September 9 - The Need for Discernment
One of the most effective tactics of the enemy is deception. When a person is deceived, he cannot tell left from right, right from wrong or good from bad. Satan is the biggest liar and he lied from the beginning. Adam and Eve were deceived, believed in the lie and sinned. In the days of Isaiah, people who did not trust in the Lord and were susceptible to many lies. They trusted in material support of water and bread; they also believed in the leadership of the mighty man, the soldier, the judge, the prophet, the diviner, the elder, the captain, the man of rank, the counselor, the skillful magician and the expert in charms. The result was that they were totally let down. The nation was left without leaders as a judgment from God.
Instead of asking God for guidance, we look everywhere else but God. Many go to the professionals, the specialists, the rich and famous and the powerful for advice and support. Listen to the Lord who says, “O my people, your guides mislead you and they have swallowed up the course of your paths.” The Lord is our Judge, only He can judge correctly on all things. He is the ultimate Specialist. He stands to judge His own people for He is all knowing and ever present. It is so easy to be deceived when we neglect to seek God’s advice and help. The Lord used a spirit of judgment and a spirit of burning to wash away the filth of the daughters of Zion and cleansed the bloodstains of Jerusalem from its midst. Discernment and correct judgment of things, people and events allows the cleansing power of God to come like a burning fire. The spirit of judgment and fire go together.
When the Corinthian believers were about to be deceived by the false apostles, Paul called for discernment. As the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, their thoughts could be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. The false apostles were actually proclaiming another Jesus, imparting a different spirit and preaching a different gospel. Some readily received them without discernment. When we are ignorant about our faith and the Word of God, lacking in judgment and discernment, we could fall for their teaching. Such men, according to Paul, were false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. They were servants of Satan disguising as angels of light. How dangerous it is to have these teachers in the church.
Are you easily persuaded by others and cannot hold on to your own convictions? Are you weak in the faith and often times faltering and doubting God? Do you know God’s Word and have the sword of the Spirit at hand? Do you know what you believe in? Many false teachers are looking for the gullible ones to prey on. Satan, as a roaring lion, always looks for the weak ones to devour. Be strong in the Lord, ask Him for spiritual discernment so that you can make correct judgments.
Ps 102:18-28 Isa 3:1-5:30 2 Cor 11:1-15 Prov 22:28-29