Basic steps in identifying spiritual deceptions
God is more glorious and magnificent than anything we can every imagine. At the same time, He is tender hearted and faithful towards those who follow and obey Jesus. But we have an enemy that tries to block us from seeing God clearly for who He is. Satan sets himself against the knowledge of God. He will confuse, entice, tempt, deceive and discourage Christians in their walk with God. A defeated enemy cannot defeat us. We can only be deceived into thinking that he can. Here are some basic steps in identifying spiritual deceptions.
(See Chinese versions: 简体中文 > 何谓属灵欺骗 | 繁體中文 > 何謂屬靈欺騙 )
It is important that we learn to recognise our enemy’s lies and deceptions and overcome Satan’s schemes with the Word of God. We are to demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
2 Corinthians 10:5 We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,
Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
| Satan’s character | Satan’s tactics |
| 1. Accuser | |
| Revelation 12:10 ESV And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. | Self-accusations of shame, defeat, unworthiness, hopelessness etc. |
|
2. Oppressor |
|
|
Isaiah 14:4 ESV you will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon: “How the oppressor has ceased, the insolent fury ceased! |
Addictions and bondage to anger, bitterness, unforgiveness etc. |
| 3. Deceiver | |
| John 8:44 ESV You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. | Wrong ideas about God, our identity, Satan, the truth etc. |
| 4. Thief | |
| John 10:10 ESV The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. | Loss of joy, hope, peace etc. |
| 5. Destroyer | |
| 1 Corinthians 10:10 ESV Nor grumble, as some of them did, and were destroyed by the destroyer. | Destroyer of families and marriages |
| 6. Tempter | |
| 1 Thessalonians 3:5 ESV For this reason, when I could bear it no longer, I sent to learn about your faith, for fear that somehow the tempter had tempted you and our labor would be in vain. | Temptation to sin |
| 7. False teacher | |
| 2 Corinthians 11:13-14 ESV For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. | False doctrine, philosophies |
|
8. Hunger for worship |
|
| Luke 4:6-7 ESV and said to him, “To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whom I will. If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.” | False religions, new age beliefs |
Praise God that the Bible says that no spiritual weapon formed against us can succeed. We have everything we need to expel spiritual darkness and demolish spiritual strongholds.
Isaiah 54:17 no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD and their vindication from me, declares the LORD.”
Living victoriously
Here are some principles we need to remember when praying to take down Satan’s strongholds that keep us from experiencing God’s love, joy and peace.
1. Know our spiritual rights
When Satan tried to tempt Jesus in the desert, Jesus rebuffed him three times using the Word of God. He quoted from Deuteronomy 6 and 8. Satan had nothing to say after that and eventually left.
Deuteronomy 8:3 And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.
Deuteronomy 6:16 “You shall not put the Lord your God to the test, as you tested him at Massah.
Deuteronomy 6:13 It is the Lord your God you shall fear. Him you shall serve and by his name you shall swear.
All creation is bound by the very same spiritual laws that God has set for billions of years, and that includes Jesus and Satan. Figuratively speaking, they both had to “play by the rules of the game”. Because Jesus knew these spiritual laws and His sonship rights very well, He was not outwitted by Satan’s deceptions.
Neither can Satan deceive us when we know our spiritual rights.
2. Know our enemy’s tactics
Satan may be referred to as the god of this world but his powers are limited. Satan and demons or evil spirits can’t dominate, control or possess Christians, but they will try to deceive, distract, tempt, accuse and shame Christians into a perceived position of defeat. Their goal is to blind unbelievers to God’s perfect love, and to murder the joy, peace and hope of believers with the use of lies and deception. That is why the Bible says God’s truth will set us free from Satan’s tactics.
2 Corinthians 4:4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
John 8:31-32 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
3. Put on our armour of God
The armour of God acts as a protection over our spiritual inheritance. The armour is a figurative description of the different aspects of faith that we must grow strong in.
This comprises:
- Belt of truth – Our spiritual inheritance as God’s children holds everything together.
- Breastplate of righteousness – Our spiritual covering has been bought with Jesus’ righteous sacrifice on the cross.
- Sandals of peace of the gospel – Our testimony and the gospel should be advancing.
- Shield of faith – Our faith protects us against Satan’s deceptions, distractions, temptations and accusations.
- Helmet of salvation – Our identity as adopted children of God should cover all our thoughts.
- Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word – Our Bible knowledge helps us refute any weapon formed against us.
Ephesians 6:14-17 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication.
We should ensure that there are no gaps in our armour of God.
4. Renew our minds
If we think of ourselves as great achievers who don’t need God, we will start to neglect Him and eventually give up our spiritual inheritance. If we think we can’t trust God in the areas that are most important to us, we will allow Satan to deceive us into trusting other things, including his demons. However, when we know our full spiritual inheritance and are ready to grasp every spiritual victory that is ours for the taking, we will walk in great boldness of faith.
How we think determines how we live out our faith. That’s why the Bible says we need to renew our minds based on God’s Word, so we are able to discern His perfect will.
Romans 12:2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
5. Withstand
After we have put on our armour, the Bible tells us to stand and resist our enemy, not to run. We simply put on our armour so we have the extra reinforcement to stand and persevere, and repel spiritual attacks using the Word (our sword), even before they can cause any harm.
Ephesians 6:11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.
6. Be prepared to fight
We need to be prepared to do our part, as we too are called to fight and fend off Satan’s schemes. The weapon in our hands is the Word of God and we fight by invoking the name and authority of Jesus to do something that He has entrusted us to do, as His hands and feet on earth. At all times, we rely on God’s power when we fight the good fight, not on our own strength.
2 Corinthians 10:4-5 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,
1 Timothy 6:12 Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
1 Timothy 1:18 This charge I entrust to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you, that by them you may wage the good warfare,
We must learn how to defend our thoughts with God’s promises and spiritual truths every day, knowing that our enemy will keep trying to defeat us in our thoughts every day. Victory is guaranteed when we know our spiritual rights.
7. Don’t fear
God has His own vast army; He doesn’t need us to do all the fighting. All we need to do is to not fear or panic, but to stay on the path He has prepared for us, so we can experience the good things that He has prepared for us along the way.
Ephesians 6:18 …To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints,
2 Chronicles 20:15 And he said, “Listen, all Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem and King Jehoshaphat: Thus says the Lord to you, ‘Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed at this great horde, for the battle is not yours but God’s.
Exodus 14:14 The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”
8. Be bold in sharing our testimonies
One way to weaken Satan’s power is to testify what God has been doing in our lives. This builds our faith as we stand as witnesses of His love and power.
Revelation 12:11 And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death.
Our great God makes everything work for an unimaginably better future.
Testimony: Being set free from demonic strongholds to know the truth about God
“Even though I had studied the Bible for years, I was blinded to God’s truths in my heart and how much He had already blessed me with. This was because of unclean spirits that operated in my life due to the idol worship and witchcraft in my family. Those dark spiritual powers also led me to distance myself from others in all my relationships and prevented me from trusting in God’s abundant love, provision, and faithfulness.
2 Corinthians 4:4 NIV The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
I went for prayer ministry where I was led to confess the idolatry in my ancestry and demanded those spirits to leave me in Jesus’ name for good. Since then, I have been able to feel the goodness and faithfulness of God in my life and rebuke lies from Satan that tempt me to return to a negative state of mind.
Being aware of these emotional traps, I am mindful of my own thoughts and have peace in my heart and in my mind. For instance, when I find myself wandering in negative thoughts of covetousness over another person’s situation, I’m reminded of God’s faithfulness in His Word and reflect on His victories in my life. When I feel bitter towards another for speaking hurtful words and making me feel unworthy, I’m reminded by His Word that I am worthy and loved by God. In the past I was drawn to harbouring bitterness and hatred, but now I’ve tasted the lightness of taking God’s yoke and submit my thoughts and emotions to Him.”
May this sharing be a blessing to you as you seek to love God with all your heart and recognise the things that blind you from seeing God’s goodness towards you.