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continuation...
If you noticed, the serpent mentioned here is the one that corrupts the innocent minds. This is not an ordinary serpent. Paul said, I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. This serpent is capable of corrupting minds, just like how it corrupted the mind of Eve, who, in turn, infected, Adam’s mind. Now, who could be this serpent that corrupts minds and also happens to be God’s foe? Let us read Revelations 12:7-9. The Bible should no longer be explained by man inasmuch as the Bible already explains itself. This is what was written—
“And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels. And he prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. 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.”
Who was the serpent that corrupted Eve? It was the serpent that is fighting against God … it is the subtle serpent, which the Bible called the great dragon and the old dragon. He is the devil, or Satan. Who is the cunning and crafty serpent? He is Satan! Now, Satan, whom the Bible described as cunning, or subtle, is not alone, because as the Bible says, he was joined by the other angels who also rebelled against God. That is why, if you still recall what was written in Matthew 10:16, it says, “be wise as serpents.” Therefore, there are many serpents. The first serpent that was described to be subtle, or cunning, is God’s enemy. He is the devil, or Satan. But why is it that the Bible mentions of “serpents?” It is because the devil was able to convince and convert other angels to rebel against God. That is why they grew big in number. Now, let us read Revelations 16:14—
“For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.”
It speaks of the spirits of the devils. Please take note, it says “devils.” This means that, there are more than one devil. In fact, in Luke 8:1-2, it says—
“And it came to pass afterward, that he went throughout every city and village, preaching and showing the glad tidings: of the kingdom of God; and the 12 were with him. And certain women, which had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, out of whom went 7 devils.”
If you noticed, when Mary Magdalene was healed, seven spirits of the devil were expelled from her being. That only shows that there are many devils … there are many serpents. Our Lord Jesus Christ told the Apostles to be wise as serpents, or the devils. However, in what way is the devil wise? It is cunning and sly. Whenever he speaks, he sounds plausible. If you do not really know the word of God, you might be enticed by the devil’s words … you might even think that the devil’s words really came from God.
Most of our preachers today are like the devil. Why? They speak slyly. Whenever they use the Bible, they employ deception. If a preacher that is of God will not exercise wisdom and discernment, there is a risk that he, too, might be deceived. And there is also a great possibility that, other people might be misled by these wicked preachers, who also use the Gospel. Only, they explain it with deception. Let us go back to Genesis 3:4-5—
“And the serpent said unto the woman, 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.”
If we examine these verses very well, it would appear that what the serpent said was right. Those who discredit the Bible say that the serpent’s words were right because Adam and Eve did not really die after eating the fruit. In fact, they even begot children. On the surface, it seemed to be right. That is how plausible a speaker the devil is. Now, in the midst of devils, in the midst of preachers being led by the devil, the advice that our Lord Jesus Christ gave is, to be wise as a serpent and harmless as a dove.
If we analyze the verses further, we will see the flaws in the serpent’s pronouncement to Eve. This is just like what a particular preacher is doing. He claims that he is a God-sent messenger. And if you do not know how to analyze, you will definitely be cheated by this man. For example, Revelations 7:2 says, “And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God …” After reading this verse, they would ask, “Who is this angel?” And they would answer, “This angel is our brother, the angel that ascended from the east.
And in order to explain the meaning of “the east,” this self-proclaimed preacher will refer to a book on World History. They would read the part that tells that the Philippines is in the east. And afterwards, they would conclude that the God-sent messenger will hail from the Philippines. And for this reason, they will now claim that the founder of their church is the angel that ascended from the east. But, do you know that there were actually two claimants to this angel? One is from Korea, and the other one is from the Philippines.
Now, let us find out if these preachers are the fulfillment of the words in Rev. 7:2. If they are not, who could they be? How are we going to identify if a preacher is really God-sent? This is what you must wait for in our next publication.
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Reading
and Understanding the
Bible
