got this person to be disgruntled here and he got this person to be lifted up with pride there.
And all these little problems and we don't ever solve them. We don't ever actually get right with God. We never actually fix anything. We just kind of hurdle over it and we think, oh, he almost got us. Oh, he almost got us.
But here's the thing about the devil he needs to understand. A lion doesn't just decide to go and attack its prey. It first watches. It couches. It's subtle. It's hidden.
And if you've ever watched, you know, all the animal channel documentaries or whatever, not only is it hidden and not only is it subtle, not only is it quiet, but it's coordinated.
Isn't that true? When these lions jump out and cause a whole herd to go running, they're not trying to just catch. They're trying to cause mayhem, trying to get a whole herd of animals running down a road. Why?
So they could target in on the weakest. So they could target in on the youngest. So they can isolate one from the group and devour it.
See, the thing about the lion and the thing about the devil is this, that he plays the long game. He knows. He knows how to do this.
So he lays a trap here. He lays a trap there. He puts some pride here and creates some discord there. He causes an issue here and he allows this person to get away with this sin for a while.
And he lays all these traps. See, often times people ask me, Pastor, how do you know when the devil is attacking? How do you know when it's a devil attack?
Because here's the thing. We live in a fallen world and I think sometimes we blame too much on the devil, right? People always want to say, the devil made me do it.
Well, the devil didn't make you do anything. He tempted you and you decided to be enticed of your own lust.
But honestly, sometimes I think we blame the devil and he's like, I didn't do that. That was your stupidity. That was just your sin.
Because we live in a fallen world, right? So just the fact that we live in a fallen world, there's going to be issues and problems.
We are fallen sinners, so our own flesh and lust is going to tempt us and cause us to sin.
So you say, you know, people often ask, how do you know when the devil is attacking? And here's what I believe, because I think we should try to get everything from the Bible, from the Word of God.
And I think that you know when the devil is attacking? When it is a coordinated attack. When it seems like someone said, one, two, three, go.
And it's just a blow up here and a blow up there and an issue here and an issue there and this from years ago and that from just a few weeks ago.
And you're fighting within and you're fighting without and it's just, because think about Job. When Job got attacked, you don't have to turn there, I'm not going to have you turn there, but when Job got attacked, what happened?
He's just going about his day. And all of a sudden the servant shows up and says, the oxen were plowing and the Sabeans fell upon them and took them away.
And the Bible says, as he yet spake, there comes another servant and says, fire from God has fallen from heaven and burned up the sheep.
And as he is talking, another servant comes and says, the Chaldeans made three bands and fell upon the camels.
And as he's still talking, there comes another servant, a great wind from the wilderness came and all your children are dead.
And every single one of these says, and I only am alone, escape to tell thee. This coordinated attack.
And I'm here to tell you. You say, yeah, I got a little bit of pride, but I've had a little bit of pride. No big deal.
Yeah, I've been lying here and indulging in this sin over here, this hidden sin, but I've been doing it for years. No big deal.
Yeah, I have this disgruntled relationship with this person at church or with this person in my home. I've got this, I mean, I've got all these little things and all these little things that Satan has been lying in wait, setting traps.
And then one day it's like he says, one, two, three, go. And we're the herd that starts running into all these traps.
And there's an explosion here, an explosion there, and a casualty here, and a casualty there.
And sometimes I stand back and I think to myself, how did we get here? How did this happen?
And I think the answer is that we should not be ignorant of the devil's devices, lest he get advantage over us.
This is not a game, friend. I've been listening to this person on YouTube and they keep telling me that I need to just be rich and successful and have status. Be careful with that.
But they look real successful. I don't think they're the devil. Okay.
There's this lady at work and she's been a little extra friendly with me and, you know, my wife, she ignores me. Okay.
Well, I've just been doing this and I know pastor doesn't think it's a good idea, but I just think that I've been actually doing it for a while now and nothing's happened. Okay.
Okay. I'm just telling you, be sober, be vigilant, because you're adversary of the devil has a roaring lion walking about seeking whom he may devour.
That's the warning. Let me give you the win. James chapter 4. Either in 1 Peter, just flip over to James chapter 4, look at verse 7.
James chapter 4, verse 7. James chapter 4 and verse 7. You say, okay, pastor, but what if I find myself in the midst of that running herd?
What if there's just explosions here and explosions there and casualties here and fighting there and issues here and issues there? What do I do?
James 4 and verse 7. Submit. You and I don't like it, but you know the answer is always this, humble yourself. Submit yourselves, therefore, to God.
And then the Bible says this, resist the devil and he will flee from you.
You know, oftentimes people want you to get involved and do this and take this action and that action. You know, sometimes the best thing you can do is just decide, you know what, I don't know what's going on right now.
I'm just going to resist the devil. And I know if I just do what I'm supposed to do. I don't know what's going on right now, but I know this, I'm going to get up tomorrow morning, I'm going to read my Bible.
I'm going to get up tomorrow morning, I'm going to spend some time in prayer. I'm going to get up tomorrow morning and I'm going to love my wife and I'm going to love my children and I'm going to do the best I can with the ministry that God has given me.
And I'm just going to, you said the devil's attacking. Resist the devil, the Bible says. And he will eventually flee from you.
The Bible says about Jesus in Matthew chapter four, he got tempted and tempted and tempted. He kept saying, just read the Bible. Man should not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeded out of the mouth of God.
I'm not going to blow myself up in pride. I'm not going to tempt the Lord my God. I'm just going to do what I know I'm supposed to do. I'm going to stick at it. I'm going to stick with it.
And you know what the Bible says at the end of that story? The devil fled from him. So here's the warning. You may not be at war with the devil, but he's at war with you.
And he wants to destroy you and your reputation and your marriage and your children and your ministry. And you go ahead and blow yourself up with pride and say, passion doesn't know, he's such an idiot.
Okay, one day you'll wake up and it's all destroyed all around you. And you'll know, oh wow, maybe I should have dealt with that. Maybe I should have apologized there. Maybe I shouldn't have let that go. Maybe I thought nobody knew, I thought nobody saw.
We need to just humble ourselves, get right with God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.
Lord, we do love you. Lord, I pray you'd help us. The devil is not someone to mess around with.
And I don't mean this in any sort of kind way, but in some ways it's impressive. Maybe the word is astonishing. How good he is at what he does.
And we just allow ourselves to be deceived and we just fall straight into these traps. Lord, I pray you'd help us to wake up to the wiles of the devil, lest he should have advantage over us.
Lord, I pray you'd help us. Help us to live for you. Help us to claim the victory of God before us, who can be against us. And help us to be aware of the wiles of the devil.
In the matchless name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.
We're going to have Brother Andrew come up and lead us in a final song. I just want to remind you of a couple of things. First of all, we want to encourage you to be back next week.
Next week we're going to be finishing this series on the Spirit World. We talked about heaven, we talked about hell, we talked about angels and demons, we talked about the devil.
And next week we're going to bring it all together in a sermon entitled Spiritual Warfare. I want to encourage you to be here for that. Invite somebody with you, bring somebody with you.
Tonight we're going to be in part 2 of God is not a Republican but the devil is a Democrat. We picked on the Republicans last week so we'll pick on the Democrats tonight and that will make a lot of you happier, I'm sure.
So I encourage you to be here for that. And then of course don't forget this week is our Harvest Party. Thursday at 6pm here on the property. We'll be meeting in the back of the property.
And we'd love for you to be a part of that. If you're looking for something to do on Halloween night that doesn't include worshipping the devil or death or demons or whatever.
Then we'd love for you to come by of course for the Harvest Party. We'll have the potluck, we'll have the chili cook off, we'll have games, all of that.
We've got sign up sheets in the back, cornbread if you can, desserts if you can. We'd appreciate your help with that. If there's anything we can do for you please let us know.
We'll have Brother Andrew come up and lead us in a final song.
We're going to turn to page 257. We're going to sing Look and Live this morning as we finish our Sunday AM service. You guys were singing Wonderful this morning but I'm going to ask you guys to sing Strong just one more time for me this morning as we finish up the service.
page 257 Look and Live on the first.
It is only that you look and live, Tis recorded in His Word, Hallelujah, It is only that you look and live.
I've a message full of love, Hallelujah, A message oh my friend for you, Tis a message from above, Hallelujah, Jesus said it and I know it is true.
Look and live my brother, Look to Jesus now and live, Tis recorded in His Word, Hallelujah, It is only that you look and live.
Look and live on the third, Life is offered unto you, Hallelujah, Internal life thy soul shall have, If you only look to Him, Hallelujah, Look to Jesus who alone can save.
Look and live my brother, Look to Jesus now and live, Tis recorded in His Word, Hallelujah, It is only that you look and live.
Let's sing it out strong on the fourth. Let's finish on a good note this morning.
On the fourth, I will tell you how I came, Hallelujah, To Jesus when He made me whole, Was believing on His name, Hallelujah, I trusted and He saved my soul.
Look and live my brother, Look to Jesus now and live, Tis recorded in His Word, Hallelujah, It is only that you look and live.
Amen. Great singing this morning. We are so glad that you were with us this morning.
And as always, if you have any questions about church membership, baptism or salvation, Pastor will be at the door and I'll be able to answer those questions for you.
Or, of course, we'll be able to direct you to somebody who is trained to do so.
I'm going to go ahead and ask Brother Matt Barillo if he doesn't mind dismissing us with a word of prayer this morning.
Amen.