“Guard your heart above all else, for it determines
the course of your life.” ~ Proverbs 4:23
“Matters of the Heart” is a weekly blog that deals with the deepest issues of the human heart, the issues we all face but sometimes don’t want to talk about. The heart is the programming center of our lives. What is programmed into our heart will affect every area of our lives. Learn how to examine your heart and how to program your heart for success.
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Witchcraft is on the rise in the United States and in the world.
And you need to be aware of its dangerous and destructive plans for you and your family!
As the approach of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ draws near in the amazing event called the Rapture, Satan and his demons are hard at work to deceive people everywhere and to draw them away from the truth. One such deception is the current craze and interest in witchcraft, a deception that particularly abounds during this month of October with its celebration and glorification of Halloween.
Jesus prophesied that such deception would occur in the last days before His return: “‘TAKE HEED, lest any man deceive you … For false christs and false prophets shall arise and shall show signs and wonders to seduce, if possible, even the elect” – Mark 13:5,22 (Emphasis mine).
We are seeing this take place before our very eyes today. Occult practices abound in the form of astrology (horoscopes, tarot cards, palmistry), yoga, and the martial arts. Shockingly, even Christians are participating in them, unaware that such participation gives demons and other seducing spirits access to their lives.
Occult “religions”–such as Wicca, Satanism, Kaballah, and Goddess Worship–are on the rise as well and have their roots in the very pit of hell. We Christians need to be aware of these deceptions and warn others about them. Many in the Church are being led astray by practices such as so-called “Christian yoga” and “Christian Martial Arts.” These practices are not Christian at all. They have their roots in Satan and are dangerous!
“The root determines the fruit.” – Dr. MaryAnn Diorio
It is important to understand that Satan presents evil as good. The Bible tells us that “Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light” ( 2 Corinthians 11: 14). To masquerade–or wear a mask–means that one is pretending to be what one is not.
Satan wears a mask of light to pretend he is light when, in truth, he is the essence of darkness itself.
Satan’s goal is to counterfeit Truth. He presents as truth, that which is false, and as false, that which is true. He does this by presenting evil as good. By presenting darkness as light. By presenting wrong as right.
Consider this: For every counterfeit, there is a genuine. For every counterfeit $50 bill, there is a genuine $50 bill. Have you ever seen a counterfeit $70 bill? No. Why not? Because there is no such thing as a $70 bill.
Likewise, for every truth in the Bible, there is a counterfeit. So, when we see a counterfeit gospel–one that is rooted in anything other than Jesus Christ–know that this is a false gospel counterfeiting the genuine Gospel. It doesn’t matter if this counterfeit gospel produces miracles, signs, and wonders. Remember: Satan still has supernatural power, although his power has no teeth since Jesus defeated him by His death and resurrection. But, unless one is aware of Satan’s deception, one can easily think that Satanic power is the greatest power when, in truth, it is not.
Satan’s only power is the lie. And even the power of the lie has no effect on us if we don’t believe his lies. For this reason, we must saturate our minds and hearts with the Word of God. Only the Word of God will enable us to discern between the truth and the lie.
A huge lie of our day is the lie of the occult. This Satanic movement seeks to demonstrate supernatural power in order to deceive and to draw people into death and destruction. It is an alluring movement, and unless one is born again and grounded in the Word of God, one will easily be deceived into believing that the power of the occult is the only supernatural power there is.
But the power of God is far greater than the power of Satan (See 1 John 4: 4).
Remember: Satan is a created being. He was created by God as Lucifer, the Chief Worship Angel in Heaven. He fell from great heights when Jesus Christ defeated him on Calvary. But Satan has not given up on his desire to be God. Of course, he never can be nor ever will be God. But because of his intense anger at God, Satan is still trying to steal people from God in order to destroy those whom God loves.
If you are finding it difficult to discern truth from evil, I urge you to do two things:
1–Dig into God’s Word daily. Memorize it. Meditate on it. Make it your final authority.
2–Examine the root of popular practices, such as yoga, the martial arts, etc. Is the root Jesus Christ, or is the root something outside of Jesus Christ? Remember this: the root will determine the fruit. You cannot have an unholy root and expect holy fruit.
The Word of God gives us this warning about the last days: “But evil people and impostors will flourish. They will deceive others and will themselves be deceived.” – 2 Timothy 3: 13
Do not allow yourself to be deceived. Stay close to Jesus and be continually in His Word. Pray in the Spirit, and be aware of what is going on around you.
Prayer for Today: Lord God, we ask that You would keep us from all deception in these last days. As we seek Your Face, we trust that You will protect our minds and hearts from the lies of the enemy. We thank You for the gift of discernment. In Jesus’ Name we pray and receive by faith. Amen.
Now, it’s YOUR turn: Please share your questions and insights in the Comments box below. Thank you!
For further study, you may wish to read this article “Growing Number Of Witches & The Upcoming Hex On Justice Kavanaugh” at http://prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=2644#ywYDxLgkPItfM7k8.99 http://prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=2644.
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If you found this post helpful, please forward it to a friend. Thank you! You may also be interested in reading the following popular posts:
“Don’t Let Satan Play Your Pipes!”
“How to Recognize a Controlling Spirit”
Please check our archives in the right sidebar for older posts on a variety of topics. You may also search for a particular topic in the search box at the top right.
For additional encouragement, check out my podcasts at the following links:
A Moment with MaryAnn – Podcasts on Living the Good Life
Winning with the Word Podcast Series
Write Your Heart Out! – Podcasts for Writers
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