Operation Mindcrime Part 2: Ignorance Is Bliss

Operation Mindcrime Part 2: Ignorance Is Bliss Leviticus 17:7 New King James Version (NKJV) 7 They shall no more offer their sacrifices to demons, after whom they have played the harlot. This shall be a statute forever for them throughout their generations.”’ Throughout the Old and New Testaments there are many references to demons, unclean spirits, or devils, depending upon what translation you are reading. The bible warns us of worshipping and sacrificing to demons, tells us of people possessed by demonic spirits, and tells us of Jesus performing exorcisms on the possessed. Matthew 8:16 New King James Version (NKJV) 16 When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick, There are several such passages throughout the New Testament gospels. Jesus cast demons out of man who were brought to Him by their families, some he crossed paths with on His journeys, and in one case demons who charged out at Him. Luke 8:26-34 New King James Version (NKJV) 26 Then they sailed to the country of the Gadarenes, which is opposite Galilee. 27 And when He stepped out on the land, there met Him a certain man from the city who had demons for a long time. And he wore no clothes, nor did he live in a house but in the tombs. 28 When he saw Jesus, he cried out, fell down before Him, and with a loud voice said, “What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me!” 29 For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For it had often seized him, and he was kept under guard, bound with chains and shackles; and he broke the bonds and was driven by the demon into the wilderness. 30 Jesus asked him, saying, “What is your name?” And he said, “Legion,” because many demons had entered him. 31 And they begged Him that He would not command them to go out into the abyss. 32 Now a herd of many swine was feeding there on the mountain. So they begged Him that He would permit them to enter them. And He permitted them. 33 Then the demons went out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the lake and drowned. 34 When those who fed them saw what had happened, they fled and told it in the city and in the country. With these verses and many more throughout the bible about demons, why do we rarely ever hear about them today? Did they die out somewhere in time? Did they cease to exist because we stopped talking about them? As much as people would like to believe these things, it’s simply not the truth. In our day and time, the only instances of hearing about demon possession are in horror movies and sometimes in charismatic churches. It’s gotten to the point that when you mention demons to most Christians, they either laugh in disbelief or tell you that they’re just metaphors for people’s problems. People in general have stopped believing in demons. This is dangerous. People want to laugh at you when you say you believe in demons, but almost every culture on the planet, Christian and pagan, have stories and beliefs about demons. They believe that these spirits are loose in the air and that they can take control of good people and make them do horrific things. So if all of these cultures believe that these evil spirits can make good people do horrific things, why do we doubt their existence when we see people walk into schoolhouses on shooting sprees, religious leaders convince their followers to commit mass suicide, or torture and kill innocent children. So often we hear the killer or captor described as quiet, easy going, or even a ‘good person’ by those around them. These seemingly normal, everyday citizens suddenly turned into sadistic monsters; why? Some will say it was due to underlying mental illnesses, tragic situations in their lives, mental breakdowns, or chemical influence. Is that an explanation or are those symptoms of something more insidious? When our culture fails to recognize the existence of evil, we fail to protect ourselves and our loved ones of it’s influence. We become a culture of ‘if it feels good, do it’. We allow all sorts of immoral and evil influence into our lives without thinking twice about it. Through movies, television, print media, and social media, every vice out there is at the touch of a button. As a whole, we become desensitized to sexual immorality, alcohol and drug abuse, and violence to our fellow man through the modern media. We allow all kinds of unclean spirits into our lives. On the religious side of this, while we are being bombarded with messages telling us to be more tolerant and more accepting, we see more and more people delving into paganism. The spread of Wicca, Santa Ria, Universal Unitarianism, and even Satanism is increasing more rapidly. Simple practices such as séances and the use of witchboards are more and more common. They seems so simple, but are actually gateways to allowing all sorts of spirits into your lives. It’s gotten to the point that I’ve even seen childrens’ Ouija Boards in pink packaging for young girls on the shelves of toy sections in national chain stores. The demonic has been made ‘safe for our children’. Our culture is so terribly, sadly, deceived. We have millions of people under the control of drugs and alcohol, bound by sexual addictions such as pornography and prostitution, pedophiles at every turn, husbands and wives cheating on each other with no remorse, ministers using their positions to live like kings, and physical and mental abuse rampant throughout our society, but we don’t believe in demons. This isn’t meant to be a full sermon, just part of the series on the corruption of the human mind and soul, so I’ll bring it to a close here since we’ve got a long ways to go in the series. I hope this has given you food for thought my friends. I hope it helps you to realize some areas in your life that you need to work on and opens your eyes to things you should protect your family from. Remember to study your bibles, maintain a healthy prayer life, keep in fellowship with your Christian family, and avoid anything that gives you a feeling of evil. The greatest lie the devil ever told was convincing the world he doesn’t exist. Jesus brought us the truth: John 10:9-11 New King James Version (NKJV) 9 I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. 10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. 11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. God bless you my friends, Pete.

Operation Mindcrime Part 1: The Deception of Man

Operation Mindcrime Part 1: The Deception of Man Genesis 3:1-5 New King James Version (NKJV) 3 Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?” 2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; 3 but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’” 4 Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” Doesn’t this sound all too familiar? When we’re tempted by the world and try to refuse it, what do people ‘of the world’ tell us? There’s nothing wrong with having a little fun. God won’t mind if you give in to a little sin. Or maybe they react even more strongly with something like “You’re not really going say that’s bad are you. You’re being ridiculous with that Christian junk you know.” Does any of this sound familiar? Have you ever had this conversation with your ‘friends’? Maybe this even happened with a family member. It’s not that your friend or family member is intentionally trying to harm you by asking you to go to a party or to a club. It’s because they don’t even realize that going out somewhere, getting drunk, speaking vulgarly, doing some obscene act, or doing something sexual with someone other than their spouse is even wrong. They don’t see that many things are sin. They don’t know what effect sin has on their lives. They don’t even understand what sin actually is. They have fallen for the world’s deceptions and don’t understand why you haven’t. Just as the serpent told Eve that surely you will not die for eating of the tree of knowledge, the world will tell you that surely God would not punish you for partaking of the pleasures of the world. The world will even tell you that if something feels so good, how could it ever be wrong? This has never been more prevalent than it is today. With media so readily available via live television, the internet, cell phones, and other devices, we are bombarded at every turn with the manipulations of the world. We’re shown how great lifestyles seem that are contrary to the teachings of Christ. Most of the popular movies and television shows portray lifestyles of pretty women who strive to bed wealthy men who can provide them with nice material possessions and men who measure life accomplishment by how many pretty women they have bedded. These same shows often portray unwed mothers or fathers living the same kind of shallow existences and raising children in that environment. In other instances these shows promote the acceptance of homosexual couples or homosexuals living promiscuous lifestyles. All of these shows are promoting sexually immoral lifestyles and pushing for us to accept them as normal. We’re often times made to feel as hatemongers if we stick to our beliefs and biblical teachings. We’re told that we’re hateful people if we say that these lifestyles are sinful. We’re told that we should never condemn someone for who they love. We’re condemned for standing for biblical truth. We’re told that the scriptures concerning sexual immorality and the definition of marriage are outdated and that these scriptures should just be overlooked. These scriptures were just a sign of the times and culture of the Hebrew people. We’re even told this by many ministers today. We’re being told to accept a lie. The truth is that the Holy Bible is God’s inspired Word, handed down to us by His prophets and apostles. This book is our guide to living a good life today just as it was at the time it was written. We also have to remember something else when people tell us to ignore certain scriptures in order to be more ‘accepting’ of people. Have you ever had someone tell you that “Jesus didn’t preach on that so it’s not sin for us”? They forget this about Jesus; He is the Word of God. John 1:1-5 New King James Version (NKJV) 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. When someone tells you to ignore part of God’s Word, they’re telling you to ignore Jesus. They tell you that Jesus taught love and grace, not judgment and condemnation. Yes, Jesus did teach us of love and grace, but He taught us much of what we face for ignoring God’s Word. John 3:16-21 New King James Version (NKJV) 16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 18 “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. 21 But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.” When we ignore God’s Word, we are saying that we don’t believe in it. When we don’t believe in God’s Word, we’re saying we don’t believe in Jesus Christ. When we say we don’t believe in Jesus Christ, we have already condemned ourselves. This is what we do when we believe the lies of the world over the Word of God. I’ll also throw this at you when it comes to Jesus’ stance on sexual immorality and living immoral lives in general. Remember the immorality of the citied on the plain of Sodom and Gomorrah? Genesis 18:1-5 New King James Version (NKJV) 18 Then the Lord appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamre,[a] as he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day. 2 So he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing by him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the ground, 3 and said, “My Lord, if I have now found favor in Your sight, do not pass on by Your servant. 4 Please let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. 5 And I will bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh your hearts. After that you may pass by, inasmuch as you have come to your servant.” They said, “Do as you have said.” Abraham recognizes His visitor as Lord. We have to remember that as Moses learned, to view God the Father is to die. So, who is this Lord that Abraham is addressing? It is Jesus and two of His angels. So where am I going with this? Let’s read more from Genesis eighteen. Genesis 18:16-26 New King James Version (NKJV) 16 Then the men rose from there and looked toward Sodom, and Abraham went with them to send them on the way. 17 And the Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing, 18 since Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? 19 For I have known him, in order that he may command his children and his household after him, that they keep the way of the Lord, to do righteousness and justice, that the Lord may bring to Abraham what He has spoken to him.” 20 And the Lord said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grave, 21 I will go down now and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry against it that has come to Me; and if not, I will know.” 22 Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the Lord. 23 And Abraham came near and said, “Would You also destroy the righteous with the wicked? 24 Suppose there were fifty righteous within the city; would You also destroy the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous that were in it? 25 Far be it from You to do such a thing as this, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked; far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” 26 So the Lord said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.” Abraham and Jesus’ conversation goes on until ultimately Lot and his family are the only ones saved by Jesus’ angels. Even Lot’s wife, in her disobedience to God cannot be saved, but is turned into a pillar of salt. She longs for her former life so much that she looks back upon it and directly disobeys the instructions of the Angels. Doesn’t that sound so much like our own world? If anyone has any doubt as to Jesus view on sexual immorality and living a morally bankrupt life, just look at the judgment levied upon all the cities on the plain of Sodom and Gomorrah. They were so debased that God cleansed the world of them. These are the same kind of lifestyles that the ‘modern world’ wants us to view as acceptable. They would have you believe that a life of pleasing the flesh is perfectly fine. We see what happened in the past to people who accepted and embraced their sinful nature. They were destroyed. They condemned themselves to destruction, just as people are doing in droves today by being accepting of all that is sinful and ungodly. They will call you a hatemonger or maybe a hypocrite for standing up for God’s Word. They will do everything in their power to make you feel loathsome of yourself, guilty for your beliefs, and feel as though you are out of God’s grace because you aren’t loving of everyone and accepting them as they are. Remember the truth though. If you truly love God, you will keep His commandments. You will stand for Him in the face of persecution. You will not be deceived by a message of love everyone and everything as they are. If these people who are trying to manipulate you truly loved God, they would have changed their lives to living His ways and not the world’s. Don’t fall for the deception of man my friends. This is just the first portion of the message ‘Operation Mindcrime’. I’ll continue to delve deeper into the deceptions and manipulations plaguing our church today. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit…..Amen. Pete 5/20/12