WAR ON THE SAINTS

(abridged edition)

by Jessie Penn-Lewis in collaboration with Evan Roberts

 

ETEXT EDITOR'S NOTE -- 1997

*

        This book has been referenced in

discussions of the "Toronto Blessing"

phenomena sweeping the world in the last

few years, which include laughing (to

which I have no particular objection)

and sometimes moving over into making

loud animal noises and other very

unusual activities, putatively in

response to "the Spirit".  I have heard

disturbing stories of the fallout after

"the Blessing" hit particular

congregations, and that the message of

this particular book had been squashed

by some people in the "Blessing"

movement.

*

        (I would like very much to

obtain or borrow a copy of the original

edition from which my printed

source-text was "abridged". PLEASE

contact me if you know where a copy of

it exists. I would also like to locate

copies of the books referenced in the

appendices.)

*

        One reason that I created this

etext edition was to provide this easily

shared resource as a basis for non-naive

critical study of the issues raised. I

commend to those who study this material

the attitude of the Berean Jewish

believers, who "were more noble than

those in Thessalonica, in that they

received the word with all readiness of

mind, examining the scriptures daily,

whether these things were so." (Acts

17:11 RV)

*

        In the process of editing this

material into digital media (a simple

straight-ASCII etext of the book), I

find that some of the examples Mrs.

Penn-Lewis gives of demonic activity

include some things that --in MY

understanding-- _might_ be accomplished

by the Spirit of God, and some of which

are actually similar to things that some

people in the Bible and more recent

Christians (such as Rees Howells) have

experienced. HOWEVER, I strongly endorse

and echo her PROPER call to a humble

commitment to the Truth, which includes

taking into account the fact that "_I_

MIGHT BE WRONG ABOUT SOMETHING", and being willing to be CORRECTED by the

rightly-understood Word of God.

*

        I admit frankly that some of

Mrs. Penn-Lewis' criteria calls into

severe question many of the "charismatic

movement" experiences I and friends

shared in the early 1970s.

        This book also calls into closer

examination a long series of dreams I

had, beginning in my young adulthood,

concerning many events which I later

lived through (often witnessing or

ministry situations), often consciously

remembering the dreams that I had about

the event while _in_ it, the dreams

usually having been from the viewpoint

of someone else nearby. Were my dreams

_directly_ from God? Were they

psychic/soulish? Were they totally of

demonic origin? I _had_ thought they

were perhaps a mix of the first two

categories, and now I'm freshly

questioning the mix. Dreams are in a

"different category" anyway, and at best

must be evaluated with great caution.

The ONE time I based a course of action

on things I had previously dreamed, I

hurt several people (including myself).

        It is tremendously humbling to

examine freshly my own "spiritual

experiences" to determine to what extent

I myself may have been _deceived_.

*

        On the other hand, I still

affirm that our sovereign transcendent

God, the Triune God revealed in the

Scriptures, is also powerfully immanent

among His people, responding powerfully

to the faith and prayers of those in

faith-covenant with Him. Christianity

SHOULD BE a "supernatural" experience,

in fellowship with the only true and

living God!

*

        As an editor and a Christian, I

admit that creating this etext edition

has been less "fun" than an upbeat book

on missions or evangelism, or even about

the International Language, Esperanto.

Handling this much material on "evil

spirits" has been a bit depressing, even

though work in this area is profitable

and NECESSARY for the Kingdom of God.

*

        Speaking as Founder and

President of the Christian Digital

Library Foundation, Inc., I state that

CDLF does not necessarily endorse nor

agree with everything in this book, even

though "we" (at this point, actually

_I_) have created and are issuing this

CDLF etext edition.

        Speaking for myself, I believe

that the critical "working through" of

this material --with an open mind and

with "Scriptural Sifters" turned up to

full power-- will be a profitable

exercise for Christians concerned with

evaluating supernatural experiences.

        Mrs. Penn-Lewis obviously wrote

from a wealth of knowledge and

experience, and to the extent that her

writing "opens" the Scriptures, she

should be appreciated and honored. If

some of her conclusions or admonitions

fall short of Absolute Truth, let us

treat her with the same forbearance with

which _we_ would want others to treat

_our_ mistakes. (I know that I want

others to remember _my_ exuberances and

mistakes with charity. "Meaning well"

has NOT excused me.) I strongly believe

that it would be a BIG mistake to take

this work as "law"; although STUDY OF

THESE ISSUES AND THE REFERENCED

SCRIPTURES IS AN ABSOLUTE NECESSITY FOR

THE BODY OF CHRIST IN THESE PRESENT

DAYS.

*

        "He hath shewed thee, O man,

what is good; and what doth the LORD

require of thee, but to do justly, and

to love mercy, and to walk humbly with

thy God?" (Micah 6:8 RV).

*

  Clyde Price

  Atlanta, Georgia, USA

  September 1997

*

 

 

              

 

 

 CONTENTS

CHAPTER

    FOREWORD

1. A Biblical Survey of

        Satanic Deception

2. The Satanic Confederacy of

        Wicked Spirits

3. Deception by Evil Spirits

        in Modern Times

4. The Perils of Passivity

5. Counterfeits of the Divine

6. Freedom for the Deceived

7. The Volition and Spirit of Man

8. Victory in Conflict.

 

  APPENDIX

The attitude of the Early Fathers

        to evil spirits

Symptoms of Demon Possession.

    Extracted from _Demon Possession_,

        by Dr. J. L. Nevius

Demoniacal activity in later times.

        Sir Robert Anderson

The physiology of the spirit. From

        _Primeval Man Unveiled_

The workings of evil spirits in

        Christian gatherings:

   (1) Supposed conviction of sin by

        deceiving spirits

   (2) Supposed unity for "Revival"

   (3) Supposed manifestations of the

        Holy Spirit

Light on Abnormal Experiences

How demons attack advanced believers

The true workings of God, and the

        counterfeits of Satan

 

<vii>

        FOREWORD

 

        John Wesley, in dealing with

overbalance and fanaticism, uses the

word ENTHUSIASM, and says: "Enthusiasm

is undoubtedly a disorder of the mind;

and such disorder as greatly hinders the

exercise of reason. Nay, sometimes it

wholly sets it aside: it not only dims

but shuts the eyes of the understanding.

It may, therefore, well be accounted a

species of madness; of madness rather

than folly: seeing a fool is properly

one who draws wrong conclusions from

right premises; whereas a madman draws

right conclusions, but from wrong

premises. And so does an enthusiast.

Suppose his premises are true, and his

conclusions would necessarily follow.

But here lies his mistake: HIS PREMISES

ARE FALSE. He imagines himself to be

what he is not, and therefore, SETTING

OUT WRONG, the farther he goes, the more

he wanders out of the way."

 

        To come nearer to our own time!

I have on my shelves a book -- _Group

Movements of the Past and Experiments in

Guidance,_ by Ray Strachey -- which

consists of extracts from the papers of

Hannah Whitall Smith, describing the

times in which she lived, and the

curious religious sects which she

investigated during the middle years of

the nineteenth century. In his foreword

to this book the late Dr. H. Hensley

Henson, Bishop of Durham, wrote: "Very

early in the history of the Christian

Church the subtle temptation to a kind

of inverted humility, which is really

the worst and most dangerous form of

spiritual pride, disclosed itself in

portentous scandals. The adventists of

Thessalonica, who refused their normal

obligations in the interest of a

complete self-preparation for the Lord's

Coming, have had their representatives

in many strange sects in Europe and

America, who have been carried into

amazing extravagances of creed and

conduct. St. Paul's brusque judgment,

_'If a man will not work, neither let

him eat'_ (2_Thessalonians 3:10) applies

to them all. The ascetics of Colossae,

whose punctilious rigorism co-existed

with a perilous moral laxity, have had

their successors in every Christian

generation. Medieval monks and modern

<viii>  sectaries come together here.

Both illustrate, in varying ways, the

same spiritual malady. Such total

prostration of the individual before the

mandates of the Divine Spirit seems to

argue a genuine humility, but the

implied assumption of plenary and direct

personal inspiration discloses and

fosters a spiritual arrogance none the

less morally disintegrating because it

is unsuspected. Experience has ever

endorsed the great Apostle's verdict.

Over the whole woeful pageant of

self-willed pietism with its eccentric,

arbitrary, even monstrous demands on its

victims, the words may be written:

_'which things have indeed a show of

wisdom in will-worship, and humility,

and severity of the body; but are not of

any value against the indulgence of the

flesh'_ (Colossians 2:23)."

 

        An aftermath of the Welsh

Revival at the dawn of the present

century was the rise of a number of

extreme cults, often stressing a return

to "pentecostal" practices. Mrs.

Penn-Lewis, who had witnessed much of

the Revival as the representative of

_The Life of Faith_, saw clearly the

peril of these fanatical teachings, and

in collaboration with Mr. Evan Roberts,

who played so prominent a part in the

Revival, wrote a book, _War on the

Saints._ In this book these extreme and

overbalanced beliefs and practices are

categorically branded as the work of an

invading host of evil spirits. The word

"deception" might be said to be the key

word of the book -- a term which in in

complete harmony with the findings both

of John Wesley and Dr. Henson.

 

        This present volume is an

abridgement of the original book, which

ran into seven editions. The Trustees of

The Overcomer Literature Trust were

concerned about certain aspects of _War

on the Saints_ as originally published.

First and foremost they felt that they

could not endorse the teaching that a

born-again, Spirit-filled Christian can

at the same time be demon possessed; and

also found themselves unable to accept

some of the teaching given concerning

the "baptism of the Holy Spirit", and

the aggressive warfare against the

powers of darkness, either as a means of

promoting revival, or of hastening the

coming again of the Lord Jesus Christ.

As Editor of _The Overcomer_, I was

commissioned to undertake a revision of

the book, with the object of eliminating

these elements, and yet retaining the

clear teaching and warning against the

dangers underlying the extreme,

unscriptural emphases of our modern

array of "sects", behind  <ix>  which is

so often hidden the clever manipulation

of deceiving spirits. This has not been

an easy task, and the result certainly

will not satisfy everyone; but it is

sent out with the prayer that it may

open the eyes of those who read it, to

the grave dangers that beset the path of

uninformed "enthusiasm": and, above all,

that it may give a new vision of the

Mighty Savior, Who in His Cross

triumphed over all the powers of evil

and deception, and lives for ever as the

Strength and Refuge of His own.

 

                        J.C.Metcalfe.

 

@01

<1>

 

              CHAPTER ONE

 

 A BIBLICAL SURVEY OF SATANIC DECEPTION

 

        If all that the Bible contains

on the subject of the supernatural

powers of evil could be exhaustively

dealt with in this book, we should find

that more knowledge is given of the

workings of Satan, and his

principalities and powers, than many

have realized. From Genesis to

Revelation the work of Satan as deceiver

of the whole inhabited earth can be

traced, until the climax  is reached,

and the full results of the deception in

the Garden of Eden are unveiled in the

Apocalypse. In Genesis we have the

simple story of the garden, with he

guileless pair unaware of danger from

evil beings in the unseen world. We find

recorded there Satan's first work as

deceiver, and the subtle form of his

method of deception. We see him working

upon an innocent creature's highest and

purest desires, and cloaking his own

purpose of ruin, under the guise of

seeking to lead a human being nearer to

God. We see him using the God-ward

desires of Eve to bring about captivity,

and bondage to himself. We see him using

"good" to bring about evil; suggesting

evil to bring about supposed good.

Caught with the bait of being "wise",

and "like God", Eve is blinded to the

principle involved in obedience to God,

and is DECEIVED (1_Timothy 2:14 AV).

 

        Goodness is, therefore, no

guarantee of protection from deception.

The keenest way in which the Devil

deceives the world, and the Church, is

when he comes in the guise of somebody,

or something, which apparently causes

them to go God-ward and good-ward. He

said to Eve, "ye shall be as gods," but

he did not say, "and ye shall be like

demons". Angels and men only knew evil

when they fell into a state of evil.

Satan did not tell Eve this, when he

added "knowing good AND EVIL". His true

objective in deceiving Eve was to get

her to disobey God, but his wile was,

"ye shall be like  <2>  God". Had she

reasoned, she would have seen that the

deceiver's suggestion exposed itself,

for it crudely resolved itself into

"disobey God" to be more like God!

 

      THE CURSE OF GOD PRONOUNCED

           UPON THE DECEIVER

 

        That a highly organized monarchy

of evil spirit-beings was in existence,

is not made known in the story of the

garden. Only a "serpent" is there; but

the serpent is spoken to by God as an

intelligent being, carrying out a

deliberate purpose in the deception of

the woman. The serpent-disguise of Satan

is swept aside by Jehovah, as He makes

known the decision of the Triune God in

view of the catastrophe which had taken

place. A "Seed" of the deceived woman

should eventually bruise the head of the

supernatural being, who had used the

form of the serpent to carry out his

plan. Thenceforward the name of the

serpent is attached to him, the very

name throughout the ages describing the

climax action of his revolt against his

Creator, in beguiling and deceiving the

woman in Eden, and blasting the human

race.  Satan triumphed, but God

overruled. The victim is made the

vehicle for the advent of a Victor, who

should ultimately destroy the works of

the Devil, and cleanse the heavens and

the earth from every trace of his

handiwork. The serpent is cursed, but,

in effect, the beguiled victim is blest,

for through her will come the "Seed"

which will triumph over the Devil and

his seed; and through her will arise a

new race through the promised Seed

(Genesis 3:15), which will be

antagonistic to the serpent to the end

of time, through the enmity implanted by

God. Henceforth the story of the ages

consists of the record of a war between

these two seeds; the Seed of the Woman

-- Christ and His redeemed -- and the

seed of the Devil (see John 8:44; 1_John

3:10), right on to the furthermost point

of the final committal of Satan to the

lake of fire.

 

        Henceforth it is also war by

Satan upon the womanhood of the world,

in malignant revenge for the verdict of

the garden. War by the trampling down of

women in all lands where the deceiver

reigns. War upon women in Christian

lands, by the continuance of his Eden

method of misinterpreting the Word of

God; insinuating into men's minds

throughout all succeeding ages, that God

pronounced a "curse" upon the woman,

when in truth she was pardoned and

blessed; and instigating men of the

fallen race to carry out the supposed

<3> curse, which was in truth a CURSE

UPON THE DECEIVER, and not the deceived

one (Genesis 3:14).

 

        "I will put enmity between THEE

and the woman," said God, as well as

between "THY seed and her seed", and

this vindictive enmity of the hierarchy

of evil to women, and to believers, has

not lessened in its intensity from that

day.

 

SATAN AS DECEIVER IN THE OLD TESTAMENT

 

        When once we clearly apprehend

the existence of an unseen host of evil

spirit-beings, all actively engaged in

deceiving and misleading men, Old

Testament history will convey to us an

open vision of their doings, hitherto

hidden from our knowledge. We can trace

their operations in relation to the

servants of God throughout all history,

and discern the work of Satan as

deceiver penetrating everywhere. We

shall see that David was deceived by

Satan into numbering Israel, because he

failed to recognize the suggestion to

his mind as from a satanic source

(1_Chronicles 21:1). Job also was

deceived, and the messengers that came

to him, when he believed the report that

the "fire" which had fallen from heaven

was from God (Job 1:16), and that all

the other calamities which befell him in

the loss of wealth, home and children,

came directly from the hand of God;

whereas the early part of the book of

Job clearly shows that Satan was the

primary cause of all his troubles; as

"prince of the power of the air", using

the elements of nature, and the

wickedness of men, to afflict the

servant of God, in the hope that

ultimately he could force Job into

renouncing his faith in God, Who seemed

to be unjustly punishing him without

cause. That this was Satan's aim is

suggested in the words of the wife of

the patriarch, who became a tool for the

Adversary, in urging the suffering man

to "curse God and die", she, also, being

deceived by the enemy into believing

that God was the primary cause of all

the trouble and the unmerited suffering

which had come upon him.

 

        In the history of Israel during

the time of Moses, the veil is lifted

more clearly from the satanic powers,

and we are shown the condition of the

world as sunk in idolatry -- which is

said in the New Testament to be the

direct work of Satan (1_Corinthians

10:20) -- and actual dealing with evil

spirits; the whole inhabited earth being

thus in a state of deception, and held

by the deceiver in his power. We also

find numbers of the  <4>  people of

Israel, through contact with others

under satanic power, deceived into

communicating with "familiar spirits",

and into the using of "divination", and

other kindred arts, inculcated by the

powers of darkness, even though they

knew the laws of God, and had seen His

manifested judgments among them (see

Leviticus 17:7, RV margin "satyrs";

19:31; 20:6,27; Deuteronomy 18:10,11).

 

        In the book of Daniel, we find a

still further stage of revelation

reached concerning the hierarchy of evil

powers, when in the tenth chapter we are

shown the existence of the princes of

Satan, actively opposing the messenger

of God sent to Daniel to make His

servant understand His counsels for His

people. There are also other references

to the workings of Satan, his princes,

and the hosts of wicked spirits carrying

out his will, scattered throughout the

Old Testament, but on the whole the veil

is kept upon their doings, until the

great hour arrives when the "Seed" of

the woman, Who was to bruise the head of

the serpent, is manifested on earth in

human form (Galatians 4:4).

 

       SATAN AS DECEIVER UNVEILED

          IN THE NEW TESTAMENT

 

        With the advent of Christ, the

veil which had hidden the active

workings of the supernatural powers of

evil, for centuries since the garden

catastrophe, is still further removed,

and their deception and power over man

is clearly revealed, and the

arch-deceiver himself appears in the

wilderness conflict of the Lord, to

challenge the "Seed of the woman", as it

is not recorded that he appeared on

earth since the time of the Fall. The

wilderness of Judea, and the Garden of

Eden, being parallel periods for the

testing of the first and second Adam. In

both periods Satan worked as Deceiver,

in the second instance wholly failing to

deceive and beguile the One Who had come

as his Conqueror.

 

        Traces of the characteristic

work of Satan as deceiver can be

discerned among the disciples of the

Christ. He deceives Peter into speaking

words of temptation to the Lord,

suggesting His turning from the path of

the Cross (Matthew 16:22-23), and later

on takes hold of the same disciple in

the Judgment Hall (Luke 22:31),

prompting him to the lie, "I know not

the Man," with the very purpose of

deception (Matthew 26:74). Further

traces of the work of the deceiver may

be seen in the epistles of Paul, in his

references to the "false apostles",  <5>

"deceitful workers", and Satan's

workings as an "angel of light", and

"his ministers as ministers of

righteousness" among the people of God

(2_Corinthians 11:13-15). In the

messages to the Churches also, given by

the ascended Lord to His servant John,

false apostles are spoken of, and false

teachings of many kinds. A "synagogue of

Satan" (Revelation 2:9), consisting of

deceived ones, is mentioned, and "deep

things of Satan" are described as

existing in the Church (Revelation

2:24).

 

     THE REVELATION OF THE DECEIVER

           IN THE APOCALYPSE

 

        A startling revelation of the

satanic confederacy against God and His

Christ is given to the Apostle John.

After the messages to the Churches, the

world-wide work of the deceiver prince

is fully disclosed to the Apostle, and

he is bidden to write all that he is

shown, that the Church of Christ might

know the full meaning of the war with

Satan in which the redeemed would be

engaged, right on to the time when the

Lord Jesus would be revealed from

heaven, in judgment upon these vast and

terrible powers, full of cunning

malignity and hatred to His people, and

as truly at work behind the world of

men, from the days of the garden story

to the end.

 

        As we read the Apocalypse, it is

important to remember that the organized

forces of Satan described therein, were

in existence at the time of the Fall of

Eden, and only partially revealed to the

people of God until the advent of the

promised "Seed of the woman" Who was to

bruise the serpent's head. When the

fulness of time had come, God manifest

in the flesh met the fallen archangel,

and leader of the evil angelic hosts, in

mortal combat at Calvary; and, putting

them to open shame, shook off from

Himself the vast masses of the hosts of

darkness who gathered around the Cross,

from the furthermost realms of the

kingdom of Satan (Colossians 2:15).

 

        The Scriptures teach us that

God's unveilings of the truths

concerning Himself, and all the things

in the spiritual realm which we need to

know, are always timed by Him to the

strength of His people. The full

revelation of the satanic powers

disclosed in the Apocalypse was not

given to the Church in its infancy, for

some forty years passed after the Lord's

ascension ere the Book of the

Revelation was written. Possibly it was

necessary that the Church of Christ

should first fully apprehend the

fundamental truths revealed to Paul and

the other Apostles, ere she could safely

be shown the <6>  extent of the war with

supernatural powers of evil upon which

she had entered.

 

        In the Revelation given to John,

the name and character of the deceiver is

more clearly made known, with the

strength of his forces, and the extent

of the war and its final issues. It is

shown that in the invisible realm there

is war between the forces of evil and

the forces of light. John says that "the

dragon WARRED, and his angels...", the

dragon being explicitly described as the

"serpent" -- from his guise in Eden --

"called the Devil and Satan", the

deceiver of the whole inhabited earth.

His world-wide work as deceiver is fully

revealed, and the war in the earth realm

caused by his deceiving of the nations,

and the world-powers acting under his

instigation and rule. The highly

organized confederacy of principalities

and powers, acknowledging the headship

of Satan, is disclosed, and their

"authority over every tribe and people

and tongue and nation", all deceived by

the supernatural and invisible forces of

evil, and making "war with the saints"

(Revelation 13:7).

 

     WORLD-WIDE DECEPTION DISCLOSED

           IN THE APOCALYPSE

 

        War is the keyword of the

Apocalypse; war on a scale undreamed of

by mortal man; war between vast angelic

powers of light and darkness; war by the

dragon, and the deceived world-powers

upon the saints; war by the same

world-powers against the Lamb; war by

the dragon upon the Church; war in many

phases and forms, until the end when the

Lamb overcomes, and they also overcome

who are with Him, called and chosen and

faithful (Revelation 17:14).

 

        The world is now drawing nearer

to the "time of the end", characterized

by the deception depicted in the

Apocalypse as being world-wide; when

there will be deception of NATIONS, and

INDIVIDUALS, on such a vast scale that

the deceiver will practically have the

whole earth under his control. Ere this

climax is reached there will be

preliminary stages of the deceiver's

working, marked by the widespread

deception of individuals, both within

and without the professing Church,

beyond the ordinary condition of

deception in which the unregenerate

world is lying.

 

        To understand why the deceiver

will be able to produce the world-wide

deception depicted in the Apocalypse,

which will permit the supernatural

powers to carry out their will,  <7>

and drive nations and men into active

rebellion against God, we need clearly

to grasp what the Scriptures say about

unregenerate men in their normal

condition, and the world in its fallen

state.

 

        If Satan is described in the

Apocalypse as the deceiver of the whole

earth, he has been so from the

beginning. "The whole world lieth in the

evil one" (1_John 5:19) said the

Apostle, to whom was given the

Revelation, describing the world as

already lying deep in darkness through

the deception of the evil one, and

blindly led by him through vast evil

spirit hosts under his control.

 

         THE WORLD "DECEIVED":

           THE DESCRIPTION OF

         EVERY UNREGENERATE MAN

 

        The word "deceived" is,

according to the Scripture, the

description of every unregenerate human

being, without distinction of persons,

race, culture, or sex. "We also were...

deceived" (Titus 3:3), said Paul the

Apostle, although according to the

righteousness of the law, blameless

(Philippians 3:6).

 

        Every unregenerate man first of

all is deceived by his own deceitful

heart (Jeremiah 17:9; Isaiah 44:20), and

by sin (Hebrews 3:13); the god of this

world adding the "blinding of the mind"

lest the light of the Gospel of Christ

should dispel the darkness

(2_Corinthians 4:4). And the deception

of the evil one does not end when the

regenerating life of God reaches the

man, for the blinding of the mind is

only removed just so far as the

deceptive lies of Satan are dislodged by

the light of truth.

 

        Even though the heart is

renewed, and the will has turned to God,

yet the deeply ingrained disposition to

self-deception, and the presence, in

some measure, of the blinding power of

the deceiver on the mind, betrays itself

in many forms, as the following

statements from Scripture show:

 

        The man is DECEIVED if he is a

hearer, and not a DOER of the Word of

God (James 1:22).

 

        He is DECEIVED if he says he has

no sin (1_John 1:8).

 

        He is DECEIVED when he thinks

himself to be "something" when he is

nothing (Galatians 6:3).

 

        He is DECEIVED when he thinks

himself to be wise with the wisdom of

this world (1_Corinthians 3:18).

 

        He is DECEIVED by seeming to be

religious, when an unbridled tongue

reveals his true condition (James 1:26).

<8>

 

        He is DECEIVED, if he thinks he

will sow, and not reap what he sows

(Galatians 6:7).

 

        He is DECEIVED, if he thinks the

unrighteous will inherit the kingdom of

God (1_Corinthians 6:9).

 

        He is DECEIVED, if he thinks

that contact with sin will not have its

effect (1_Corinthians 15:33) upon him.

 

        DECEIVED!  How the word repels,

and how involuntarily every human being

resents it as applied to himself, not

knowing that the very repulsion is the

work of the deceiver for the purpose of

keeping the deceived ones from knowing

the truth, and being set free from

deception. If men can be so easily

deceived by the deception arising from

their own fallen nature, how eagerly

will the forces of Satan seek to add to

it and not diminish it by one iota. How

keenly will they work to keep men in

bondage to the old creation, out of

which will spring multitudinous forms of

self-deception, enabling them the more

readily to carry on their deceiving

work. Their methods of deception are old

and new, adapted to suit the nature,

state and circumstances of the victim.

Instigated by hatred, malice, and bitter

ill-will towards mankind and all

goodness, the emissaries of Satan do not

fail to execute their plans, with a

perseverance worthy to be imitated by

him who fain would reach his goal.

 

    SATAN, THE DECEIVER ALSO OF THE

            CHILDREN OF GOD

 

        The arch-deceiver is not only

the deceiver of the whole unregenerate

world, but of the children of God also;

with this difference, that in the

deception he seeks to practise upon the

saints, he changes his tactics, and

works with acutest strategy, in wiles of

error, and deception concerning the

things of God (Matthew 24:24;

2_Corinthians 11:3,13-15).

 

        The chief weapon which the

deceiver-prince of darkness relies upon

to keep the world in his power is

DECEPTION, and deception planned to

beguile men at every stage of life;

deception (1) of the unregenerate who

are already deceived by sin; (2)

deception suited to the carnal

Christian; (3) and deception fitted to

the spiritual believer, who has passed

out of the preceding stages into a realm

where he will be open to meet more

subtle wiles.  Let the deception be

removed which holds the man in the

earlier days of his unregenerate

condition, and in the stage of the

carnal Christian life; when he emerges

into the heavenly places, described by

Paul in the  <9>  Epistle to the

Ephesians, he will find himself in the

very keenest workings of the wiles of

the deceiver, where the deceiving

spirits are actively at work attacking

those who are united to the risen Lord.

 

        The work of the deceiver among

the saints of God is especially depicted

in the Ephesian letter of the apostle

Paul, where, in Ephesians 6:10-18, we

have the veil drawn aside from the

satanic powers, showing their war upon

the Church of God, and the individual

believer's armor and weapons for

conquering the foe. From this passage we

learn that in the plane of the

BELIEVER'S HIGHEST EXPERIENCE OF UNION

WITH THE LORD, and in the "high places"

of the spiritual maturity of the Church,

will the keenest and closest battle be

fought with the deceiver and his hosts.

 

        A glimpse into this onslaught of

deceiving spirits upon the people of God

in the close of the age, is given in the

Gospel of Matthew, where the Lord uses

the word DECEIVED in describing some of

the special marks of the latter days. He

said: "Take heed that no man DECEIVE

you. For many shall come in My Name,

saying, 'I am Christ': and shall lead

many astray" (Matthew 24:4-5 AV & RV);

"and many false prophets shall arise,

and shall DECEIVE many" (Matthew 24:11

AV). "There shall arise false Christs,

and false prophets, and shall show great

signs and wonders, so as to lead astray

[or 'deceive' AV] if possible, even the

elect" (Matthew 24:24 RV).

 

      DECEPTION IN CONNECTION WITH

         THE SUPERNATURAL REALM

 

        The special form of deception is

said also to be in connection with

SPIRITUAL, not worldly, things;

incidentally showing that the people of

God, at the time of the end, will be

expecting the coming of the Lord, and

therefore be KEENLY AWAKE TO ALL

MOVEMENTS from the supernatural world,

in such a measure that deceiving spirits

will be able to take advantage of it,

and anticipate the Lord's appearing by

"false Christs" and false signs and

wonders; or mix their counterfeits with

the true manifestations of the Spirit of

God. The Lord says that men will be

deceived (1) CONCERNING CHRIST and His

parousia -- or coming; (2) CONCERNING

PROPHECY -- or teaching from the

spiritual world through inspired

messengers; and (3) CONCERNING THE

GIVING OF PROOFS of the "teachings"

<10>  being truly of God, by "signs" and

"wonders" so God-like, and therefore so

exact a counterfeit of the working of

God as to be indistinguishable from the

true by those described as His "elect";

who will need to possess some other test

than the judging by appearances of a

"sign" being from God, if they are to be

able to discern the false from the true.

 

        The Apostle Paul's words to

Timothy, containing the special prophecy

given to him by the Holy Spirit for the

Church of Christ in the last days of the

dispensation, exactly coincide with the

words of the Lord recorded by Matthew.

 

        The two letters of Paul to

Timothy are the last epistles that he

wrote ere his departure to be with

Christ. Both were written in prison, and

Paul's prison was to him what Patmos was

to John, when he was "in spirit"

(Revelation 1:10) shown things to come.

Paul was giving his last directions to

Timothy for the ordering of the Church

of God, right on to the end of her time

on earth; giving "rules to guide", not

only Timothy, but all God's servants,

"in dealing with God's household". In

the midst of all these detailed

instructions, his keen seer's vision

looks on to the "later times"; and by

express command of the Spirit of God, he

depicts in a few brief sentences the

peril of the Church in those times, in

the same way that the Spirit of God gave

the prophets of the Old Testament some

pregnant prophecy, only to be fully

understood after the events had come to

pass.

 

        The Apostle said:" The Spirit

saith expressly, that in later times

some shall fall away from the faith,

giving heed to seducing spirits and

doctrines of demons, through the

hypocrisy of men that speak lies, seared

in their own conscience as with a hot

iron..." (1_Timothy 4:1-2 RV m.)

 

   PAUL'S STATEMENT IN 1_TIM. 4:1-2,

         THE ONLY SPECIFIC ONE

     SHOWING THE CAUSE OF THE PERIL

 

        Paul's prophetic statement

appears to be all that is foretold in

specific words about the Church and its

history at the close of the

dispensation. The Lord spoke in general

terms about the dangers which would

encompass His people at the time of the

end, and Paul wrote to the Thessalonians

more fully about the apostasy, and the

wicked deceptions of the lawless one in

the last days, but the passage in

Timothy is the only one which explicitly

shows the special cause of the peril of

the Church in its closing days on earth,

and how the wicked spirits of Satan

<11>  would break in upon her members,

and by DECEPTION beguile some away from

their purity of faith in Christ.

 

        The Holy Spirit, in the brief

message given to Paul, describes the

character and work of the evil spirits,

recognizing (1) their EXISTENCE, (2)

their efforts directed TOWARDS BELIEVERS

to deceive them, and BY DECEPTION draw

them away from the path of simple faith

in Christ, and all that is included in

the "faith once for all delivered unto

the saints" (Jude 3).

 

        That the CHARACTER of the

spirits is described in 1_Timothy 4:1-3,

and not the MEN they sometimes use in

the work of deception, may be understood

from the Greek original. *[Pember says

that v.2 refers to the CHARACTER of the

deceiving spirits and should be read

thus: "direct teaching of unclean

spirits, who, though bearing a brand on

their own conscience, as a criminal is

disfigured -- would pretend to sanctity

(i.e. holiness) to gain credence for

their lies ..."]

 

        The peril of the Church at the

close of the age is therefore from

supernatural beings who are

"hypocrites", who pretend to be what

they are not, who give "teachings" which

appear to make for greater holiness, by

producing ascetic severity to the

"flesh", but who themselves are wicked

and unclean, and bring those they

deceive into contact with the foulness

of their own presence.

 

     THE PERIL OF DECEIVING SPIRITS

       AFFECTS EVERY CHILD OF GOD

 

        The peril concerns every

professing Christian. The prophecy of

the Holy Spirit declares that (1) "SOME"

shall fall away from the faith; (2) the

reason for the fall will be a GIVING

HEED TO DECEIVING SPIRITS, i.e., the

nature of their working being not KNOWN

evil, but deception, which is a covered

working. The essence of deception is

that the operation is looked upon as

sincere and pure. (3) The nature of the

deception will be in DOCTRINES of

demons, i.e., the deception will be in a

doctrinal sphere. (4) The way of

deception will be that the "doctrines"

are delivered with 'hypocrisy", i.e.,

spoken as if TRUE. (5) Two instances of

the effect of these evil spirit

doctrines are given: (a) the forbidding

of marriage, and (b) abstaining from

meats; both, said Paul, "created by

God". Therefore their teaching is marked

by opposition to God, even in His work

as Creator.  <12>

 

           THE SATANIC FORCES

        DESCRIBED IN EPHESIANS 6

 

        Demoniacal "doctrines" have been

generally tabulated as either belonging

to the Church of Rome, because of the

two marked results of demon teaching

mentioned by Paul, which characterize

that Church; or later "cults" of the

twentieth century, with their omission

of the fact of sin, and the need of the

atoning sacrifice of Christ, and a

Divine Savior. But there is a vast realm

of DOCTRINAL deception by deceiving

spirits, penetrating and

interpenetrating Evangelical

Christendom, by which evil spirits, in

more or less degree, influence the lives

even of Christian men, and bring them

under their power; even spiritual

Christians being thus affected on the

plane described by the Apostle, where

believers united to the Risen Christ

meet "spiritual wickedness" in "heavenly

places". For the satanic forces

described in Ephesians 6:12 are shown to

be divided into (1) "PRINCIPALITIES" --

force and dominion DEALING WITH NATIONS

and governments; (2) "POWERS" -- having

authority and power of action in all the

spheres open to them; (3) "WORLD-RULERS"

-- governing the darkness and blindness

of the world at large; (4) "WICKED

SPIRITS" in the HEAVENLY PLACES -- their

forces being directed in and upon the

Church of Jesus Christ, in "wiles",

"fiery darts", onslaughts, and every

conceivable deception over "doctrines"

which they are capable of planning.

 

        The peril assails the Church

from the SUPERNATURAL world, and comes

from supernatural spirit-beings who are

persons (Mark 1:25) with intelligent

power of planning (Matthew 12:44-45),

with strategy (Ephesians 6:11), the

deception of those who "give heed" to

them.

 

    HOW THE EVIL SPIRITS DECEIVE BY

              "DOCTRINES"

 

        How the evil spirits as TEACHERS

get men to receive their teachings, may

be summed up in three specific ways: (1)

By giving their doctrines, or teachings,

as spiritual revelations to those who

accept everything supernatural as Divine

BECAUSE supernatural -- a certain class

unaccustomed to the spiritual realm,

accepting all that is "supernatural" as

from God. This form of "teaching" is

DIRECT to the person; in "flashes" of

light on a text, "revelations" by

visions of Christ, or streams of texts

apparently from the Holy Spirit. (2)_By

mixing their "teachings" with the man's

OWN REASONINGS, so <13>  that he thinks

he has come to his own conclusions. The

teachings of the deceiving spirits in

this form are so natural in appearance,

that they seem to come from the man

himself as the fruit of his own mind and

reasoning. They counterfeit the working

of the human brain, and inject thoughts

and suggestions into the human mind; for

they can directly COMMUNICATE with the

mind, quite apart from gaining

possession (in any degree) of mind or

body.

 

        Those who are thus deceived

believe that they have come to their own

conclusions by their own reasonings,

ignorant that the deceiving spirits have

incited them to "reason" WITHOUT

SUFFICIENT DATA, OR ON A WRONG PREMISE,

AND THUS COME TO FALSE CONCLUSIONS. The

teaching spirit has achieved his own end

by putting a lie in the man's mind,

through the instrumentality of a false

reasoning.

 

        (3) By the indirect means of

deceived human teachers, supposed to be

conveying undiluted Divine "truth", and

implicitly believed because of a godly

life and character, believers saying,

"He is a GOOD man, and a holy man, and I

believe him".  The life of the man is

taken as a sufficient guarantee for his

teaching, instead of judging the

"TEACHING" by the Scriptures, apart from

his personal character. This has its

foundation in the prevalent idea that

everything that Satan and his evil

spirits do is MANIFESTLY evil, the truth

not being realized that they work under

cover of light (2_Corinthians 11:14),

i.e., if they can get a "good man< to

accept some idea from them, and pass it

on as "truth", he is a better instrument

for deceptive purposes than a bad man

who would not be believed.

 

      FALSE AND DECEIVED TEACHERS

 

        There is a difference between

"false" teachers, and DECEIVED ones.

There are many deceived ones amongst the

most able teachers today, because they

do not recognize that an army of

teaching spirits have come forth to

deceive the people of God, and that the

special peril of the earnest section of

the professing Church lies in the

supernatural realm, from whence the

deceiving spirits with "TEACHINGS' are

whispering their lies to all who are

"spiritual", i.e., open to spiritual

things. The "teaching spirits" with

"doctrines" will make special effort to

deceive those who have to transmit

"doctrine", and seek to mingle their

"teachings" with truth, so  <14>  as to

get them accepted. Every believer must

test all teachers today for himself, by

the Word of God and their attitude to

the atoning Cross of Christ, and other

fundamental truths of the Gospel, and

not be misled into testing "teaching" by

the character of the teacher. Good men

can be deceived, and Satan needs good

men to float his lies under the guise of

truth.

 

    THE EFFECT ON THE CONSCIENCE OF

     THE TEACHINGS OF EVIL SPIRITS

 

        How teaching spirits teach we

find described by Paul, for he says they

speak lies in HYPOCRISY, that is, speak

lies as if they were truth. And the

effect of their working is said to

"CAUTERIZE" (Gr.) the conscience, i.e.,

if a man accepts the teachings of evil

spirits as Divine, because they come to

him "supernaturally", and he obeys, and

follows those "teachings", "conscience"

is UNUSED, so that it practically

becomes dulled and passive -- or seared

-- and a man does things under the

influence of supernatural "revelation"

which an actively awakened "conscience"

would keenly rebuke and condemn. Such

"give heed" to these spirits, by (1)

listening to them, and then by (2)

OBEYING them; for they are deceived by

accepting wrong thoughts about God's

presence, and about Divine love, and

unknowingly give themselves up to the

power of lying spirits. Working in the

line of "teaching", deceiving spirits

will insert their "lies" spoken in

HYPOCRISY, into "holiness" teaching, and

deceive "believers" about sin,

themselves, and all other truths

connected with the spiritual life.

 

        Scripture is generally used as

the basis of these teachings, and is

skillfully woven together like a

spider's web, so that they are caught in

the snare. Single texts are wrenched

from their context, and their place in

the perspective of truth; sentences are

taken from their correlative sentences,

or texts are aptly picked out from over

a wide field, and so netted together as

to appear to give a full revelation of

the mind of God; but the intervening

passages, giving historical setting,

actions and circumstances connected with

the speaking of the words, and other

elements which give light on each

separate text, are skilfully dropped

out.

 

        A wide net is thus made for the

unwary or the untaught in the principles

of Scripture exegesis, and many a life

is sidetracked and troubled by this

false using of the Word of God. Because

the experience of most professing

Christians in regard  <15>  to the Devil

is limited to knowing him as a tempter,

or as an accuser, they have no

conception of the depths of his

wickedness, and of the wickedness of

evil spirits, and are under the

impression that they will not quote

Scripture, whereas they will quote the

whole Book if they can bet deceive one

soul.

 

       SOME WAYS OF "TEACHING" BY

           DECEIVING SPIRITS

 

        The "Teachings" of deceiving

spirits now being promulgated by them

are too many in number to enumerate in a

small compass. They are generally

recognized only in "false religions",

but the teaching spirits with their

"doctrines" or religious ideas suggested

to the minds of men, are ceaselessly at

work in every clime, seeking to play

upon the religious instinct in men, and

give a substitute for truth.

 

        Therefore, truth alone dispels

the deceptive doctrines of the teaching

spirits of Satan: the truth of God, not

merely "views of truth". Truth

concerning all the principles and laws

of the God of Truth. "Doctrines of

demons" simply consist of that which a

man "thinks" and "believes" as the

outcome of suggestions made to his mind

by deceiving spirits. All "thought" and

"belief" belongs to one of two realms --

the realm of truth, or the realm of

falsehood -- each having its source in

God or Satan. All truth comes from God,

and all that is contrary to truth from

Satan. Even the "thoughts" that

apparently originate in a man's own mind

come from one of these two sources, for

the mind itself is either darkened by

Satan (2_Corinthians 4:4), and therefore

fertile soil for his "teachings", or

renewed by God (Ephesians 4:23), and

clarified from the veil of Satan, and

made open to the reception and

transmission of truth.

 

    THE BASIC PRINCIPLE FOR TESTING

     TEACHINGS BY TEACHING SPIRITS

 

        Since thought, or "belief",

originates either from the God of Truth

of the father of lies (John 8:44), there

is but one basic principle for testing

the source of all doctrines, or

"thoughts" and "beliefs", held by

believers or unbelievers, i.e., the test

of the revealed Word of God.

 

        All "truth" is in harmony with

the only channel of revealed truth in

the world -- the written Word of God.

All "teachings" originating from

deceiving spirits:   <16>

 

        (1) Weaken the authority of the

Scriptures;

 

        (2) Distort the teaching in the

Scriptures;

 

        (3) Add to the Scriptures the

thoughts of men; or

 

        (4) Put the Scriptures entirely

aside.

 

The ultimate object being to hide,

distort, misuse or put aside the

revelation of God concerning the Cross

of Calvary, where Satan was overthrown

by the God-Man, and where freedom was

obtained for all his captives.

 

        The TEST of all "thought" and

"belief" therefore is its

 

        (1) Harmony with the written

Scriptures in its full body of truth.

 

        (2) The attitude to the Cross,

and sin.

 

        IN THE CHRISTIANIZED WORLD, some

doctrines of demons TESTED BY THESE TWO

PRIMARY PRINCIPLES may be mentioned as

 

        Christian Science:

no SIN, no Savior, no Cross.

 

        Theosophy:

no SIN, no Savior, no Cross.

 

        Spiritism:

no SIN, no Savior, no Cross.

 

        New Theology:

no SIN, no Savior, no Cross.

 

        IN THE HEATHEN WORLD:

 

1.  Mohammedanism, Confucianism, Buddhism,

etc.: No Savior, no Cross, a "moral"

religion, with man as his own savior.

 

2.  Idolatry as the worship of demons:

No knowledge of a Savior, or of His

Calvary sacrifice, but true knowledge of

the evil powers, which they endeavor to

propitiate, because they have proved

them to be existent.

 

        IN THE PROFESSING CHRISTIAN

CHURCH: Countless "thoughts" and

"beliefs", which are opposed to the

truth of God, are injected into the

minds of "Christians" by teaching

spirits, rendering them ineffective in

the warfare with sin and Satan, and

subject to the power of evil spirits.

All "thoughts" and "beliefs" should

therefore be tested by the truth of God

revealed in the Scripture, not merely by

"texts" or portions of the Word, but by

the principles of truth revealed in the

Word. Since Satan will endorse his

teachings by "signs and wonders"

(Matthew 24:24; 2_Thessalonians 2:9;

Revelation 8:13), "fire from  <17>

heaven," "power" and "signs", are no

proof of "teaching" being of God; nor is

a "beautiful life" to be the infallible

test, for Satan's "ministers" can be

"ministers of righteousness"

(2_Corinthians 11:13-15)

 

      THE CULMINATION OF THE FLOOD

   TIDE OF DECEIVING SPIRITS SHOWN IN

           2_THESSALONIANS 2

 

        The culmination of the flood

tide of these deceiving spirits sweeping

upon the Church, is described by the

Apostle Paul in his letter to the

Thessalonians, where he speaks of the

manifestation of one who will,

eventually, have so deceived Christendom

as to have gained an entrance into the

very sanctuary of God; so that "he

sitteth in the sanctuary of God, setting

himself forth as God. ..." The

"presence" of this one being a

"presence" like God, and yet "according

to the working of Satan, with all power,

and signs, and wonders of falsehood, and

WITH ALL DECEIT ..." (2_Thessalonians

2:9-10 RV, See margin RV).

 

        Confirmation of the Lord's words

recorded by Matthew is found in the

revelation given by Him to John, on

Patmos, that at the close of the age,

the main weapon used by the deceiver for

obtaining power over the people of the

earth will be supernatural signs from

heaven, when a counterfeit "lamb" will

do "great signs", and EVEN "MAKE FIRE

COME DOWN OUT OF HEAVEN" to deceive the

dwellers on the earth, and thereby

exercise such control over the whole

world, that "no man shall be able to buy

or sell, save he that hath the mark of

the beast" (Revelation 13:11-17).

Through this supernatural deception, the

full purpose of the deceiving hierarchy

of Satan thus reaches its consummation

in the foretold world-wide authority.

 

        Deception of the world with

deepening darkness; deception of the

Church through "teachings" and

"manifestations" will reach the highest

flood tide climax at the close of the

age. It is striking to note that the

Apostle who was chosen to transmit the

Apocalypse to the Church, in preparation

for the last days of the Church

militant, should be the one to write to

the Christians of his day: "Believe not

every spirit" (1_John 4:1-6), and

earnestly warn his "children" that the

"spirit of anti-Christ", and the "spirit

of error" (deception) was already

actively at work among them. Their

attitude was to be "believe not" --i.e.,

to DOUBT -- every supernatural

"teaching" and "teacher" UNTIL PROVED to

be of God.  They were  <18>  to prove

the "teachings", lest they came from a

"spirit of error", and be part of the

deceiver's campaign as "anti-Christ",

i.e., AGAINST CHRIST.

 

        If this attitude of neutrality

and doubt toward supernatural teachings

was needed in the days of the Apostle

John -- some fifty-seven years after

Pentecost -- how much more is it needed

in the "later times" foretold by the

Lord, and by the Apostle Paul. Times

which were to be characterized by a

clamor of voices of "prophets", that is

-- in the language of the twentieth

century -"speakers" and "teachers" using

the sacred Name of the Lord; and when

"teachings" received supernaturally from

the spiritual realm would abound.

"Teachings" accompanied with such

wonderful proofs of their "divine"

origin, as to perplex even the most

faithful of the Lord's people, and even,

for a time, to DECEIVE some of them

 

      OUTWARD SUCCESS OR DEFEAT NO

      TRUE CRITERION FOR JUDGMENT

 

        The enemy is a deceiver, and as

a deceiver he will work and prevail in

the later times. "Success " or "defeat"

is no criterion of a work being of God

or Satan. Calvary stands for ever as the

revelation of God's way in working out

His redemptive purposes. Satan works for

TIME, for he knows his time is short,

but God works for eternity. Through

death to life, through defeat to

triumph, through suffering to joy, is

God's way.

 

        Knowledge of truth is the

primary safeguard against deception. The

"elect" must KNOW, and they must learn

to "prove" the "spirits" UNTIL THEY DO

KNOW what is of God and what is of

Satan. The words of the Master, "Take

heed, I HAVE TOLD YOU," plainly implies

that personal knowledge of danger is

part of the Lord's way of guarding His

own, and those who blindly rely upon

"the keeping power of God", without

seeking to understand how to escape

deception, when forewarned to "take

heed" by the Lord, will surely find

themselves entrapped by the subtle foe.

 

@02

<19>

 

              CHAPTER TWO

 

        THE SATANIC CONFEDERACY

           OF WICKED SPIRITS

 

        A perspective view of the ages

covered by the history in Bible records,

shows that the rise and fall in

spiritual power of the people of God was

marked by the recognition of the

existence of the demoniacal hosts of

evil. When the Church of God in the old

and new dispensations was at the highest

point of spiritual power, the leaders

recognized, and drastically dealt with,

the invisible forces of Satan; and when

at the lowest they were ignored, or

allowed to have free course among the

people.

 

      GOD LEGISLATING FOR DANGERS

           FROM EVIL SPIRITS

 

        The reality of the existence of

wicked spirits by whom Satan, their

prince, carries out his work in the

fallen world of men, cannot be more

strongly proved than by the fact that

the statutes given by Jehovah to Moses

in the fiery mount, embodied stringent

measures for dealing with the attempts

of evil spirit beings to gain power over

the people of God. Moses was instructed

by Jehovah to keep the camp of Israel

free from their inroads, by the drastic

penalty of death for all who had

dealings with them. The very fact that

Jehovah thus giving statutes in

connection with such a subject, and the

extreme penalty enforced for

disobedience to His law, shows in itself

(1) the existence of evil spirits, (2)

their wickedness, (3) their ability to

communicate with, and influence human

beings, and (4) the necessity for

uncompromising hostility to them and

their works. God would not legislate for

dangers which had no real existence, nor

would He command the extreme penalty of

death, if the contact of the people with

evil spirit beings of the unseen world

did not necessitate such drastic

dealing.

 

        The severity of the penalty

obviously implies, also, that the

leaders of Israel must have been given

acute "discerning of  <20> spirits", so

sure and so clear, that they could have

no doubt in deciding cases brought

before them.

 

        Whilst Moses and Joshua lived,

and enforced the strong measures decreed

by God to keep His people free from the

inroads of satanic power, Israel

remained in allegiance to God, at the

highest point of its history; but when

these leaders died, the nation sank into

darkness, brought about by evil spirit

powers, drawing the people into idolatry

and sin; the spirit powers, drawing the

people into idolatry and sin; the

condition of the nation in after years,

rising and falling (see Judges 2:19;

1_Kings 14:22-24; compare 2_Chronicles

33:2-5, 34:2-7) into (1) allegiance to

God, or (2) idolatrous worship of idols,

and all the sins resulting from the

substitution of the worship of demons --

which idolatry really meant -- in the

place of Jehovah (1_Corinthians 10:20).

 

        When the new dispensation opens

with the advent of Christ, we find Him

-- the God-Man -- recognizing the

existence of the satanic powers of evil,

and manifesting uncompromising hostility

toward them and their works -- Moses in

the Old Testament, Christ in the New.

Moses, the man who knew God face to

face. Christ, the Only Begotten Son of

the Father, sent from God to the world

of men. Each recognizing the existence

of Satan and the evil spirit beings;

each drastically dealing with them as

entering and possessing men, and each

waging war against them, as actively

opposed to God.

 

        Taking a perspective view, from

the time of Christ on throughout the

early history of the Church, up to the

giving of the Apocalypse, and the death

of the Apostle John, the manifested

power of God wrought (in varying

degrees) among His people, and the

leaders recognized and dealt with the

spirits of evil -- a period

corresponding to the Mosaic period in

the old dispensation.

 

     CHRISTENDOM IN THE MIDDLE AGES

 

        Then the forces of darkness

gained, and, with intermittent intervals

and exceptions, the professing Church

sank down under their power, until, in

the darkest hour, which we call the

Middle Ages, all the sins having their

rise through the deceptive workings of

the evil spirits of Satan, were as rife

as in the time of Moses, when he wrote

by the command of God, in the time of

Moses, when he wrote by the command of

God, "There shall not be found with thee

... one that useth divination, or that

practiseth augury, or an enchanter, or a

<21>  sorcerer, or a charmer, or a

consulter with familiar spirit, or a

wizard, or a necromancer" (Deuteronomy

18:10-11).

 

   CHRISTENDOM IN THE PRESENT CENTURY

 

        WHY Christendom in the present

century has not recognized the existence

and workings of evil supernatural

forces, can only be attributed to its

low condition of spiritual life and

power. Even at the present time, when

the existence of evil spirits is

recognized by the heathen, it is

generally looked upon by the missionary

as "superstition" and ignorance; whereas

the ignorance is often on the part of

the missionary, who is blinded by the

prince of the power of the air to the

revelation given in the Scriptures,

concerning the satanic powers.

 

        The "ignorance" on the part of

the heathen is in their PROPITIATORY

attitude to evil spirits, because of

their ignorance of the Gospel message of

a Deliverer and a Savior sent to

"proclaim release to the captives" (Luke

4:18), and Who, when He was on earth,

went about healing all who were

"oppressed by the Devil" (Acts 10:38),

and sent His messengers to open the eyes

of the bound ones, that they might "turn

from darkness to light, and from the

power of Satan unto God" (Acts 26:18).

 

        If missionaries to the heather

recognized the existence of evil

spirits, and that the darkness in

heathen lands was caused by the prince

of the power of the air (Ephesians 2:2;

4:18; 1_John 5:19; 2_Corinthians 4:4),

and proclaimed to the heathen the

message of deliverance from the evil

hosts they know so well to be real and

malignant foes, as well as remission of

sins, and victory over sin through the

atoning sacrifice of Calvary, a vast

change would come over the mission field

in a few brief years.

 

    BELIEVERS MAY RECEIVE EQUIPMENT

      TO DEAL WITH SATANIC POWERS

 

        The hour of need always brings

the corresponding measure of power from

God to meet that need. The Church of

Christ must lay hold of the equipment of

the apostolic period for dealing with

the influx of the evil spirit hosts

among her members. That all believers

may receive the equipment of the Holy

Spirit, whereby the authority of Christ

over the demon hosts of Satan is

manifested, is proved not only by the

instance of Philip the deacon in the

Acts of the Apostles, but  <22>  also by

the writings of the "Fathers" *[See

Appendix.] in the early centuries of the

Christian era, which show that the

Christians of that time (1) recognized

the existence of evil spirits, (2) that

they influenced, deceived and possessed

men, and (3) that Christ gave His

followers authority over them through

His Name. That this authority through

the Name of Christ, wielded by the

believer walking in living and vital

union with Christ, is available for the

servants of God at the close of the age,

the Spirit of God is making known in

many and divers ways. God gave an object

lesson, through a Chinese Christian like

Pastor Hsi, who acted upon the Word of

God in simple faith, without the

questioning caused by the mental

difficulties of Western Christendom; and

He also awoke the Church in the West

through the Revival in Wales, by an

outpouring of the Spirit of God, which

not only manifested the power of the

Holy Spirit at work in the twentieth

century, as in the days of Pentecost,

but also unveiled the reality of satanic

powers in active opposition to God and

His people, and the need among the

Spirit-filled children of God for

equipment for dealing with them.

Incidentally, too, the Revival in Wales

threw light upon the Scripture records,

showing that the highest points of God's

manifested power among men is invariably

the occasion for concurrent

manifestations of the working of Satan.

It was so when the Son of God came forth

from the wilderness conflict with the

prince of darkness, and found the hidden

demons in many lives aroused to

malignant activity, so that from all

parts of Palestine crowds of victims

came to the Man before Whom the

possessing spirits trembled in impotent

rage.

 

        The awakened part of the Church

of today has now no doubt of the real

existence of the spirit beings of evil,

and that there is an organized monarchy

of supernatural powers, set up in

opposition to Christ and His kingdom,

bent upon the eternal ruin of every

member of the human race; and these

believers know that God is calling them

to seek the fullest equipment obtainable

for withstanding and resisting these

enemies of Christ and His Church.

 

        In order to understand the

working of the deceiver-prince of this

power of the air, and become acute to

discern his tactics and his methods of

deceiving men, we should search the

Scriptures thoroughly, to obtain a

knowledge of his  <23> character, and

how spirits of evil are able to possess

and use the bodies of men.

 

       DISTINCTION BETWEEN SATAN

            AND EVIL SPIRITS

 

        The distinction between the

workings of Satan as prince of demons'

and his evil spirits, should specially

be noted, so as to understand their

methods at the present day; for to many,

the adversary is merely a tempter,

whilst they little dream of his power as

a deceiver (Revelation 12:9), hinderer

(1_Thessalonians 2:18), murderer (John

8:44), liar (John 8:44), accuser

(Revelation 12:10), and a false angel of

light; and still less of the hosts of

spirits under his command, constantly

besetting their path, bent upon

deceiving, hindering, and prompting to

sin. A vast host wholly given up to

wickedness (Matthew 12:43-45),

delighting to do evil, to slay (Mark

10:2-5), to deceive, to destroy (Mark

11:20); and having access to men of

every grade, prompting them to all kinds

of wickedness, and satisfied only when

success accompanies their wicked plans

to ruin the children of men (Matthew

27:3-5).

 

      SATAN'S CHALLENGE OF CHRIST

           IN THE WILDERNESS

 

        This distinction between Satan,

the prince of the demons (Matthew

11:34), and his legion of wicked

spirits, is clearly recognized by

Christ, and may be noted in many parts

of the Gospels (Matthew 25:41). We find

Satan in person challenging the Lord in

the wilderness temptation, and Christ

answering him as a person, word for

word, and thought for thought, until he

retires, foiled by the keen recognition

of his tactics, by the Son of God (Luke

4:1-13).

 

        We read of the Lord describing

him as the "prince of the world" (John

14:30); recognizing him as ruling over a

kingdom (Matthew 12:26); using

imperative language to him as a person,

saying, "Get thee hence"; while to the

Jews He describes his character as

"sinning from the beginning", and being

a "murderer", and a "liar", the "father

of lies", who "abode not in the truth"

(John 8:44) which once he held as a

great archangel of God. He is called,

also, "that wicked one" (1_John 3:12

AV), the "Adversary", and that "old

serpent" (Revelation 12:9).

 

        In respect of his method of

working, the Lord speaks of him as

sowing "tares", which are "sons of the

evil one", among the wheat -- the "sons"

of God (Matthew 13:38-39);  <24>  thus

revealing the Adversary as possessing

the skill of a master mind, directing,

with executive ability, his work as

"prince of the world" in the whole

inhabited earth, and with power to place

the men who are called his "sons"

wherever he wills.

 

        We read, also, of Satan watching

to stanch away the seed of the Word of

God from all who hear it, this again

indicating his executive power in the

world-wide direction of his agents, whom

the Lord describes as "fowls of the

air"; in His own interpretation of the

parable (Matthew 12:3-4, 13, 19; Mark

4:3-4, 14-15; Luke 8:5, 11-12); plainly

saying that He meant by these "fowls"

the evil one" (Gr. PONEROS, Matthew

13:19); "Satan" (Gr. SATANAS, Mark

4:15); or "Devil" (Gr. DIABOLUS, Luke

8:12); whom we know, from the general

teaching of other parts of the

Scriptures, does his work through the

wicked spirits he has at his command;

Satan himself not being omnipresent,

although able to transpose himself with

lightning velocity to any part of his

world-wide dominions.

 

 THE LORD'S ATTITUDE TO AND RECOGNITION

                OF SATAN

 

        The Lord was always ready to

meet the antagonist whom He had foiled

in the wilderness, but who had only left

Him "for a season" (Luke 4:13). In Peter

He quickly discerned Satan at work, and

exposed him by one swift sentence,

mentioning his name (Matthew 16:23). In

the Jews He stripped aside the mask of

the hidden foe, and said, "Ye are of

your father, the Devil" (John 8:44), and

with keen-edged words spoke of Him as

the "murderer" and the "liar", prompting

them to kill Him, and lying to them

about Himself and His Father in heaven

(John 8:40-41).

 

        On the lake in a storm, fast

asleep, and awakened suddenly, He is

alert to meet the foe, and stands with

calm majesty to "rebuke" the storm,

which the prince of the power of the air

had roused against Him (Mark 4:38-39).

 

        In brief, we find the Lord,

right on from the wilderness victory,

unveiling the powers of darkness, as He

went forward in steady mastery over

them. Behind what appeared "natural", He

sometimes discerned a supernatural power

which demanded His rebuke. He "rebuked"

the fever in Peter's wife's mother (Luke

4:39), just as He "rebuked" the evil

spirits in other and more manifest

forms, whilst in other instances He

simply healed the sufferer by a word.

<25>

 

        The difference between Satan's

attitude to the Lord, and that of the

spirits of evil, should also be noted.

Satan, the prince, tempts Him, seeks to

hinder Him, prompts the Pharisees to

oppose Him, hides behind a disciple to

divert Him, and finally takes hold of a

disciple to betray Him, and then sways

the multitude to put Him to death; but

the spirits of evil bowed down before

Him, beseeching Him to "let them alone",

and not to command them to go into the

abyss (Luke 8:31).

 

        The realm of this

deceiver-prince is specifically

mentioned by the Apostle Paul in his

description of him as "prince of the

power of the air" (Ephesians 2:2), the

aerial, or "heavenly places", being the

special sphere of the activity of Satan

and his hierarchy of powers. The name

Beelzebub, the prince of the demons,

meaning the "god of flies", suggestively

speaks of the aerial character of the

powers of the air, as well as the word

"darkness", describing their character

and their doings. The Lord's description

of Satan's working through "fowls of the

air" strikingly corresponds to these

other statements, together with John's

language about the "whole world lying in

the evil one" (1_John 5:19); the "air"

being the place of the workings of these

aerial spirits, the very atmosphere in

which the whole human race moves, said

to be "in the evil one".

 

   EVIL SPIRITS IN THE GOSPEL RECORDS

 

        The gospel records are full of

reference to the workings of evil

spirits, and show that wherever the Lord

moved, the emissaries of Satan sprang

into active manifestation in the bodies

and minds of those they indwelt; and

that the ministry of Christ and His

apostles was directed actively against

them, so that again and again the

records read, "He went into their

synagogues through all Galilee,

preaching and casting out demons" (Mark

1:39); He "cast out many demons, and He

suffered not the demons to speak,

because they knew Him" (Mark 1:34);

"Unclean spirits, whensoever they beheld

Him, fell down before Him, and cried,

saying, Thou art the Son of God" (Mark

3:11). Then came the sending out of the

twelve chosen disciples, when the

spirits of evil again are taken into

account, for "He gave them authority

over unclean spirits" (Mark 6:7). Later

He appointed seventy other messengers,

and as they went forward in their work,

<26>  they, too, found the demons

subject to them through His Name (Luke

10:17).

 

        Were Jerusalem, Capernaum,

Galilee, and all Syria, then filled with

people who were "insane" and

"epileptic"? Or was the truth of evil

spirit possession of people a common

fact? In any case it is evident from the

gospel records that the Son of God dealt

with the powers of darkness as the

active, primary cause of the sin and

suffering of this world, and that the

aggressive part of His, and His

disciples' ministry, was directed

persistently against them. On the one

hand He dealt with the deceiver of the

world, and bound the "strong man",

whilst on the other He taught the truth

about God to the people, to destroy the

lies which the prince of darkness had

placed in their minds (2_Corinthians

4:4) about His Father and Himself. We

find, too, that the Lord clearly

recognized the Devil behind the

opposition of the Pharisees (John 8:44),

and the "hour and power of darkness"

(Luke 22:53) behind His persecutors at

Calvary. He said that His mission was to

"proclaim liberty to the captives" (Luke

4:18), and who the captor was He

revealed on the eve of Calvary, when He

said, "Now is the judgment of this

world, now shall the prince of this

world be cast out" (John 12:31); and

later on that this "prince" would once

more come to Him, but would find nothing

in Him as ground for his power (John

14:30).

 

       CHRIST ALWAYS DEALING WITH

         THE INVISIBLE ENEMIES

 

        It is striking to find that the

Lord did not attempt to convince the

Pharisees of His claims as the Messiah,

nor take the opportunity of winning the

Jews by yielding to their desires for an

earthly king. His one work in this world

was manifestly to conquer the satanic

prince of the world by the death of the

Cross (Hebrews 2:14); to deliver his

captives from his control, and to deal

with the invisible hosts of the prince

of darkness working at the back of

mankind (see 1_John 3:8).

 

        The commission He gave to the

twelve, and to the seventy, was exactly

in line with His own. He sent them

forth, and "gave them authority over

unclean spirits, to cast them out, and

to preach the Gospel" (Matthew 10:1); to

"first bind the strong man" (Mark 3:27),

and then to take his goods; to deal with

the invisible hosts of Satan first, and

then "preach the Gospel".  <27>

 

        From all this we learn that

there is one Satan, one Devil, one

prince of the demons, directing all the

opposition to Christ and His people; but

myriads of Wicked spirits called

"demons", lying spirits, deceiving

spirits, foul spirits, unclean spirits,

subjectively at work in men. Who they

are, and whence their origin, none can

positively say. That they are spirit

beings who are evil is alone beyond all

doubt; and all who are undeceived and

dispossessed from satanic deception,

become witnesses, from their own

experience, to their existence and

power. They know that things were done

to them by spirit beings, and that those

things were evil; therefore they

recognize that there are spirit beings

who do evil, and know that the symptoms,

effects and manifestations of demoniacal

possession have active, personal

agencies behind them. From experience

they know that they are hindered by

spirit beings, and therefore know that

these things are done by evil spirits

who are hinderers. Therefore, reasoning

from experimental facts, as well as the

testimony of Scripture, they know that

these evil spirits are murderers,

tempters, liars, accusers,

counterfeiters, enemies, haters, and

wicked beyond all the power of man to

know.

 

        The names of these evil spirits

describe their characters, for they are

called "foul," "lying," "unclean,"

"evil," and "deceiving" spirits, for

they are wholly given up to every manner

of wickedness, and deception, and lying

works.

 

    CHARACTERISTICS OF EVIL SPIRITS

 

        What the characteristics of

these wicked spirits are, and how they

are able to dwell in the bodies and

minds of human beings, will be seen by a

careful examination of the specific

cases mentioned in the gospels; as well

as their power to interfere with,

mislead, and deceive, even servants of

God from references to them in other

portions of the Word of God.

 

        Evil spirits are generally

looked upon as "influences", and not as

intelligent beings, but their

personality and entity and difference in

character as distinct intelligences,

will be seen in the Lord's direct

commands to them (Mark 1:25; 5:8;

3:11-12; 9:25); their power of speech

(Mark 3:11); their replies to Him,

couched in intelligent language (Matthew

8:29); their sensibilities of fear (Luke

8:31); their definite expression of

desire (Matthew 8:31); their need of a

dwelling place of rest (Matthew 7:43);

their intelligent power of decision <28>

(Matthew 12:44); their power of

agreement with other spirits; their

degrees of wickedness (Matthew 12:45);

their power of rage (Matthew 8:28);

their strength (Mark 5:4); their ability

to possess a human being, either as one

(Mark 1:26) or in a thousand (Mark 5:9);

their use of a human being as their

medium for "divining", or foretelling

the future (Acts 16:16); or as a great

miracle worker by their power (Acts

8:11).

 

    THE RAGE AND WICKEDNESS OF EVIL

                SPIRITS

 

        When evil spirits act in a rage,

they act as a combination of the maddest

and most wicked persons in existence,

but all their evil is done with fullest

intelligence and purpose. They know what

they do, they know it is evil, terribly

evil, and they will to do it. They do it

with rage, and with the full swing of

malice, enmity and hatred. They act with

fury and bestiality, like an enraged

bull, as if they had no intelligence,

and yet with full intelligence they

carry on their work, showing the

wickedness of their wickedness. They act

from an absolutely depraved nature, with

diabolical fury, and with an undeviating

perseverance. They act with

determination, persistency, and with

skilful methods, forcing themselves upon

mankind, upon the Church, and still more

upon the spiritual man.

 

     VARIED MANIFESTATIONS OF EVIL

        SPIRITS THROUGH PERSONS

 

        Their manifestations through the

persons in whom they obtain footing are

varied in character, according to the

degree and kind of ground they secure

for possession. In one Biblical case the

only manifestation of the evil spirit's

presence was dumbness (Matthew 11:32);

the spirit possibly locating in the

vocal organs; in another, the person

held by the spirit was "deaf and dumb"

(Mark 11:25), and the symptoms included

foaming at the mouth, grinding the teeth

-- all connected with the head -- but

the hold of the spirit was of such long

standing (v.21) that he could throw his

victim down, and convulse the whole body

(Mark 11:20-22).

 

        In other cases we find merely an

"unclean spirit" in a man in a

"synagogue", probably so hidden that

none would know the man was thus

possessed, until the spirit cried out

with fear when he saw Christ, saying,

"Art Thou come to destroy us?" (Mark

1:24); or a "spirit of infirmity" (Luke

13:11) in a woman of whom it might be

said that she simply required "healing"

of some disease, or that she was always

<29>  tired, and only needed "rest", as

some would say in the language of the

twentieth century.

 

        Again, we find a very advanced

case in the man with the "legion",

showing that the evil spirits'

possession reached such a climax as to

make the person appear insane; for his

own personality was so mastered by the

malignant spirits in possession, as to

cause him to lose all sense of decency

and self-control in the presence of

others (Luke 8:27). The unity of purpose

in the spirits of evil to carry out the

will of their prince, is especially

shown in this case, as with one accord

they besought to be allowed to enter the

swine, and with one accord they rushed

the whole herd into the sea.

 

    DIFFERENT KINDS OF EVIL SPIRITS

 

        That there are different kinds

of spirits is evident from all the

instances given in the gospel records.

Their manifestation outside the gospel

cases may be seen in the story of the

girl at Philippi, possessed by a "spirit

of divination", and again in Simon the

Sorcerer, who was so energized by

satanic power for the working of

miracles, that he was considered to be

"a great power of God" by the deceived

people (Acts 8:10).

 

        Spiritists, today, are deceived,

in so far as they really believe they

are communicating with the spirits of

the dead; for it is easy for spirits of

evil to impersonate any of the dead,

even the most devoted and saintly

Christians. They have watched them (Acts

19:15) all their lives, and can easily

counterfeit their voices, or say

anything about them and their actions

when on earth.

 

EVIL SPIRITS FORETELLING THROUGH MEDIUMS

 

        In like manner as a "spirit of

divination", deceiving spirits can use

"palmists" and "fortune tellers" to

deceive; for in their work of watching

human beings, they inspire the mediums

to foretell, not what they know about

the future -- for God alone has this

knowledge -- but things which they

themselves intend to do; and if they can

get the person to whom these things are

told to cooperate with them, by

accepting or believing their

"fore-telling", they try eventually to

bring them about; e.g., the medium says

such and such a thing will happen, the

person believes it, and by believing

opens himself, or herself, to the evil

spirit, to bring that thing  <30> to

pass; or else admits the spirit, or

gives free opportunity to one already in

possession, to bring about the thing

foretold. They cannot always succeed,

and this is the reason why there is so

much uncertainty about the response

through mediums, because many things may

hinder the workings of the evil spirit

beings, particularly the prayers of

friends or intercessors in the Christian

Church.

 

        These are some of the "deep

things of Satan" (Revelation 2:24)

mentioned by the Lord in His message to

Thyatira, manifestly referring to far

more subtle workings among the

Christians of that time, than all that

the Apostles had seen in the cases

recorded in the gospels. "The mystery of

lawlessness doth already work," wrote

the Apostle Paul (2_Thessalonians 2:7)

showing that the deep laid schemes of

deception through "doctrines" (1_Timothy

4:1), foretold as reaching their full

culmination in the last days, were

already at work in the Church of God.

Evil spirits are at work today, INSIDE

as well as outside the professing

Church, and "spiritualism", in its

meaning of dealing with evil spirits,

may be found inside Christendom, and

among the most earnest people, apart

from its true name. Men think they are

free from spiritism because they have

never been to a seance, not knowing that

evil spirits attack and deceive every

human being, and they do not confine

their working to the professing Church,

or the world, but operate wherever they

can find conditions fulfilled to enable

them to manifest their power.

 

       THE POWER OF EVIL SPIRITS

           OVER HUMAN BODIES

 

        The control of the spirits over

the bodies of those they possess is seen

in the gospel cases. The man with the

legion was not master oven his own body

or mind. The spirits would "seize him",

"drive him" (Luke 8:29), compel him to

cut himself with stones (Mark 5:5),

strengthen him to burst every fetter and

chain (v.4), and "cry out" aloud (v.5),

and fiercely attack others (Matthew

8:28). The boy with the dumb spirit

would be dashed to the ground (Luke

9:42), and convulsed; the spirit forced

him to cry out, and tore him, so that

the body became bruised and sore (v.39).

Teeth, tongue, vocal organs, ears, eyes,

nerves, muscles and breath, are seen to

be affected and interfered with by evil

spirits in possession. Weakness and

strength are both produced by their

working, and men (Mark 1:23), women

(Luke 8:2),  <31>  boys (Mark 11:17),

and girls (Mark 7:25), are equally open

to their power.

 

        That the Jews were familiar with

the fact of evil spirit possession is

clear from their words when they saw the

Lord Christ cast out the blind and dumb

spirit from a man (Matthew 12:24). Also

that there were men among them who knew

some method of dealing with such cases

(v.27). "By whom do your sons cast them

out?" said the Lord. That such dealing

with evil spirits was not effective, may

be gathered from instances given, where

it appears that alleviation of the

sufferings from evil spirit possession

was the most that could be done; e.g.

(1) the case of King Saul, who was

soothed by the harp playing of David;

(2) the sons of Sceva, who were

professional exorcists, yet who

recognized a power in the Name of Jesus

which their exorcism did not possess. In

both these cases the danger of attempted

alleviation and exorcism, and the power

of the evil spirits, is strikingly shown

in contrast to the complete command

manifested by Christ and His Apostles.

David playing to Saul is suddenly aware

of the javelin flung by the hand of the

man he was seeking to soothe; and the

sons of Sceva found the evil spirits

upon them, and mastering them as they

used the Name of Jesus, without the

Divine co-working given to all who

exercise personal faith in Him. Among

the heathen, also, who know the venom of

these wicked spirits, propitiation and

soothing of their hate by obedience to

them is the most that they know.

 

THE EXORCISM OF EVIL SPIRITS CONTRASTED

      WITH CHRIST'S POWER OF WORD

 

        How striking to contrast all

this with the calm authority of Christ,

Who needed no adjuration or methods of

exorcism, and no prolonged preparation

of Himself ere dealing with a spirit-

possessed man. "He cast out the spirits

by a word,"  "With authority and power

He commandeth... and they obey Him," was

the wondering testimony of the awe-

struck people; and the testimony, too,

of the seventy sent forth by Him to use

the authority of His Name, as they found

the spirits subject to them, even as

they were to the Lord (Luke 10:17-20).

 

        "'They' obey Him," said the

people. "They" -- the evil spirits whom

the people knew to be real identities --

governed by Beelzebub, their prince

(Matthew 11:24-27).  <32>  The complete

mastery of the Lord oven the demons,

compelled the leaders to find some way

of explaining His authority over them,

and so by the subtle influence of Satan

 -- with which all who have had insight

into his devices are familiar -- they

suddenly charge the Lord with having

satanic power Himself, by saying, "He

casteth out demons through Beelzebub,

the prince of the demons," suggesting

that Christ's authority over evil

spirits was derived from their chief and

prince.

 

        The reference to the kingdom of

Satan, and his kingship, was left

uncontradicted by the Lord, Who simply

declared the truth in the face of

Satan's lie, that He cast out demons "by

the finger of God", and that Satan's

kingdom would soon fall, were he to act

against himself, and dislodge his

emissaries from their place of retreat

in human bodies, where alone they can

achieve their greatest power, and do the

greatest harm among men. That Satan does

apparently fight against himself is

true, but when he does so, it is with

the purpose of covering some scheme for

greater advantage to his kingdom.

 

 THE AUTHORITY OVER EVIL SPIRITS BY THE

        APOSTLES AFTER PENTECOST

 

        That the Apostles after

Pentecost recognized and dealt with the

denizens of the invisible world, is

evident from the records of the Acts of

the Apostles, and other references in

the Epistles. The disciples were

prepared for Pentecost, and the opening

of the supernatural world through the

coming of the Holy Spirit, by their

three years' training by the Lord. They

had watched Him deal with the wicked

spirits of Satan, and had themselves

learned to deal with them, too, so that

the power of the Holy Spirit could be

safely given at Pentecost to men who

already knew the workings of the foe. We

see how quickly Peter recognized Satan's

work in Ananias (acts 5:3), and how

"unclean spirits" came out at his

presence, as they did with his Lord

(Acts 5:16). Philip, too, found the evil

hosts subservient (Acts 8:7) to the word

of his testimony, as he proclaimed

Christ to the People, and Paul knew,

also, the power of the Name of the Risen

Lord (Acts 19:11) in dealing with the

powers of evil.

 

        It is therefore clear in Bible

history that the manifestation of the

power of God invariably meant active

dealing with the satanic hosts; that the

manifestation of the power of God at

Pentecost, and through the Apostles,

meant again an aggressive <33>  attitude

to the powers of darkness, and ergo,

that the growth and maturity of the

Church of Christ at the end of the

dispensation, will mean the same

recognition, and the same attitude

toward the satanic hosts of the prince

of the power of the air; with the same

co-witness of the Holy Spirit to the

authority of the Name of Jesus, as in

the early Church. In brief, that the

Church of Christ will reach its high

water mark, when it is able to recognize

and deal with demon-possession; when it

knows how to "bind the strong man" by

prayer; "command" the spirits of evil in

the Name of Christ, and deliver men and

women from their power.

 

THE CHURCH IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY MUST

    RECOGNIZE THE POWERS OF DARKNESS

 

        For this the Christian Church

must recognize that the existence of

deceiving, lying spirits, is as real in

the twentieth century as in the time of

Christ, and their attitude to the human

race unchanged. That their one ceaseless

aim is to deceive every human being.

That they are given up to wickedness all

day long, and all night long, and that

they are ceaselessly and actively

pouring a stream of wickedness into the

world, and are satisfied only when they

succeed in their wicked plans to deceive

and ruin men.

 

        Yet the servants of God have

been concerned only to destroy their

WORKS, and to deal with sin; not

recognizing the need of using the power

given by Christ, to resist by faith and

prayer this ever-flowing flood of

satanic power pouring in among men; so

that men and women, young and old, and

even "christian" and "non-christian",

become deceived through their guile, and

because of ignorance about them, and

their wiles.

 

        These supernatural forces of

Satan are the true hindrance to revival.

The power of God which broke forth in

Wales, with all the marks of the days of

Pentecost, was checked and hindered from

going on to its fullest purpose by the

same influx of evil spirits as met the

Lord Christ on earth, and the Apostles

of the early Church; with the difference

that the inroad of the powers of

darkness found the Christians of the

twentieth century, with few exceptions,

unable to recognize and deal with them.

Evil spirit possession has followed, and

checked every similar revival throughout

the centuries since Pentecost, and these

things must now be understood, and  <34>

dealt with, if the Church is to advance

to maturity. Understood, not only in the

degree of possession recorded in the

gospels, but in the special forms of

manifestations suited to the close of

the dispensation, UNDER THE GUISE OF THE

HOLY SPIRIT, yet having some of the very

characteristic marks in bodily symptoms,

seen in the gospel records, when all who

saw the manifestation knew that it was

the work of the spirits of Satan.

 

@03

<35>

 

             CHAPTER THREE

 

       DECEPTION BY EVIL SPIRITS

            IN MODERN TIMES

 

        In the special onslaught of the

deceiver which will come upon the whole

of Christendom at the close of the age,

through the army of deceiving spirits,

there are some, more than others, who

will be specially attacked by the powers

of darkness, who need light upon his

deceptive workings, so that they may

pass through the trial of the Last Hour,

and be counted worthy to escape that

hour of greater trial which is coming

upon the earth (Luke 21:34-36;

Revelation 3:10).

 

        These are the ones who are

recklessly ready to follow the Lord at

any cost, and yet do not realize their

unpreparedness for contest with the

spiritual powers of the unseen world, as

they press on into fuller spiritual

things. Believers who are full of mental

conceptions wrought into them in earlier

years, which hinder the Spirit of God

from preparing them for all they will

meet as they press on to their coveted

goal; conceptions which also hinder

others from giving them, out of the

Scriptures, much that they need to know

of the spiritual world into which they

are so blindly advancing. Conceptions

which lull them into a false security,

and give ground for, and even bring

about, that ever deception which enables

the deceiver to find them an easy prey.

 

    CAN "HONEST SOULS" BE DECEIVED?

 

        One prevailing idea which such

believers have deeply embedded in their

minds, is that "honest seekers after

God" will not be allowed to be deceived.

That this is one of Satan's lies to lure

such seekers into a false position of

safety, is proved by the history of the

Church during the past two thousand

years, for every "wile of error" which

has borne sad fruit throughout this

period, first laid hold of devoted

believers who were "honest souls". The

errors among groups of such believers,

some well known to the present

generation, all began among "honest"

people; and all so sure that, knowing

the side-tracking of others before them,

<36>  they would never be caught by the

wiles of Satan. Yet they, too, have been

deceived by lying spirits,

counterfeiting the workings of God.

 

        Among such, lying spirits have

worked on their determination LITERALLY

to obey the Scriptures, and by misuse of

the letter of the written Word, have

pushed them into phases of unbalanced

truth, with resulting erroneous

practices. Many who have suffered for

their adherence to these "Biblical

commands", firmly believe that they are

martyrs suffering for Christ.

 

        The aftermath of the Revival in

Wales, which was a true work of God,

revealed many swept off their feet by

evil supernatural powers, which they

were not able to discern from the true

working of God. And later still than the

Welsh Revival, there have been other

"movements", with large numbers of

followers swept into deception through

the wiles of deceiving spirits

counterfeiting the workings of God; all

"honest souls", deceived by the subtle

foe, and certain to be led on into still

deeper deception, notwithstanding their

honesty and earnestness, if they are not

awakened to "return to soberness" and

recovery out of the snare of the Devil

into which they have fallen (2_Timothy

2:26).

 

  FAITHFULNESS TO LIGHT NOT SUFFICIENT

      SAFEGUARD AGAINST DECEPTION

 

        We need to know that to be true

in motive, and faithful up to light, is

not sufficient safeguard against

deception; and that it is not safe to

rely upon "honesty of purpose" as

guaranteeing protection from the enemy's

wiles, instead of taking heed to the

warnings of God's Word, and watching

unto prayer.

 

        Christians who are true and

faithful and honest, can be deceived by

Satan and his deceiving spirits, for the

following reasons:

 

        (a) When a man becomes a child

of God, by the regenerating power of the

Spirit, giving him new life as he trusts

in the atoning work of Christ, he does

not at the same time receive fulness of

knowledge, either of God, himself, or

the Devil.

 

        (b) The mind which by nature is

darkened (Ephesians 4:18), and under a

veil created by Satan (2_Corinthians

4:4) is only renewed, and the veil

destroyed, UP TO THE EXTENT THAT THE

LIGHT OF TRUTH PENETRATES IT, and

according to the measure in which the

man is able to apprehend it.  <37>

 

        (c) "Deception" has to do with

the MIND, and it means a wrong thought

admitted to the mind, under the

deception that it is truth. Since

"deception" is based on ignorance, and

not on the moral character, a Christian

who is "true" and "faithful" up to the

knowledge he has, must be open to

deception in the sphere where he is

ignorant of the "devices" of the Devil

(2_Corinthians 2:11), and what he is

able to do. We are liable to be

"deceived" by the Devil because of

IGNORANCE.

 

        (d) The thought that God will

protect a believer from being deceived

if he is true and faithful, is in itself

a "deception", because it throws a man

off guard, and ignores the fact that

there are conditions on the part of the

believer which have to be fulfilled for

God's working. God does not do anything

instead of a man, but by the man's

co-operation with Him; NEITHER DOES HE

UNDERTAKE TO MAKE UP FOR A MAN'S

IGNORANCE, WHEN HE HAS PROVIDED

KNOWLEDGE FOR HIM WHICH WILL PREVENT HIM

BEING DECEIVED.

 

        (e) Christ would not have warned

His disciples, "Take heed... be not

DECEIVED," if there had been NO DANGER

OF DECEPTION, or if God had undertaken

to keep them from deception apart from

their "taking heed", and their knowledge

of such danger.

 

        The knowledge that it is

POSSIBLE to be deceived, keeps the mind

open to truth and light from God, and is

one of the primary conditions for the

keeping power of God; whereas a closed

mind to light and truth is a certain

guarantee of deception by Satan at his

earliest opportunity.

 

        As we glance back over the

history of the Church, and watch the

rise of various "heresies" or delusions

 -- as they have sometimes been called

 -- we can trace the period of deception

as beginning with some great crisis, a

crisis in which the man is brought to

give himself up in full abandonment to

the Holy Spirit, and in so doing thus

open himself to the supernatural powers

of the invisible world.

 

        The reason for the peril of such

a crisis is, that up to this time, the

believer used his reasoning faculties in

judging right and wrong, and obeyed what

he believed to be the will of God, from

PRINCIPLE; but now, in his abandonment

to the Holy Spirit, he begins to obey an

unseen Person, and to submit his

faculties and his reasoning powers in

blind obedience to that which he

believes is of God. The will is

surrendered to carry out the Will of God

at all costs, and the whole being is

made  <38>  subject to the powers of the

unseen world; the believer, of course,

purposing that it shall only be to the

power of God, not taking into account

that there are other powers in the

spiritual realm, and that all that is

"supernatural" is not all of God; and

not realizing that this absolute

surrender of the whole being to

invisible forces, WITHOUT KNOWING HOW TO

DISCERN BETWEEN THE CONTRARY POWERS OF

GOD AND SATAN, must be of the gravest

risk to the inexperienced believer.

 

        The question whether this

surrender to "obey THE SPIRIT" is one

that is in accord with Scripture, should

be examined in view of the way in which

so many wholehearted believers have been

misled, for it is strange that an

attitude which is Scriptural should be

so grievously the cause of danger, and

often of complete wreckage.

 

   IS THE PHRASE "OBEYING THE SPIRIT"

              SCRIPTURAL?

 

        "The Holy Ghost, Whom God hath

given to them that obey Him," is the

principal phrase giving rise to the

expression, "obey the Spirit". It was

used by Peter before the Council at

Jerusalem, but nowhere else in the

Scriptures is the same thought given.

The whole passage needs reading

carefully to reach a clear conclusion.

"We must obey GOD" (Acts 5:29), Peter

said to the Sanhedrin, for "we are

witnesses... and so is the Holy Ghost

Whom God hath given to them THAT OBEY

HIM" (v.32). Does the Apostle mean "obey

the SPIRIT", or "obey GOD", according to

the first words of the passage? The

distinction is important, and the

setting of the words can only be rightly

understood by the teaching of other

parts of Scripture, that the Triune GOD

IN HEAVEN is to be obeyed through the

power of the indwelling Spirit of God.

For to place the Holy Ghost as the

OBJECT of obedience, rather than God the

Father, through the Son, BY the Holy

Spirit, creates the danger of leading

the believer to rely upon, or obey, a

"spirit" in or around him, rather than

God on the throne in heaven, Who is to

be obeyed by the child of God united to

His Son; THE HOLY SPIRIT BEING THE

MEDIA, OR MEANS, THROUGH WHOM GOD is

worshipped and obeyed.

 

    THE TRUE WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

            IN THE BELIEVER

 

        The Holy Spirit should never

become the center and object of thought

and worship, a place which He Himself

does not desire, and which it is not the

purpose of the Father in heaven  <39>

that He should have or occupy. "He shall

not speak from Himself" (John 16:13),

and said the Lord before Calvary, as He

told of His coming at Pentecost. He

should act as Teacher (John 14:26), but

teaching the words of Another, not His

own; He should bear witness to Another,

not to Himself (John 15:26); He should

glorify Another, not Himself (John

16:14); He should only speak what was

given Him to speak by Another (John

16:13); in brief, His entire work would

be to lead souls into union with the

Son, and knowledge of the Father in

heaven, whilst HE HIMSELF DIRECTED AND

WORKED IN THE BACKGROUND.

 

        If a man who is untaught in the

Scriptural statements of the work of the

Triune God, makes to "obey the Spirit"

his supreme purpose, the deceiver will

aim to counterfeit the guidance of the

Spirit, and even the presence of the

Spirit Himself.

 

        It is just here that the

ignorance of the seeker about (1) the

spiritual world now opened to him, (2)

the working of evil powers in that

realm, and (3) the conditions upon which

God works in and through him, gives the

enemy his opportunity. It is the time of

greatest peril for anyone, unless he is

instructed and prepared, as the

disciples were for three whole years by

the Lord. The danger lies along the line

of supernatural "guidance", through not

knowing the condition of co-operation

with the Holy Spirit, and how to discern

the will of God and counterfeit

manifestations, through not knowing the

"discerning of spirits" necessary to

detect the workings of the false angel

of light, who is able to bring about

counterfeit gifts of prophecy, tongues,

healings, and other spiritual

experiences connected with the work of

the Holy Ghost.

 

        Those who have their eyes opened

to the opposing forces of the spiritual

realm, understand that very few

believers can guarantee that they are

obeying GOD, and GOD ONLY, IN DIRECTLY

SUPERNATURAL GUIDANCE, because there are

so many factors liable to intervene,

such as the believer's own mind, spirit,

or will, and the deceptive intrusion of

the powers of darkness.

 

        There is a "discernment" which

is a spiritual gift, enabling the

believer to discern "spirits", but this

also requires KNOWLEDGE of "doctrine"

(1_John 4:1), so as to discern between

doctrine which is of God, and doctrines,

or teachings, of teaching spirits.

 

        There is a detecting, by the

gift of discerning of spirits,  <40>

which spirit is at work, and a TEST of

spirits, which is doctrinal. In the

former, a believer can tell by a spirit

of discernment that the lying spirits

are at work in a meeting, or in a

person, but he may not have the

UNDERSTANDING needed for testing the

"doctrines" set forth by a teacher. He

needs knowledge in both cases, knowledge

to read his spirit with assurance in the

face of all contrary appearances, that

the supernatural workings are "of God",

and knowledge to detect the subtlety of

"teachings" bearing certain infallible

indications that they emanate from the

pit, while appearing to be from God.

 

        In personal obedience to God,

the believer can detect whether he is

obeying GOD in some "command", by

judging its fruits, and by knowledge of

the character of God, such as the truth

that (1) God has always a purpose in His

commands, and (2) He will give no

command out of harmony with His

character and Word. Other factors needed

for clear knowledge are dealt with later

on.

 

THE NEED FOR EXAMINATION OF THEORIES

 

        In the light of the working of

deceiving spirits, and their methods of

deception, it is also becoming clear

that close examination is needed of the

modern theories, conceptions, and

expressions, concerning things in

connection with God, and His way of

working in man; for only the truth of

God, apart from "views" of truth, will

avail for protection, or warfare, in the

conflict with wicked spirits in the

heavenly sphere.

 

        All that is in any degree the

outcome of the mind of the "natural man"

(1_Corinthians 2:14) will prove to be

but weapons of straw in this great

battle, and if we rely upon others'

"views of truth", or upon our own HUMAN

CONCEPTIONS of truth, Satan will use

these very things to deceive us, even

building us up in these theories and

views, so that under cover of them he

may accomplish his purposes.

 

        We cannot, therefore, at this

time, over-estimate the importance of

believers having open minds to "examine

all things" they have thought, and

taught, in connection with the things of

God and the spiritual realm. All the

"truths" they have held; all the phrases

and expressions they have used in

"holiness teachings"; and all the

"teachings" they have absorbed through

others. For any wrong INTERPRETATION of

truth, any theories and phrases which

are man-conceived,  <41>  and which we

may build upon wrongly, will have

perilous consequences to ourselves, and

to others, in the conflict which the

Church, and the individual believer, is

not passing through. Since in the "later

times" evil spirits will come to them

with deceptions in DOCTRINAL form,

believers must examine carefully what

they accept as "doctrine", lest it

should be from the emissaries of the

deceiver.

 

         THE SPIRITUAL BELIEVER

     EXHORTED TO "JUDGE ALL THINGS"

 

        The duty of this examination of

spiritual things is strongly urged by

the Apostle Paul, again and again. "He

that is spiritual JUDGETH (margin,

examineth, or, as in the Greek,

INVESTIGATES AND DECIDES) all things"

(1_Corinthians 2:15). The "spiritual"

believer is to use his "judgment", which

is a renewed faculty if he is a

"spiritual man", and this spiritual

examination, or judging, is mentioned as

operative in connection with "things of

the Spirit of God" (1_Corinthians 2:14),

showing how God Himself honors the

intelligent personality of the man He

re-creates in Christ, by inviting the

"judging" and "examining" of His own

workings by His Spirit; so that even

"the things of the Spirit" are not to be

received as of Him, without being

examined and "spiritually discerned" as

of God. When, therefore, it is said in

connection with the supernatural and

abnormal manifestations of the present

time, that it is not necessary, nor ever

according to the will of God, for

believers to understand or explain all

the workings of God, it is out of accord

with the Apostle's statement that, "he

that is spiritual JUDGETH ALL THINGS,"

and consequently should REJECT all

things which his spiritual judgment is

unable to accept, until such a time as

he is able to discern with clearness

what are the things of God.

 

        And not only is the believer to

discern or judge the things of the

spirit -- i.e., all things in the

spiritual realm -- but he is also to

judge himself. For "if we discriminated

ourselves" -- the Greek word means a

THOROUGH INVESTIGATION -- we should not

need the dealing of the Lord to bring to

light the things in ourselves which we

have failed to discern by discrimination

(1_Corinthians 11:31,m.).

 

        "Brethren, be not children in

mind, howbeit in malice be ye babes, but

in MIND BE MEN" (Gr., of full, or MATURE

age, 1_Corinthians 14:20), wrote the

Apostle again to the Corinthians, as

<42>  he explained to them the way of

the working of the Spirit among them.

The believer is in "mind" to be of "full

age"; that is, able to examine, "bring

to the proof" (Gr., to prove,

demonstrate, examine, 2_Timothy 4:2

RV.m.), and "PROVE ALL THINGS"

(1_Thessalonians 5:21). He is to abound

in knowledge, and "all discernment", so

as to "prove the things that differ",

that he may be "sincere and void of

offence" until the day of Christ

(Philippians 1:10,m.).

 

    EXPRESSIONS, "VIEWS," DOCTRINES,

          NEED TO BE EXAMINED

 

        In accordance with these

directions of the Word of God, and in

view of the critical time through which

the Church of Christ is passing, every

expression, "view," or theory, which we

hold concerning things, should now be

examined carefully, and brought to the

proof, with open and honest desire to

know the pure truth of God, as well as

every statement that comes to our

knowledge of the experience of others,

which may throw light upon our own

pathway. Every criticism -- just or

unjust -- should be humbly received and

EXAMINED TO DISCOVER ITS GROUND,

apparent or real; and facts concerning

spiritual verities from every section of

the Church of God, should be analysed,

independent of their pleasure, or pain,

to us personally, either for our own

enlightenment, or for our equipment in

the service of God. For the knowledge of

truth is the first essential for warfare

with the lying spirits of Satan, and

truth must be eagerly sought for, and

faced with earnest and sincere desire to

know it and obey it in the light of God;

truth concerning ourselves, discerned by

unbiased discrimination; truth from the

Scriptures, uncolored, unstrained,

unmutilated, undiluted; truth in facing

facts of experience in all members of

the Body of Christ, and not one section

alone.

 

   THE PLACE OF TRUTH IN DELIVERANCE

 

        There is a fundamental principle

involved in the freeing power of truth

from the deceptions of the Devil.

DELIVERANCE FROM BELIEVING LIES MUST BE

BY BELIEVING TRUTH. Nothing can remove a

lie but truth. "Ye shall know the truth,

and the truth shall make you free" (John

8:32) is applicable to every aspect of

truth, as well as the special truth

referred to by the Lord when He spoke

the pregnant words.

 

        In the very first stage of the

Christian life the sinner must know the

truth of the Gospel, if he is to be

saved. Christ is  <43>  the Savior, but

He saves through, and not apart from,

instruments or means. If the believer

needs freedom, he must ask the Son of

God for it. How does the Son set free?

BY THE HOLY SPIRIT, and the Holy Spirit

does it by the instrumentality of truth;

or we may say, in brief, freedom is the

gift of the Son, by the Holy Spirit

working through TRUTH.

 

        There are three stages of

apprehending truth:

 

        (1) Perception of truth by the

understanding.

 

        (2) Perception of truth for use,

and personal application.

 

        (3) Perception of truth for

teaching, and passing on to others.

 

        Truth apparently not grasped may

lie in the mind, and in the hour of need

suddenly emerge into experience, and

thus by experience become clear to the

mind in which it has been lying dormant.

It is only by continual application, and

assimilation of truth in experience,

that it becomes clarified in the mind in

order to teach others.

 

        The great need of all believers

is that they should eagerly seek TRUTH

for their progressive liberation from

all Satan's lies; for knowledge and

truth alone can give victory over Satan

as deceiver and liar. If the hearers of

truth should resist it, or rebel against

it, truth can well be left to the care

of the Holy Spirit of Truth. Even in the

case of resistance to truth it has at

least reached the MIND, and at any time

may fructify into experience.

 

        There are three attitudes of

mind in regard to knowledge, i.e.,

 

        (1) ASSUMPTION of knowing a

certain thing.

 

        (2) Neutrality toward it, i.e.,

"I do not know".

 

        (3) Certainty of real knowledge.

 

        This is instanced in the life of

Christ. Some said of Him, "He is a false

prophet," with an ASSUMPTION of

knowledge; others said, "We do not know"

--taking a position of neutrality until

they did know; but Peter said, "We

KNOW..." and he had true knowledge.

 

    THE SAFETY OF A NEUTRAL ATTITUDE

   TO ALL SUPERNATURAL MANIFESTATIONS

 

        When believers first hear of the

possibility of counterfeits of God and

Divine things, they almost invariably

ask, "How are we to KNOW which is

which?" It is enough, first of all, for

them to know that such counterfeits are

possible; and then, as they mature, or

seek light from God, they learn to know

for themselves, as no human being can

explain to them.  <44>

 

        But they cry, "We do not know,

and HOW can we know?" They should remain

neutral to all supernatural workings

until they do know. There is among many

a wrong anxiety to know, as if knowledge

alone would save them. They think that

they must be either for or against

certain things, which they cannot decide

are either from God or from the devil;

and want to know infallibly which is

which, that they may declare their

position: but believers can take the

attitude of "for" or "against" without

knowing whether the things they are in

doubt about are Divine or satanic; and

maintain the wisdom and safety of the

neutral position to the things

themselves, until, by a means which

cannot be fully described, they know

what they have wanted to understand.

 

        One effect of over-eagerness in

desiring knowledge, is a feverish

anxiety, and restless impatience, worry

and trouble, which causes a loss of

moral poise and power. It is important

in seeking one "blessing" not to destroy

another. In seeking knowledge of

spiritual things, let not the believer

lose patience and calm, quiet

restfulness and faith; let him watch

himself, lest the enemy gain advantage,

and rob him of moral power, whilst he is

keen to get light and truth upon the way

of victory over him.

 

       MISTAKEN CONCEPTION ABOUT

        THE SHELTER OF THE BLOOD

 

        Ere we pass on, some

misinterpretations of truth which are

giving ground to the powers of darkness

at this time, and which need examination

to discover how far they are in

accordance with Scripture, may briefly

be referred to.  (1) A MISTAKEN

CONCEPTION CONCERNING THE "SHELTER OF

THE BLOOD', CLAIMED UPON AN ASSEMBLY AS

GUARANTEE OF ABSOLUTE PROTECTION FROM

THE WORKING OF THE POWERS OF DARKNESS.

 

        The New Testament "proportion of

truth" concerning the application of the

blood, by the Holy Spirit, may briefly

be said to be as follows: (1) The blood

of Jesus CLEANSES FROM SIN (a) "if we

walk in the light", and (b) "if we

confess our sins" (1_John 1:7,9).

(2)_The blood of Jesus GIVES ACCESS TO

THE HOLIEST OF ALL: because of the

cleansing power from sin (Hebrews

10:19). (3) The blood of Jesus is the

GROUND OF VICTORY over Satan, because of

its cleansing from every confessed sin,

and because at Calvary Satan was

conquered (Revelation 12:11), but we do

not read that any can be put "under the

blood" apart from their own volition and

individual condition before  <45>  God;

e.g., if the "shelter of the blood" is

claimed over an assembly of people, and

one present is giving ground for Satan,

the "claiming of the blood" does not

avail to prevent Satan working on the

ground which he has a right to in that

person.

 

        A misconception, therefore,

about the protecting power of the blood,

is serious; for those who are present in

a meeting where Satan is working as well

as God, may believe they are personally

safe from Satan's workings, apart from

their individual condition and dealing

with God; whilst through the ground they

have given -- even unknowingly -- to the

adversary, they are open to his power.

 

    MISTAKEN CONCEPTIONS CONCERNING

        "WAITING FOR THE SPIRIT"

 

        (2) MISTAKEN CONCEPTIONS

CONCERNING "WAITING FOR THE SPIRIT" TO

DESCEND.  Here again we find expressions

and theories misleading, and opening the

door to satanic deceptions. "If we want

a Pentecostal manifestation of the

Spirit, we must 'tarry', as did the

disciples before Pentecost," we have

said the one to the other, and we have

seized upon the text in Luke 24:49, and

Acts 1:4, and passed the word along.

"Yes, we must 'tarry'," until, compelled

by the inroads of the adversary in

"waiting meetings", we have had to

search the Scriptures once more, to

discover that the Old Testament word of

"wait on the Lord" so often used in the

Psalms, has been strained beyond the New

Testament proportion of truth, and

exaggerated into a "waiting on God" for

the outpouring of the Spirit, which has

even gone beyond the "ten days" which

preceded Pentecost, into four months,

and even your years, and which, to our

knowledge, has ended in an influx of

deceiving spirits which has rudely

awakened some of the waiting souls. The

Scriptural truth concerning "waiting for

the Spirit" may be summed up as follows:

        (1) The disciples waited ten

days, but we have no indication that

they "waited" in any passive state, but

rather in simple prayer and

supplication, until the fulness of time

had come for the fulfillment of the

promise of the Father.

        (2) The command to wait, given

by the Lord (Acts 1:4) was not carried

forward into the Christian dispensation

after the Holy Ghost had come, for in no

single instance, either in the Acts or

in the Epistles, do the Apostles bid the

<46>  disciples "tarry" for the gift of

the Holy Spirit, but they use the word

"receive" in every instance (Acts 19:2).

*[The Greek word used for receiving the

Holy Spirit carries the force of

"grasping" -- just the opposite

condition to passivity.]

 

        It is true that at this time

Christendom is, as a whole, living

EXPERIMENTALLY on the wrong side of

Pentecost, but in dealing with God

individually for the reception of the

Holy Spirit, this does not put the

seekers back to the position of the

disciples before the Holy Ghost had been

given by the Ascended Lord. The Risen

Lord poured forth the stream of the

Spirit again and again after the day of

Pentecost, but in each instance it was

without "tarrying", as the disciples did

at the first (see Acts 4:31). The Holy

Spirit, Who proceeds from the Father

through the Son to His people, is now

among them, waiting to give Himself

unceasingly to all who will appropriate

and receive Him (John 15:26; Acts

2:33,38-39). A "waiting for the Spirit",

therefore, is not in accord with the

general tenor of the truth given in the

Acts and the Epistles, which show rather

the imperative call to the believer to

put in his claim, not only to his

identification with the Lord Jesus in

His death, and union in life with Him in

His resurrection, but also to the

enduement for witnessing, which came to

the disciples on the Day of Pentecost.

 

        On the believer's side, we may

say, however, that there is a waiting

FOR God, whilst the Holy Spirit deals

with, and prepares, the one who has put

in his claim, until he is in the right

attitude for the influx of the Holy

Spirit into his spirit, but this is

different from the "waiting for Him to

come", which has opened the door so

frequently to satanic manifestations

from the unseen world. The Lord does

take the believer at his word when he

puts in his claim for his share of the

Pentecostal gift, but the "manifestation

of the Spirit" -- the evidence of His

indwelling and outworking -- may not be

according to any pre-conceptions of the

seeker.

 

        WHY WAITING MEETINGS ARE

       PROFITABLE TO EVIL SPIRITS

 

        Why "waiting meetings" -- that

is, "waiting for the Spirit" until He

descends in some manifested way -- have

been so profitable to deceiving spirits,

is because they are not in accord with

the written Word, where it is set forth

that (1) The Holy Spirit is not to be

prayed to, or asked to come, as He is

the  <47>  Gift of Another (see Luke

11:13; John 14:16).  (2) The Holy Spirit

is not to be "waited for", but to be

taken, or RECEIVED from the hand of the

Risen Lord (John 20:22); Ephesians

5:18); of Whom it is written, "HE shall

baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with

fire" (Matthew 3:11). Because out of

line with the truth of the Scriptures,

therefore prayer to the Spirit, "trust

in the Spirit,"  "obeying the Spirit,"

"expecting the Spirit" to descend, may

all become prayer, trust, and obedience

to evil spirits, when they counterfeit

the working of God.

 

        Other mistaken conceptions of

spiritual truth center around phrases

such as these: "GOD CAN DO EVERYTHING.

IF I TRUST HIM HE MUST KEEP ME"; not

understanding that God works according

to laws and conditions, and that those

who trust Him, should seek to know the

conditions upon which He can work in

response to their trust. "IF I WERE

WRONG, GOD WOULD NOT USE ME"; not

understanding that if a man is right in

his will, God will use him to the

fullest extent possible, but this being

"used" of God is no guarantee that any

man is ABSOLUTELY RIGHT IN ALL THAT HE

SAYS AND DOES.

 

        "I HAVE NO SIN," or "SIN HAS

BEEN ENTIRELY REMOVED"; not knowing how

deeply the sinful life of Adam is

ingrained in the fallen creation, and

how the assumption that "sin" has been

eliminated from the whole being, enables

the enemy to keep the life of nature

from being dealt with by the continual

power of the Cross. "GOD, WHO IS LOVE,

WILL NOT ALLOW ME TO BE DECEIVED" is of

itself a deception, based on ignorance

of the depths of the Fall, and the

misconception that God works

irrespective of spiritual laws. "I DO

NOT BELIEVE IT POSSIBLE FOR A CHRISTIAN

TO BE DECEIVED," is a shutting of the

eyes to facts around us on every hand.

"I HAVE HAD TOO LONG AN EXPERIENCE TO

NEED TEACHING"; "I MUST BE TAUGHT OF GOD

DIRECT, BECAUSE IT IS WRITTEN, 'YE NEED

NOT THAT ANY MAN TEACH YOU'" is another

misused passage of Scripture, which some

believers interpret as meaning that they

are to refuse all spiritual teaching

through others. But that the Apostle's

words, "Ye need not that any man teach

you," did not preclude God teaching

through anointed teachers, is shown in

the inclusion of "teachers" in the list

of gifted believers to the Church, for

the "building up of the Body of Christ"

through "that which every joint

supplieth" (Ephesians 4:11-16). For God

is sometimes able to teach His children

more quickly by indirect means -- that

is, through  <48>  others -- than

directly, because men are so slow in

understanding the way of direct teaching

by the Spirit of God.

 

        Many other similar

misconceptions of spiritual things by

Christians of Today, give opportunity to

the deception of the enemy, because they

cause believers to close their minds to

(1) the statements of God's Word;

(2)_the facts of life; (3) and the help

of others who could throw light upon the

way (1_Peter 1:12).

 

     THE DANGERS OF COINED PHRASES

      TO EXPRESS SPIRITUAL TRUTHS

 

        Other dangers center around the

coining of phrases to describe some

special experience, and words in

familiar use amongst earnest children of

God who attend Conventions; such as

"possess," "control," "surrender," "let

go," all containing truth in relation to

God, but in the INTERPRETATION of them

in the minds of many believers, liable

to bring about conditions for the evil

spirits of Satan to "possess" and

"control" those who "surrender", and

"let go" to the powers of the spiritual

world, not knowing how to discern

between the working of God and Satan.

 

        Various preconceptions of the

way God works also give evil spirits

their opportunity; such as, that when a

believer is supernaturally COMPELLED to

act, it is a special evidence that GOD

is guiding him, or that if God brings

all things to our "remembrance" we need

not use our memories at all.

 

        Other thoughts which are liable

to bring about the passive conditions

which evil spirits need for their

deceptive workings, may also be through

the following misconceptions of truth:

 

        (1) "Christ lives in me," i.e.,

 _I_ do not live now at all.

 

        (2) "Christ lives in me," i.e.,

I have lost my personality, because

Christ is now personally in me, based on

Galatians 2:20.

 

        (3) "God worketh in me," i.e., I

need not work, only surrender and obey,

based on Philippians 2:13.

 

        (4) "God wills instead of me,"

i.e., I must not use my will at all.

 

        (5) "God is the only one to

judge," i.e., I must not use my

judgment.

 

        (6) "I have the mind of Christ,"

I must not have any mind of my own,

based on 1_Corinthians 2:16)

 

        (7) "God speaks to me," so I

must not "think" or "reason," only

"obey" what He tells me to do.

 

        (8) "I wait on God," and "I must

not act until He moves me".

 

        (9) "God reveals His will to me

by visions," so I do not need to decide,

and use my reason and conscience.

 

        (10) "I am crucified with

Christ," therefore "I am DEAD", and must

"practise" death, which I conceive to be

passivity of feeling, thinking, etc.

<49>

 

        To carry out in practice these

various conceptions of truth, the

believer quenches all personal action of

mind, judgment, reason, will and

activity, for the "Divine life to flow"

through him, whereas God needs the

fullest liberation of the faculties of

the man, and his active and intelligent

co-operation in will, for the working

out of all these spiritual truths in

experience.

 

        The following table will show

some other misinterpretations of truth,

which need clarifying in the minds of

many children of God:                   [80 col]

 

TRUTH                      TRUE                   INCORRECT

                           INTERPRETATION         INTERPRETATION

1. "The blood of Jesus     Cleanses moment by     Leaves the man

    cleanseth..."          moment.                sinless.

2. "It is not ye that      The source is not      *The man must not

    speak..."              from the believer      speak nor use his

                                                  jaws, but be passive.

 

3. "Ask and ye shall       Ask according to       **Ask ANYTHING and

    receive."              GOD'S WILL and you     you will receive.

                           will receive.

4. "It is God that         The man must           *God wills for you

    worketh in you to      "will" and must        (or INSTEAD of you)

    will and to do..."     act.                   and God works INSTEAD

                                                  of you.

 

5. "Ye need not that       You do not need        ***I must not take

   any man teach           any MAN to teach       teaching from any

   you."                   you, but you need      man, but "direct"

                           Spirit-taught          from God...

                           teachers given

                           of God.

6. "He will guide you      The Spirit of God      ***He HAS guided

   into all truth..."      will guide, but I      me into all truth...

                           must see HOW and

                           when...

 

7. "A people for His       God's ownership        "Possessed" by God

   own possession..."                             indwelling, moving

                                                  and controlling a

                                                  passive automaton.

 

8. "Meet for the           God, in the man's      "Used" by God as

   Master's use..."        spirit, using the      a passive tool,

                           mind, in the sense     requiring blind

                           of giving light for    submission.

                           the believer's

                           intelligent cooperation.

 

* These two wrongly interpreted passages offer a basis for passivity.

 

**  Leads to haphazard and unintelligent praying, without seeking to

    know the will of God.

 

*** By these attitudes, the "adding to faith", knowledge is greatly

    hindered, and those who assume these attitudes take an evil,

    infallible position, and their advancement in the spiritual life

    is impeded.

 

<50>

 

        What, then, is the condition of

safety from the deception of evil

spirits?  (1) Knowledge that they exist;

(2) that they CAN DECEIVE the most

honest believers (Galatians 2:11-16);

(3) an understanding of the conditions

and ground necessary for their working,

so as to give them no place, and no

opportunity of working; and lastly (4)

intelligent knowledge of God, and how to

cooperate with Him in the power of the

Holy Spirit. To make these points clear

will be our purpose in succeeding pages.

 

@04

<51>

 

              CHAPTER FOUR

 

        THE PERILS OF PASSIVITY

 

        The chief condition for the

working of evil spirits in a human

being, apart from sin, is passivity, in

exact opposition to the condition which

God requires for His working. Granted

the surrender of the will to God, with

active choice to do His will as it may

be revealed to him, God requires

cooperation with His Spirit, and the

full use of every faculty of the whole

man. In brief, the powers of darkness

aim at obtaining a passive slave or

captive to their will; whilst God

desires a regenerated man, intelligently

and actively will-ing and choosing, and

doing His will in liberation of spirit,

soul and body from slavery.

 

        The powers of darkness would

make a man a machine, a tool, an

automaton; the God of holiness and love

desires to make him a free, intelligent

sovereign in his own sphere -- a

thinking, rational, renewed creation

created after His own image (Ephesians

4:24). Therefore God never says to any

faculty of man, "Be thou idle."

 

        God does not NEED, nor demand

NON-ACTIVITY in a man, for His WORKING

IN and through him; but evil spirits

demand the utmost non-activity and

passivity.

 

        God asks for intelligent ACTION

(Romans 12:1-2, "Your reasonable

service,") in co-operation with Him.

 

        Satan demands passivity as a

condition for his COMPULSORY ACTION, and

in order compulsorily to subject men to

his will and purpose.

 

        God requires the cessation of

the EVIL ACTIONS of believers, primarily

because they are sinful, and secondly

because they hinder co-operation with

His Spirit.

 

        Passivity must not be confused

with quietness, or the "meek and quiet

spirit", which in the sight of God is of

great price. Quietness of spirit, of

heart, of mind, of manner, voice and

expression, may be co-existent with the

most effective activity in the will of

God (1_Thessalonians 4:11; Gr.

"ambitious to be quiet").

 

        There are some who use the word

"surrender", and THINK  <52>  they are

surrendered fully to carry out the will

of God, but are only so in sentiment and

purpose, for actually they walk by the

reason and judgment of the natural man,

although they submit all their plans to

God, and because of this submittal

sincerely believe they are carrying out

His will. But those who are really

"surrendered", give themselves up

implicitly to obey, and carry out at all

costs, what is revealed to them

SUPERNATURALLY as from God, and not what

they themselves plan and reason out to

be the will of God.

 

        Believers who surrender their

wills, and all they have and are to God,

yet who WALK BY THE USE OF THEIR NATURAL

MINDS, are not the ones who are open to

the "passivity" which gives ground to

evil spirits, although they may, and do,

give ground to them in other ways.

 

        The origin of the passivity

which gives the evil spirits opportunity

to deceive is generally a wrong

interpretation of Scripture, or wrong

thoughts or beliefs about Divine things.

Some of these interpretations of

Scripture, or wrong conceptions, which

cause men to give way to the passive

condition, we have already referred to

in a previous chapter.

 

        The passivity may affect the

whole man, in spirit, soul and body,

when it has become very deep, and is of

many years' standing. The progress is

generally very gradual and insidious in

growth, and consequently the release

from it is gradual and slow.

 

         PASSIVITY OF THE WILL

 

        There is a PASSIVITY OF THE

WILL; the "will" being the helm, so to

speak, of the ship. This originates from

a wrong conception of what full

surrender to God means. Thinking that a

"surrendered will" to God means no use

of the will at all, the believer ceases

to (1) choose, (2) determine, and (3)

act of his own volition. The serious

effect of this he is not allowed by the

powers of darkness to discover, for at

first the consequences are trivial and

scarcely noticeable. In fact, at first

it appears to be most glorifying to God.

The "strong-willed" person suddenly

becomes passively yielding. He thinks

that God is "will"-ing for him in

circumstances, and through people, and

so he becomes passively helpless in

action. After a time no "choice" can be

got from him in matters of daily life;

no "decision", or initiative in matters

demanding action; he is afraid to

express a wish, much less a decision.

<53>  Others must choose, act, lead,

decide, while this one drifts as a cork

upon the waters. Later on, the powers of

Darkness begin to make capital out of

this "surrendered" believer, and to work

around him evil of various kinds, which

entangle him through his passivity of

will. He has now no power of will to

protest or resist. Obvious wrong in his

environment, which this believer alone

has a right to deal with, flourishes,

and grows strong and blatant. The powers

of darkness have slowly gained, both

personally and in circumstances, upon

the ground of passivity of the will,

which at first was merely passive

submission to environment, under the

idea that God was "will"-ing FOR him in

all things around him.

 

        The text that such believers

misinterpret is Philippians 2:13, "It is

God which worketh in you, both to will,

and to work, for His good pleasure". The

"passive" person reads it, "...God which

worketh in me the willing, and the

doing," i.e., "willeth INSTEAD of me".

The first means God working in the soul

up to the point of the action of the

will, and the second assumes His

actually "will"-ing INSTEAD of, and

"working" INSTEAD of the believer. This

wrong interpretation gives ground for

NOT using the will, because of the

conclusion "God wills instead of me";

thus bringing about passivity of will.

 

    GOD DOES NOT WILL INSTEAD OF MAN

 

        The truth to be emphasized is

that God never "wills" INSTEAD of man,

and whatever a man does, he is himself

responsible for his actions.

 

        The believer whose "will" has

become passive, finds, after a time, the

greatest difficulty in making decisions

of any kind, and he looks outside and

all around him for something to help him

to decide the smallest matters. When he

has become conscious of his passive

condition, he has a painful sense of

being unable to meet some of the

situations of ordinary life. If spoken

to, he knows he cannot will to listen

till a sentence is completed; if asked

to judge a matter, he knows he cannot do

it; if he is required to "remember" or

use his imagination, he knows he is

unable to, and becomes terrified at any

proposed course of action where these

demands may come upon him. The tactics

of the enemy now may be to drive him

into situations where these demands may

be made, and thus torture or embarrass

him before others.   <54>

 

        Little does the believer know

that in this condition he may,

unknowingly, rely upon the ASSISTANCE of

evil spirits, who have brought about the

passivity for this very object. The

faculty unused lies dormant and dead in

their grip, but if used it is an

occasion for them to manifest themselves

through it. They are too ready to "will"

instead of the man, and they will put

within his reach many "supernatural"

props to help him in "decision",

especially in the way of "texts" used

apart from their context, and

supernaturally given, which the

believer, seeking so longingly to do the

will of God, seizes upon, and firmly

grasps as a drowning man a rope, blinded

by the apparently given Divine help to

the principle that God only works

through the active volition of a man,

and not FOR him in matters requiring his

action.

 

         PASSIVITY OF THE MIND

 

        PASSIVITY OF THE MIND is

engendered by a wrong conception of the

place of the mind in the life of

surrender to God, and obedience to Him

in the Holy Spirit. Christ's call of

fishermen is used as an excuse for

passivity of brain, for some believers

say, God has no need for the use of the

brain, and can do without it! But the

choice of Paul, who had the greatest

intellect of his age, shows that when

God sought for a man through whom He

could lay the foundations of the Church,

He chose one with a mind capable of vast

and intelligent thinking. The greater

the brain power, the greater the use God

can make of it, provided it is

submissive to truth. The cause of

passivity of mind sometimes lies in the

thought that the working of the brain is

a hindrance to the development of the

Divine life in the believer. But the

truth is, that (1) the non-working of

the brain hinders, (2) the evil working

of the brain hinders, (3) but the normal

and pure working of the brain is

essential and helpful for co-operation

with God. The effects of passivity of

the mind may be seen in inactivity, when

there should be action; or else over

activity beyond control, as if a

suddenly released instrument broke forth

into ungovernable action; hesitation or

rashness; indecision (as also from a

passive will); unwatchfulness; lack of

concentration; lack of judgment; bad

memory.

 

        Passivity does not change the

nature of a faculty, but it hinders its

normal operation. In the case of

passivity hindering the memory, the

person will be found looking outside

<55>  himself for every possible "aid to

memory", until he becomes a veritable

slave to note-book and helps, which fail

at a critical moment. With this is also

passivity of the imagination, which

places the imagination outside personal

control, and at the mercy of evil

spirits who flash to it what they

please. One danger is to take these

visions, and CALL THEM "IMAGINATIONS".

The passive state can be produced

without crystal gazing, i.e., if a

person gazes at any object for a

prolonged period the natural vision is

dulled, and the deceiving spirits can

then present anything to the mind.

 

        In pure inactivity of the mind,

the mind can be used at the will of the

person, but in evil passivity of the

mind, the person is helpless, and he

"can't think!" He feels as if his mind

were bound and held by an iron band, or

by a weight or pressure on his head.

 

    PASSIVITY OF JUDGMENT AND REASON

 

        PASSIVITY OF JUDGMENT AND

REASON, which means that the man in this

condition has closed the mind to all

arguments and statements upon which he

has come to settled conclusions, and all

effort to give him further truth and

light is regarded as interference, and

the person attempting it as ignorant or

intrusive. The believer in this stage of

passivity lapses into a state of evil

positiveness and infallibility, from

which nothing can release the

"judgment", but the rude shock of seeing

that he has been deceived by evil

spirits. To undermine the deception of a

believer in this condition, almost means

the relaying of the very foundations of

his spiritual life. Hence the few --

called "fanatics" and "cranks" by the

world -- who have been saved out of this

degree of the deception of the enemy.

 

        PASSIVITY OF CONSCIENCE

 

        As for the passivity of the

reasoning powers, when such believers

have taken words spoken to them

supernaturally, as God's expressed will,

they become law to them, so that they

cannot be induced to reason over them.

If they receive a "commandment"

(supernaturally) about anything, they

will not examine it, or reason, or think

upon that point, and they steadfastly

determine to close themselves absolutely

to any further light in this particular

direction. This brings about what may be

described as PASSIVITY OF THE

CONSCIENCE.  <56>  The conscience

becomes passive through non-use, when

believers think that they are being

guided by a higher law of being TOLD to

do this, or that, directly from God;

that is, by direct guidance through

voices and texts.

 

        When believers sink into

passivity of conscience, there is a

manifestation of moral degradation in

some, and in others stagnation, or

retrogression in life or service.

Instead of using their mind or

conscience in deciding what is good and

evil, and right and wrong, they walk, as

they believe, according to the "voice of

God", which they make the deciding

factor in all their decisions. When this

takes place, they will not listen to

their reason or conscience, or the words

of others, and having come to decision

through the supposed direction of God,

their minds become as a closed and

sealed book on the matter in question.

 

        Ceasing to use their true

reasoning powers, they become open to

all kinds of suggestions from evil

spirits, and false "reasonings"; for

example, in regard to the coming of

Christ, some have falsely reasoned that

because Christ is coming soon, they do

not need to carry on their usual work,

overlooking the words of the Lord on

this very matter: "Who then is the

faithful and WISE servant, whom his lord

hath set over his household, to give

them their food in due season? Blessed

is that servant, whom his lord, when he

cometh, shall find so doing." (Matthew

24:45)

 

        PASSIVITY OF THE SPIRIT

 

        PASSIVITY OF THE SPIRIT is

closely associated with passivity of

mind, because there is a close

relationship between mind and spirit; a

wrong thought generally means a wrong

spirit, and a wrong spirit a wrong

thought.

 

        It may come about through:

 

        (1) Ignorance of the laws of the

spirit, and how to keep in the freedom

of the spirit.

 

        (2) Wrong mental conclusions, or

wrong thoughts. Mixing up feelings, such

as physical, soulish and spiritual, not

knowing which is which, i.e. (1) putting

the spiritual down  <57>  to soulish or

physical, or (2) attributing to the

spiritual that which is natural and

physical.

 

        (3) A drawing upon of the

soulish life instead of the spirit,

through lack of knowledge of the

difference between them; also by

quenching the spirit through ignoring

the spiritual sense; for the mind should

be able to read the sense of the spirit

as clearly as it does the sense of

seeing, hearing, smelling, and all the

senses of the body. There is a knowledge

of the mind, and a knowledge in the

spirit, hence a "sense" of the spirit,

which we should learn to understand. It

should be read, used, cultivated, and

when there is a weight on the spirit of

the believer, he should be able to

recognize it, and know how to get rid of

it.

 

        (4) Drainage and exhaustion of

the body or mind, by constant activity

of the mind in excessive use. In short,

the mind and body must be released from

strain, before the spirit can be fully

operative. (Compare the experience of

Elijah in 1_Kings 19:4-5, 8-9.)

 

        Worry or trouble over the past

or future, checks the free action of the

spirit by making the outer man and outer

affairs dominant, instead of the inner

man being at liberty for the will of God

in the moment.

 

        The result of all these causes

is that the spirit becomes locked up, so

to speak, so that it cannot act. The

rapidity with which a believer can sink

into passivity, at any moment when the

resisting attitude ceases, may be

likened to the sinking of a stone in

water.

 

         PASSIVITY OF THE BODY

 

        When PASSIVITY OF BODY takes

place, it practically means a cessation

of consciousness, through the passivity

affecting sight, hearing, smell, taste,

feeling, etc. Assuming the person to be

in normal health, he should be able to

focus his eyes on any object he chooses,

either for vision or work, and he should

have the same control over all the other

senses, as avenues of knowledge to his

mind and spirit. But with all or some of

these senses in a passive condition, the

consciousness becomes dulled or

deadened. The believer is "unconscious"

of what he should be keenly alive to,

and automatic in his actions.

"Unconscious" habits, repulsive or

peculiar, are manifested. It is easier

for persons in this condition to see

these things in others, than to know

what is going on in  <58>  themselves;

whilst they may be hyper-conscious of

external things touching their own

personality.

 

        When the passive condition

brought about by evil spirits reaches

its climax, passivity of other parts of

the body may result, such as stiff

fingers, lost elasticity of the frame in

walking, lethargy, heaviness, stooping

of the back and spine. The handshake is

flabby and passive; the eyes will not

look straight into the eyes of others,

but move from side to side; all

indicating passivity, brought about by

deepening interference of the powers of

darkness with the whole man, RESULTING

FROM THE FIRST PASSIVE CONDITION OF THE

WILL AND MIND, in which the man gave up

(1) his self-control, and (2) use of his

will.

 

       PASSIVITY OF THE WHOLE MAN

 

        At this stage every department

of the whole being is affected. The man

acts without using, or using fully, the

mind, will, imagination, reason; that

is, without thinking (volitionally),

deciding, imagining, reasoning. The

affections seem dormant, as well as all

the faculties of mind and body. In some

cases the bodily needs are also dormant,

or else the man suppresses them, and

deprives himself of food, sleep, and

bodily comfort, at the dictation of the

spirits in control; thus carrying out a

"severity to the body" which is not of

any real value against the indulgence of

the flesh (Colossians 2:23). The animal

part of the man may also be awakened,

and whilst stoical in sensibilities and

feeling, be gluttonous in the demand for

supply of bodily needs; that is, the

machinery of the bodily frame goes on

working independently of the control of

mind or will, for the body now dominates

spirit and soul. Men may live in the (1)

human spirit, (2) in the soul, or in the

(3) body; for example, the glutton lives

in, or after, the body; the student in

mind, or soul, the spiritual man "in the

spirit".  "Spiritists" are not really

"spiritual", or true men of spirit, for

they live in the sense realm generally,

and only have to do with "spirit"

through their dealing with the evil

spiritual forces, through understanding

the laws for their workings, and

fulfilling them.

 

        THE SPIRIT SENSE LOST IN

         SENSATIONS OF THE BODY

 

        When the believer is in any

degree deceived by evil spirits, he is

liable to live in the body, give way to

the sensuous, and  <59>  to be dominated

by the physical realm. This can become

the case through "spiritual" experiences

felt in the physical frame, but which

are not really spiritual, because not

from the spirit. A sense of "fire" in

the body, "glow," "thrills," and all

exquisite bodily sensations from

apparently "spiritual" causes, really

FEED THE SENSES; and, unconsciously to

themselves, whilst they have these

experiences, believers live in the

sense-realm, practically walking "after

the flesh", THOUGH THEY CALL THEMSELVES

"SPIRITUAL". For this reason "I keep

under my body" (1_Corinthians 9:27), IS

PRACTICALLY IMPOSSIBLE in deception,

because the sense-life is aroused in all

kinds of ways, and the sensations of the

body are forced upon the consciousness

of the man. The SPIRIT SENSE IS

PRACTICALLY LOST IN THE ACUTE

REALIZATION OF ALL THE SENSATIONS IN THE

BODILY CONSCIOUSNESS. A man, for

example, in normal health, is oblivious

of the physical action of breathing

going on in his physical frame. In like

manner, a believer under the domination

of the spirit, ceases to register his

bodily sensations, but the opposite is

the case when evil spirits have awakened

the sense-life to abnormal action,

either by beautiful experiences, or the

contrary.

 

        The cultivation of this

condition of passivity may be ignorantly

and sedulously carried out for years by

the surrendered believer, so that it

deepens its hold upon him to an

incredible extent; until, when it

reaches its consummation, the man may

become so under the bondage of it as to

awaken to his state; and then he thinks

that "natural causes" alone explain his

condition, or else that, in some

unaccountable way, his acute

sensitivities to God and Divine things

has become dulled beyond power of

restoration or renewal. The physical

feelings become deadened or atrophied,

and the affections seem petrified and

stoical. This is the time when deceiving

spirits suggest that he has grieved God

beyond repair, and a man goes through

agonies of seeking the Presence he

thinks he has grieved away.

 

        The cultivation of passivity may

come about from reliance upon the many

helps contrived (unknowingly) by the

person to counteract or obviate the

inconvenience of the passive state, such

as the provision of, and dependence

upon, outward helps to the eye for

assisting the passive memory, utterance

in speech to assist the "thinking" of

the passive mind, and what may be termed

"crutches" of all kinds, known only to

the individual, elaborately constructed,

and multiplied to meet his  <60>

different needs, but all keeping him

from recognizing his true condition,

even if he has the knowledge for doing

so.

 

  MANIFESTATIONS OF INFLUENCE OF EVIL

 SPIRITS CALLED NATURAL IDIOSYNCRASIES

 

        But this truth about the working

of evil spirits among believers, and the

causes and symptoms of their power upon

mind or body, has been so veiled in

ignorance, that multitudes are deceived

by them. The manifestations are

generally taken as natural

idiosyncrasies or infirmities. The

Lord's work is put on one side, or even

never taken up, because the believer is

"over strained", or else "without gifts"

for doing it. He is "nervous", "timid,"

has no "gift of speech", no "power of

thought" where the service of God is

concerned, but in the social sphere

these "deficiencies" are forgotten, and

the "timid" ones shine out at their

best. It does not occur to them to ask

why it is that only in God's service are

they thus incapable? But it is only in

respect to such a service that the

hidden workings of Satan interfere.

 

 THE SHOCK WHEN THE BELIEVER APPREHENDS

               THE TRUTH

 

        The shock is great when the

believer first apprehends the truth of

deception as possible for himself, but

as the ultimate issue is realized, the

joy of the one who sets himself to

understand, and fight through to full

deliverance, is more than words can

tell. Light pours in upon the unsolved

problems of years, both in the personal

experience, and in the perplexities of

environment, as well as on conditions in

the Church and in the world.

 

        As he seeks for light from God,

the subtle inroads of the deceiving

spirits into his life slowly become

clear to the open minded believer; and

their many devices to deceive him stand

revealed, as the searchlight of truth

goes far back into the past, and life,

and many mysterious happenings which had

been accepted as "the inscrutable will

of God".

 

        PASSIVITY!  How many have fallen

into it, little knowing their state!

Through the passivity of their faculties

much time is lost in dependence upon the

help of outward circumstances and

environment. In the lives of so many

there is  <61>  much "doing", with so

little accomplished, many beginnings,

and few endings. How familiar we are

with the words, "Yes, I can do that,"

and the impulse is moved, but by the

time the need for action has come, the

passive man has lost his momentary

interest. This is the key to much of the

lamented "apathy", and the dulled

sympathy of Christians to really

spiritual things, whilst they are keenly

alive to the social or worldly elements

around them. The worldling can be

stirred in acutest feeling for the

sufferings of others, but many of the

children of God have, unknowingly,

opened themselves to a supernatural

power which has dulled them in thought

and mind and sympathy. Ever craving for

comfort and happiness and peace in

spiritual things, they have sung

themselves into a "passivity" -- i.e., a

passive state of "rest", "peace" and

"joy" -- which has given opportunity to

the powers of darkness to lock them up

in the prison of themselves, and thus

make them almost incapable of acutely

understanding the needs of a suffering

world.

 

     PASSIVITY OCCASIONED BY WRONG

INTERPRETATIONS OF THE TRUTH OF "DEATH"

 

        This condition of passivity may

come about by wrong interpretations of

truth, even the truth of "death with

Christ" as set forth in Romans 6 and

Galatians 2:20, when it is carried

beyond the true balance of the Word of

God. God calls upon true believers to

"reckon" themselves "dead indeed unto

sin", and also to the evil self-life,

even in a religious or "holiness" form;

THAT IS, THE LIFE WHICH CAME FROM THE

FIRST ADAM, THE OLD CREATION; but this

does not mean a death to the human

personality, for Paul said, "Yet I

live," although "Christ liveth in me!"

There is a retention of the personal

being, the ego, the will, the

personality, which is to be dominated by

the Spirit of God, as He energizes the

man's individuality, held by him in

"self-control" (Galatians 5:23,m.).

 

        In the light of the

misconception of the truth of "death

with Christ" as conceived to mean

passivity, and suppression of the

actions of the personality of the man,

it is now easy to see why the

apprehension of the truths connected

with Romans 6:6, and Galatians 2:20,

have been the prelude, in some cases, TO

SUPERNATURAL MANIFESTATIONS OF THE

POWERS OF DARKNESS. The believer,

through he misconception of these

truths, actually fulfilling the primary

conditions for the working of  <62>

evil spirits, the very conditions

understood by spiritist mediums to be

necessary for obtaining the

manifestations they desire. In such

cases it may be said that truth is the

devil's fulcrum for launching his lies.

 

        So far as Romans 6 is understood

to be a MOMENTARY declaration of an

attitude to sin, and Galatians 2:20

another declaration of an attitude to

God, and 2_Corinthians 4:10-12 and

Philippians 3:10 the out-working of the

Spirit of God in bringing the believer

into actual conformity to the death of

Christ as he maintains his declared

attitude, the powers of darkness are

defeated; for the momentary declared

attitude demands ACTIVE VOLITION and

ACTIVE CO-OPERATION with the Risen Lord,

and ACTIVE ACCEPTANCE of the path of the

Cross. But when these truths are

interpreted to mean (1) a loss of

personality; (2) an absence of volition

and self-control, and (3) the passive

letting go of the "I myself" into a

condition of machine-like, mechanical,

automatic "obedience", with "deadness"

and heaviness which the believer thinks

is "mortification" or "the working of

death" in him, it makes the truth of

death with Christ a fulfilling of

conditions for evil spirits to work, and

an absence of conditions upon which God

can alone work; so that "supernatural

manifestations" taking place on the

BASIS OF PASSIVITY, CAN HAVE NO OTHER

SOURCE THAN THE LYING SPIRITS, however

beautiful and God-like they may be.

 

        This counterfeit of spiritual

"death" may take place in regard to

spirit, soul or body. How the truth of

death with Christ can be misconstrued,

and made the occasion for evil spirits

to obtain the ground of passivity, may

be exampled in some of the following

ways:

 

    MISCONCEPTION OF SELF-EFFACEMENT

 

        1. PASSIVITY CAUSED BY

MISCONCEPTION OF SELF-EFFACEMENT: Under

the conception of surrender of self to

God, as meaning self-effacement,

self-renunciation, and, practically,

self-annihilation, the believer aimed at

unconsciousness of (1) personality, (2)

personal needs, (3) personal states,

feelings, desires, external appearance,

circumstances, discomforts, opinions of

others, etc., so as to be "conscious" of

God only moving, working, acting,

through him. To this end he gave over

his "self-consciousness" to "death", and

prayed that he might have no

consciousness of anything in the world,

but the presence of God; then to carry

out this absolute surrender of  <63>

self to death, and this entire self-

effacement, he consistently, in

practice, "yields to death" every trace

of the movement of "self" he becomes

aware of, and sets his will steadily to

renounce all consciousness of personal

withes, desires, tastes, needs,

feelings, etc. All this appearing to be

so "self-sacrificing" and "spiritual",

results in an entire suppression of

personality, and the giving of ground to

evil spirits in a passivity of the whole

being. This permits the powers of

darkness to work, and bring about an

"unconsciousness" which becomes in time

a deadness and dullness of the

sensibilities, and an inability to feel,

not only for himself, but for others, so

as not to know when they suffer, and

when he himself causes suffering.

 

     MISCONCEPTION OF TRUTH PART OF

    "TEACHINGS" OF DECEIVING SPIRITS

 

        As this conception of

self-effacement and loss of self-

consciousness is contrary to the

believer's full use of the faculties

which the Spirit of God requires for

co-operation with Him, evil spirits gain

ground on the basis of this deception

about "death". The MISCONCEPTION of what

death means in practice, was really part

of their "teachings", subtly suggested,

and received by the man who was ignorant

of the possibility of deception over,

what looked like, devoted, whole-hearted

surrender to God. The "teachings of

demons" can, therefore, be based on

truth, under the guise of misconception,

or mis-interpretation of the truth,

whilst the believer is honestly holding

the truth itself.

 

        The effect of the deception on

the believer is, in due time, an

"unconsciousness" PRODUCED BY EVIL

SPIRITS, which is hard to break. In his

state of unconsciousness, he has no

ability to discern, recognize, feel or

know things around him, or in himself.

He is "unconscious" of his actions, ways

and manners, together with a hyper-self-

consciousness which he is unconscious

of, and which makes him easily hurt, but

"unconscious" of his own hurting of

others. He has practically become

stoical, and unable to see the effect of

his actions in putting others into

suffering. He acts "unconsciously",

without volitional thinking, reasoning,

imagining, deciding, what he says and

does. His actions are consequently

mechanical and automatic. He is

"unconscious" of sometimes being a

channel for the transmission of words,

thoughts, feelings,  <64>  which pass

through him apart from the action of his

will, and his knowledge of the source.

 

          PASSIVITY CAUSED BY

     WRONG ACCEPTANCE OF SUFFERING

 

        2. PASSIVITY CAUSED BY WRONG

ACCEPTANCE OF SUFFERING.  The believer

consents to accept "suffering with

Christ" in the "way of the Cross", and

in fulfillment of this surrender to

suffering, from this time on PASSIVELY

YIELDS TO SUFFERING in whatever form it

may come, believing that "suffering with

Christ" means (a) reward, and (b)

fruitfulness. He does not know that evil

spirits can give counterfeit

"suffering", and that he may accept

suffering from them, believing it to be

from the hand of God, and, by thus

doing, give ground to them. Deception

interprets both sin in the life which

cannot be got rid of, and suffering in

the life which cannot be explained. By

understanding the truth of deception,

the first can be got rid of, and the

latter explained. Suffering is a great

weapon to control and compel a person

into a certain course, and is a great

weapon for evil spirits to control men,

as by suffering they can drive a man to

do what he would not do, apart from

compulsion.

 

        Not knowing these things the

believer may entirely misinterpret the

suffering he goes through. Believers are

often deceived over what they think to

be "vicarious" suffering in themselves

for others, or for the Church. They look

upon themselves as martyrs, when they

are really victims, not knowing that

"suffering" is one of the chief symptoms

of deception. By putting a man into

suffering, the evil spirits ease

themselves of their enmity and hatred to

man.

 

       MARKS OF SUFFERING CAUSED

            BY EVIL SPIRITS

 

        Suffering directly caused by

evil spirits may be discriminated from

the true fellowship of Christ's

sufferings, by a complete absence of

RESULT, either in fruit, victory, or

ripening in spiritual growth. If

carefully observed, it will be seen to

be entirely purposeless. On the other

hand, God does nothing without a

definite object. He does not delight in

causing suffering for the sake of

suffering, but the Devil does. Suffering

caused by evil spirits is acute and

fiendish in its character, and there is

no INWARD WITNESS OF THE SPIRIT which

tells the suffering believer that it is

from the hand of God. To a

discriminating eye it  <65>  can be as

clearly diagnosed when from an evil

spirit, as any physical pain can be

discriminated from a mental one by a

skilful physician.

 

        The suffering caused by evil

spirits can be (1) SPIRITUAL, by causing

acute suffering in the spirit, injecting

"feelings" to the spirit, repugnant or

poignant; (2) SOULISH, by acute

darkness, confusion, chaos, horror in

the mind; anguished, knife-like pain in

the heart, or other innermost vital

parts of the being; or (3) PHYSICAL, in

any part of the body.

 

        The ground given for the evil

spirits to produce counterfeit suffering

in such an acute degree as this, may be

traced back to the time when the

believer, in his absolute surrender to

God for the "way of the Cross",

deliberately willed to ACCEPT SUFFERING

FROM HIM. Then afterwards, in fulfillment

of this surrender, he gave ground to the

enemy, by accepting some specific

suffering as from God, which REALLY CAME

FROM THE SPIRITS OF EVIL, thus opening

the door to them, by (1) the reception

of their lie, (2) the admittance of

their actual power manifested in the

suffering -- continuing still further to

give more ground by believing THEIR

interpretation of the suffering -- and

(3) as "the will of God"; until the

whole life became one prolonged

"yielding to suffering", which seemed

unreasonable, unaccountable in its

origin, and purposeless in its results.

God's character is thus often maligned

to His children, and the deceiving

spirits do their utmost to arouse

rebellion against Him for WHAT THEY

THEMSELVES ARE DOING.

 

    PASSIVITY THROUGH WRONG IDEAS OF

                HUMILITY

 

        3. PASSIVITY CAUSED BY WRONG

IDEAS OF HUMILITY AND SELF-ABASEMENT.

The believer consents in accepting

"death", to let it be carried out in a

"nothingness" and a "self-effacement"

which gives him no place for proper and

true self-estimation whatsoever (compare

2_Corinthians 10:12-18). If the believer

accepts the self-depreciation SUGGESTED

TO HIM AND CREATED BY EVIL SPIRITS, it

brings an atmosphere of hopelessness and

weakness about him, and he conveys to

others a spirit of darkness and

heaviness, sadness and grief. His spirit

is easily crushed, wounded and

depressed. He may attribute the cause to

"sin", without being aware of any

specific sin in his life; or may even

look upon his "suffering" experience as

"vicarious" suffering for the Church;

whereas an abnormal sense of suffering

is one of the chief symptoms of

deception.   <66>

 

        In the counterfeit of the true

elimination of "pride", and all the

forms of sin arising from it, the

counterfeit caused by deception may be

recognized by (1) the believer obtruding

his self-depreciation at moments most

inopportune, with painful perplexity to

those who hear it; (2) a shrinking back

from service for God, with inability to

recognize the interests of the kingdom

of Christ; (3) a laborious effort to

keep "I" out of sight, both in

conversation and action, and yet which

forces the "I" more into view in an

objectionable form; (4) a deprecatory,

apologizing manner, which gives

opportunity to the "world-rulers of the

darkness of this world" to instigate

their subjects to crush and put aside

this "not I" person, in moments of

strategic importance to the kingdom of

God; (5) an atmosphere around such an

one of weakness, darkness, sadness,

grief, lack of hope, easily wounded

touchiness -- all of which may be the

result of the believer "will"-ing, in

some moment of "surrender to death" to

accept an effacement of the true

personality, which God requires as a

vessel for the manifestation of the

Spirit of God, in a life of fullest

co-operation with the Spirit of God. The

believer, by his wrong belief and

submission to evil spirits, suppressed

into passivity a personality which could

not and was not meant to "die"; and by

this passivity played into the hands of

the powers of darkness.

 

          PASSIVITY CAUSED BY

     WRONG THOUGHTS ABOUT WEAKNESS

 

        4. PASSIVITY CAUSED BY A WRONG

THOUGHT ABOUT WEAKNESS. The believer

consents to a perpetual condition of

weakness, under a misconception of its

being a necessary state for the

manifestation of Divine life and

strength. This is generally based upon

Paul's words, "WHEN I am weak, then am I

strong." The believer not apprehending

that this was a statement made by the

Apostle of a simple fact that when he

was weak, he found God's strength

sufficient for all His will; and that it

is NOT an exhortation to God's children

deliberately to WILL to be weak, and

hence unfit for service in many ways,

instead of saying, "I can do all things

through Christ which strengtheneth me".

That the "will" to be weak, so as to

have a claim on Christ's strength, is a

wrong thought, can be seen practically

in many lives, where "weakness" is

passively accepted, with a burden and

care to others which is no  <67>

evidence of such an attitude being in

accordance with God's plan and

provision. The "will" to be weak

actually hinders God's strengthening,

and by this subtle deception of the

enemy in the minds of many, God is

robbed of much active service for Him.

 

    PASSIVITY WITH SATANIC ACTIVITY

 

        It does not mean that

"passivity", in its full extent, means

no "activity"; for once the man becomes

passive in volition and mind, he is held

by deceiving spirits without power to

act, or is driven into satanic activity;

that is, uncontrollable activity of

thought, restlessness of body, and wild,

unbalanced action of all degrees. The

actions are spasmodic and intermittent,

the person sometimes dashing ahead, and

at other times sluggish and slow; like a

machine in a factory, with the wheels

whirring aimlessly, because the switch

of the center control is out of hand of

the master. The man cannot work, even

when he sees so much to be done, and is

feverish because he cannot do it. During

the time of passivity he appeared to be

content, but when he is driven into

satanic activity, he is restless, and

out of accord with all things around

him. When his environment should lead to

a state of full content, yet something

(may in not be "somebody"?) makes it

impossible for him to be in harmony with

his external circumstances, however

pleasant they may be. He is conscious of

a restlessness and activity which is

painfully feverish; or of passivity and

weight, of a doing of "work", and yet no

work. All these are manifestations of a

demoniacal destruction of his peace.

 

       DELIVERANCE FROM PASSIVITY

 

        The believer needing deliverance

from the condition of passivity, must

first seek to understand what should be

his normal or right condition, and then

test or examine himself in the light of

it, to discern if evil spirits have been

interfering. To do this, let him

recollect a moment in his life, which he

would call his "best", either in spirit,

soul and body, or in his whole being,

and then let him look upon this as his

normal condition, which he should expect

as possible to be maintained, and never

rest satisfied below it.

 

        As the passivity has come about

gradually, it can only end gradually, as

it is detected and destroyed. The full

<68> co-operation of the man is

necessary for its removal, and this is

the cause of the long period needed for

his deliverance. Deception and passivity

can only be removed as the man

UNDERSTANDS, and co-operates by the use

of his volition in the refusal of the

ground, and the deception which came

through it.

 

        An important point in

deliverance from passivity is to keep

perpetually in mind the standard of the

normal condition, and if at anytime the

believer drops below it, to find out the

cause, so as to have it removed.

Whatever faculty, or part of the being,

has been surrendered into passivity, and

therefore lost for use, must be retaken

by the active exercise of the will, and

brought back into personal control. The

"ground" given, which caused any faculty

to fall into bondage to the enemy, must

be found out and given up, and then

refused persistently, in a steady

resistance to the spirits of evil in

their hold of it, remembering that the

powers of darkness fight against the

loss of any part of their kingdom in

man, as much as any earthly government

would fight to protect its own territory

and subjects. The "Stronger than he" is

the Conqueror, and strengthens the

believer for the battle, and to recover

all the spoil.

 

@05

<69>

 

              CHAPTER FIVE

 

       COUNTERFEITS OF THE DIVINE

 

        In seeking to deceive the

believer, the first great effort of evil

spirits is directed toward getting him

to accept their suggestions and workings

as the speaking, working or leading of

God. Their initial device is to

counterfeit a "Divine Presence", under

cover of which they can mislead their

victim as they will. The word

COUNTERFEIT MEANING THE SUBSTITUTION OF

THE FALSE FOR THE TRUE.

 

        The condition on the part of the

believer which gives the deceiving

spirits their opportunity, and the basis

of this counterfeit, is the mistaken

location of God; either (1) in them

(consciously); (2) or around them

(consciously). When they pray they think

of, or pray to God in themselves, or

else to God around them, in the room or

atmosphere. They use their imagination,

and try to "realize" His presence, and

they desire to "feel" His presence in

them or upon them.

 

    THE LOCATION OF GOD BY BELIEVERS

 

        This locating of God in or

around the believer, usually comes about

at the time of some special crisis in

his life, before which he lived more by

the acceptance of facts declared in the

Scriptures, as understood by his

intelligence; but then became more

conscious of the presence of God by the

Spirit, and in the spirit, and so begins

to locate the Person of God as in,

around, or upon him. Then he turns

inward, and begins to pray to God as

within him, which in time may even

result in prayer to evil spirits.

 

        The logical sequence of prayer

to God as located within, can be pressed

to absurdity, i.e., if the soul prays to

God in himself, why not pray to God in

another elsewhere? The limitation of God

as a Person within, and all the possible

dangers arising from this misconception

of truth, are obvious.

 

        Some believers so live inwardly

in communion, worship and vision, as to

become spiritually introverted, and

cramped and narrowed in their outlook;

with the result that their  <70>

spiritual capacity and mental powers

become dwarfed and powerless. Others

become victims to the "inner voice", and

the introverted attitude of listening to

it, which is the ultimate result of the

location of God as a Person within, so

that eventually the mind becomes fixed

in the introverted condition with no

out-going action at all.

 

        In fact, all turning inwards to

a subjective location of God as

indwelling, speaking, communing and

guiding, in a MATERIALISTIC or CONSCIOUS

SENSE, is open to gravest danger; for

upon this thought and belief, sedulously

cultivated by the powers of darkness,

the most serious deceptions of deceiving

spirits have taken place.

 

         THE ULTIMATE RESULT OF

        MISTAKEN LOCATION OF GOD

 

        Upon this principle of the

mistaken location of God, used by evil

spirits as the ground work for

manifestations to support and deepen

this belief, have come about the

delusions of believers during past ages,

and of recent years, who assert

themselves to be "Christ". On the same

principle will come about the great

deceptions at the end of the age,

foretold by the Lord in Matthew 24:24,

of the "false Christs" and false

prophets; and the "I am the Christ" of

the leaders of groups of side-tracked

believers, and the thousands of others

who have been sent to asylums, although

they are not monomaniacs at all. The

devil's richest harvest is from the

effects of his counterfeits; and

unwittingly, many sober and faithful

teachers of "holiness" have aided him in

his deceptions, through the use of

language which gives a materialistic

idea of spiritual things, and which is

eagerly laid hold of by the natural

mind.

 

        Those who locate God personally,

and wholly in themselves, make

themselves, by their assertions,

practically "divine" persons. God is not

wholly in any man. He dwells in those

who receive Him, by His own Spirit

communicated to them. "God is Spirit,"

and mind or body cannot hold communion

with spirit. Sensuous feelings, or

"conscious" physical enjoyment of some

supposed spiritual presence, is not true

communion of spirit with Spirit, such as

the Father seeks from those who worship

Him (John 4:24).

 

        God is in heaven. Christ the

Glorified Man is in heaven. The location

of the God we worship is of supreme

importance. If we think of our God as in

us, and around us, FOR OUR WORSHIP,

<71>  and for our "enjoyment" (?) we

unwittingly open the door to the evil

spirits in the atmosphere which

surrounds us; instead of our penetrating

in spirit through the lower heavens (see

Hebrews 4:14; 9:24; 10:19-20) to the

throne of God, which is in the highest

heaven, "above principality and power,

and every name that is named, not only

in this world, but in that which is to

come" (Ephesians 1:21 AV).

 

        THE TRUE LOCATION OF GOD

 

        The Word of God is very clear on

this point, and we need only ponder such

passages as Hebrews 1:3; 2:9; 4:14-16;

9:24; and many others, to see it. The

God we worship, the Christ we love, is

in heaven; and it is as we approach Him,

there, and by faith apprehend our union

with Him in spirit there, we too, are

raised with Him and seated with Him,

above the plane of the lower heavens

where the powers of darkness reign, and

seated with Him, see them under His feet

(Ephesians 1:20-23; 2:6).

 

        The Lord's words recorded in the

Gospel of John, chapters 14, 15 and 16,

give the truth very clearly concerning

His indwelling in the believer. The "in

Me" of being with Him, and in Him, in

His heavenly position (John 14:20),

being the fact for the believer's faith

and apprehension; and the "I in you" --

spoken to the company of disciples, and

hence to the Body of Christ as a whole--

following as a result in the individual

life of the believer. The union with the

Person in the glory, resulting in the

inflow and outflow of His Spirit and

life, through the believer on earth (see

Philippians 1:19). In other words, the

"subjective" is the RESULT OF THE

"OBJECTIVE". The "object" of Christ in

heaven being the BASIS OF FAITH for the

subjective inflow of His life and power

by the Holy Spirit of God.

 

      CHRIST AS A PERSON IN HEAVEN

 

        The Lord said, "If ye abide in

Me (i.e., in the glory), and My words

abide in you, ye shall ask what ye

will..." (John 15:7). Christ abides in

us by His Spirit, and THROUGH HIS WORDS,

but He Himself, as a Person, is in

heaven, and it is only as we abide in

Him there, that His Spirit, and His

life, through His Word, can be

manifested in us here.

 

        Abiding" means an attitude of

trust and dependence on a Person in

heaven; but if the attitude is changed

into a trust  <72>  and dependence upon

a Christ within, it is really a resting

upon an inward experience, and a turning

FROM THE CHRIST IN HEAVEN, which

actually blocks the avenue for the

inflow of His life, and disassociates

the believer from co-operation with Him

by the Spirit. Any manifestation,

therefore, of a "presence" within,

cannot be a true "manifestation" from

God, IF IT UNCENTERS THE BELIEVER FROM

HIS RIGHT ATTITUDE toward the Christ in

heaven.

 

        There is a true knowledge of the

presence of God, but it is IN THE

SPIRIT, when joined to Him Who is within

the veil; a knowledge of spiritual union

and fellowship with Him which lifts the

believer, so to speak, out of himself to

abide with Christ in God.

 

        The counterfeit "presence" of

God is nearly always manifested as love,

to which the believer opens himself

without hesitation, and finds it fill

and satiate his innermost being, but the

deceived one does not know that he has

opened himself to the activity of evil

spirits in the deepest need of his inner

life.

 

      COUNTERFEIT PRESENCE OF GOD

 

        How the powers of darkness

counterfeit the presence of God to those

ignorant of his devices may be somewhat

as follows. At some moment when the

believer is yearning for the SENSE of

God's presence, either alone, or in a

meeting, and certain conditions are

fulfilled, the subtle foe approaches,

and wrapping the SENSES round with a

soothing, lulling feeling -- sometimes

filling the room with light, or causing

what is apparently a "breath from God"

by a movement of the air -- either

whispers, "This is the presence you have

longed for," or leads the believer to

infer that it is what he has desired.

 

        Then, off his guard, and lulled

into security that Satan is far away,

some thoughts are suggested to the mind,

accompanied by manifestations which

appear to be Divine; a sweet voice

speaks, or a vision is given, which is

at once received as "Divine guidance",

given in the "Divine presence", and

hence beyond question as from God. If

accepted as from God, WHEN FROM THE

SPIRITS OF EVIL, the first ground is

gained.

 

        The man is now so sure that God

has bidden him do this or that. He is

filled with the thought that he has been

highly favored of God, and chosen for

some high place in His Kingdom. The

deeply hidden self-love is fed and

strengthened by this, and he is able to

endure all things by the power  <73>  of

this secret strength. He has been spoken

to by God! He has been singled out for

special favor!  HIS SUPPORT IS NOW

WITHIN UPON HIS EXPERIENCE, RATHER THAN

UPON GOD HIMSELF, AND THE WRITTEN WORD.

Through this secret confidence that God

has specially spoken to him, the man

becomes unteachable and unyielding, with

a positiveness trending on

infallibility. He cannot listen to

others now, for they have not had this

"direct" revelation from God. He is in

direct, special, personal communion with

God, and to question any "direction"

given to him, becomes the height of sin.

Obey he must, even though the direction

given is contrary to all enlightened

judgment, and the action commanded

opposed to the spirit of the Word of

God. In brief, when the man at this

stage believes he has a "command" from

God, he will not use his reason, because

he thinks it would be "carnal" to do so;

"common-sense" is lack of faith, and

therefore sin, and "conscience", for the

time being, has ceased to speak.

 

        Some of the suggestions made to

the believer by deceiving spirits at

this time may be: (1) "YOU ARE A SPECIAL

INSTRUMENT FOR GOD", working to feed

self-love; (2) "YOU ARE MORE ADVANCED

THAN OTHERS", working to blind the soul

to sober knowledge of itself; (3) "YOU

ARE DIFFERENT FROM OTHERS", working to

make him think he needs special dealing

by God; (4) "YOU MUST TAKE A SEPARATE

PATH", a suggestion made to feed the

independent spirit; (5) "YOU MUST GIVE

UP YOUR OCCUPATION, AND LIVE BY FAITH",

aiming at causing the believer to launch

out on false guidance, which may result

in the ruin of his home, and sometimes

the work for God in which he is engaged.

 

        All these suggestions are made

to give the man a false conception of

his spiritual state; for he is made to

believe he is more advanced than he

actually is, so that he may act beyond

his measure of faith and knowledge

(Romans 12:3), and consequently be more

open to the deceptions of the beguiling

foe.

 

 THE COUNTERFEIT "PRESENCE" IS SENSUOUS

 

        Counterfeits of the Father, the

Son and the Holy Spirit, are

recognizable by the manifestations being

given to the senses, i.e., in the

physical realm, for the true indwelling

of God is in the shrine of the spirit

alone; and the soul vessel, or

personality of the believer, is purely a

vehicle for the expression of Christ,

Who is enthroned within by His Spirit;

whilst the  <74>  body, quickened by the

same Spirit, is governed by God from the

central depths of the human spirit,

through the self-control of the man,

acting by his renewed will.

 

        The counterfeit presence of God

is given by deceiving spirits working

upon the physical frame, or within the

bodily frame, upon the senses. We have

seen the Beginning of this, and how the

first ground is gained. It is deepened

by these sense-manifestations being

repeated, so gently, that the man goes

on yielding to them, thinking this is

truly "communion with God" -- for

believers too often look upon "communion

with God" as a thing of sense, and not

of spirit -- and here he commences

praying to evil spirits under the belief

that he is praying to God. The

self-control is not yet lost, but as the

believer responds to, or gives himself

up to these "conscious" manifestations,

he does not know that his WILL-POWER IS

BEING SLOWLY UNDERMINED. At last,

through these subtle, delicious

experiences, the faith is established

that God Himself is CONSCIOUSLY IN

POSSESSION OF THE BODY, quickening it

with felt thrills of life, or filling it

with warmth and heat, or even with

"agonies" which seem like fellowship

with the sufferings of Christ, and

travail for souls, or the experience of

death with Christ in the consciousness

of nails being driven into the bodily

frame, etc. From this point the lying

spirits can work as they will, and there

is no limit as to what they may do to

one who is deceived to this extent.

 

        Counterfeit manifestations of

the Divine life in various ways now

follow quickly; movements in the body,

pleasant thrills, touches, a glow as of

fire in different parts of the body; or

sensations of Cold, or shakings and

tremblings; all of which are accepted as

from God.

 

        Evil spirits work by sudden

suggestion, which is not the ordinary

working of the mind, but suggestions

which come from without; "flashes of

memory", again not the ordinary working

of the memory, but coming from without;

touches and twitches of the nerves;

feelings of draught and sensations of

wind blowing upon the circumference,

etc.

 

     COMPULSORY "CONFESSION" OF SIN

 

        Evil spirits may push the man to

"confessions" of all kinds, however

public and painful, which he hopes may

result in regaining the "experience"

apparently lost; but all in vain. These

confessions instigated by deceiving

spirits may be  <75>  recognized by

their compulsory character. The man is

FORCED to "confess" sin, and ofttimes

sins which have no existence, but in the

accusations of the enemy. As it does not

down upon him that evil spirits will

push a man to do what looks like the

most meritorious thing, and which the

Scriptures declare is the one condition

for obtaining forgiveness, he yields to

the drive upon him, simply to get

relief. Herein lies the danger of

widespread "confessions of sin" during

times of Revival, when almost a "wave"

of "confession" passes over a community,

and the depths of sinful lives are

exposed to the gaze of others; through

this enabling the lying spirits to

disseminate the very poison of the pit

into the atmosphere, and into the MINDS

of the listeners.

 

         TRUE CONFESSION OF SIN

 

        True confession of sin should

come from deep CONVICTION and not

compulsion, and should be made only to

God, if the sin is one only known by

God; to man personally, and in private,

when the sin is against man; and to the

public only when the sin is against the

public.  "Confession" should never be

made under the impulse of any compulsory

emotion, but should be the deliberate

act of the volition; choosing the right,

and the putting things right, according

to the will of God.

 

        That Satan's kingdom gains by

public "confessions" is evident by the

devices the enemy uses to push men into

them. Evil spirits drive a man into sin,

and then compel that man publicly to

confess the sin which they forced him to

commit -- contrary to his true character

-- in order to make the sin which they

forced him into a stigma upon him for

the remainder of his life.

 

        Ofttimes the "sins" confessed

have their rise in the believer, from

the insertion by wicked spirits of

feelings as CONSCIOUSLY abhorrent and

loathsome, as were the former

"conscious" feelings of heavenly purity

and love; when the man who experienced

them, declared that he knew of no "sin

to confess to God", or "no rising of an

evil impulse" whatever; leading him to

believe in the complete elimination of

all sin from his being.

 

        In short, the counterfeit

manifestations of the Divine presence in

the body, in agreeable and heavenly

feelings, can be followed by counterfeit

feelings of sinful things, wholly

repugnant to the volition and central

purity of the believer -- <76>  who is

as faithful to God now in his hatred to

sin, as in the days when he revelled in

the sense of purity given consciously to

his bodily frame.

 

          COUNTERFEIT GUIDANCE

 

        Many believers think the

"guidance" or "leading" of God to be

only by a voice saying, "Do this," or

"Do that"; or by a compulsory movement

or impulse, apart from the action or

volition of the man. They point to the

expression used about the Lord, "the

Spirit driveth Him into the wilderness";

but this was abnormal in the life of

Christ, for the statement implies

intense spirit conflict wherein the Holy

Spirit departed from His ordinary

guidance. We have a glimpse into a

similar intense movement in the spirit

of the Lord Jesus, in John 11:38, when

"groaning with indignation in His

spirit" He moved to the grave of

Lazarus. In both instances He was moving

forward to direct conflict with Satan --

in the case of Lazarus, with Satan as

the prince of death. The Gethsemane

agony was of the same character.

 

        But normally the Lord was

guided, or led, in simple fellowship

with the Father; deciding, acting,

reasoning, thinking, as One Who knew the

will of God, and intelligently --

speaking reverently -- carried it out.

The "voice" from heaven was rare, and,

as the Lord Himself said, was for the

sake of others, and not for Himself. He

knew the Father's will, and with every

faculty of His being as Man, He did it

(see John 4:34; 5:30; 6:38).

 

        As Christ was a pattern or

example for His followers, guidance or

"leading" in its perfect and true form

is shown in His life, and believers can

only expect the co-working of the Holy

Spirit when they walk after the pattern

of their Example. Out of line with the

Pattern they cease to have the working

of the Holy Spirit, and become open to

the deceptive counterfeit workings of

evil spirits.

 

        If the believer ceases to use

mind, reason, will, and all his other

faculties as a person, and depends upon

voices and impulses for guidance in

every detail of life, he will be "led"

or guided by evil spirits feigning to be

God.

 

     COUNTERFEIT "INWARD" DRAWINGS

 

        As his spiritual life develops,

the believer knows to a great extent the

true guidance of the Spirit of God. He

knows true  <77>  inward constraint to

act, and restraint from action in like

manner; such as when to speak to another

about his soul, when to rise and testify

in a meeting, etc., but after a time he

ceases to watch for this pure inward

moving of the Spirit, often through

ignorance of how to read the monitions

of his spirit, to guide him in action.

This is the time for which the deceiving

spirits have been watching. Because at

this point the believer has ceased,

unknown to himself, to co-operate with

the inward spirit action, to use his

volition, and to decide for himself, he

is now watching for some other

supernatural indication of the way to

go, or the course to take. Hence he must

have "guidance" somehow, some "text",

some "indication", some "providential

circumstance", etc., etc.  This is the

moment of opportunity for a deceiving

spirit to gain his faith and confidence;

and so some word or words are whispered

softly, that are exactly in accordance

with the inward drawing that he has had,

but which he has not recognized as from

another source than the Holy Spirit, Who

acted by the deep INNER CONSTRAINING AND

RESTRAINING OF THE SPIRIT. The soft

whisper of the deceiving spirit is so

delicate and gentle, that the believer

listens to, and receives the words

without question, and begins to obey

this soft whisper, yielding more and

more to it, without any thought of

exercising mind, judgment, reason or

volition.

 

        The "feelings" are now in the

body, but the believer is unconscious

that he is CEASING TO ACT FROM HIS

SPIRIT, and by the pure unfettered

action of his will and his mind, which,

under the illumination of the Spirit,

is always in accord with the spirit.

This is a time of great danger if the

believer fails to discriminate the

source of his "drawing" feelings, and

yields to them before finding out their

source. He should examine his basic

principle of decision, especially when

it has to do with feeling, lest he

should be led away by any feeling

without being able to say where it comes

from, or whether it is safe for him to

go by it. He should know there are

physical feelings, soulish feelings, and

feelings in the spirit, either of which

can be Divine or satanic in their

source, therefore reliance on "feelings"

 -- FEELING drawn, etc. -- is a source

of great mischief in the Christian life.

 

        From this point deceiving

spirits can increase their control, for

the believer has begun the listening

attitude, which can be  <78>  developed

acutely, until he is always watching for

an "inner voice", or a voice in the ear,

which is an exact counterfeit of the

voice of God IN THE SPIRIT; and thus the

believer moves and acts as a passive

slave to "supernatural guidance".

 

      THE COUNTERFEIT VOICE OF GOD

 

        Evil spirits are able to

counterfeit the voice of God, because of

the ignorance of believers that they can

do so, and of the true principle of

God's way of communication with His

children. The Lord said: "My sheep know

My voice...", i.e., My way of speaking

to My sheep. He did not say this voice

was an AUDIBLE voice, nor a voice giving

directions which were to be obeyed apart

from the intelligence of the believer;

but, on the contrary, the word "know"

indicates the use of the mind, for

although there is knowledge in the

spirit, it must reach the intelligence

of the man, so that spirit and mind

become of one accord.

 

        The question whether God now

speaks by His DIRECT VOICE audibly to

men, needs consideration at this point.

A careful study of the epistles of Paul

 -- which contain an exhaustive epitome

of God's will for the Church, the Body

of Christ, as the books of Moses

contained God's will and laws for Israel

 -- seems to make it clear that God,

having "spoken to us in His Son", no

longer speaks by HIS OWN DIRECT VOICE to

His people. Nor does it appear that

since the coming of the Holy Spirit to

guide the Church of Christ into all

truth, does He frequently employ angels

to speak or to guide His children.

 

         THE MINISTRY OF ANGELS

 

        The angels are "sent forth to

minister to the heirs of salvation"

(Hebrews 1:14), but not to take the

place of Christ or the Holy Spirit. The

Apocalypse seems to show that this

ministration of angels to the saints on

earth, is a ministration of war in the

spiritual realm, against the forces of

Satan; but there is little indication

given of ministry in any other way.

After the first Advent, when there was

great angelic activity over the wondrous

event of the Father bringing the

"Firstborn" of the new race (Romans

8:29) into the inhabited earth (Hebrews

1:6 RV); and again at the Advent of the

Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost to

begin His work of forming a Body like

unto the Risen Head -- and during the

early years of  <79>  the Church -- the

employment of angels in DIRECT and

VISIBLE COMMUNICATION with believers

seems to give way to the work and

ministry of the Holy Spirit.

 

        The entire work of witnessing to

Christ, and leading the Church into all

truth, has been committed to the Holy

Spirit. Therefore all intervention of

"angels", or AUDIBLE VOICES from the

spiritual realm, purporting to be from

God, may be taken as counterfeits of

Satan, whose supreme object is to

substitute the working of his own wicked

spirits in the place of God. In any

case, it is best and safest in these

days of peril to keep in the path of

faith and reliance upon the Holy Spirit

of God, working through the Word of God.

 

  HOW TO DETECT THE SOURCE OF A VOICE

 

        In order to detect which is the

"voice of God", and which is the "voice

of the devil", we need to understand

that the Holy Spirit alone is charged to

communicate the will of God to the

believer, and that He works from WITHIN

THE SPIRIT of the man, enlightening the

understanding (Ephesians 1:17-18), so as

to bring him into intelligent co-working

with the mind of God.

 

        The purpose of the Holy Spirit,

is briefly, the entire renewal of the

redeemed one, in spirit, soul and body.

He therefore directs all His working to

the liberation of every faculty, and

never in any way seeks to direct a man

as a passive machine, even into GOOD. He

works in him to enable him to CHOOSE the

good, and strengthens him to act, but

never -- even for "good" -- dulls him,

or renders him incapable of free action,

otherwise He would nullify the very

purpose of Christ's redemption on

Calvary, and the purpose of His own

coming.

 

        When believers understand these

principles, the "voice of the devil" is

recognizable, i.e., (1) when it comes

from outside the man, or within the

sphere of his circumference, and not

from the central depth of his spirit,

where the Holy Spirit abides; (2) WHEN

IT IS IMPERATIVE AND PERSISTENT, URGING

SUDDEN ACTION WITHOUT TIME TO REASON OR

INTELLIGENTLY WEIGH THE ISSUES; (3) when

it is confusing and clamorous, so that

the man is hindered from thinking; for

the Holy Spirit desires the believer to

be intelligent, as a responsible being

with a choice, and will not confuse him

so as to make him incapable of coming to

a decision.

 

        The speaking of evil spirits can

also be a counterfeit of the apparent

inner speaking of the man himself, as if

he were  <80>  himself "thinking", and

yet with no concentrated action of the

mind; e.g., a persistent and ceaseless

"commentary" going on somewhere within,

apart from volition or mind action,

commenting on the man's own actions or

the actions of others, such as "you are

wrong", "you are never right", "God has

cast you off", "you must not do that",

etc., etc.

 

      HOW TO DETECT THE SOURCE OF

     "TEXTS" SUPERNATURALLY SPOKEN

 

        The "voice of the devil" as an

angel of light is more difficult to

detect, especially when it comes with

wonderful strings of texts which makes

it appear like the voice of the Holy

Spirit. Voices from without, either as

from God or angels, may be rejected, yet

the believer may be deceived by "floods

of texts" which he thinks are from God.

In this case the detection needs more

knowledge, i.e.:

 

        (1) Does the believer RELY upon

these "texts" apart from the USE OF HIS

MIND or reason? This indicates

passivity.

 

        (2) Are these texts a prop to

him (a) undermining his reliance on God

Himself; (b) weakening his power of

decision, and (right) self-reliance?

 

        (3) Do these texts influence him

and (a) make him elated and puffed up as

"specially guided by God", or (b) crush

and condemn him, and throw him into

despair and condemnation, instead of

leading him to sober dealing with God

Himself over the course of his life,

with a keen and increasing knowledge of

right and wrong obtained from the

written Word by the light of the Holy

Spirit?

 

        If these, and other such like

results, are the fruit of the "texts"

given, they may be rejected as from the

Deceiver, or at least an attitude of

neutrality taken to them, until further

proof of their source is given.

 

        The voice of the Devil as

distinguishable from the voice of God

may also be known by its purpose and

outcome. Obviously, if God speaks DIRECT

to a man, that man must be infallibly

correct in regard to the specific matter

in question, e.g., A believer may say he

is "led" to ask another to a meeting.

The one asked must accept, or else give

the lie to the other's "leading". If the

one who believed he was "led" still

holds that position, he considers the

one who declined as deceived, or else

puts the matter aside without

consideration, not  <81>  realizing that

failure in guidance means that he has

deceived himself, or else become

deceived by deceiving spirits.

 

         HOW EVIL SPIRITS ADAPT

     THEIR GUIDANCE TO THEIR VICTIM

 

        Deceiving spirits carefully

adapt their suggestions and leadings to

the idiosyncrasies of the believer, so

that they do not get found out; i.e., no

"leading" will be suggested contrary to

any strong truth of God firmly rooted in

the mind, or contrary to any special

bias of the mind. If the mind has a

"practical" bent, no visibly foolish

"leading" will be given; if the

Scriptures are well known, nothing

contrary to Scripture will be said; if

the believer feels strongly on any

point; and, wherever possible, will be

so adapted to previously true guidance

from God, as to appear to be the

continuance of that same guidance.

 

        Here we see clearly the way of

the enemy's working. The soul begins in

God's will, but the purpose of the evil

spirit is to draw it off into the

carrying out of his will by

counterfeiting the guidance of God.

SATANIC guidance alters the points of

the life, and misdirects the energies of

the man, and lessens his service value.

To frustrate this artifice of the enemy,

the believer should know that there are

two distinct attitudes for guidance,

which have serious results if their

difference is not understood, i.e.

(1)_trusting GOD to guide, and (2)_trust

that God IS guiding.

 

        The first means RELIANCE UPON

GOD Himself, and the second is an

ASSUMPTION of being guided which can be

taken advantage of by deceiving spirits.

In the first, God DOES guide in response

to definite trust in Him, and He guides

through the spirit of the man who

continues to co-operate with His Spirit;

leaving every faculty free to act, and

the will to choose intelligently the

right step in the path before him.

 

        In the second, when evil spirits

take advantage of an assumption that God

"is guiding", independently of

momentarily watchful co-operation with

the Holy Spirit, a slight COMPULSION may

be noticed, slowly increasing in force,

until presently the believer says, "I

was compelled" to do so-and-so, and "I

was afraid to resist" -- the compulsion

being taken as an evidence of the

guiding of God, instead of recognized as

contrary to God's principle of dealing

with His children.  <82>

 

         THE DECEIVED BELIEVER

        A SLAVE TO EVIL SPIRITS

 

        If yielded to, and believed to

be of God, the result is that the

believer becomes a slave to a

supernatural power which destroys all

freedom of volition and judgment. He

begins to be afraid to act himself, lest

he should not fulfil, what he believes

to be, a minute obedience to the "will

of God". He asks "permission" to do the

most obviously simple duties of life,

and fears to take a step without

"permission". As soon as the believer is

so passively automatic that he is

incapable of realizing his condition,

the evil spirits do not need to work so

much under cover. They insidiously

commence to direct him to do the most

absurd or foolish things, carefully

working inside the range of his passive

obedience to their will, so as to AVOID

THE DANGER OF AWAKENING HIS REASONING

POWERS. As a matter of "obedience", and

not from any true conviction or true

principle, he is bidden to let his hair

grow long, so as to be like Samson, a

Nazirite; to go without his cap, to

prove his willingness to obey in the

smallest matters; he must wear faded

clothes as a "test" of "no pride", or as

a "crucifixion of self", or as a mark of

"implicit obedience to God".

 

        These things may seem trifles to

others, who use their reasoning powers,

but they have great issues in the

purpose of the deceiving spirits, who,

by these directions, aim at making the

believer a passive, unthinking, or

unreasoning MEDIUM, pliable to their

will; in obedience to which -- even in

these trivial matters -- their hold

deepens upon him.

 

        When these foolish and absurd

actions are publicly visible, the lying

spirits know that they have destroyed

the testimony of the deceived man in the

eyes of sober people; but there are vast

numbers of devoted believers, known to

the Church at large, who are not pushed

to such "extremes" of exterior action;

but who are equally misled, or in

bondage to "supernatural" commands

concerning matters of food, dress,

manner, etc., which they think they have

received from God. The spirit of

judgment of others, and the secret

self-esteem for their "consecration to

God" which accompanies their

"obedience", betrays the subtle workings

of the enemy.

 

        THE "PLANCHETTE" USE OF

      THE BELIEVER BY EVIL SPIRITS

 

        As long as the believer thinks

it is God Who is directing him, so long

the deceiving spirits are safe from

exposure, and  <83>  they can lead him

on into more and more deception. When

the man reaches a very high degree of

satanic deception he finds himself

UNABLE TO ACT unless the spirits ALLOW

HIM, so that he no longer even ASKS for

"permission" to do this or that.

 

        At this stage, no arguments,

reasonings, or outward considerations of

any kind, influence the actions of the

believer thus deceived, or turn him from

obeying the "guidance" or "permission"

of the inner voice, which he fully

believes is of God. In truth should he

endeavor to go against it in the

smallest matter, the condemnation and

suffering are so great, that he becomes

terrified at any "disobedience", and

would rather be condemned and misjudged

by the whole world than go against it.

His great horror is "disobeying the Holy

Ghost", and the evil spirits deceiving

him take every occasion to deepen this

fear, so as to retain their hold upon

him.

 

        As the believer thus minutely

obeys the spirit in control, he relies

more and more upon supernatural help,

for the moment he does something apart

from it he is accused -- apparently by

the "Holy Spirit" -- of "working apart

from God".

 

        It is at this stage that all the

faculties fall into deepening passivity,

as the man lets go entirely to the voice

of guidance, and into a reliance upon

the Divine(?) speakings, which keep the

brain in complete inaction.

 

        Here also counterfeit

manifestations in "miraculous gifts",

prophecy, tongues, healings, visions,

and supernatural experiences of every

kind possible to the satanic powers, may

be given to the believer, with abundant

"texts" and "proofs" to confirm their

"Divine origin". He experiences a

lightness of the body which makes it

appear as if he were carried by

invisible hands; he is lifted off his

bed in what spiritists know as

"levitation"; he can sing and speak, and

do what he has never been capable of

doing before. Constant contact with

spirit forces gives the man a "mystical"

look, but all lines of strength, which

come from strenuous conflict and

self-mastery, go out of the face, for

the SENSE-LIFE is being fed and indulged

in a SPIRITUAL way as much as by fleshly

habits, yet these, such as smoking,

etc., have for a time no power.

 

 THE COUNTERFEIT PERSONATION OF OTHERS

 

        But counterfeits of God and

Divine things are not the only

"counterfeits" the angel of light has at

his command. There  <84>  are also

counterfeits of the "human" and human

things; such as the personation of

others, and even of the believer

himself. Others appear to be different

from what they really are, jealous or

angry, critical or unkind. "Self" is

represented in another, in enlarged

form, where there is really the very

opposite manifestation of selflessness

and love. Wrong motives appear to govern

others where none exist; simple actions

are colored, and words made to mean and

suggest what is not in the minds of the

speakers; and sometimes seem to confirm

the supposed wrong-doing of others.

 

        Others of the opposite sex may

also be PERSONATED to a believer in

times of prayer or leisure, either in

repulsive or in beautiful form, with the

object of arousing various dormant

elements in the human frame, unknown to

exist by the innocent believer;

sometimes the reason for the personation

is given "for prayer", or "fellowship"

and "spirit-communion" in the things of

God.

 

        When their footing is in the

body, the lying spirits' counterfeit

representation of others may be in the

realm of the passions and affections,

seeking to rouse or feed these in the

possessed one; their faces, voices,

"presence," being presented, as if they,

too, were equally affected. This is

accompanied with a counterfeit "love",

or drawing to the other one, with a

painful craving for their company, which

almost masters the victim.

 

        This subject of love, and its

painful arousing and communicating or

counterfeiting by evil spirits, is one

that touches multitudes of believers of

all classes. Many are made to suffer

poignant agonies of craving for love,

with no specific person involved; others

are wrought upon in their THOUGHTS so as

not to be able to hear the word love

mentioned, without embarrassing

manifestations of color; none of these

manifestations being under the control

of the will of the believer.

 

   THE COUNTERFEIT OF THE MAN HIMSELF

 

        In counterfeiting the believer

himself, the evil spirit gives him

exaggerated views, almost visions, of

his own personality; he is "wonderfully

gifted", and is therefore "puffed up";

he is "miserably incapable", and so is

in despair; he is "amazingly clever",

and thus undertakes what he cannot do;

he is "helpless", "hopeless," "too

forward," or "too backward"  <85>  --in

brief, a countless number of pictures of

himself, or others, are presented to the

mind of the man when once the lying

spirit has gained a footing in the

imagination.

 

        So subtle is the identity of the

deceiving spirit with a believer's

individuality, that others see what may

be described as a "spurious

personality"; sometimes the person

appears to be "full of self" when the

inner man is deeply selfless, "full of

pride" when the inner man is sincerely

humble. In fact, the whole outer

appearance of the man in manner, voice,

actions, words, is often quite contrary

to his true character, and he wonders

why "others misunderstand", misjudge and

criticize. Some believers, on the other

hand, are quite unconscious of the

manifestation of this spurious self, and

go on happily satisfied with what they

themselves know of their own inner

motives and heart life; oblivious of the

very contrary manifestation which others

behold, and pity or condemn. The

spurious personality caused by evil

spirits can also be in a beautiful form,

in order to attract or mislead others in

various ways, all unwittingly to the

person or to the victim. This is

sometimes described as "unaccountable

infatuation", but if it was recognized

as the work of evil spirits, refused and

resisted, the "infatuation" would pass

away. It is so wholly apart from the

action of the will in the persons

concerned, that the work of evil spirits

is clearly to be recognized, especially

when the supposed "infatuation" follows

supernatural experiences.

 

            COUNTERFEIT SIN

 

        Evil spirits can also

counterfeit sin, by causing some

apparent manifestation of the evil

nature in the life, and mature believers

should know whether such a manifestation

really is SIN from the old nature, or a

manifestation from evil spirits. The

purpose in the latter case is to get the

believer to take what comes from them,

as from himself, for whatever is

ACCEPTED from evil spirits gives them

power. When a believer knows the Cross

and his position of death to sin, and in

WILL and practice rejects unflinchingly

all known sin, and a "manifestation" of

"sin" takes place, he should at once

take a position of neutrality to it,

until he knows the source, for if he

calls it sin from himself when it is

not, he believes a lie as much as in any

other way; and if he "confesses' as a

sin what did not come from himself, he

brings the power of the  <86>  enemy

upon him, to drive him into the sin

which he has "confessed" as his own.

Many believers are thus held down by

supposed "besetting sins" which they

believe are theirs, and which no

"confessing to God" removes, but from

which they would find liberty if they

attributed them to their right cause.

There is no danger of "minimizing sin"

in the recognition of these facts,

because, in either case, the believer

desires to be rid of the sin or sins, or

he would not trouble about them.

 

     COUNTERFEIT SELF-CONDEMNATION

 

        Again the believer is so acutely

conscious of a "self" which he hates and

loathes, that he is never free from the

dark shadow of self-condemnation,

self-accusation or self-despair, which

no appropriation of identification with

Christ in death destroys; or else there

is a self-confidence which continually

draws the man forward into situations

from which he has to retire abashed and

disappointed. A spurious personality

encompasses the true inner man, which

few are aware of as possible, but which

is a sadly real thing among multitudes

of the children of God.

 

        On the part of the soul beset

with these constant presentations to his

mind of his own personality, he only

thinks he has a "vivid imagination", or

still more that some of these things are

visions of God, and that he is favored

of God, especially where the vision is

of "great plans for God", or wide

visions of what God is going to do!

Always with the BELIEVER as the center

and special instrument of this service!

 

        Many of the "plans" for

"movements" which have gone even as far

as print in connection with Revival,

have been of such a character; plans

given by "revelation", and which have

resulted in gaining but the few caught

by them, and no others. Of such a

character has been the aftermath of

Revival, where men have left their

regular calling, and followed a

will-of-the-wisp revelation of

"launching out on God", world-wide plans

conceived, and dissipated in a few

months. Such deceived believers become

ultra-devotional, with an excess of zeal

that blinds them to all things but the

supernatural realm, and robs them of

power wisely to meet the claims of other

aspects of life. All this comes from an

evil spirit's access to the mind and

imagination, through the deception of

counterfeiting the presence of God.

 

     COUNTERFEITS OF SATAN HIMSELF

 

        COUNTERFEITS OF SATAN HIMSELF

also suit his purpose at times, when he

desires to terrorize a man from actions,

or prayer, adverse to his interests.

Fear of the devil may always be regarded

as FROM the devil, to enable him to

carry out his plans of hindering the

work of God. Of such a character may be

the fearsome shrinking from hearing

about him and his works, and the passive

deadness of the mind in regard to all

Scriptural truth concerning the forces

of evil. Also the fear caused by

reference to his name, given in order to

frighten away believers from knowing the

facts about him; WHILST OTHERS WHO

DESIRE THE TRUTH MAY BE GIVEN

EXAGGERATED IMPRESSIONS OF HIS PRESENCE,

AND OF "CONFLICT", "CLOUDS", "BLOCKS",

DARKNESS, ETC., UNTIL THEY LOSE THE

CLEARNESS OF THE LIGHT OF GOD.

 

        Especially is the work of the

deceiver manifested in his efforts to

make the children of God believe in his

non-existence, and in the suggestion

that it is only necessary to hear or

know about God, as a protection from any

form of the enemy's power. On the other

hand, a deceived believer may be more

deeply deceived, by seeing nothing but

Satan's counterfeits everywhere.

 

        SUPERNATURAL VISIONS AND

MANIFESTATIONS are a fruitful source of

revenue to deceiving spirits, especially

when the believer relies upon, and

quotes more from these experiences than

the Word of God; for the aim of the

wicked spirit is to displace the Word of

God as the rock-ground of the life. It

is true the Scriptures may be referred

to and quoted, but often only as a

warrant for the experiences, and to

strengthen faith -- not in God, but in

His (apparent) manifestations. This

secret drawing of faith from the bare

Word of God to MANIFESTATIONS of God, as

being more reliable, is a keenly subtle

deception of the evil one, and it is

easily recognized in a believer thus

deceived.

 

          COUNTERFEIT VISIONS

 

        When evil spirits are able to

give visions, it is an evidence that

they have already greatly deceived the

man, be he a Christian or an unbeliever.

The "ground" being, not of necessity

known sin, but a condition of passivity,

i.e., non-action of the mind,

imagination, and other faculties. This

essential condition of passive non-

action as the means of  <88>  obtaining

supernatural manifestations, is well

understood by spiritist mediums,

clairvoyants, crystal gazers, and

others, who know that the least action

of the mind immediately breaks the

clairvoyant state.

 

        Believers not knowing these main

principles can unwittingly fulfil the

conditions for evil spirits to work in

the life, and ignorantly induce the

passive state by wrong conceptions of

the true things of God, e.g., they may

(1) in seasons of prayer, sink into a

passive mental condition which they

think is waiting on God; (2)

deliberately WILL the cessation of their

mind action, in order to obtain some

supernatural manifestations which they

believe to be of God; (3) in daily life

practise a passive attitude which they

think is submission to the will of God;

(4) endeavor to bring about a state of

personal negation, in which they have no

desires, needs, wishes, hopes, plans,

which they think is full surrender to

God, and their "will" lost in God.

 

    BELIEVERS CAN IGNORANTLY DEVELOP

         MEDIUMISTIC CONDITIONS

 

        In brief, believers may

unknowingly develop mediumistic

conditions, of which deceiving spirits

are not slow to take advantage. They are

careful not to frighten the believer by

doing anything which will open his eyes,

but they keep within the range of what

he will receive without question. They

will personate the Lord Jesus in the

special way which will appeal to the

person, e.g., to some as "Bridegroom",

to others as seated on a throne, and

coming in great glory. They will also

personate the dead to those who grieve

after their loved ones, and as they have

watched them during life, and know all

about them, they will give ample

"proofs" to confirm the deceived ones in

their deception.

 

        Visions may come from one of

three sources. The Divine, from God; the

human, such as hallucinations and

illusions because of disease, and the

satanic, which are false. "Visions"

given by evil spirits, also describe

anything supernatural presented to and

seen by the mind or imagination from

outside; such as terrible pictures of

the "future", flashing of texts as if

they were lit up, "visions" of

widespread "movements", all

counterfeiting either the true vision of

the Holy Spirit given to the "eye of the

understanding", or the normal and

healthy action of the imagination. The

Church is thus often made a whirlpool of

division through believers relying  <89>

upon "texts" for guiding their

decisions, instead of the principle of

right and wrong set forth in God's Word.

 

        THE DETECTION OF VISIONS

           FROM GOD OR SATAN

 

        Apart from the "visions" which

are the result of disease, the detection

of Divine from satanic visions depends a

great deal upon knowledge of the Word of

God, and the fundamental principles of

His working in His children. These may

be briefly stated thus:

 

        (1) That no supernatural

"vision", in any form, can be taken as

of God, which requires a CONDITION OF

MENTAL NON-ACTION, or comes whilst the

believer is in such a condition.

 

        (2) That all the Holy Spirit's

enlightening and illuminating vision is

given when the mind is in full use, and

every faculty awake to understand; i.e.,

the very opposite condition to that

required by the working of evil spirits.

 

        (3) That all which is of God, is

in harmony with the laws of God's

working as set forth in the Scriptures,

e.g., "World-wide movements" by which

multitudes are to be gathered in, are

not in accord with the laws of the

growth of the Church of Christ as shown

in (1) the grain of wheat (John 12:24);

(2) the law of the Cross of Christ

(Isaiah 53:10); (3) the experience of

Christ; (4) the experience of Paul

(1_Corinthians 4:9-13); (5) the "little

flock" of Luke 12:32; (6) the

foreshadowed end of the dispensation

given in 1_Timothy 4:1-3; 6:20.

 

        Many a believer has left his

path of "grain of wheat multiplication",

caught by a vision of "world-wide"

sweeping in of souls, given by Satan,

whose malignant hatred, and ceaseless

antagonism, is directed against the true

SEED OF JESUS CHRIST, which in union

with Him, will bruise the serpent's

head. To delay the birth (John 3:3,5)

and growth of the Holy Seed (Isaiah

6:10), is the Devil's aim. To this end

he will foster any widespread surface

work of the believer, knowing it will

not really touch his kingdom, nor hasten

the full birth into the Throne-life of

the conquering seed of Christ.

 

        The safe path for believers at

the close of the age is one of tenacious

faith in the written Word as the sword

of the Spirit, to cut the way through

all the interferences and tactics of the

forces of darkness, to the end.

 

           COUNTERFEIT DREAMS

 

        All dreams also, as well as

visions, can be classed, as to their

source, under three heads: (1) Divine;

(2) human; or   <90>   (3) satanic; each

to be known, first by the condition of

the person, and second by the principles

distinguishing the work of God or Satan.

 

        The principle distinguishing

Divine from satanic in relation to

dreams is, in the first instance, by

their import and exceptional value

(Genesis 37:5-7; Matthew 1:20; 2:12),

and in the latter, their "mystery",

absurdity, emptiness, folly, etc., as

well as by their effects on the person.

In the first, the recipient is left

normal, calm, quiet, reasonable, and

with an open, clear mind. In the second,

elated or dazed, confused and

unreasonable.

 

        The presentations of evil

spirits at night can be the cause of

morning "dullness" of mind, and

heaviness of spirit. The sleep has not

been refreshing because of their power,

through the passivity of the mind during

sleep, to influence the whole being.

"Natural" sleep renews and invigorates

the faculties and the whole system.

Insomnia may be the work of evil

spirits, adapting their workings to the

over-wrought condition of the person, so

as to hide their attacks under cover.

 

        Believers who are open to the

supernatural world should specially

guard their nights by prayer, and by

definite rejection of the first

insidious workings of evil spirits along

these lines.

 

        How many say, "The Lord woke

me," and place their reliance upon

"revelations" given in a state of half-

consciousness, when the mind and will

are only partially alert to discern the

issues of the "guidance" or

"revelations" given to them. Let such

believers watch the results of their

obedience to night-revelations, and they

will find many traces of the deceitful

workings of the enemy. They will find,

too, how their faith is often based upon

a beautiful experience given in the

early hours of the morning; or, vice

versa, shaken by accusations,

suggestions, attacks and conflict

manifestly of the evil one, instead of

an intelligent reliance upon God Himself

in His changeless character of

faithfulness and love to His own.

 

        ALL workings of the enemy at

night can be made to cease by their

recognition as of him, and definitely

refused in the Name of the Lord.

 

@06

<91>

 

              CHAPTER SIX

 

        FREEDOM FOR THE DECEIVED

 

        The very first step to freedom

is the knowledge of the truth as to the

source and nature of experiences the

believer may have had since his entrance

into the spiritual life, which possible

may have been perplexing, or else

thought with deepest assurance to be of

God. There is NO DELIVERANCE FROM

"DECEPTION" BUT BY THE ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

AND ACCEPTANCE OF TRUTH. And this FACING

OF TRUTH in regard to certain spiritual

and "supernatural" experiences, means a

keen edged knife to the man in his self-

respect and pride.

 

         THE HUMILIATION OF THE

           UNDECEIVING PERIOD

 

        It requires a very deep

allegiance to the truth which God

desires should reign in the inward parts

of His children, for a believer to

accept truth which cuts and humbles, as

readily as he accepts that which is

agreeable. The "undeceiving" is painful

to the feelings, and the discovery that

he has been deceived is one of the

keenest blows to a man who once thought

that he was so "advanced", so

"spiritual", and so "infallible" in his

certainty of obeying the Spirit of God.

 

THE DISCOVERY OF THE TRUTH OF DECEPTION

 

        The deceived believer laid claim

to positions to which he had no right,

for with the entrance of truth he

discovers that he was neither so

advanced, nor so spiritual, nor so

infallible as he had thought. He built

his faith about his own spiritual

condition on assumption, and left no

room for doubt, that is, true doubt,

such as doubting a statement that

afterwards turns out to be a lie, but in

due season doubt finds an entry to his

mind, and brings his house of

infallibility to the ground. He knows

now that what he thought was an

"advanced" experience, was only a

beginning, and that he is only on the

fringe of knowledge. This is the

operation of truth. In the place of

ignorance is given true knowledge; in

the place of deception, truth.

Ignorance, falsehood and passivity, upon

<92>  these three the enemy silently

builds his castles, and unobtrusively

guards and uses them. But truth pulls

his strongholds to the ground.

 

        By the entry of truth, the man

must be brought to the place where he

acknowledges his condition frankly, as

follows:

 

        (1) I believe that it is

POSSIBLE for a Christian to be deceived

by evil spirits.

 

        (2) It is possible for ME to be

deceived.

 

        (3) I AM deceived by an evil

spirit.

 

        (4) WHY am I deceived?

 

        When the deception is of long

standing, the spirits of evil may get

the believer himself to defend their

work in him, and THROUGH HIM fight

tenaciously to guard the cause of his

deception from being brought into light,

and exposed as their work. They thus get

the believer himself, in effect, to take

their side, and fight FOR THEM to keep

their hold, even after he has found out

his condition, and honestly desires

deliverance, one of the greatest

hindrances being the effect of an

ASSUMED POSITION concerning spiritual

experiences, which believers are loth to

examine and part with.

 

  THE SCRIPTURAL BASIS OF DELIVERANCE

          IN CALVARY'S VICTORY

 

        The Scriptural ground for

obtaining deliverance is the truth

concerning Christ's full victory at

Calvary, through which every believer

CAN BE DELIVERED FROM THE POWER OF BOTH

SIN AND SATAN, but in actual fact the

victory won at Calvary can only be

applied as there is conformity to Divine

laws. As the deceptions of Satan are

recognized, and the will of the person

is set to reject them, he can, on the

basis of the work of Christ at Calvary

as set forth in Romans 6:6-13;

Colossians 2:15; 1_John 3:8, and other

passages, claim his deliverance from

these workings of the devil in

deception.

 

        Just as there are various

degrees of deception, so there are

degrees of deliverance according to the

understanding of the believer, and his

WILLINGNESS TO FACE ALL THE TRUTH ABOUT

HIMSELF, and all the ground given to the

enemy.

 

        In doing this the believer needs

to have a steady grasp of his standing

in Christ as identified with Him in His

death on the Cross, and his union with

Him in spirit in His place on the Throne

(Ephesians 1:19-23; 2:6), and he must

"hold fast" with steady faith-grip, the

"Head" (Colossians 2:19) as the One Who

is, by His Spirit, giving him grace

(Hebrews 4:16) and  <93>  strength to

recover the ground which he has

ignorantly yielded to the foe. For the

man himself must ACT to get rid of

passivity; he must revoke his CONSENT

given to evil spirits to deceive, and by

his own volition insist that they retire

from the influence (Ephesians 4:27) they

have obtained by deceit. Since God will

not act for him in regaining the normal

condition of his outer man, nor exercise

his choice for him, he must stand on the

vantage ground of the Calvary victory of

Christ, and claim his freedom.

 

          DOUBT OF EXPERIENCE

 

        (1) DOUBT OF THE EXPERIENCE or

"manifestation" being of God. We cannot

emphasize too strongly the need of not

quenching and not ignoring the first

doubt, for the "doubt" is actually the

initial penetration of truth to the

mind, and hence the first step to

deliverance. Some have instantly

quenched the first doubt, fearing to

"doubt God", and in doing so, closed the

mind to the first ray of light which

would have led them into liberty. They

have looked upon doubt as temptation,

and resisted it, overlooking the

distinction between true and evil, right

and wrong "doubt". This has its root in

the mind of most Christians, in

associating only evil with such words as

"judging", "criticizing", "doubting",

and "enmity", "hatred", "unbelief",

etc., all of which dispositions and

actions they thought to be evil, and

evil only, whereas they are evil or GOOD

according to their SOURCE in spirit or

soul, and in relation to their object,

e.g., "enmity" against Satan is God-

given (Genesis 3:15), "HATRED" to sin is

good, and "unbelief" of spirit

manifestations is commanded until the

believer is sure of their source (1_John

4:1).

 

        To doubt God -- which means not

to trust Him -- is SIN; but a doubt

concerning supernatural manifestations

is simply a call to exercise the

faculties, which all spiritual believers

should use to discern "good and evil".

The deep doubt concerning some

supernatural experiences is therefore

not a "temptation", but really the Holy

Spirit moving the spiritual faculties to

action according to 1_Corinthians 2:15,

 _"He that is spiritual judgeth --i.e.,

EXAMINETH -- all things,"_  the "things

of God" thus being "spiritually

discerned" (AV).

 

   NO "CONTRADICTION" IN THE WORKING

          OF THE SPIRIT OF GOD

 

        A "doubt" generally first

pierces the mind either (1) from truth

pointed out by others, or (2) arises

from some flaw  <94>  in the experience

which arrests the attention of the

believer. In the case of some

supernatural manifestation, for

instance, which bore the appearance of

being Divine, there was some slight

contradiction which perplexed the soul.

And as no contradictions can possibly

occur in any of the workings of the

Spirit of God, Who is the Spirit of

Truth, ONE SINGLE CONTRADICTION is

sufficient to reveal a lying spirit at

work. THIS AXIOM MUST NOT BE IGNORED.

For instance, a believer declares, under

supernatural "power" --assumed to be

Divine-- concerning one who is ill, that

God purposes the restoration of that

one, yet the sick one dies. This is a

"contradiction" which should be fully

examined, and not put aside as among

things "not to be understood"; for the

supernatural element in the declaration

could not be of the Spirit of God, Who

cannot depart from truth in His

revelation of the Will of God.

 

        To "prove the spirits" (1_John

4:1), so as to discern between the

"Spirit of Truth" and the "spirit of

error", is a clear command to the

children of God, as well as to "prove

all things", and "hold fast that which

is good" (1_Thessalonians 5:21); bring

"to the proof... with all longsuffering"

(2_Timothy 4:2) RV m.). To question

until all things have stood the test of

full examination is the safest course,

and is far removed from the doubting of

God Himself, in His faithfulness and

love, the only doubt which is sin.

 

 ADMITTANCE OF POSSIBILITY OF DECEPTION

 

        (2) ADMITTANCE OF THE

POSSIBILITY OF DECEPTION is the second

stage in the breaking of truth upon the

mind, although it may sometimes precede

the doubt. To admit the POSSIBILITY of

being deceived -- or mistaken -- in any

aspect of new experience or action, or

even view of truth, is really a

possibility which should be acknowledged

by every believer; and yet so subtle is

the deception of the enemy, that almost

invariably the attitude of each one is,

that "others" may be open to deception,

and he or she is the exception to the

rule.

 

        This certainty of personal

exception is so deep seated with the

most visibly deceived person, that the

long battle is simply to obtain entrance

to the mind for the one thought of

possible deception, in any point at all.

The believer seems armed with unshaken

assurance that if others be misled, he

certainly is not; he "beholdeth the

mote" in his brother's eye, and is blind

 -- blind to the "beam" in his own. But

an open attitude  <95> to truth says,

"WHY NOT I AS WELL AS OTHERS?" May not

my assurance of safety be a deception of

the enemy, as much as the deception I

see in others?"

 

        Why ALL believers should admit

the possibility of deception by the

deceiving spirits may be considered just

here.

 

       THE BASIC FACT OF THE FALL

 

        The primary fact to be

recognized by every human being is the

complete and utter ruin of the first

creation at the Fall, when the First

Adam admitted the poison of the serpent,

which permeated and corrupted his whole

being beyond repair. This fact of the

utter corruption of the human race as a

consequence of this is unmistakably

declared in the New Testament:

*

        "The old man, which waxeth

corrupt after the lusts of deceit"

(Ephesians 4:22 RV).

*

        "Being darkened in their

understanding; alienated from the life

of God" (Ephesians 4:18).

*

        "WE ALL ONCE LIVED in the lusts

of the flesh, doing the desires of the

flesh and of the thoughts, and were by

nature the children of wrath, even as

the rest" (Ephesians 2:3).

 

        Thus the Apostle described the

whole race of man, Gentile and Jew,

Pharisee and Publican -- in all, he

said, "the prince of the power of the

air" wrought, as "the spirit that now

worketh in the sons of disobedience".

 

        These facts declared by the Word

of God, and the reality of the blinded

mind (2_Corinthians 4:4) and ruined

condition of every human being, is the

ONLY BASIS UPON WHICH THE TRUTHS WE ARE

CONSIDERING IN THIS BOOK CAN BE

UNDERSTOOD, AND PROVED TO BE TRUE, IN

EXPERIENCE AND PRACTICE.

 

    ADMITTANCE OF POSSIBLE DECEPTION

          LOGICALLY REASONABLE

 

        The second fundamental fact --

and the logical outcome of the first --

is that unless regeneration by the Holy

Spirit, and the indwelling of the

Spirit, means (1) sinlessness, and

(2)_the present possession of a

resurrection body, EVERY PART OF A

BELIEVER NOT YET RENEWED, and freed by

the redemption of Calvary from the

effects of the Fall, MEANS GROUND FOR

THE POSSIBLE OPERATION OF DECEIVING

SPIRITS. Since absolute sinlessness, and

the present possession of the

resurrection body are not clearly taught

in the Scriptures, as attainable whilst

on earth, the admittance of deception is

logically and reasonably possible for

all; even whilst the spirit and heart of

the man is  <96>  renewed by the Holy

Spirit. If we come to facts of

experience, the proofs are so abundant

as to be beyond our power to handle in

the limited space of this book, not only

in the unregenerate world, but in those

who are undoubtedly children of God, and

spiritual believers.

 

        If we knew ourselves, and our

actual condition as sinners, simply as

depicted in God's Word, we should be in

greater safety from the enemy. It is the

ignorance of our true condition, apart

from the new life from God implanted in

us, and our blind confidence of safety,

without an intelligent basis for our

faith, which lays us open to being

deceived by Satan through our very

certainty of being free from his

deception.

 

        After admitting the possibility

of deception in supernatural things, and

a doubt has come in to the mind whether

certain "experiences", either personal

or otherwise, were of God after all, the

next stage is:

 

        (2) THE DISCOVERY OF THE

DECEPTION. Light and truth alone can

make free, and when once a doubt comes

in, and the man opens his mind to the

truth that he is liable to be deceived

as anyone else, then to the open mind

and attitude, light is given (John

3:21). Sometimes the specific deception

is seen at once, but more often the

discovery is gradual, and patience is

needed while the light slowly dawns.

 

        Certain facts in connection with

various experiences of the past, which

the believer has failed to note, may now

emerge into the light, and the half

truths of the Adversary which he had

used to deceive, are clearly seen -- the

twisting of words, the wrenching of

sentences out of their context in the

Scriptures, all come into view as the

light is given. Then comes:

 

        (4) THE ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF THE

DECEPTION. This is now imperative. The

truth must not only be faced, but OWNED,

so that things are called by their right

names, and the father of lies defeated

by the weapon of truth.

 

  THE TACTICS OF THE ENEMY DURING THE

        FIGHTING THROUGH PERIOD

 

        When the spirits of evil see

their hold coming to an end, they never

let go until the cause is fully removed,

and they continue to attack if the thing

they have attacked about still exists in

any degree. When "fighting through", the

enemy has various tactics to hinder the

man's deliverance; and will  <97>

dangle a thing before the mind which is

not the true cause of the deception, so

as to get the believer occupied with it,

whilst he is gaining all the time,

pouring in accusations upon his victim,

until he is bewildered and confused.

Charges, accusations, blame, guilt,

direct from the enemy, or indirectly

through others. Accusing spirits can say

"You are WRONG" when you are not wrong,

and vice versa; and also say you are

wrong, when you ARE wrong, and right

when you are right, but it is very

essential that the believer does not

accept blame until he is absolutely sure

that it is deserved, and then not from

Satan's lying spirits, who have not been

appointed by God to do the convicting

work of the Holy Spirit.

 

        When once the truth has dawned

upon the victim of the powers of

darkness, and they no longer hope to

gain by deception, their one great

attack all through, from the moment of

undeceiving to final dispossession, is

the perpetual charge, "You are wrong,"

so as to keep the man in ceaseless

condemnation. The poor persecuted

believer then goes to God, and tries to

get victory over "sin", but in vain. The

more he prays, the more he appears to

sink into a hopeless bog. He seems to

himself to be one mass of "sin", without

hope of freedom. But it is victory over

the powers of darkness he needs, and he

will quickly prove this when he

recognizes the true cause of his

trouble, and lays hold of the Calvary

Victory over Satan.

 

        THE WEAPON OF SCRIPTURE

 

        In fighting back to freedom, the

believer must wield Scripture as the

Divinely provided weapon for victory

over evil spirits. The verses used with

immediate effect, and giving evidence of

relief, indicate the specific nature of

any attack, showing by the efficacy of

the weapon used the immediate cause of

the conflict, the believer reasoning

back from the effectiveness of the

weapon to the cause of the warfare. For

instance, if the text wielded is that

Satan is the "father of lies", and the

believer declares that he refuses all

his lies, and this brings liberty from

the oppression of the enemy, it

indicates that the enemy is attacking

with some of his deceptive workings.

Then the believer should not only refuse

all his lies, but pray, "LORD, DESTROY

ALL THE DEVIL'S LIES TO ME."

 

        All this simply means that in

the path to freedom, the deceived

believer must act intelligently. He must

KNOW the  <98>  truth, and by truth

being received and acted upon, he is set

free. In going down into deception the

intelligence is UNUSED, but in

recovering freedom he must act with

deliberate knowledge; i.e., he goes down

"passively", but he must emerge to

liberty actively, that is, by the action

of his whole being.

 

        Force must be used against

force. This the Deceiver may suggest as

"self-effort", and deceive the man into

taking up a passive attitude, and thus

to cease his resistance against him.

 

        A few brief suggestions for

attitude and action may be added here in

condensed form, for the guidance of any

who are seeking freedom from the enemy's

power:

 

        (1) Keep claiming the power of

the blood (Revelation 7:11).

 

        (2) Pray for light, and face the

past.

 

        (3) Resist the Devil

persistently in your spirit.

 

        (4) Never give up hope.

 

        (5) Avoid all

self-introspection.

 

        (6) Live, and pray for others,

and thus keep your spirit in full

aggressive and resisting power.

 

        Again it may be said:

 

        (1) Stand daily on Romans 6:11;

as the ATTITUDE to sin.

 

        (2) Resist the enemy (James 4:7)

daily on the ground of the blood of

Christ (Revelation 12:11).

 

        (3) Live daily for others; i.e.,

OUTWARD, AND NOT INWARD.

 

      THE FOOTING ON ROMANS 6:11,

          A WEAPON OF VICTORY

 

        The standing on Romans 6:11

means the attitude of the believer

reckoning himself "dead unto sin... in

Christ Jesus". It is a declaration of

death -- a gulf of death -- to evil

spirits as well as sin.

 

        To resist the enemy on the

ground of the blood of Christ, means

wielding the weapon of the finished work

of Christ, by faith; i.e., His death for

sin, freeing the trusting believer from

the guilt of sin; His death to sin on

the Cross and the believer's death with

Him, freeing the man from the power of

sin, and His death victory on Calvary,

freeing the believer from the power of

Satan.

 

        A condensed form of the

principles and conditions for

deliverance from the deception of evil

spirits in any degree, may be given as

follows:

 

        (1) Knowledge of the possibility

of deception.

 

        (2) Admission of actual

deception.   <99>

 

        (3) Attitude of neutrality

toward all past experiences (spiritual)

until truth concerning them is

ascertained.

 

        (4) Refusal of all ground to

evil spirits.

 

        (5) The believer taking position

of death to sin (Romans 6:11).

 

        (6) The detection and refusal of

all that belongs to deception.

 

        (7) The understanding of the

criterion of the true normal condition

so as to gauge signs of deliverance.

 

        (8) Active usage of the

faculties so that they reach the normal

condition.

 

        In another brief form a summary

of the steps to deliverance may be given

as follows:

 

        (1) Recognize persistently the

true cause of bondage; i.e., the work on

an evil spirit or spirits.

 

        (2) Choose to have absolutely

nothing to do with the powers of

darkness. Frequently declare this.

 

        (3) Do not talk or trouble about

their manifestations. Recognize, refuse,

and THEN IGNORE THEM.

 

        (4) Refuse and reject all their

lies and excuses, as they are

recognized.

 

        (5) Notice the thoughts, and the

way in which they come, and when, and

immediately declare the attitude of

Romans 6:11 against all the

interferences of the enemy.

 

        Hindrances to deliverance from

deception may again be given here

briefly, as:

 

        (1) Not knowing it is possible

to be deceived.

 

        (2) Thinking God will not allow

a believer to be deceived.

 

        (3) Saying "I am safe under the

blood", without intelligent knowledge of

conditions.

 

        (4) Saying "I have no sin".

 

        (5) Saying "I am doing all that

God wants, so all must be right";

without seeking to UNDERSTAND what the

will of the Lord is (Ephesians 5:10-17).

 

        Some hints on overcoming

passivity of mind, are as follows:

 

        (1) Act as far as you can, doing

what you can.

 

        (2) Take the initiative, instead

of passively depending on others.

 

        (3) Decide for yourself in

everything you can. Do not lean on

others.

 

        (4) Live in the moment, watch

and pray step by step.

 

        (5) Use your mind, and THINK --

think over all you do, and say, and are.

 

 NAMING THE ATTACK A FACTOR IN VICTORY

 

        Naming the "attack" is a great

factor for victory. For example, an

attack may be made to hinder, then the

believer must be on guard against all

hindrances, seen and unseen, which the

Hinderer is placing in his way; it may

be to make him impatient, then he must

be on guard over all things liable

<100>  to test his patience. The sooner

the attack is recognized and named, the

quicker the weapon can be called into

use to destroy it.

 

        It may be a flood of accusations

of wrong doing, which need to be

recognized, or tested as to their truth.

When the Accuser charges the believer

with some specific wrong over a certain

thing, and he surrenders that thing to

God, if the accusation does not then

pass away, it shows that it is not the

true ground for the accusation, but some

other cause hidden from view. The

believer should then seek light from God

upon the hidden causes according to John

3:21; and REFUSE the cause of the

accusation without knowing what it is,

saying, "I refuse the cause of this

attack, whatever it is, and I trust the

Lord to destroy it".

 

       THE IMPORTANCE OF KNOWING

            THE TRUE NORMAL

 

        It is essential and

indispensable for full deliverance from

deception by evil spirits, that a

believer knows the standard of his

normal condition, and with this gauge

before him, can judge of his degree of

deliverance, physically, intellectually

and spiritually, so as to fight through

with steady volition and faith, until

every faculty is free, and he stands a

liberated man in the liberty wherewith

Christ has made him free.

 

        As he judges himself by this

criterion he may say, "Things are not

the same as they were," and he then

fights through by prayer to his normal

condition. The deceiving spirits will

suggest all kinds of excuses to stop the

man's advance to freedom; e.g., if he is

forty years of age, they will suggest

that the "mind cannot be as vigorous as

at twenty"; or "overwork" is the cause

of his being below what he should be,

but he must not accept reasons which

appear to be "natural".

 

        Some practical ways of keeping

the mind in its normal working condition

may be briefly suggested as follows:

 

        (a) ATTITUDE TO THE PAST. There

should be no "regrets", or brooding over

things done or undone. This is an

ordinary operation of the mind in

thinking over the past, entangled into

an evil kind of thinking which is

generally described as "brooding". The

believer must learn to discern for

himself when he is simply "thinking", or

being drawn into a state of "regretting"

or brooding. For victory in the life,

there must be victory in regard to the

past, with all its failures. The GOOD of

the past causes no trouble to the mind,

<101>  but only the real or supposed

evil. This should be dealt with by

dealing with God, on the ground of

1_John 1:9, and thus the believer be

delivered from it.

 

        (b) THE ATTITUDE TO THE FUTURE.

The same may be said in the action of

the mind in regard to the future. It is

lawful to THINK of the past and THINK of

the future, so long as the evil state of

"brooding", brought about by sin, or

Satan, is not yielded to.

 

        (c) THE ATTITUDE TO EVIL

SPIRITS. They must not be permitted to

interfere, by the believer seeing to it

that no new ground is given to them for

deception.

 

        (d) THE ATTITUDE TO THE PRESENT

MOMENT. This should be a steady

concentration of mind upon the duties of

the moment, keeping it in active

readiness for use as occasion requires.

This does not mean ceaseless activity,

for activity of the mind, so that it is

never at rest, can be a symptom of

deception.

 

     THE WEAPON OF THE WORD OF GOD

 

        The believer must understand

that the regaining of the facile use of

the faculties, and the maintenance of

the mind in healthy condition, after

passive surrender to evil spirits, will

mean a steady fight with the powers of

darkness, which will require the use of

the weapons of warfare given in the Word

of God, as tried and proved by

experience. Weapons, for instance, such

as the truth in the text, "Sufficient

for the day is the evil thereof," for

resisting brooding over the past, or

torturing pictures of the future;

"Resist the Devil and he will flee from

you", when the pressure of the enemy is

severe; and other "fighting" texts,

which will prove truly to be the "sword

of the Spirit" to thrust at the enemy,

in the evil day of his onslaught upon

the escaping believer.

 

        (e) THE STEADY ATTITUDE OR

ACTION OF THE WILL. In keeping the mind

in normal working condition, free from

the interference of the enemy, the

believer should maintain the attitude of

the will steadily set; i.e., "I WILL

that my mind shall not be passive"; "I

WILL to have full control of, and to use

my faculties"; "I WILL to recognize

everything that comes from the enemy";

all of which declares the CHOICE of the

man, rather than his DETERMINATION to do

these things. The powers of darkness are

not affected by mere determination --

i.e., resolve -- but they are rendered

powerless by the act of volition  <102>

definitely CHOOSING, in the strength

given of God, to stand against them.

 

        The steps to deliverance which

have been given, deal with the PRACTICAL

ASPECT OF THE BELIEVER'S ACTIONS. On the

Divine side, the victory has been won,

and Satan and his deceiving spirits have

been conquered, but the actual

liberation of the believer demands his

ACTIVE CO-OPERATION WITH THE HOLY

SPIRIT, and the steady exercise of his

volition, choosing freedom instead of

bondage, and the normal use of every

faculty of his being, set at liberty

from the bondage of the enemy.

 

        "He that doeth the TRUTH cometh

to the light" (John 3:21) said the Lord.

Evil spirits hate scrutiny, and so work

under cover with deception and lies. The

believer must come to the LIGHT OF gOD

for His light upon all spiritual

experiences, as well as all other

departments of the life, if he is to

"cast off the works of darkness" (Romans

13:12) and put on the armor of God --

the armor of light.

 

@07

<103>

 

             CHAPTER SEVEN

 

     THE VOLITION AND SPIRIT OF MAN

 

        It is now necessary to see from

the Scriptures the true way in which God

works in the believer, for the principle

of co-operation with God, and not

passive control by Him, must be fully

understood.

 

        Briefly, it may be said that the

Holy Spirit dwelling in the regenerate

human spirit, energizes and works

through the faculties of the soul and

the members of the body, only in and

with the active co-operation of the WILL

of the believer, i.e., God, in the

spirit of man, does not use the man's

hand apart from the "I will use my hand"

of the man himself.

 

         CO-OPERATION WITH GOD

    DOES NOT MEAN AUTOMATIC WORKING

 

        When Paul said, "His working,

which worketh in me mightily"

(Colossians 1:29), he first said, "I

labor according to" his working. the "I

LABOR" did not mean that hands and feet

and mind worked automatically in

response to a Divine energizing, as the

engine works in response to the steam,

but at the back of the "I labor" was the

full action of Paul's will, saying "I

choose to labor", and "As I labor, God's

power and energy energizes me in the

acting", so that it is "I who live and

move and work", and "yet not I, but

Christ -- the 'Spirit of Christ' in me"

(see Galatians 2:20; Philippians 1:19).

 

        It was so in the Greater than

Paul, Who said, "I came not to do Mine

own will, but the will of Him that sent

Me," "The Son can do nothing of

Himself," and yet He said also, "My

Father worketh hitherto and I WORK".

"The works that I do shall ye do also!"

He had a separate will, but He came not

to do His own will, but the will of the

Father, and He was doing the Father's

will when He said to the one who sought

His healing power, "I WILL, be thou

clean!"

 

        Thus it should be in the life of

the believer. Granted the essential

union of his will with the will of God,

and the  <104>  energizing power of the

Holy Spirit, by his own deliberate

choice of harmony with that Holy Will,

the believer is actively to use his will

in ruling himself in spirit, soul and

body. God dwelling in his spirit

co-operates with him through his

exercised volition.

 

   GOD GOVERNS THE RENEWED MAN BY HIS

             CO-ACTING WILL

 

        For deliverance from the power

of sin and protection from deceiving

spirits in their workings, it is

important to have a clear apprehension

of God's purpose in redemption. God

created man, with dominion over himself.

This dominion was exercised by his act

of will, even as it was by his Creator.

But man fell, and, in his fall, yielded

his will to the rule of Satan who, from

that time, by the agency of his evil

spirits, has ruled the world through the

enslaved will of fallen man. Christ, the

Second Adam, came, and taking the place

of man, chose obedience to the Father's

will, and never for one moment diverged

from His perfect co-operation with that

will. In the wilderness He refused to

exercise the Divine power at the will of

Satan, and in Gethsemane in suffering

His will never wavered in the choice of

the Father's will. As Man He willed the

will of God right through, becoming

obedient even unto death, thus regaining

for regenerated man, not only

reconciliation with God, but liberty

from Satan's thraldom, and the

restoration of man's renewed and

sanctified will to its place of free

action, deliberately and intelligently

exercised in harmony with the will of

God.

 

        Christ wrought out for man upon

Calvary's Cross salvation of spirit,

soul and body, from the dominion of sin

and Satan; but that full salvation is

wrought out in the believer through the

central action of the will, as he

deliberately chooses the will of God for

each department of his tripartite

nature.

 

        The will of the man united to

the will of God -- and thus having the

energizing power of God working with his

volition -- is to rule his (1) "OWN

SPIRIT" (see Proverbs 25:28;

1_Corinthians 14:32); (2) THOUGHTS OR

MIND (Colossians 3:2) inclusive of all

the soul-powers; and (3) BODY

(1_Corinthians 9:27), and when, by the

appropriation of God's freeing power

from slavery to sin and Satan, the

believer regains free action of his will

so that he gladly and spontaneously

wills the will of God, and as a renewed

man retakes dominion over spirit, soul

and body, he reigns in life "through...

Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:17).   <105>

 

        But the natural man does not

reach this stage of renewal and

liberation of his will, without first

knowing the regeneration of his own

human spirit. God is not in fallen man

until the moment of his NEW BIRTH

(Ephesians 2:12; 3:16; John 3:5-8), He

must be "begotten of God"; the very fact

of such a begetting being necessary,

declares the non-existence of Divine

life in him previously. After such a

begetting, it is also necessary to

understand that the regenerated man does

not, as a rule, immediately become a

spiritual man, i.e., a man wholly

dominated by, and walking after the

spirit.

 

THE "NATURAL" VERSUS THE "SPIRITUAL" MAN

 

        At first the regenerated man is

but a "babe in Christ", manifesting many

of the characteristics of the natural

man in jealousy, strife, etc., until he

apprehends the need of a fuller

reception of the Holy Spirit to dwell in

the regenerated spirit as His sanctuary.

 

        The unregenerate man is wholly

dominated by soul and body. The

regenerate man has his spirit (1)

quickened, and (2) indwelt by the Holy

Spirit, yet may be governed by soul and

body because his spirit is compressed

and bound. The spiritual man has his

spirit liberated from the bondage to the

soul (Hebrews 4:12) to be the organ of

the Holy Spirit in mind and body.

 

        It is then that, by the Holy

Spirit's power, his volition is brought

into harmony with God in all His laws

and purposes, and the whole outer man

into self-control. Thus it is written,

"The fruit of the Spirit is ...

self-control" (Galatians 5:23,m.). It is

not only love, joy, peace,

long-suffering and gentleness,

manifested through the channel of the

soul -- the personality -- but in a true

dominion over the world of himself:

(1)_every thought brought into

captivity, in the same obedience to the

will of the Father as was manifested in

Christ (2_Corinthians 10:5); (2)_his

spirit "ruled" also from the chamber of

the will, so that he is of a "cool

spirit" and can "keep back" or utter at

his will what is in his spirit as well

as what is in his mind (Proverbs

17:27,m.), and (3) his body so obedient

to the helm of the will, that it is a

disciplined and alert instrument for God

to energize and empower; that body an

instrument to be handled intelligently

as a vehicle for service, and not any

longer master of the man, or the mere

tool of Satan and unruly desires.  <106>

 

THE CALL TO DECISIVE ACTION OF THE WILL

 

        All this is fully made clear in

the New Testament Epistles. "Our old man

was crucified with Him" is said of the

work of Christ at Calvary, but on the

part of the one who desires this

potential fact made true in his life, he

is called upon to declare his attitude

of choice with decisive action, both in

the negative and positive positions. The

Apostle appeals again and again to the

redeemed believer to act decisively with

his will, as the following few passages

show:                                   [80 col.chart]

 

        NEGATIVE                        POSITIVE

 

"Cast off the works of darkness."    "Put on the armor of light."

        Romans 13:12.                   Romans 13:12.

"Put away the old man."              Put on the new man."

        Ephesians 4:22.                 Ephesians 4:24.

"Put off the old man with his        "Put on the new man."

   doings."   Colossians 3:9.           Colossians 3:10.

"Put to death your members."         "Present your members unto God."

        Colossians 3:5.                 Romans 6:13.

"Put off the body of the flesh."     "Put on the Lord Jesus Christ,

        Colossians 2:11.              and make no provision for the

                                      flesh." Romans 13:14.

See also Ephesians 6:15-16

"Take up the whole armor..." -->  "Put on a heart of compassion."

                                        Colossians 3:12.

                                  "Put on the whole armor of God."

                                        Ephesians 6:11.

 

        All these passages describe a

decisive act of the will, not toward

exterior things, but toward things in an

unseen, immaterial sphere, incidentally

showing the effect in the spiritual

sphere of a man's volitional action.

They also emphasize the effect of the

decisive use of the will of man, WHEN IT

ACTS IN HARMONY WITH THE LIBERATING

POWER OF CHRIST.  Christ has done the

work on Calvary's Cross, but that work

is applied in fact through the action of

the believer's own will, acting as if he

himself had power to "cast off" the

invisible works of darkness, and finding

with this action of his will, the

co-working of the Spirit of God making

the casting off effectual.

 

        In saving the man, God calls him

into co-action with Himself, to "work

out his own salvation" (Philippians

2:12-15), for it is God Who works with

and in him, to enable him to will and to

do His pleasure.            <107>

 

     GOD CALLS A MAN INTO CO-ACTION

         FOR HIS OWN SALVATION

 

        In the hour of his regeneration

God gives to man the decisive liberty of

will to rule over himself, as he walks

in fellowship with God. And by this

restoration of a will free to act in

choosing for God, SATAN LOSES HIS POWER.

Satan is the god of this world, and he

rules the world through the will of men

enslaved by him, enslaved not only

directly, but indirectly, by his

inciting men to enslave one another, and

to covet the power of "influence",

whereas they should work with God to

restore to every man the freedom of his

own personal volition, and the power of

choice to do right because it is right,

obtained for them at Calvary.

 

        In this direction we can see the

working of the world-rulers of darkness

in the realm which they govern, directly

in atmospheric influence, and indirectly

through men, in (1) hypnotic

suggestions, (2) thought reading, (3)

will controlling, and other forms of

invisible force, sometimes employed for

the supposed good of others.

 

        The danger of all forms of

healing by "suggestion", and all kindred

methods of seeking to benefit men in

physical or mental ways, lies in their

bringing about a PASSIVITY OF THE WILL

and MENTAL POWERS, which lays them open

to satanic influences later on.

 

THE BELIEVER'S RIGHT OF DECISION OF WILL

 

        The liberation of the will from

its passive condition and control by the

prince of this world, takes place when

the believer sees his right of choice,

and begins deliberately to place his

will on God's side, and thus choose the

will of God. Until the will is fully

liberated for action, it is helpful for

the believer to assert his decision

frequently by saying, "I choose the will

of God, and I refuse the will of Satan".

The soul may not even be able to

distinguish which is which, but the

declaration is having effect in the

unseen world, i.e., God works by His

Spirit in the man as he chooses His

will, energizing him through his

volition continually to refuse the

claims of sin and Satan; and Satan is

thereby rendered more and more

powerless, whilst the man is stepping

out into the salvation obtained

potentially for him at Calvary, and God

is gaining once more a loyal subject in

a rebellious world.

 

        On the part of the believer the

action of the will is governed  <108> by

the understanding of the mind, i.e. the

mind sees what to do, the will chooses

to do it, and then from the spirit comes

the power to fulfil the choice of the

will, and the knowledge of the mind. For

example, the man (1) sees that he should

speak, (2) he chooses or wills to speak,

(3) he draws upon the power in his

spirit to carry out his decisions. This

means knowledge of how to use the

spirit, and the necessity of knowing the

laws of the spirit, so as to co-operate

fully with the Holy Ghost.

 

THE SPIRIT ENERGIZED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT

        AT THE BACK OF THE WILL

 

        But the believer thus

co-operating with God in the use of his

volition, must understand that the

choice of the will is not sufficient

alone, as we see by Paul's words in

Romans 7:18. "To will is present with

me, but to DO ...is not." Through the

spirit, and by the strengthening of the

Holy Spirit in the "inward man" (the

regenerate human spirit [Bishop Moule.]

 -- Ephesians 3:16), is the liberated

will desirous and determined to do God's

will, empowered to carry out its choice.

"It is GOD which worketh in you ...to

will, " i.e., to enable the believer to

decide or choose. Then it is "God which

worketh in you ...to DO His pleasure"

(Philippians 2:13), i.e., energizes the

believer with power to carry out the

choice.

 

        That is, God gives the power to

do, from the spirit where He dwells, and

by the believer understanding the using

of his spirit, as clearly as he

understands the use (1) of his will, (2)

of his mind, or (3) of his body. He must

know how to discern the sense of his

spirit, so as to understand the will of

God, before he can do it.

 

  THE DISTINCT ORGANISM OF THE SPIRIT

 

        That the human spirit is a

distinct organism, as separate from the

soul and body, is very clearly

recognized in the Scriptures, as these

few verses show.

"The Spirit of man." 1_Corinthians 2:1.

"My spirit prayeth." 1_Corinthians

14:14.

"The Spirit Himself beareth witness with

our spirit." Romans 8:16.

"...my spirit..." 1_Corinthians 5:4.

"Relief in my spirit." 2_Corinthians

2:13.

        See, too, Psalm 77:3, 6; Daniel

7:15; Ezekiel 3:14, 11:19; Romans 7:6;

Acts 19:21; 2_Corinthians 7:13;

1_Corinthians 6:18.          <109>

 

        There is also a separation of

"soul and spirit" required and carried

out by the Word of God -- the sword of

the Spirit -- made known in Hebrews

4:12, because through the Fall, the

spirit in union with God which once

ruled and dominated soul and body, fell

from the predominant position into the

vessel of the soul [Faussett.] and could

no longer rule. In the "new birth" which

the Lord told Nicodemus was necessary

for every man, the regeneration of the

fallen spirit takes place. "That which

is born of the Spirit is spirit" (John

3:6), "a NEW SPIRIT will I put within

you" (Ezekiel 36:26), and through the

apprehension of the death of the old

creation with Christ as set forth in

Romans 6:6, is the new spirit liberated,

divided from the soul, and joined to the

Risen Lord. "Dead to the law... joined

to Another... having died... that we

might serve in newness of the spirit"

(Romans 7:4-6).

 

        The believer's life is therefore

to be a walk "after the spirit", minding

"the things of the spirit" (Romans

8:4-5). In the RV the word "spirit" is

not written with a capital "S", denoting

the Spirit of God, but with a small "s"

as referring to the spirit of man. But

the believer can only thus walk "after

the spirit", if the Spirit of God dwells

in him (Romans 8:9), the Holy Spirit

lifting his spirit to the place of rule

over soul and body -- "flesh", both

ethically and physically -- by joining

it to the Risen Lord, and making it "one

spirit" with Him (1_Corinthians 6:17).

 

        That the believer retains

volitional control over his own spirit

is the important point to note, and

through ignorance he can withdraw his

spirit from co-operation with the Holy

Spirit, and thus, so to speak, "walk"

after the soul, or after the flesh

unwittingly. A surrendered will to do

the will of God, is therefore no

guarantee that he is doing that will --

he must UNDERSTAND what the will of the

Lord is (Ephesians 5:17), and for the

doing of that will seek to be filled in

spirit to the utmost of his capacity.

 

        The knowledge that the Spirit of

God has come to indwell the shrine of

the spirit, is not enough to guarantee

that the believer will continue to walk

in the spirit, and not fulfil the lusts

of the flesh (Galatians 5:16). If he

"lives" by the Spirit he must learn how

to walk by the Spirit, and for this

understand how to "combine" and

"compare" spiritual things with

spiritual (1_Corinthians 2:13, RV

margin), so as to interpret truly  <110>

the things of the Spirit of God,

exercising the spirit faculty by which

he is able to examine all things, and

discern the mind of the Lord.

 

        Such a believer should know how

to walk after the spirit, so that he

does not quench its action, movements or

monitions as it is moved or exercised by

the Spirit of God, cultivating its

strength by use, so that he becomes

"strong in spirit" (Luke 1:80), and a

truly spiritual man of "full age" in the

Church of God (1_Corinthians 2:6;

Hebrews 6:1).

 

 HOW BELIEVERS IGNORE THE HUMAN SPIRIT

 

        Many believers are not

intelligently conscious that they have a

"spirit", or else they imagine that

every experience which takes place in

the realm of their senses is spirit or

"spiritual", with the result that

everything which takes place in their

inner life is necessarily His working.

 

        In these three cases the man's

own spirit is left out of account. In

the first instance, the believer's

religious life is, if we may say so,

"spiritually mental," that is, the MIND

is illuminated and enjoys spiritual

truth, but what "spirit" means he does

not clearly know; in the second the

believer is really "soul-ish", although

he thinks he is spiritual; and in the

case where the believer thinks that the

Holy Spirit's indwelling means every

movement to be of Him, he becomes

specially open to the deception of evil

spirits counterfeiting the Holy Spirit,

because without discrimination he

attributes all inner "movements" or

experiences to Him.

 

        In this case the man's spirit

comes into action, and into his

cognizance through the reception of the

Holy Spirit, but believers need then to

understand that the Holy Spirit does not

act through them as a passive channel,

but requires them to know how to co-work

with Him in spirit, otherwise their "own

spirit" -- the human spirit -- can act

apart from Him, whilst they may think He

alone is the source of action.

 

  THE HUMAN SPIRIT CO-WORKING WITH THE

              HOLY SPIRIT

 

        Walking "after the spirit", and

"minding the spirit", does not only mean

mind and body subservient to the spirit,

but the man's own spirit co-working with

the Holy Spirit in the daily life, and

all the occasions of life. To do this,

the believer needs to know the laws of

the spirit, not only the conditions

necessary for the Holy Spirit's working,

but the  <111> laws governing his own

spirit, so that it may be kept open to

the Spirit of God.

 

        When the Holy Spirit takes the

spirit of man as His sanctuary, evil

spirits attack the spirit to get it out

of co-working with God. They seek to

deceive the mind, their object being to

close the outlet of the Spirit of God

dwelling at the center; or when the man

is "spiritual", and the mind and body is

subservient to the spirit, the spiritual

forces of Satan can come into DIRECT

CONTACT with the spirit, and then

follows the "wrestling" referred to by

Paul (Ephesians 6:12).

 

        If the man is ignorant of the

laws of the spirit, especially the

tactics of Satan, he is liable to yield

to an onslaught of deceiving spirits by

which they (1) force his spirit into

strained ecstasy, or elation, or (2)

press it down, as it were, into a vice.

In the former he is given "visions" and

revelations which appear to be Divine,

but afterwards are proved to have been

of the enemy, by their passing away with

no results; in the latter the man sinks

into darkness and deadness as if he had

lost all knowledge of God.

 

 THE BELIEVER'S CONTROL OVER HIS SPIRIT

 

        When the believer understands

these direct onslaughts of wicked

spirits, he becomes able to discern the

condition of his spirit, and to retain

control over it, refusing all forced

elation and strain, and resisting all

weights and pressure to drive it below

the normal poise, in which it is capable

of co-operation with the Spirit of God.

 

        The danger of the human spirit

acting out of co-operation with the Holy

Spirit, and becoming driven or

influenced by deceiving spirits is a

very serious one, and can be

increasingly detected by those who walk

softly and humbly with God, e.g., a man

is liable to think his own masterful

spirit is an evidence of the power of

God, because in other directions he sees

the Holy Spirit using him in winning

souls; another may have a flood of

indignation inserted into his spirit,

which he pours out, thinking it is all

of God, whilst others shrink and are

conscious of a harsh note which is

clearly not of God.

 

        This influence on the human

spirit by evil spirits counterfeiting

the Divine workings, or even the

workings of the man himself, because he

is out of co-working with the Holy

Spirit, needs to be understood and

detected by the believer who seeks to

walk with God. He needs to know that

because he  <112>  is spiritual his

"spirit" is open to two forces of the

spirit realm, and if he thinks that only

the Holy Spirit can influence him in the

spiritual sphere, he is likely to be

misled. If it were so, he would become

infallible, but he needs to watch and

pray, and seek to have the eyes of his

understanding enlightened to know the

true workings of God.

 

SOME LAWS GOVERNING THE TRUE SPIRIT LIFE

 

        Some of the laws governing the

spirit life may be summarized briefly as

follows: (1) The believer must know what

is spirit, and how to give heed to the

demands of the spirit, and not quench

it, e.g., a weight comes on his spirit,

but he goes on with his work, putting up

with the pressure; he finds the work

hard, but he has no time to investigate

the cause, until at last the weight

becomes unendurable, and he is forced to

stop and see what is the matter, whereas

he should have given heed to the claims

of the spirit at the first, and in a

brief prayer taken the "weight" to God,

refusing all pressure from the foe.

 

        (2) He should be able to read

his spirit, and know at once when it is

out of co-operation with the Holy

Spirit, quickly refusing all attacks

which are drawing his spirit out of the

poise of fellowship with God.

 

        (3) He should know when his

spirit is touched by the poison of the

spirits of evil [i.e., "fiery darts"

(Ephesians 6:16), to be quenched by the

shield of faith.]; by the injection, for

instance, of sadness, soreness,

complaint, grumbling, fault-finding,

touchiness, bitterness, feeling hurt,

jealousy, etc. -- all direct from the

enemy to the SPIRIT. He should resist

all sadness, gloom and grumbling

injected into his spirit, for the

victory life of a freed spirit means

joyfulness (Galatians 5:22). Believers

think that sadness has to do with their

disposition, and yield to it without a

thought of resistance or reasoning out

the cause. If they are asked if a man

with a strong disposition to steal

should yield to it, they would at once

answer "no", yet they yield to other

"dispositions" less manifestly wrong,

without question.

 

        In the stress of conflict, when

the believer finds that the enemy

succeeds in reaching his spirit with any

of these "fiery darts", he should know

how to pray immediately against the

attack, asking God to destroy the causes

of it. It should be noted that this

touching of the spirit by the various

things just  <113>  named is not the

manifestation of the "works of the

flesh", when the believer is one who

knows the life after the spirit;

although they will quickly reach the

sphere of the flesh if not recognized,

and dealt with in sharp refusal and

resistance.

 

        (4) He should know when his

spirit is in the right position of

dominance over soul and body, and not

driven beyond due measure by the

exigencies of conflict or environment.

There are three conditions of the spirit

which the believer should be able to

discern and deal with, i.e.:

 

        (1) The spirit depressed, i.e.,

crushed or "down".

 

        (2) The spirit in its right

position, in poise and calm control.

 

        (3) The spirit drawn out beyond

"poise", when it is in strain, or

driven, or in "flight".

 

        When the man walks after the

spirit, and discerns it to be in either

of these conditions, he knows how to

"lift" it when it is depressed; and how

to check the over-action by a quiet act

of his volition, when it is drawn out of

poise by over-eagerness, or drive of

spiritual foes.

 

      SOME LIGHT ON TRUE GUIDANCE

            AFTER THE SPIRIT

 

        In "guidance", the believer

should understand that when there is no

action in his spirit, he should use his

mind. If in everything there must be the

"Amen" in the spirit, there is no use

for the brain at all, but the SPIRIT

DOES NOT ALWAYS SPEAK. There are times

when it should be left in abeyance. In

all guidance the mind decides the course

of action, not only from the feeling in

the spirit, but by the light in the

mind.

 

        In coming to a decision, the

deciding is an act of mind and will,

based upon either mental process of

reasoning, or sense of the spirit, or

both, i.e.:

 

        (1) Decision by mental process,

reasoning, or

 

        (2) Decision by SENSE of the

spirit; i.e., movement, impelling;

drawing or restraint; spirit as if

"dead" -- no response; contraction of

spirit; openness of spirit; fulness of

spirit; compression of spirit; burden on

spirit; wrestling in spirit; resisting

in spirit. [Cf. Acts 18:5; 19:21;

20:22.]

 

        God has three ways of

communicating His will to men. By (1)

vision to the mind, which is very rare;

(2) understanding by the mind; and (3)

consciousness to the spirit,  <114>

that is, by light to the mind, and

consciousness in spirit. In true

guidance, spirit and mind are of one

accord, and the intelligence is not in

rebellion against the leading in the

spirit, as it is so often in counterfeit

guidance by evil spirits, when the man

is COMPELLED TO ACT, in obedience to

what he thinks is of God, supernaturally

given, and fears to disobey.

 

        This all refers to guidance from

the subjective standpoint, but it must

be emphasized in addition, that ALL TRUE

GUIDANCE FROM GOD IS IN HARMONY WITH THE

SCRIPTURES. The "understanding" of the

will of God by the mind, depends upon

the mind being saturated with the

knowledge of the written Word; and true

"consciousness in the spirit" depends

upon its union with Christ through the

indwelling Spirit of God.

 

        The mind should never be dropped

into abeyance. The human spirit can be

influenced by the mind, therefore, the

believer should keep his mind in purity,

and unbiased, as well as an unbiased

volition. Passivity can be produced by

seeking for a "leading" in the spirit

all day, when there may be no action in

the spirit to go by. When there is no

movement or "draw", or "leading" in the

spirit, then the mind should be used in

reliance upon the promise of God, "the

meek will He guide in judgment" (Psalms

25:9). An example of this use of his

mind, when Paul had no consciousness in

his spirit of any special guidance from

God, is clearly given by him when he

wrote to the Corinthians that in one

matter he had commandment (1_Corinthians

6:10), but in another he said, "I have

no commandment of the Lord, but I give

my judgment" (1_Corinthians 7:25); in

the one case he had the guidance through

his spirit; in the other he used his

mind, and clearly said so -- see verse

40 -- "after my judgment".

 

        Through ignorance a large

majority of believers walk "after the

soul", i.e., their mind and emotions,

and think they are "walking after the

spirit". The satanic forces know this

right well, and use all their wiles to

draw the believer to live in his soul or

body, sometimes flashing visions to the

mind, or giving exquisite sensations of

joy, buoyancy of life, etc., to the

body, and the believer "walks after the

soul", and "after the body" as he

follows these things, believing that he

is following the Spirit of God.

 

        Depending upon supernatural

things given from outside, or spiritual

experiences in the sense realm, checks

the inward  <115>  spiritual life

through the spirit. By the experiences

of the senses, instead of living in the

true sphere of the spirit, the believer

is drawn out to live in the outer man of

his body; and ceasing to act from his

center, he is caught by the outer

workings of the supernatural in his

circumference, and loses the inner

co-operation with God. The Devil's

scheme is therefore to make the believer

cease walking after the spirit, and to

draw him out into the realm of soul or

body. Then the spirit, which is the

organ of the Holy Spirit in conflict

against a spiritual foe, drops into

abeyance and is ignored, because the

believer is occupied with the

sense-experience. It is then practically

out of action, either for guidance, or

power in service, or conflict.

 

  THE COUNTERFEIT OF THE HUMAN SPIRIT

 

        Evil spirits then seek to create

a counterfeit of the spirit. If the

believer is ignorant of the tactics of

the enemy in this way, he lets go the

true spirit-action -- or allows it to

sink into disuse -- and follows the

counterfeit spiritual feelings, thinking

he is walking after the spirit all the

time.

 

        When the true spirit-action

ceases, the evil spirits suggest that

God now guides through the "renewed

mind", which is an attempt to hide their

workings, and the man's disuse of his

spirit. On the cessation of the spirit

co-operation with the Holy Spirit, and

counterfeit "spirit" feelings taking

place in the body, counterfeit light to

the mind, reasoning, judging, etc.,

follows, the man thus walking after MIND

AND BODY, and not after the spirit, with

the true illumination of the mind which

comes from full operation of the Holy

Spirit.

 

        To further interfere with the

true spirit life, the deceiving spirits

seek to counterfeit the action of the

spirit in burden and anguish. This they

do by first giving a fictitious "Divine

love" to the person, the faculty

receiving it being the affections. When

these affections are grasped fully by

the deceivers, the SENSE of love passes

away, and the man thinks he has lost God

and all communion with God. Then follow

feelings of constraint and restraint,

which will develop into acute suffering,

which the believer thinks is in the

SPIRIT, and of God. Now he GOES BY THESE

FEELINGS, calling them "anguish in the

spirit", "groaning in the spirit," etc.,

whilst the deceiving spirits, through

the sufferings given by them in the

affections, compel the man to do their

will.  <116>

 

        All physical consciousness of

supernatural things, and even undue

consciousness of natural things, should

be refused, as this diverts the mind

from walking after the spirit, and sets

it upon the bodily sensations. Physical

consciousness is also an obstacle to the

continuous concentration of the mind,

and in a spiritual believer an "attack"

of physical "consciousness" made use of

by the enemy, may break concentration of

the mind, and bring a cloud upon the

spirit. The body should be kept calm,

and under full control; excessive

laughter should be avoided, and all

"rushing" which rouses the physical life

to the extent of dominating mind and

spirit. Believers who desire to be

"spiritual" and of "full age" in the

life in God, should avoid excess,

extravagance, and extremes in all things

(see 1_Corinthians 9:25-27).

 

        Because of the domination of the

physical part of the man, and the

emphasis placed upon supernatural

experiences in the body, the body is

made to do the work of the spirit, and

is forced into a prominence which hides

the true spirit life. It FEELS the

pressure, FEELS the conflict, and THUS

BECOMES THE SENSE INSTEAD OF THE SPIRIT.

Believers do not perceive WHERE they

feel. If they are questioned as to where

they "feel", they cannot answer. They

should learn to discriminate, and know

how to discern the feelings of the

spirit, which are neither emotional

(soulish), nor physical. (See, for

example, Mark 8:12; John 13:21; Acts

18:5 AV.)

 

        The spirit may be likened to the

electric light. If the man's spirit is

in contact with the Spirit of God, it is

full of light; apart from Him it is

darkness. Indwelt by Him "the spirit of

man is the candle of the Lord" (Proverbs

20:27). The possibilities and

potentialities of the human spirit are

only known when the spirit is joined to

Christ, and united to Him is made strong

to stand against the powers of darkness.

 

        The great need of the Church is

to know and understand the laws of the

spirit, so as to co-work with the Spirit

of God in fulfilling the purpose of God

through His people. But the lack of

knowledge of the spirit life, has given

the deceiving spirits of Satan the

opportunity for the deceptions, of which

we have spoken in the previous pages of

this book.

 

@08

<117>

 

             CHAPTER EIGHT

 

          VICTORY IN CONFLICT

 

        The question this chapter seeks

to answer is, how to be victorious over

the powers of darkness as a whole. How

to have authority and victory over the

wicked spirits in place of their mastery

over the believer; who, having learnt

the devices of the enemy, and the way of

deliverance, is now deeply concerned

that others should be set free, and

brought into the place of victory "over

all the power of the enemy". For this he

must now understand, that the degree of

Christ's "authority" the Spirit of God

will energize him to exercise over the

spirits of evil, will be according to

the degree of victory he has over them

in the personal conflict, which he must

now settle down to face in the sphere of

the spiritual life into which he has

emerged.

 

        The believer must learn to walk

in personal victory over the devil at

every point, if he is to have the

fullest victory over the powers of

darkness. For this, just as he needs to

know the Lord Christ in all the aspects

of His name and character, so as to draw

upon His power in living union with Him,

so the believer must learn to know the

adversary in his various workings, as

described in his names and character,

that he may be able to discern his

presence, and all his wicked spirits,

wheresoever they may be, either in

attacks upon himself, in others, or

working as "world-rulers" of the

darkness in the world.

 

     VICTORY OVER SATAN AS TEMPTER

 

        Victory over the devil as a

Tempter, and all his temptations

personally, direct and indirect, must be

learnt by the believer in experimental

reality; remembering that all

"temptations" are not recognizable as

temptations, nor are they always

visible, for half their power lies in

their being hidden. A believer thinks

that he will be as conscious of the

approach of temptation, as of a person

coming into the room, hence the children

of God are only fighting a small

proportion of the devil's workings; that

is, only what they are CONSCIOUS OF as

supernatural workings of evil.  <118>

 

        Because their knowledge of the

devil's character and methods of working

is limited and circumscribed, many true

children of God only recognize

"temptation" when the nature of the

thing presented is visibly evil, and

ACCORDING TO THEIR LIMITED KNOWLEDGE of

evil, so they do not recognize the

Tempter and his temptations when they

come under the guise of natural or

physical or lawful and apparent "good".

 

        When the prince of darkness and

his emissaries come as angels of light,

they clothe themselves in light, which,

in their case, stands for evil. It is a

"light" which is really darkness. They

come in the guise of good. Darkness is

opposed to light, ignorance is opposed

to knowledge, falsehood is opposed to

truth. Darkness is a term applied to

evil morality and moral darkness. The

believer may need to discern evil

spirits in the realm of supposed good.

That which comes to them as "light" may

be darkness. The apparently "good" may

be really evil; the apparent "help"

which they cling to may be really a

hindrance.

 

        There needs to be a choice

between good and evil perpetually by

every man, and the priests of old were

specially called to discern and teach

the people the difference between "the

holy and the common", the "unclean and

the clean" (Ezekiel 44:23). Yet is the

Church of Christ today able thus to

discern what is good, and what is evil?

Does she not continually fall into the

snare of calling good evil, and evil

good? Because the thoughts of God's

people are governed by ignorance, and

limited knowledge, they call the works

of God of the devil; and the works of

the devil, of God, and they are not

taught the need of learning to discern

the difference between the "unclean and

the clean", nor how to decide for

themselves what is of God, or what is of

the devil, although they are unknowingly

compelled to make a choice every moment

of the day.

 

        Neither do all believers know

that they have a choice between good and

good, i.e., between the lesser and the

greater good; and the devil often

entangles them here.

 

      VARIOUS KINDS OF TEMPTATIONS

 

        There are unseen temptations,

and temptations in the unseen. Physical

temptations, soulish temptations,

spiritual temptations; direct and

indirect temptations, as with Christ

when He was directly tempted in the

wilderness, or indirectly  <119>

through Peter. The believer must not

only resist the devil when he tempts

visibly, or attacks consciously, but BY

CONSTANT PRAYER HE MUST BRING TO LIGHT

HIS HIDDEN AND COVERED TEMPTATIONS,

knowing that he is a "Tempter", and

therefore is always planning temptation

for the believer. Those who thus, by

prayer, bring to light these hidden

workings are, by experience, widening

their horizon in the knowledge of his

work as a Tempter, and becoming better

able to co-work with the Spirit of God

in the deliverance of others from the

power of the enemy; for in order to be

victorious over the powers of darkness,

it is essential to be able to recognize

what they are doing. Paul, on one

occasion, did not say "circumstances",

but "Satan hindered me" (1_Thessalonians

2:18), because he was able to recognize

when circumstances, or the Holy Spirit

(Acts 16:6), or Satan, hindered or

restrained him in his life and service.

 

        There are degrees also in the

results of temptation. After the

wilderness temptation, which settled

vast and eternal issues, the devil left

Christ, but he returned to Him again and

again with other degrees of temptation

(John 12:27; Matthew 22:15), both direct

and indirect.

 

    DIFFERENCE BETWEEN "TEMPTATION"

             AND "ATTACKS"

 

        There is also a difference

between the "temptations" and "attacks"

of the Tempter, as may again be seen in

the life of Christ. "Temptation" is a

scheme or a plot, or compulsion on the

part of the Tempter to cause another to

do evil, whether consciously or

unconsciously; but an attack is an

onslaught on the person, either in life,

character or circumstances, e.g., the

devil made an onslaught on the Lord

through the villagers, when they sought

to hurl Him over the brow of the hill

(Luke 4:29); when His family brought a

charge of insanity against Him (Mark

3:21); and when He was charged with

demon possession by His enemies (John

10:20; Matthew 12:24).

 

        Temptation, moreover, means

suffering, as we see again in the life

of Christ, for it is written, "He

SUFFERED being tempted" (Hebrews 2:18),

and believers must not think they will

reach a period when they will not feel

the suffering of temptation, as this is

a wrong conception, which gives ground

to the enemy for tormenting and

attacking them without cause.  <120>

 

   PRAYER BRINGING HIDDEN TEMPTATIONS

                TO LIGHT

 

        For perpetual victory,

therefore, the believer must unceasingly

be on guard against the Tempter, praying

for his hidden temptations to be

revealed. The degree of understanding

his working will be determined by the

degree of victory experienced, for --

"In vain is the net spread in the sight

of any bird" (Proverbs 1:17). We have

given in preceding chapters much

knowledge needed by the believer, if he

is to gain victory over every aspect of

the Tempter's workings, but especially

does he require power of discrimination

between what is temptation from the

Tempter working upon the uncrucified

"old man"; tempting through the things

of the world (1_John 2:15-16; 5:4-5);

and temptation direct from the spirits

of evil.

 

        In temptation the crucial point

is for the tempted one to know whether

the temptation is the work of an evil

spirit, or from the evil nature. This

alone can be discerned by the

experimental knowledge of Romans 6 as

the basis of the life. Temptation from

the fallen nature should be dealt with

on the foundation of, "Reckon ye also

yourselves to be dead unto sin, but

alive unto God in Christ Jesus" (Romans

6:11), and practical obedience to the

resulting command, "LET NOT SIN REIGN in

your mortal body". In the hour of

temptation to sin -- to visible, known

sin -- the believer should take his

stand on Romans 6:6, as his deliberate

position of faith, and in obedience to

Romans 6:11, declare his undeviating

choice and attitude as death to sin, in

death union with Christ. If this choice

is the expression of his real will, and

the temptation to sin does not cease, he

should then deal with the spirits of

evil, who may be seeking to awaken

sinful desires (James 1:14), or TO

COUNTERFEIT THEM. For they can

counterfeit the old nature in evil

desire, evil thoughts, evil words, evil

presentations, and many honest believers

think they are battling with the

workings of the old nature, when these

things are given by evil spirits. But if

the believer is not standing actively on

Romans 6, the "counterfeits" are not

necessary, for the old fallen creation

is always open to be wrought upon by the

powers of darkness.

 

     VICTORY OVER SATAN AS ACCUSER

 

        VICTORY OVER THE DEVIL AS AN

ACCUSER: the difference between the

accusation of the enemy and his

temptations, is  <121>  that the latter

is an effort on his part to compel or

draw the man into sin; and the former is

a change of transgression. Temptation is

an effort to cause the man to transgress

the law, accusation is an effort to

place the believer in the guilty

position of having transgressed the law.

Evil spirits want the man to be wrong,

that they may accuse and punish him for

being wrong. "Accusation" can be a

counterfeit of conviction -- the true

conviction of the Spirit of God. It is

important that the believer should know

when the change of transgression is

made, whether it is a Divine conviction,

or a satanic accusation.

 

        (1) The devil may accuse when

the man is truly guilty; (2) he may

accuse when the man is not guilty, and

cause him to think and believe that he

is guilty; (3) he may endeavor to pass

on his accusations as a conviction, and

cause the man to think that it comes

from the evil nature, when he is not

guilty at all.

 

        Evil spirits are able to infuse

a sense of guilt. Sin itself comes from

the evil nature within, but it is not

FORCED INTO the personality from

without, APART FROM THE PERSON. How can

the believer tell if evil spirits are at

the back of involuntary sin? If the man

is right with God, standing on Romans 6,

with no deliberate yielding to known

sin, then any manifestation of sin

coming back again unaccountably, may be

dealt with as from evil spirits.

 

        The believer must therefore

never accept an accusation -- or a

charge, SUPERNATURALLY MADE, of having

transgressed -- unless he is fully

convinced, by intelligent knowledge and

clear decision, that he has done so; for

if he accepts the charge when innocent,

he will suffer as much as if he had

really transgressed. He must also be on

guard to refuse any COMPULSORY drive to

"confession" of sin to others, which may

be the forcing of the enemy to pass on

his lying accusations.

 

  BELIEVER SHOULD MAINTAIN NEUTRALITY

   TO ACCUSATIONS UNTIL SOURCE PROVED

 

        The believer should maintain

neutrality to accusations until he is

sure of their real source, and if the

man knows he is guilty, he should at

once go to God on the ground of 1_John

1:9, and refuse to be lashed by the

devil, as he is not the judge of God's

children, nor is he deputed as God's

messenger to make  <122>  the charge of

wrong.  The Holy Spirit alone is

commissioned by God to convict of sin.

 

        The steps in the working of evil

spirits in their accusations and false

charges are these, WHEN THE BELIEVER

ACCEPTS THEIR ACCUSATIONS:

 

        (1) The believer thinks and

believes he is guilty.

 

        (2) Evil spirits cause him to

feel guilty.

 

        (3) They cause him, then, to

appear guilty.

 

        (4) They cause him then to be

actually guilty THROUGH BELIEVING THEIR

LIES, it matters not whether he is

guilty or not in the first instance.

 

        Malicious spirits try to make

the man feel guilty by their nagging

accusations, so as to make him act or

appear guilty before others; at the same

moment flashing or suggesting to others

the very things about which they are

accusing him, without any cause. All

such "feelings" should be investigated

by the believer. Feeling wrong is not

enough for a man to say he is wrong, or

the Accuser to accuse him of being

wrong. The man says he "feels" wrong. He

should ask, "Is the feeling right?" He

may feel wrong, and be right, and "feel"

right, and be wrong. Therefore he should

investigate and examine the question

honestly, "am I wrong?"

 

  "FEELINGS" INJECTED BY EVIL SPIRITS

 

        There are physical, soulish and

spiritual "feelings". Evil spirits can

inject feelings into either of these

departments. Their aim is to move the

man by "feelings" to substitute these

for the action of his mind, so that the

believer is governed by the deceiving

spirits through his feelings. Also to

substitute feelings for the conscience

in its recognition of right and wrong.

If believers "feel" they can do a thing,

they do it, without asking whether it be

right or wrong, if it is not visibly

sinful. For victory over the deceitful

enemy, it is essential that the children

of God cease to be guided by "feelings"

in their actions.

 

        Again: If believers in any

course of action "feel relief", they

think that sense of relief is a sign

that they have been doing God's will.

But a man gets rest when his work is

done, not only in the spiritual, but in

ordinary life. A "sense of relief" in

any line of action, is no criterion that

it is in the will of God. The action

must be judged by itself, and not merely

by its effects upon the doer of it. For

instance, a believer says  <123>  he

"felt happy" after doing such and such a

thing, and that it was "a proof that he

was doing the will of God"; but peace

and rest and relief are no proof at all

of being in God's will. Believers also

think that if they do some action that

the devil wants them to do, they will

"feel condemned" at once, but they

overlook the fact that Satan can give

pleasant feelings.

 

        There are innumerable variations

of feelings caused by evil spirits, from

countless attacks, and countless false

suggestions, which call forth all the

spiritual discernment of the believer,

and his understanding of spiritual

things, to recognize them.

 

     NEED OF DISCERNING ACCUSATION

          FROM TRUE CONVICTION

 

        The devil as a Tempter very

quickly becomes the Accuser, even if he

does not succeed in getting the man to

yield to his temptations. As we have

seen, deceiving spirits can cause

apparent "sin" to be manifested to the

consciousness of a believer, and then

lash and accuse the man for their own

workings. They counterfeit some sin,

which may be called with sadness, "my

besetting sin," in the believer's life;

and as long as it is believed to be SIN

FROM THE EVIL NATURE, no "confessing" or

seeking victory over it will cause it to

pass away. They can also hide behind

real sin.

 

        A sense of guiltlessness does

not necessarily lead to absolute

happiness, for even with the peace of

conscious innocence there may be

suffering, and the suffering has its

source in some sin which is not known.

Walking by known light, and measuring

his guiltlessness by his knowledge of

known sin, is very dangerous to him who

desires a fathomless peace, for it leads

only to superficial rest, which may be

disturbed at any moment by the attacks

of the Accuser, who directs his darts to

a joint in the armor of peace, hidden

from the believer's view.

 

        For obtaining victory over the

Deceiver's accusing spirits, spiritual

believers should, therefore, understand

clearly whether any consciousness of sin

is the result of real transgression, or

is caused by evil spirits. If the

believer accepts the consciousness of

sin, as from himself, when it is not, he

at once leaves his position of death to

sin, and reckons himself alive to it.

This explains why many who have truly

known victory over sin by the "reckon"

of Romans 6:11, surrender their basis,

and lose the position of victory;

because the Accuser has counterfeited

some manifestation of "self" or "sin",

and then accused the man of it, with the

taunt that "Romans 6  <124>  does not

work", and by this device made him

surrender his basis of victory, causing

him to fall into confusion and

condemnation as into a pit of miry clay

and darkness.

 

NEED OF UNFLINCHING WARFARE AGAINST SIN

 

        On the other hand, if the

believer in the slightest degree is

tempted to treat sin lightly, or

attribute it to evil spirits when it is

from himself, he is equally on false

ground, and lays himself open to the old

fallen nature regaining mastery over him

with redoubled force. The warfare

against Satan must be accompanied with a

vigorous, unflinching warfare against

sin. Any known sin must not be tolerated

for a moment. Whether it be from the

fallen nature, or from the evil spirits

forcing it into the man, it MUST BE CAST

OFF AND PUT AWAY, on the basis of Romans

6:6 and 12.

 

        Two misconceptions which give

great advantage to the watching enemy

are the thoughts in many believers'

minds, that if a Christian commits sin

he will at once (1) know it himself, or

(2) that God will tell him. They,

therefore, expect God to tess them when

they are right or wrong, instead of

seeking light and knowledge according to

John 3:21.

 

        Believers seeking victory over

all the deceptions of the enemy, must

take an active part in dealing with sin.

Based upon a wrong conception of "death"

they may have thought that God would

remove sin out of their lives for them,

with the result that they have failed

actively to co-work with Him in dealing

with evil, within and in their

environment, in others and in the world.

 

        For a life of perpetual victory

over Satan as Accuser, it is very

important that the believer should

understand and detect any inconsistency

between the attitude of the WILL and the

actions in his life. He should read

himself from his ACTIONS as well as from

his will and motives. For instance, a

person is charged with doing a certain

thing, which he at once denies, because

the action does not agree with his

WILL-ATTITUDE, and therefore, he says,

it is impossible that he should have

acted or spoken in the way stated. The

believer judges himself by his own inner

standpoint of will and motives, and not

by actions as well as his will

(1_Corinthians 11:31).

 

        On the Godward side the

cleansing power of the blood of Christ

is needed (1_John 1:7) continuously for

those who seek to walk in the light,

cleansing themselves from all defilement

of  <125>  flesh and spirit, perfecting

holiness in the fear of God

(2_Corinthians 7:1).

 

        The devil as an Accuser also

works indirectly through others,

inciting them to make accusations which

he wants the man to accept as true, and

thus open the door to him to make them

true; or he accuses the believer to

others by "visions" or "revelations"

about him, which causes them to misjudge

him. In any case, whatever may come to

the believer from man or devil, LET HIM

MAKE USE OF IT FOR PRAYER, and by prayer

turn all accusations into steps to

victory.

 

      VICTORY OVER SATAN AS A LIAR

 

        VICTORY OVER THE DEVIL AS A LIAR

(John 8:44); "He was a murderer from the

beginning, and stood not in the truth,

because there is no truth in him. When

he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his

own; for he is a liar, and the father

thereof." This does not mean that the

enemy never tells the truth, but his

truth has the objective of getting the

believer involved in evil; e.g., when

the spirit of divination spoke the

truth, that Paul and Silas were the

servants of God, it was to suggest the

lie that Paul and Silas derived their

power from the same source as the girl

under the evil spirit's power. The devil

and his wicked spirits will speak, or

use, ninety-nine parts of truth to float

one lie, but Paul was not deceived by

the witness of a soothsaying prophetess

acknowledging their divine authority. He

discerned the wicked spirit and its

purpose, exposed it, and cast it out.

 

        Even so must the believer be

able to triumph over Satan as a liar,

and be able to recognize his lies, and

those of lying spirits, in whatever form

they are presented to him. This he does

by knowing the truth, and using the

weapon of truth.

 

    VICTORY OVER FALSEHOOD BY TRUTH

 

        There is no way of victory over

falsehood but by truth. To have victory

over the devil as a liar, and over his

lies, the believer must be determined

always to know the truth, and speak the

truth about everything, in himself, in

others, and around him.

 

        Satan the liar, through his

lying spirits, persistently pours lies

on the believer all day long; lies into

his thoughts about himself, his

feelings, his condition, his

environment; lies misinterpreting

everything in himself, and around him;

about  <126>  others with whom he is in

contact; lies about the past and the

future; lies about God; and lies about

himself, magnifying his power and his

authority. To have victory over this

persistent stream of lies from the

father of lies, the believer must fight

(1) with the weapon of God's truth in

the written Word, and (2) truth about

facts in himself, others and

circumstances. As the believer

increasingly triumphs over the devil as

a liar, he grows better able to discern

his lies, and equipped to strip away the

covering for others.

 

 VICTORY AVER SATAN AS A COUNTERFEITER

 

        VICTORY OVER THE DEVIL AS A

COUNTERFEITER, OR FALSE "ANGEL OF

LIGHT": "EVEN SATAN himself fashioneth

himself into an angel of light", and his

"ministers" ("false apostles, deceitful

workers", 2_Corinthians 11:13) also

fashion themselves as "ministers of

righteousness" (2_Corinthians 11:14-15).

This aspect of victory over Satan runs

on the same lines as the preceding ones:

i.e., by the knowledge of truth,

enabling the believer to recognize the

lies of Satan, when he presents himself

under the guise of light.

 

        Light is the very nature of God

Himself. To recognize darkness when

clothed in light -- supernatural light

-- needs deep knowledge of the true

light, and a power to discern the deep

knowledge of the true light, and a power

to discern the innermost sources of

things that in appearance look God-like

and beautiful. The main attitude for

this aspect of victory over the

Adversary, is a settled position of

neutrality to all supernatural workings,

until the believer knows what is of God.

If any experience is accepted without

question, how can its Divine origin be

guaranteed? The basis of acceptance or

rejection must be knowledge. The

believer must know, and he cannot know

without examination, nor will he

"examine" unless he maintains the

attitude of "Believe not every spirit"

until he has "tested" and proved what is

of God.

 

    VICTORY OVER SATAN AS A HINDERER

 

        VICTORY OVER THE DEVIL AS

HINDERER:  "We would fain have come unto

you ...but Satan hindered us"

(1_Thessalonians 2:18), wrote Paul, who

was able to discern between the

hindering of Satan, and the restraining

of the Holy Spirit of God (Acts 16:6).

This again means knowledge, and power to

discern Satan's workings and schemings,

and the obstacles he places in the paths

of the children of God; obstacles which

<127>  look so "natural", and so like

"Providence", that numbers meekly bow

their heads and allow the Hinderer to

prevail.

 

        Power to discern comes (1) by

knowledge that Satan can hinder; (2) by

observing the objective of the

hindrances, and (3) close observations

of his methods along this line; e.g., is

it God or Satan withholding money from

missionaries preaching the Gospel of

Calvary, and giving abundance to those

who preach error, and teachings which

are the outcome of the spirit of

anti-Christ?

 

        Is it God or Satan hindering a

believer by "circumstances", or

"sickness", from vital service important

to the Church of God? Is it God or Satan

urging a family to remove their

residence, without reasonable grounds,

to another neighborhood, when it

involves the removal of another member

from a strategic vantage ground of

service to God, with no other worker to

take his place? Is it God or Satan

leading Christians to put first their

(1) health, (2) comfort, (3) social

position in their decisions, rather than

the needs and the exigencies of the

kingdom of God? Is it God or Satan who

"hinders" service for God through

members of a family making objections;

or troubles in business which give no

time for such service; or through

property losses, etc.? Knowledge of the

Hinderer means victory by prayer over

his schemes and workings. The believer

should therefore know his wiles.

 

    VICTORY OVER SATAN AS A MURDERER

 

        VICTORY OVER THE DEVIL AS A

MURDERER (John 8:44): Satan as the

prince of death watches every occasion

to take the life of the servants of God,

if in any wise he can get them to fulfil

conditions which enable him to do so

(1)_By their wilful insistence on going

into danger without being sent of God;

(2)_by trapping them into danger through

visions, or supernatural guidance,

drawing them into actions which enable

him to work behind the laws of nature

for destroying their lives. That is what

Satan tried to do with Christ in the

wilderness temptation: "Throw Thyself

down", he said; then quoting Scripture

to show that the Lord had Scriptural

warrant for believing that angel hands

would bear Him up (Luke 4:11), and not

allow Him to fall. But the Son of God

recognized the Tempter and the Murderer.

He knew that His life would end as a

Man, were He to give occasion to the

<128>  malignant hate of Satan, by one

step out of God's will; and that the

Deceiver would not propose anything,

however apparently innocent or seemingly

for God's glory, unless some great

scheme for his own ends was deeply

hidden in his proposition.

 

        Christ now holds the "keys of

death and of Hades" (Revelation 1:18),

and "him that hath the power of death,

that is, the Devil" (Hebrews 2:14

RV,m.), cannot exercise his power

WITHOUT PERMISSION, but when the

children of God, knowingly or

unknowingly, fulfil the conditions which

give Satan ground to attack their

physical lives, the Lord with "the keys

of death" works according to law, and

does not save them, UNLESS BY THE WEAPON

OF PRAYER they enable God to interpose,

and give them victory over the law of

death, as well as the law of sin,

through "the law of the Spirit of life

in Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:2).

 

        "The last enemy that shall be

destroyed is death." Death is therefore

an enemy; to be recognized as an enemy;

and to be resisted as an enemy. The

believer may lawfully "desire to depart

and be with Christ" (Philippians 1:23),

but never to desire death merely as an

end of "trouble", or to allow the lawful

desire to be "with Christ", make him

YIELD TO DEATH WHEN HE IS NEEDED FOR THE

SERVICE OF THE CHURCH OF GOD. "To abide

in the flesh is needful for you," wrote

the Apostle to the Philippians,

therefore "I KNOW that I shall abide"

(Philippians 1:24-25).

 

     BELIEVERS SHOULD RESIST DEATH

              AS AN ENEMY

 

        The will of the believer

"will"-ing physical death, gives the

Adversary power of death over that one,

and no believer should yield to a

"desire to die" until he knows beyond

question that God has released him from

further service to His people. That a

believer is "ready to die" is a very

small matter; he must be ready to live,

until he is sure that his life work is

finished. God does not harvest His corn

until it is ripe, and His redeemed

children should be "garnered as a shock

of corn in its season".

 

        It is oft-times the prince of

death as a Murderer, working through the

ignorance of God's children (1) as to

his power; (2) the conditions by which

they give him power; and (3) the victory

of prayer by which they resist his

power, who cuts off God's soldiers from

the battlefield. It is Satan as a

Murderer,  <129>  who gives "visions of

glory", "longings to die", to workers of

value to the Church of God, so that they

yield to death, even in days of active

service, and slowly fade away.

 

        Believers who would have victory

over Satan at every point, must resist

his attack on the body, as well as on

the spirit and mind. They must seek

knowledge of God's laws for the body, so

as to obey those laws, and give no

occasion to Satan to slay them. THey

should know the place of the body in the

spiritual life; (1) its prominence, and

yet (2) its obscurity. Paul said, "I

keep my body under" [1_Corinthians

9:27]. They must understand that the

more knowledge they have of the devices

and power of the Adversary, and of the

fulness of the Calvary victory within

their reach for complete victory over

him, the more he will plan to injure

them. The whole of his schemes against

God's children may be summed up under

three heads: (1) To CAUSE THEM TO SIN,

as he tempted Christ in the wilderness;

(2) To SLANDER THEM, as Christ was

slandered by family and foes; (3) To

SLAY THEM, as Christ was slain at

Calvary, when, by the direct permission

of God, the hour and power of darkness

gathered around Him, and He by the hands

of wicked men was crucified and slain

(Acts 2:23).

 

        As the believer gains victories

over Satan and his deceiving and lying

spirits, by thus recognizing, resisting

and triumphing over them in their varied

workings, his strength of spirit to

conquer them grows stronger; and he will

become more and more equipped to give

the truth of the finished work of

Calvary as sufficient for victory over

sin and Satan; in the power and

authority of Christ by the Holy Spirit,

which will set others free from their

power.

 

        It will, of course, be clearly

recognized that victory over Satan in

these aspects will not be without great

onslaughts from him and sharp conflict,

which may well be called "the evil day"

(Ephesians 6:13).

 

  THE VALUE AND PURPOSE OF "REFUSING"

 

        It is essential that believers

should understand the value of the act

of refusal, and the expression of it.

Briefly: REFUSAL IS THE OPPOSITE OF

ACCEPTANCE. Evil spirits have gained by

the believer giving them (1) ground, (2)

right of way, (3) use of their

faculties, etc., and they lose when this

is all withdrawn from them. What was

given to the enemy by misconception and

ignorance, and given with consent of the

will, stands  <130>  as ground for them

to work on and through; until, by the

same action of the will, the "giving" is

revoked, specifically and generally. The

will in the past was unknowingly put for

evil, and it must now be put unceasingly

against it.

 

        Once understood, the principle

is very simple. The choice of the will

gives: the choice of the will withdraws

or nullifies the previous giving. The

value and purpose of refusing stands the

same toward God and toward Satan. The

man gives to God, or refuses to give. He

takes from God, or refuses to take. He

gives to evil spirits -- unknowingly or

not -- and he refuses to give. He finds

he has given to them unwittingly, and he

nullifies it by an act of withdrawal and

refusal.

 

   THE RELATION OF FRESH GROUND GIVEN

       TO THE VICTORY IN CONFLICT

 

        The relation to the aggressive

warfare of freshly discovered "ground"

given to deceiving spirits is, that

every new ground, discovered as given to

them, and refused, means a renewed

liberation of the spirit, with an access

of deepened enmity to the foe as his

subtle deceptions are increasingly

exposed, and consequently more war upon

Satan and his minions. It means more

deliverance from their power, and less

ground in the believer as he realizes

that "symptoms", "effects" and

"manifestations" are not abstract

"things", but revelations of active,

personal agencies, against whom he must

war persistently.

 

        Moreover, all growth in

experimental knowledge means increased

protection against the deceiving enemy.

As new ground is revealed, and fresh

truth about the powers of darkness, and

the way of victory over them, is

understood, the truth delivers from

their deceptions, and hence protects the

believer up to the extent of his

knowledge, from further deception; and

he finds in experience that directly the

truth ceases to operate by the

believer's active use of it, he is open

to attack from the watching foe, who

ceaselessly plans against him. For

example, let the believer who has been

undeceived cease to use the truth of (1)

the existence of evil spirits; (2) their

persistent watching to deceive him

again; (3) the need of perpetual

resistance and fight against them; (4)

the keeping of his spirit in purity and

strength in co-operation with the Spirit

of God; and other truths parallel with

these -- the knowledge  <131>  of which

he has gained through so much suffering

 -- he will sink down again into

passivity, and possibly deeper depths of

deception. For the Holy Spirit NEEDS THE

BELIEVER'S USE OF TRUTH to work with in

energizing and strengthening him for

conflict and victory, and does not guard

him from the enemy, apart from his

co-operation in watching and prayer.

 

      PERSISTENT REFUSAL OF GROUND

            TO EVIL SPIRITS

 

        The way to refuse, and what to

refuse, is of primary importance in the

hour of conflict. As we have seen, the

believer needs to maintain an active

attitude, and when necessary, expression

of refusal continually and persistently,

this presupposing the man standing in

faith upon the foundation of his

identification in death with Christ at

Calvary.

 

        In the hour of conflict, lest

there should have been new ground given

to evil spirits unknowingly, by

accepting something from them, or

believing some lie they have suggested

to the mind, the believer should refuse

all the possible things whereby they may

have gained a new footing; the conflict,

or attack, immediately passing away or

ceasing, directly the means by which the

enemy has regained ground is dealt with.

 

        The believer himself will know,

from his past experience, most of the

ways by which the deceiving spirits have

hitherto gained advantage over him; and

he will instinctively turn to the points

of refusal which have been of the most

service to him in his fight to freedom.

The refusing in this way taking ground

from them in many directions. The wider

the scope covered by the act and

attitude of refusal, the more thoroughly

is the believer separating himself, BY

HIS CHOICE, from the deceiving spirits,

who can only hold their ground by the

consent of his will. By refusing all he

once accepted from them he can become

comparatively clear of ground given to

them, so far as his choice and attitude

is concerned.

 

REFUSAL AN AGGRESSIVE WEAPON IN CONFLICT

 

        In the hour of conflict, when

the forces of darkness are pressing upon

the believer, the expression of his

active refusal becomes an aggressive

warfare upon them, as well as a

defensive weapon. It is then as though

the will at the center of "Mansoul",

instead of sinking down in fear and

despair when the enemy assaults the

city, issues forth in aggressive

resistance against the foe, by declaring

its attitude against him.  <132>  The

battle turns upon the choice of the will

in the citadel being maintained, in

unshaken refusal to yield to, or admit

any one of the attacking spirits of

evil. The whole power of God, by the

Holy Spirit, will be at the back of the

active resistance of the man in his

attitude of refusal to the enemy.

 

        It is important to understand

the effectiveness of this refusal of the

will, on the part of the undeceived

believer, as a barrier against the foe,

because the outer man, in "feelings" and

nervous system, bears the scars long

after his deliverance from the pit of

deception into which he has been

beguiled. When once the wall of the

outer man has been broken into by

supernatural forces of evil, it is not

quickly rebuilt so that they cease to

have any effect upon it in times of

severe conflict. Believers who are

emerging from deception should therefore

know the power of an aggressive turning

upon the enemy in the moment of his

attacking them, with an active

expression of their choice and will in

regard to him. In such a way the

aggressive becomes a defensive action.

 

        The same weapon of refusing

works in many phases of the conflict;

for example, in speaking or writing, if

the believer is conscious of

difficulties, obstacles, or interference

in what he is doing, he should at once

refuse all ideas, thoughts, suggestions,

visions (i.e., pictures to the mind)

words, impressions, the spirits of evil

may be seeking to insert or press upon

him, so that he may be able to

co-operate with the Holy Spirit, and

have a clarified mind for the carrying

out of His will.

 

        That is, the believer, by his

refusal and resistance of all

supernatural attempts to interfere with

his outer man, is actively to resist the

powers of darkness, whilst he seeks to

co-work with the Holy Spirit within his

spirit. At first this means much

conflict, but as he maintains active

resistance, and increasingly closes his

whole being to the spirits of evil, and

is on the alert to recognize and refuse

their workings, his union with the Risen

Lord deepens, his spirit grows strong,

his vision pure, his mental faculties

clear to realize a perpetual victory

over the foes who once had him in their

power.

 

        Especially is he on guard

against what may be described as the

"double counterfeits" of the deceiving

spirits. That is, the counterfeits by

the enemy in connection with attacks

upon himself. For example, the devil

attacks him manifestly and visibly, so

that he clearly knows it to be an

onslaught of the spirit beings of evil.

He prays, resists, gets through to

<133>  victory in his will and spirit.

Then comes a great "feeling" of peace

and rest, which may be as much an

"attack" as the onslaught, but more

subtle and liable to mislead the

believer if he is not on guard. The

enemy suddenly retreating and ceasing

the furious attack, hopes to gain the

advantage by the second which he failed

to obtain in the first.

 

        FIGHTING FROM PRINCIPLE

 

        It is essential to understand

how to "fight", so to speak, "in cold

blood"; i.e., wholly apart from feelings

of any kind, for the believer may "FEEL"

it is "victory" when it is defeat, and

vice versa. All dependence upon feeling

and acting from "impulse" must be put

aside in this warfare. Some can only

recognize "conflict" when they are

conscious of it, so to speak; they fight

spasmodically, or by accident, when

forced to it by necessity; but now the

"fight" must be permanent and part of

the very life. There is a ceaseless

recognition of the forces of darkness in

"cold blood", because of knowledge of

what they are, and a consequent "fight"

from principle. A fight against the

unseen foes when there is nothing to be

seen of their presence or workings,

remembering that they do not always

attack when they can, i.e., if they were

to attack on some occasions, they would

lose by it, because it would reveal the

character of the thing and the source.

 

        The believer knows that the

devil, as a Tempter, is always tempting,

and therefore, he resists from

principle. In brief, he who desires

perpetual victory, must understand that

it is a question of principle versus

feeling and consciousness. It can only

be intermittent victory if the warfare

is governed by the latter rather than

the former. For instance, when the enemy

attacks the believer, he will find a

strong, primary weapon of victory in

declaring deliberately his basic

position toward sin and Satan, as

standing on the Calvary ground of Romans

6:6-11. The man reckoning himself in the

present moment "dead indeed unto sin,

and alive unto God", refuses to yield to

sin and Satan in any, or all of the

points, or cause, or causes, of the

attack or conflict.

 

        As the believer thus declares

his position in the hour of conflict and

onslaught from the foe, he will often

find himself obliged to wrestle in real

combat with the invisible enemy.

Standing on the finished work of Christ

in death to sin, the spirit of the man

becomes liberated for action, and

energized  <134>  to stand against the

hierarchic hosts of Satan, the

principalities and powers, the

world-rulers of the darkness, and the

hosts of wicked spirits in the heavenly

(or spiritual) sphere.

 

      WRESTLING AND WHAT IT MEANS

 

        It is only possible to wrestle

against the powers of darkness by the

spirit. It is a SPIRITUAL warfare, and

can only be understood by the spiritual

man, that is, a man who lives by and is

governed by his spirit. Evil spirits

attack, wrestle with, and resist the

believer. Therefore he must fight them,

wrestle with them, and resist them. This

wrestling is not with soul or body, but

with the spirit; for the lesser cannot

wrestle with the higher. Body wrestles

with body in the physical realm; in the

intellectual, soul with soul; and in the

spiritual, spirit with spirit. But the

powers of darkness attack the three-fold

nature of man, and through body or soul

seek to reach the spirit of man. If the

fight is a mental one, the will should

be used in decisive action, quietly and

steadily. If it is a spirit fight, all

the forces of the spirit should be

brought to join the mind. If the spirit

is pressed down and unable to resist,

then there should be a steady mental

fight when the mind, as it were,

stretches out its hand to lift up the

spirit.

 

        The objective of evil spirits is

to get the spirit down, and thus render

the believer powerless to take the

aggressive against them; or else they

seek to push the spirit beyond its due

poise and measure, into an effervescence

which carries the believer beyond the

control of his volition and mind, and

hence off guard against the subtle foe;

or incapable of exercising the balance

of speech, action, thought,

discrimination, so that under cover they

may gain some advantage for themselves.

A GREAT VICTORY MEANS GREAT DANGER,

because when the believer is occupied

with it, the devil is scheming how to

rob him of it. The hour of victory

therefore calls for soberness of mind,

and watching unto prayer, for a little

over-elation may mean its loss and a

long sore fight back to full victory.

 

        When the spirit triumphs in the

wrestling and gains the victory, there

breaks out, as it were, a stream from

the spirit of triumph and resistance

against the invisible, but very real

foe; but sometimes in the conflict the

enemy succeeds in blocking the spirit

through his attack on body or soul.

 

        The spirit needs soul and body

for expression, hence the  <135>

enemy's attacks to close the spirit up,

so as to render the man unable to act in

resistance against him. When this takes

place the believer thinks that he is

"reserved", because he feels "shut up";

or he has "no voice to refuse"; in

audible prayer the "words seem empty",

he "feels no effect", it seems a

"mockery", but in truth it is that the

spirit is closing up through the

wrestling enemy gripping, holding and

binding it. The believer must now insist

on EXPRESSING HIMSELF IN VOICE, until

the spirit breaks through into liberty.

This is "the word of testimony" which is

said, in Revelation 12:11, to be part of

the overcoming power over the dragon.

The wrestling believer stands on the (1)

ground of the blood of the Lamb, which

includes all that the finished work of

Calvary means in victory over sin and

Satan; he (2) gives the word of his

testimony in affirming his attitude to

sin and Satan, and the sure, certain

victory through Christ; and (3) he lives

in the Calvary spirit, with his life

surrendered to do the will of God, even

unto death.

 

      PRAYER AND PERSONAL CONFLICT

 

        Closely bound up with the

wrestling of the spirit is the necessity

of prayer. Not so much the prayer of

petition to a Father, as the prayer of

one joined in spirit with the Son of

God, with the will fused with His (see

John 15:7), declaring to the enemy the

authority of Christ over all their power

(Ephesians 1:20-23).

 

        Sometimes the believer has to

"wrestle" in order to pray; at other

times to pray in order to wrestle. If he

cannot "fight" he must pray, and if he

cannot pray he must "fight". For

example, if the believer is conscious of

a weight on his spirit, he must get rid

of the weight by refusing all the

"causes" of the weight; for it is

necessary to keep the spirit unburdened

to fight, and to retain power of

detection. The delicate spirit-sense

becomes dull under "weights" or pressure

upon it, hence the enemy's ceaseless

tactics to get "burdens" or pressure on

the spirit, unrecognized as from the

foe, or else recognized and allowed to

remain.

 

        The man may feel "bound up" and

the cause be in others, i.e. (1) no open

spirit or open mind in another to

receive from the spirit and mind of the

one who feels bound up; (2) no capacity

in the other to receive any message of

truth;  <136>  (3) some thought in the

mind of the other, checking the flow

from the spirit.

 

        If in the morning the believer

finds a "weight" or heaviness on his

spirit, and it is undealt with, he is

sure to lose the position of victory

through the day. In dealing with weight

on the spirit, the moment it is

recognized, the believer must at once

act in spirit, and (1) stand (Ephesians

6:14); (2) withstand (Ephesians 6:13);

and resist (James 4:7) the powers of

darkness. Each of these positions means

spirit-action, for these words do not

describe a "state" or an "attitude"

(which is mainly an attitude of the

will), or an act by soul or body.

 

        To "stand" is a spirit-action

repelling an aggressive move of the

enemy; to "withstand" is to make an

aggressive move against them; and to

"resist" is actively to fight with the

spirit, as a man "resists" with his body

another who is physically attacking him.

 

         THE WILES OF THE DEVIL

 

        The word "wiles" in the original

means "methods", and bears in its varied

forms the thought of "craft", or

artifice; to "work by method", to

over-reach, to outwit, to go in pursuit;

also the thought of system, or a way, or

a method of doing things.

 

        Satan's war on the saints can be

summed up in the one word, "wiles of the

devil". He does not work in the open but

always behind cover. The methods of the

deceiving spirits are adapted to each

one, with a skill and cunning gained by

years of experience. Generally the wiles

are primarily directed against the mind,

or "thoughts", and apart from yielding

to known sin, most of the workings of

Satan in a believer's life may be traced

back to a wrong thought or belief,

admitted into the mind, and not

recognized to be from deceiving spirits,

e.g., if a believer only thinks and

believes that all that Satan does is

manifestly bad, Satan has only to clothe

himself with "good" to gain full

credence with that man. The war,

therefore, is a war of deceit and

counterfeit, and only those can stand

against the wiles of the deceiver, who

seek the fullest truth from God, about

God, Satan and themselves.

 

     KNOWING THE WILES OF THE DEVIL

 

        The Apostle Paul said that the

believer was to be able to stand against

the wiles of the devil, and that he was

to put on the  <137>  whole armor for

doing this. How can a man stand against

a wile, if he does not know what the

wile is?  There is a difference between

temptation and wiles; between the

principles and working of Satan and his

emissaries, and their wiles; i.e., they

themselves are tempters. Temptation is

not a wile. A wile is the way they

scheme to tempt. Paul did not say that

the believer must stand against

"temptations" or lies, or mention any

other specific characteristic of evil

spirits; but he must be "able to stand"

against their wiles. The spiritual man

is to be on guard lest he is caught by

their wiles. If they can be detected,

then their objective can be frustrated

and destroyed. The spiritual man needs

the fullest concentration and sagacity

of mind for reading quickly his spirit

sense, and detecting the active

operations of the foe; he also requires

alertness in using the message his

spirit conveys to him. A spiritual

believer ought to be able to read the

sense of his spirit, with the same

instinctive adroitness as a person

recognizes the physical sense of cold

when he feels a draught, and immediately

uses his mental intelligence for

actively protecting himself from it.

[See 1_John 5:18 AV.]  So the spiritual

man needs to use his spirit sense in

locating and dislodging the foe by

prayer.

 

        Again, an "objective" and a

"wile" are quite distinct. The wile is a

means used by the foe to gain an

objective. The evil spirits must use

"wiles" to carry out their objective.

Their objective is deception, but their

"wiles" will be counterfeits. They are

liars, but how can they succeed in

getting their lies into the mind of a

man? They do not need wiles to make

themselves liars, but they need the wile

to get the lie accepted by the believer.

 

        The wiles of the devil and his

emissaries are countless, and fitted to

the believer. If he is to be moved by

suffering from any course of action

detrimental to their interests, they

will play upon his sympathies by the

suffering they cause to one near and

dear to him; or if he shrinks from

suffering in himself, they will work

upon this to make him change his course.

To those who are naturally sympathetic,

they will use the counterfeit of love;

those who can be attracted by

intellectual things will be drawn from

the spiritual sphere by being driven to

over study, or be given mental

attractions of many kinds. Whilst

others, who are over sensitive and

conscientious,  <138>  may be constantly

charged with blame for apparently

continuous failure. The lying spirits

lash the person for what they themselves

do, but if the believer understands how

to refuse all blame from them, he can

use their very doings as a weapon

against them.

 

       THE ARMOR FOR THE CONFLICT

 

        For this conflict with the

powers of darkness the believer must

learn experimentally how to take and use

the armor for the battle, described by

the apostle in Ephesians 6. The

objective in Ephesians 6 is clearly not

victory over sin -- this is assumed --

but VICTORY OVER SATAN. The call is not

to the world, but to the church. A call

to stand in armor; to stand in the evil

day; to stand against the powers of

darkness; to stand after accomplishing

the work of overthrowing them -- "having

overcome all", verse 13 AV.m. -- by the

strength given of God.

 

        The armor in detail, as set

forth in Ephesians 6, is provided that

the child of God should be ABLE to

stand" against the wiles of the devil;

clearly showing that a believer can be

made able to conquer all the

principalities and powers of hell, if he

fulfils the necessary conditions, and

uses the armor provided for him.

 

        It must be a REAL ARMOR if it is

provided for meeting a REAL FOE, and it

must demand a REAL KNOWLEDGE of it on

the part of the believer; to whom the

FACT of the provision, the FACT of the

foe, and the FACT of the fight, must be

as REAL FACTS as any other facts

declared in the Scriptures. The armored

and non-armored believer may be briefly

contrasted as follows:

 

THE ARMORED CHRISTIAN:

 

Armored with truth.

Righteousness of life.

 

Making and keeping peace.

Self-preservation* and control.

Faith as a shield.

Scriptures in the hand.

 

Prayer without ceasing.

 

*[Root meaning of the word "salvation"

in Ephesians 6:17.]

 

THE NON-ARMORED CHRISTIAN

 

Open to lies, through ignorance.

Unrighteousness through

        ignorance.

Divisions and quarrels.

Reckless unwatchfulness.

Doubt and unbelief.

Relying on reason instead of

        God's Word.

Relying on work without prayer.  <139>

 

        The believer who takes up the

whole armor of God as a covering and

protection against the foe, must himself

walk in victory over the enemy. He must

have (1) his spirit indwelt by God to

stand unshaken, and be given

continuously a "supply of the Spirit of

Jesus" to keep his spirit sweet and

pure; (2) his mind renewed (Romans 12:2)

so that he has his understanding filled

with the light of truth (Ephesians

1:18), displacing Satan's lies, and

destroying the veil with which Satan

once held it; the mind clarified so that

he intelligently understands what the

will of the Lord is; (3) his body

subservient to the Spirit (1_Corinthians

9:25), and obedient to the will of God

in life and service.

 

[Note. For further light on

'temptation', and 'accusation' it is

suggested that John Bunyan's "GRACE

ABOUNDING TO THE CHIEF OF SINNERS"

should be studied.]

 

@09

<140>

 

                APPENDIX

 

THE ATTITUDE OF THE EARLY FATHERS

TO EVIL SPIRITS

 

        TERTULLIAN says, in his Apology

addressed to the Rulers of the Roman

Empire:

        "... Let a person be brought

before your tribunals who is plainly

under demoniacal possession. The wicked

spirit, BIDDEN TO SPEAK BY A FOLLOWER OF

CHRIST, will as readily make the

truthful confession that he is a demon,

as elsewhere he has falsely asserted

that he is a god. Or, if you will, let

there be produced one of the

god-possessed, as they are supposed --

if they do not confess, IN THEIR FEAR OF

LYING TO A CHRISTIAN, that they are

demons, then and there shed the blood of

that most impudent follower of Christ.

        ~"All the authority and power we

have over them is from our naming the

Name of Christ, and recalling to their

memory the woes with which God threatens

them at the hand of Christ their Judge,

and which they expect one day to

overtake them. Fearing Christ in God and

God in Christ, they become subject to

the servants of God and Christ. So at

one touch and breathing, overwhelmed by

the thought and realization of those

judgment fires, they leave at our

command the bodies they have entered,

unwilling and distressed, and before

your very eyes, put to an open

shame..."~

 

        JUSTIN MARTYR, in his second

Apology addressed to the Roman Senate,

says: "Numberless demoniacs throughout

the whole world and in your city, many

of our Christian men -- exorcising them

in the name of Jesus Christ Who was

crucified under Pontius Pilate -- have

healed and do heal, rendering helpless,

and driving the possessing demon out of

the men, though they could not be cured

by all other exorcists, and those who

use incantations and drugs."

 

        CYPRIAN expressed himself with

equal confidence. After having said that

they are evil spirits that inspire the

false prophets of the Gentiles, and

deliver oracles by always mixing truth

with falsehood to prove what they say,

he adds: "Nevertheless these evil

spirits adjured by the living God

IMMEDIATELY OBEY US, SUBMIT TO US, OUR

OWN POWER, and are forced to come out

of the bodies they possess..."

 

===

 

SYMPTOMS OF DEMON POSSESSION

Gleanings from "Demon Possession," by

Dr. J.L.Nevius

 

(1) The one under demon-power is an

involuntary victim. (The willing soul is

known as a medium.)

 

(2) The Chief characteristic of

demonomania is a distinct "other

personality" within. (This is different

to demon-influence, for in this men

follow their own wills, and retain their

own personality.)  <141>

 

(3) The demons have a longing for a body

to possess (Matthew 7:43, 8:31), as it

seems to give them some relief, and they

enter the bodies of animals as well as

men. There are distinctly individual

peculiarities of the spirits.

 

(4) They converse through the organs of

speech, and give evidence of

personality, desire, fear.

 

(5) They give evidence of knowledge and

power not possessed by the subject. In

Germany, Pastor Blumhardt gives

instances of demons speaking in all the

European languages, and in some

languages unrecognizable. In France

there were some cases having the "gift

of tongues", speaking in German, Latin,

Arabic.

 

(6) The demon in possession of the body,

entirely changes the moral character of

those they enter, compelling them to act

entirely contrary to their normal

behavior. Reserved, reticent men will

weep, sing, laugh, talk, meek souls will

rage, ordinarily pure-tongued men and

women will speak of things not to be

named among children of God and act in

manner and conduct contrary to their

normal dignity and behavior -- all of

which they are not responsible for

whilst under "control" of this other

personality within them. In brief, they

will exhibit traits of character utterly

different from those which belong to

them normally.

 

(7) There are also nervous and muscular

symptoms peculiar to demon possession in

the body.

 

(8) There is also an afflatus of the

breast, which is a special mark of demon

possession, and

 

(9) Oracular utterances are given in

jerks and sentences, quite unlike the

calm coherent sequence of language seen

in the utterances of the apostles at

Pentecost.

 

(10) There is "levitation" of the body

-- well known by spiritists -- when the

subject will say he is quite unconscious

of possessing a body -- and THERE IS

INVARIABLY A PASSIVE MIND. There is

often a distinct voice which speaks

through the lips of the subject

expressing thoughts, and words

unintentionally.

 

===

 

DEMONIACAL ACTIVITY IN LATER TIMES

From "Spirit Manifestations", by Sir

Robert Anderson

 

        The Gospels testify to the

activity of demons during the ministry

of Christ on earth; and the Epistles

warn us of a RENEWAL OF DEMONIACAL

ACTIVITY in the "latter times", before

His return. "All Scripture is

God-breathed"; but it would seem that

sometimes the revelation was made with

special definiteness, and this

particular warning is prefaced by the

words: "the Spirit saith EXPRESSLY". And

it relates not to any new development of

moral evil in the world, but to a new

apostasy in the professing Church, a

cult promoted by "seducing spirits" of a

highly sensitive spirituality, and a

more fastidious morality than

Christianity itself will sanction

(1_Timothy 4).

 

        The Gospel narrative indicates

that SOME demons were base and filthy

spirits that exercised a brutalizing

influence upon their victims. But the

Lord plainly indicated that these were a

class apart ("THIS KIND" Mark 9:29).

They were all "unclean spirits", but in

Jewish use the word AKATHARTOS connoted

SPIRITUAL defilement. That it did not

imply moral  <142>  pollution is proved

by the fact that the Lord Jesus was

charged with having a demon, though not

even His most malignant enemies ever

accused Him of moral evil. It was only

by prayer that these filthy spirits

could be cast out; whereas pious demons

acknowledged Christ, and came out when

His disciples commanded them to do so in

His name...

 

===

 

THE PHYSIOLOGY OF THE SPIRIT

Gleanings from "Primeval Man unveiled",

by James Gall

 

        "The natural body has its

senses, the spirit also has its senses.

..."

 

        "There are busy senses within,

examining and judging, approving and

condemning, joying and grieving, hoping

and fearing, after a fashion of their

own, which no bodily sense can imitate.

..."

 

        "There is a spirit within which

we call ourselves, and it is perfectly

distinct from the body in which we

dwell. ..."

 

        "If our spirits, which are

generated in or with our bodies, are

elaborated from immaterial substances

into separate existences, constituting

individual spirits... these individual

spirits must be presumed to be composed

of spirit substance or substances, and

possessed of different faculties. ..."

 

        "Our very language implies that

the human spirit is an organism composed

of parts mutually related, which, though

individually different, are generically

the same. ..."

 

        "It is a well established

doctrine of Scripture, that the body is

animated by an intelligent and immortal

spirit, that feels and acts by means of

its material mechanism, without being

itself material..."

 

===

 

THE WORKING OF EVIL SPIRITS IN

"CHRISTIAN" GATHERINGS

 

(1) SUPPOSED "CONVICTION OF SIN" BY

DECEIVING SPIRITS

 

        ...I united with a number of

brethren and sisters one whole week

every month, in prayer to God to pour

out more of His Spirit, gifts and power.

After having done this for some time

with great earnestness, such powerful

and wonderful manifestations of God and

His Holy Spirit (apparently) took place,

that we no longer doubted God had heard

our prayer, and His Spirit had descended

into our midst, and on our gathering.

Amongst other things this spirit, which

we thought to be the Holy Spirit, used a

fifteen-year-old girl as his instrument,

through whom everyone belonging to our

gathering, and having any sin or burden

of conscience, had it revealed to the

gathering. Nobody could remain in the

meeting with any burden of conscience

without it being revealed to the meeting

by this spirit. For example: a gentleman

of esteem and respect from the

neighborhood came to the meeting, and

all his sins were exposed in the

presence of the gathering by the

fifteen-year-old girl. Thereupon he took

me into an adjoining room, so broken

down, and admitted to me, with tears,

that he had committed all these sins

which the girl had exposed. He confessed

this and all other sins known to him.

Then he came again into the meeting, but

hardly had he entered when the same

voice said to him, "Ha! you have not

confessed all yet, you have stolen ten

gulden, that you have not confessed". In

<143>  consequence, he took me again

into the adjoining room and said, "It is

true, I have also done this. ..." This

man had never seen this fifteen-year-old

girl in his life, neither she him.

 

        With such events, was it

astonishing that a spirit of holy awe

came over all at the meeting, and there

was one controlling note which can only

be expressed in the words, "Who among us

shall dwell with the devouring fire? Who

among us shall dwell with everlasting

burnings? Fearfulness hath surprised the

hypocrites." There was a most earnest

spirit of adoration, and who could doubt

when even the strong were broken down,

and nobody dared remain in the meeting

if they were a hindrance.

 

        And, yet we had to unmask this

spirit which had brought about these

things -- and which we took to be the

Holy Ghost -- as a terrible power of

darkness. I had such an uneasy feeling

of distrust which could not be overcome.

... As I made this known for the first

time to an older brother and friend ...

he said, "Brother Seitz, if you continue

to foster unbelief, you can commit the

sin against the Holy Ghost which will

never be forgiven." These were terrible

days and hours for me, because I did not

know whether we had to do with the power

of God or a disguised spirit of Satan,

and one thing only was clear to me,

viz., that I and this meeting should not

let ourselves be led by a spirit when we

did not have clear light, and

confirmation whether this power was from

above or below. Thereupon I took the

leading brethren and sisters to the

uppermost room of the house, and made

known to them my position, and said we

must all cry and pray that we may be

able to prove whether it was a power of

light or darkness.

 

        As we came downstairs the voice

of this power said, using the

fifteen-year-old girl as his instrument,

"What is this rebellion in your midst?

You will be sorely punished for your

unbelief". I told this voice that it was

true we did not know with whom we had

dealings. But we wanted to be in that

attitude, that if it was an angel of

God, or the Spirit of God, we would not

sin against Him, but if it was a devil

we would not be deceived by him. "If you

are the power of God, you will be in

accord as we handle the Word of God."

"Try the spirits whether they be of

God." We all knelt down and cried and

prayed to God in such earnestness, that

He would have mercy upon us, and reveal

to us in some manner, whom we had

dealings with. Then the power had to

reveal itself of its own accord. Through

the person which he had been using as

his instrument he made such abominable

and terrible grimaces, and shrieked in

such a piercing tone, "Now I am found

out, now I am found out. ..."

 

(2) SUPPOSED UNITY FOR "REVIVAL"

 

        For some time now it has been on

my mind to try to put into language some

of the things which it has been my

painful experience to witness, and pass

through, in connection with the workings

of Satan as an "angel of light", but

everything seemed so complicated and

confused. ...

 

        First, his attacks seem to be

made upon the most spiritual souls --

those who have made the fullest

surrender to God, and who recognize a

spiritual affinity, which they believe

if broken, mars the whole purpose of God

(1 Cor. 1.10). The lying spirit insists

on one mind, and judgment, and one

expression. These souls thus "joined"

form the "Assembly", so called, and

claim Psalm 89.7. Everything is brought

into the "Assembly" for decision, the

assertion being that no  <144>

INDIVIDUAL soul can get the mind of the

Lord, based on Proverbs 11.14, 5.22, and

20.18. Hours were spent in bringing the

tiniest details of daily life before the

Lord. The leader spread each matter,

asking that all might be brought to one

mind. The response was then given by

each one in some word of Scripture. The

attitude taken to receive the supposed

"word of the Lord", was the RESISTANCE

OF ANY THOUGHT OR REASON, and LETTING

THE MIND BECOME A PERFECT BLANK. If

anyone ventured to give an opinion -- or

any judgment -- they were ruled out of

fellowship; the fact of reasoning being

the proof of the "flesh-life".

 

        The discipline ministered to

such was severe indeed. They were not

allowed to speak to anyone, or to do any

kind of work. In some cases this lasted

for weeks, and even months. The effect

upon the mind was very terrible. The

only way back was by making a statement

in the "Assembly" which satisfied them

that there was true repentance. ...

         Proverbs 21.4, and Isaiah 59.3

are the words given for not working, and

Romans 8.8. Prayer and reading the word

 -- all adds to sin -- consequently the

soul is shut up in torment and despair,

being excluded from all meetings.

 

        Second. The "manifestation of

the Spirit" in prophecy, prayer and

travail. One person would often pray for

an hour, and sometimes two hours,

without a break. Messages, too, would

often last for two hours, and the whole

meeting for eight or nine hours. Anyone

yielding to sleep or exhaustion, was at

once pronounced "in the flesh", and a

hindrance to the meeting.

 

        "Travail" was manifested by

tears, groans and twisting of the body;

and with some it was exactly like

hysterics, and would last for hours.

This was greatly encouraged as the means

whereby God would work for the

deliverance of souls -- and those who

did not come under this manifestation,

were judged as preserving their own

life, not willing to "let go" -- lovers

of themselves; and it was believed that

when the whole company were unitedly

under the so-called "manifestation of

the Spirit" then God would break through

in Revival. I might say here, that all

this began with a nightly prayer meeting

for Revival, with no limit as to time.

 

        The paralyzing fear of resisting

God by any lack of submission, and

evading the Cross by an unwillingness to

suffer, just sways the soul; and it dare

not yield to one thought contrary to the

"mind of Christ" in the "Assembly. ..."

 

(3) SUPPOSED MANIFESTATIONS OF THE HOLY

SPIRIT

        From a book recently published,

said to contain the very words of the

Lord Jesus, spoken THROUGH some of His

children, and written down as spoken in

the first person, the following brief

extract is taken, showing the extent of

the mediumistic control by deceiving

spirits, which by some are believed to

be the work of the Holy Spirit. *[This

book is circulating amongst deeply

devoted believers, and is held by some

as of equal value to the Bible.]

 

        THE LORD JESUS IS SUPPOSED TO

HAVE SAID:

 

        "The manifestations of the

Spirit, in some things, are very

strange. Sometimes He will twist the

body this way, and that, and the meaning

is dark to you. I want you to know some

things about this part of the Spirit's

work. I want you to see that they are

not useless.  <145>

 

        "If you had spoken in your own

tongue, when the Spirit came in, it

would have graciously blessed you; but

perhaps you might have thought it was

YOURSELF, as many have. So the Spirit

comes in and speaks in an unknown tongue

to you, that you might know that it was

NOT YOURSELF SPEAKING...

 

        "Your hands He has often lifted

up, and again He has raised your fingers

in various ways. Your eyes open and shut

by the Spirit now, as they did not

before. Your very head has been shaken

by the Spirit, and you have not known

why He did this. You have thought

sometimes, it was just to show He was

living there, and that is true, but

there is more in it than that, and He

will show you as well as He can, in a

few words, what some of these things

are. ...

 

        "Some things in the

manifestations are very peculiar to you.

You have gone on wondering about them.

Don't think it strange that the Spirit

works in you in many ways. His work is

more than two-fold work. It is manifold.

This is puzzling many minds. They see

the Spirit shaking. They hear Him

singing. They FEEL HIM LAUGHING, and

they are sometimes TRIED WITH HIS

VARIOUS TWISTINGS AND JERKINGS, AS

THOUGH HE WOULD TEAR THEM TO PIECES.

 

        "Sometimes it seems He is

imitating the animals in various sounds

and doings. This has been all a mystery

to the saints. His work, I say, is

manifold. He seeks, in some, to show

them that they are all one with each

other, in the whole creation... If He

shows you, by making a noise as of some

wild animal, that you are LIKE THAT, you

must not despise His way of working, for

the Holy Spirit knows why He does it. He

makes these noises in the animals, can't

He make them in you?"

 

===

 

LIGHT ON "ABNORMAL" EXPERIENCES*

  *[From _The Overcomer_ of 1920.]

Extract from a book published in Germany

by Pastor Ernst Lohmann. Translated from

the German.

 

        Just as in a caricature the

outstanding features of the true picture

are to be found, so that a likeness is

unmistakable, so phenomena which we find

in heathen systems, in theosophy

so-called, or new Buddhism, in

spiritism, etc., resemble to some extent

the Divine manifestations called forth

by the working of the Holy Spirit upon

the spirit of man. They also produce

revelations and prophecies, speaking and

singing with tongues, healing and

miracles. It is of importance that we

should study this subject to find an

answer to the question as to HOW THESE

PHENOMENA ARE BROUGHT ABOUT. It is

self-evident that they are not

manifestations of the Holy Spirit. The

numerous and exact investigations which

are being made in our day into the

subject are giving us increasing insight

into this dark realm. Powers and

possibilities have been discovered in

man, which until now have been totally

unsuspected. They are designated

"subliminal powers", and we speak of

"subconsciousness".  **

 

** [J. Grasset, "Le Psychisme

Infreriur," 1906, writes: "Psychical

proceedings fall into two groups; (1)

those of a higher order -- conscious,

volitional, free;  (2) those of a lower

class -- unconscious, mechanical,

involuntary". On this subject Dr. Naum

Kotik says in "The Emanation of Psycho-

physical Energy":  "Under ordinary

conditions in the activity of the brain,

the sub-consciousness hardly makes

itself felt, and for this reason we have

no suspicion of its existence. There are

conditions of the psyche, however, such

as somnambulism, in which the

subconsciousness comes to the front,

takes over the complete control, and

forces the super-consciousness back into

the position in which it (viz., the sub-

consciousness) rightfully belongs. The

actions which attest the activity of the

sub-consciousness independently of the

super-consciousness, are usually termed

automatic."      <146>

 

What physical occurrences accompany

these phenomena? The lower nerve-centers

(the ganglionic system, or the

"vegetative" nerves, as they are

called), which have their chief seat in

the region round the pit of the stomach,

are excited to increased activity. At

the same time the central region of the

hither nervous system (the cerebral

system), which in a normal state of

affairs is the medium of conscious

perception and action, becomes

paralyzed. There is a reversal of the

order of nature. The lower nerves take

over the duty of the higher ones (a sort

of compensation). This state of things

comes to pass NEGATIVELY by the higher

organ losing its natural supremacy under

pressure of illness, or artificially by

hypnotism, auto-suggestion, etc.; and

POSITIVELY by the lower nerves being in

some way EXCITED ARTIFICIALLY to

increased activity, whereby they get the

upper hand. These nerves then display

abilities which our ordinary organs of

sense do not possess, they receive

impressions from a realm usually closed

to us, such as clairvoyance,

presentiments, prophecy, speaking with

tongues, etc.

 

        The Mohammedan sooth-sayer,

Dschalal-Ed-Dinrumi, describes the

trance-state, as follows: "My eyes are

closed, and my heart is at the open

gate". Anna Katharina Emmerich

(1774-1824): "I see the light, not with

my eyes, but it is as though I saw it

with my HEART (with the nerves which

have their seat in the pit of the

stomach) ...that which is actually

around me I see dimly with my eyes like

one dozing and beginning to dream; my

second sight is drawing me forcibly, and

is clearer than my natural sight, but it

does not take place through my eyes..."

When in a state of somnambulism, the

inner sense, heightened in its activity,

perceives outward things as clearly and

more so than when awake, when it

recognizes tangible objects with eyes

tightly closed and absolutely unable to

see, just as well as by sight; this

takes place, according to the unanimous

declaration of all somnambulists,

through the pit of the stomach, i.e.,

through the nerves, which have their

seat in this region ... And it is from

this part that the nerves are set in

action which move the organs of speech

(in speaking with tongues, etc.)...

 

        Numberless cases of false

mysticism through all the centuries of

Church History display the same

characteristics, the sub-consciousness

being always the medium of such

perception and functions. They are

morbid, coming under the garb of Divine

manifestations to lead souls astray.

Now, it is very significant that

according to the assertions of the

leaders, it is an activity of the

SUB-CONSCIOUSNESS that we meet with in

the "Pentecostal Movement" (so called).

We read in a report of an "International

Pentecostal Conference":

 

        "On Tuesday, a PASTOR introduced

the discussion. The main topic  <147>

was the working of the sub-conscious

mind in messages and prophecy. Much

confusion prevailed concerning the

relation of our consciousness to our

sub-consciousness. The Scriptural

discrimination was preferable (1 Cor.

14.14-15), where they were spoken of as

'understanding' and 'spirit'."

 

        "When Christ lives in us He

lives in our hearts and in the heart are

two chambers. In one room lives the

conscience and through the conscience I

can know that Christ lives in me. In the

other room of my heart is the the

sub-consciousness, and there also Christ

lives. We look at 1 Cor. 14.14, 'For if

I pray in a tongue my spirit prayeth but

my understanding is unfruitful'."

 

        Notice the expression "my

spirit" (my sub-conscious mind), and

also the expression "my understanding",

i.e., "When my spirit prays in tongues,

my SUB-CONSCIOUS MIND prays!"

 

        In the Declaration of the Second

Mulheim "Pentecostal Conference",

September 15th, 1909, we read:

 

        "In 1 Cor. 14.14 (Luther's

translation) Paul makes a distinction

between the understanding and the spirit

of man. By the word understanding he

means the conscious, and by the word

spirit the unconscious spiritual life,

life of man. In this UNCONSCIOUS

spiritual life -- in modern language

also termed 'sub-consciousness' --God

has placed the gift of speaking with

tongues and prophecy. ..."

 

        According to this, THE SPIRITUAL

LIFE OF THE BELIEVER IS SYNONYMOUS WITH

THE SUBCONSCIOUSNESS OF THE

SOMNAMBULIST. And the more highly

developed this sub-consciousness is in

any individual, the more highly

developed would be their spiritual life.

Just try substituting the word

sub-consciousness in those passages

where the Scripture speaks of the spirit

of man; for example Psalms 51.17, Ps.

77.6, Isaiah 66.2, Acts 7.59, Acts 18.5,

Acts 20.22, Romans 1.9, Romans 2.29,

Romans 8.16, 1 Corinthians 2.11, 1 Cor.

4.21, 1 Cor. 5.5, Galatians 6.1, Gal.

6.18, Ephesians 4.23, 1 Thessalonians

5.23.

 

        Those in whom the sub-

consciousness becomes active in the

manner described above, feel as it were

an electric stream passing through the

body, which is an EXCITING OF THE

NERVES, which have their central seat in

the pit of the stomach. It is from

thence that the jaws are moved in

speaking with tongues.

 

        One of the leaders of the

"Pentecostal Movement", in describing

the process of this so-called Baptism of

the Spirit in his body, made use of the

singular comparison that it seemed to

him as though there were in his body an

inverted bottle. The simile was

incomprehensible to me, but this way of

expressing it was most strikingly

illuminated when I find an almost

identical expression used by a

Mohammedan sooth-sayer. Tewekkul Beg, a

pupil of Mollah Schah, was receiving

instruction from his master as to how he

could get into the ecstatic state. He

says: "After he had bound my eyes ... I

saw something in my inner being

resembling a FALLEN TUMBLER ... When

this object was placed upright a feeling

of limitless bliss filled my being."

 

        This feeling of bliss is another

characteristic feature of this class of

occurrences. By exciting the lower

nervous system a feeling of intense

rapture is regularly produced .. At

first we find connected with it usually,

involuntary contraction of the muscles

and movement of the limbs, in

consequence of the unnatural inversion

of the nervous system.   <148>

 

        Pastor Paul again says:

 

        "If anyone is to prophesy in the

way I have now learnt, God must be able

to move the mouth of the one

prophesying, as He formerly moved the

mouth of Balaam's ass. The ass

understood nothing of the words which

she spoke, she only said what she was to

say. There is a danger in uttering

things we understand. It is so easy to

mix in one's own thoughts, and then to

utter what one thinks. This occurs

without our intending it in the least.

That is the reason why God trains His

prophets in so preparing them that they

utter exactly what the Spirit gives

them. Speaking in strange tongues is a

good preliminary school.

 

        "There one learns to speak as

the mouth is moved. One speaks without

knowing what one is saying by simply

following the position of the month.

Jest so in prophecy; there, too, one

speaks as led by the position of the

mouth. Speaking with tongues and

prophesying are both on the same

principle."

 

        It is evident that in these

phenomena we have the exact opposite of

what the Scriptures understand by the

communication of the Spirit. When the

Spirit of God takes possession of the

spirit of man, HE IS BROUGHT BACK TO A

NORMAL CONDITION; the SPIRIT acquires

the full authority given it by the

Creator over the powers of the soul, and

through the soul over the body. The

conscious personal life is once more

completely under the authority of the

spirit. The dependency upon God, which

man sought to break off, in his mania

for exalting himself by setting his

reason, his emotions, or the flesh upon

the throne, is restored again. The

Spirit of God can exercise once more His

controlling and quickening power. The

deeds of the flesh are put to death by

the Spirit, the powers and the gifts of

the Spirit developed, the man becomes

spiritual, full of the Holy Spirit."

 

        NOTE BY MRS. PENN-LEWIS

 

        The light given by Herr Lohmann

will open the eyes of many perplexed

believers, and give them intelligent

understanding of much that has

distressed them, and caused painful

division among the most devoted children

of God. It will also confirm the

statements we have made concerning the

working of evil spirits in the

CIRCUMFERENCE of a believer, at the very

same time that, up to the extent of his

CONSCIOUSNESS, he may know nothing

against himself before the Lord; for

Satan and his emissaries are well aware

of the laws of the human frame, and work

along their line, arousing and exciting

the natural life, under the guise of its

being spiritual.

 

        The false conception of

"surrender" as yielding the BODY to

supernatural power, with the MIND

ceasing to act, is the highest subtlety

of the enemy, and is exposed as such in

this book, for it brings about -- as

Herr Lohmann explains -- the paralysis

of the "cerebral" systems, i.e., the

action of the mind, and allows the

"vegetative nerves" full control and

activity, excited by EVIL SPIRITS, for

the Holy Spirit dwells in, and ACTS

THROUGH THE SPIRIT of man, and not

through either nerve center, which have

both to be under the control of the

spirit.

 

        We have also pointed out again

and again that "claiming the blood"

cannot protect us from the enemy if in

any way he is given ground, e.g., if the

cerebral nerves cease to act by "letting

the mind go blank" (!) and the

vegetative nerves are awakened to act in

their place, so that the latter are

excited to give "thrills" and "streams

of life" through  <149>  the body, no

claiming of the precious blood of Christ

will prevent these physical laws acting

when the conditions for action are

fulfilled. Hence, the strange fact which

has perplexed many, that abnormal

experiences manifestly contrary to the

Spirit of God, have taken place whilst

the person was earnestly repeating words

about the "blood".

 

        Moreover, the arousing of the

"vegetative nerves" to such abnormal

activity that "floods of life" have

appeared to pour through the whole body

-- the enemy whispering at the same

moment, "THIS IS DIVINE" -- (1) dulls

the mind and makes it inert in action,

(2) causes a craving in the recipient

for more of this "Divine" life, (3)

leads to the danger of ministration of

it to others, and all that follows as

this path is pursued in honest faith and

confidence of being "specially advanced"

in the life of God.

 

        Should any reading this discover

their own case depicted let them thank

God for knowledge of the truth, and (1)

simply reject by an attitude of will,

all that is not of God; (2) consent to

trust God in His word without any

"experiences"; (3) stand on Romans 6.11,

with James 4.7, in respect to the

Adversary. John 16.13, "Through the

Eternal Spirit.".

 

===

 

  HOW DEMONS ATTACK ADVANCED BELIEVERS

 

Extracts from an article contributed to

an American paper and reprinted in "The

Christian" some years ago. We do not

know the writer's name.

 

(1) THE MANIFESTATION OF DEMON POWER

 

        The agency of demons is always

brought more conspicuously into notice,

in proportion to the manifestation and

power of God's work among souls. When

the Son of God was manifest in the

flesh, it called forth the activity and

outspoken agency of demons more than

ever before.

 

(2) VARIOUS KINDS OF DEMONS

 

        Demons are of a multiplied

variety. They are of various types,

greater in diversity than human beings,

and these demons always seek to possess

a person congenial to them in some

characteristic. The Bible tells us of

unclean demons, with craft and fortune-

telling demons, of insanity, of

drunkenness, of gluttony, of idleness,

of wonder or miracle working, of

despotic demons, theological demons,

screeching and yelling demons. There are

demons that act more particularly on the

body, or some organ or appetite of the

body. There are others that act more

directly upon the intellect, or the

sensibilities, and emotions, and

affections. There are others of A HIGHER

ORDER THAT ACT DIRECTLY ON MAN'S

SPIRITUAL NATURE, upon the conscience,

or the spiritual perceptions. These are

the ones that act as angels of light,

and side-track and delude many who are

real Christians.

 

(3) HOW DEMONS FASTEN ON HUMAN BEINGS

 

        They seek out those whose

make-up and temperament is most

congenial to themselves, and then seek

to fasten themselves on to some part of

the body, or brain, or some appetite, or

some faculty of the mind, either the

reason, or imagination, or perception;

and when they get access, they bury

themselves into the very structure of

the person, so as  <150>  to identify

themselves with THE PERSONALITY of the

one they possess. In a great many

instances they do not get POSSESSION of

the individual, but obtain such a hold

on some part of the MIND as to torment

the person with periodical attacks of

something strange and abnormal, out of

all proportion to the general character

and make-up of the individual.

 

(4) THE OBJECT OF DEMONS SEEKING HUMAN

BEINGS

 

        These demons feed themselves on

the person with whom they are allied.

... There are allusions in Scripture,

and facts gathered from experience,

sufficient to prove that certain

varieties of demons live on the juices

in human blood. ...

 

(5) THE CLASS OF DEMONS WHICH ATTACK

ADVANCED CHRISTIANS

 

        There are religious demons, not

holy, but nevertheless religious, and

filled with a devilish form of religion

which is the counterfeit of true, deep

spirituality. These pseudo-religious

demons very rarely attack young

beginners, but they hover around persons

who ADVANCE INTO DEEPER EXPERIENCES, and

seek every opportunity to fasten

themselves upon the conscience, or the

spiritual emotions of persons of high

states of grace, and especially if they

are of a vivid or energetic temperament.

These are the demons that play havoc

among many professors of holiness. One

way they get hold of persons is as

follows: A soul goes through a great

struggle, and is wonderfully blessed.

Floods of light and emotion sweep

through the being. THE SHORE LINES ARE

ALL CUT. The soul is launched out into a

sea of extravagant experience. At such a

juncture these demons hover round the

soul, and make strange suggestions to

the mind of something odd, or

outlandish, or contrary to common sense

or decent taste. They make these

suggestions under the profession of

being the Holy Ghost. They fan the

emotions, and produce a strange,

fictitious exhilaration, which is SIMPLY

THEIR BAIT TO GET INTO SOME FACULTY OF

THE SOUL. ...

 

(6) SOME EXAMPLES OF HOW DEMONS TAKE

HOLD OF APPARENTLY SPIRIT-FILLED

CHRISTIANS

 

        A very holy and useful woman

says, that soon after receiving the

baptism of the Spirit, there came to her

one night in the church, a wild abnormal

impulse to throw the hymn-book at the

preacher, and run over the church

screaming; and it took all her will

power to keep her hand from throwing

that book, but she had common sense to

know that the Holy Spirit was not the

author of such a suggestion. If she had

yielded to that sudden feeling, it would

have likely given that fanatical demon

admission to her emotional nature and

ruined her life-work. She is a person

who knows the mighty demonstrations of

the Holy Spirit, and understands God

sufficiently to know He is not the

source of wild and indecent conduct. ...

 

        Another person said he felt like

rolling on the floor, and groaning and

pulling the chairs around, but he

distinctly perceived that the impulse to

do so had something wild in it; and a

touch of self-display contrary to the

gentleness and sweetness of Jesus; and,

as quick as he saw it was an attack of a

false spirit, he was delivered. But

another man had the same impulse, and

fell down groaning and roaring, beating

the floor with his hands and feet, and

the demon entered into him as the angel

of light, and got him to think that his

conduct was of the Holy Ghost, and it

became a regular habit in the meetings

he attended, until he would ruin every

religious meeting he was in. ...  <151>

 

(7) THE MOST DANGEROUS CLASS OF DEMONS

 

        It requires great humility to

try these spirits and detect the false

ones. Other demons in existence are

those pseudo pious ones who SOAR ROUND

THE HIGH ALTITUDES OF THE SPIRITUAL

LIFE, like eagles around great mountain

tops, and seek to fasten their talons

upon the lofty and conspicuous prey.

These are the demons of spiritual pride,

of religious ambition, of false

prophetic vision, of strained and

far-fetched illuminations, of wild

fantastic notions. These are the demons

that flit over the sunlit regions in the

land of canaan, and attack very seldom

any but ADVANCED BELIEVERS.

 

(8) SOME EFFECT OF DEMON INFLUENCE

 

        The effects of being influenced

by this sort of demons are manifold, and

plainly legible to a well-poised mind.

They cause people to run off into things

that are odd and foolish, unreasonable

and indecent. It leads them to adopt a

peculiar voice or twang, or unnatural

shouting, or some shaking of the body,

or such an influence is manifested by

peculiar heresies in the mind, of which

there is a nameless variety. It produces

A CERTAIN WILDNESS IN THE EYE, and

HARSHNESS in the voice. Such persons

invariably break the law of love, and

SEVERELY CONDEMN PEOPLE WHO DO NOT

CONFORM TO THEMSELVES. As a rule such

persons lose their flesh, for demoniac

possession is very wearing on the vital

forces and produces a terrible strain on

the heart and nervous system.

 

<152-153>

THE TRUE WORKINGS OF GOD, AND

COUNTERFEITS OF SATAN

 

        <reformatted from the facing

        pages in the printed book to

        alternating paragraphs in this

        etext edition.

T=True,

C=Counterfeit.>

 

"Knowledge and all discernment: so that

ye may prove the things that differ,

that ye may be sincere and void of

offence..." (Philippians 1.9-10,m.)

 

T 1. THE BAPTISM, OR FULLNESS OF THE

SPIRIT: Is a true baptizing into the

Body of Christ, and oneness with all the

members of the Body. Its special mark

and result is known in power to witness

for Christ, and in conviction of sin in

others, and their turning to God.

        The highest manifestation of the

Fullness of the Spirit is co-existent

with the use of the faculties and

self-control.

        There is but ONE reception of

the Holy Spirit: with many succeeding

experiences, developments, or new

crises, resultant on fresh acts of

faith, or apprehension of truth; various

believers having varied degrees of the

same Infilling of the Spirit, according

to individual conditions. The enduement

of power for service is often a definite

experience in many lives.

 

F 1. Counterfeit workings of evil

spirits may accompany a true reception

of the Fullness of the Holy Spirit, if

the believer "lets go" his mind into

"blankness", and yields his BODY up

PASSIVELY TO SUPERNATURAL POWER. As a

"blank mind" and "passive body" is

contrary to the condition for use

required by the Holy Spirit, and is the

primary condition necessary for evil

spirits to work, the anomaly is found in

the Holy Spirit responding to the law of

faith, and filling the man's spirit, at

the same time that evil supernatural

powers respond to the law of passivity

fulfilled in mind and body. They then

can produce in the SENSES

manifestations, which seem to be the

outcome of the Holy Spirit's entry to

the SPIRIT.

        The results of the counterfeit

manifestations are varied, and wide in

their ramifications, according to

individual conditions. The abstract

result is GREAT "manifestations" with

little real fruit; a spirit of division

from others, instead of unity, etc.,

etc.

 

T 2. THE PRESENCE OF GOD: Known in and

by the human spirit, through the Holy

Spirit. When He fills the atmosphere of

a room the SPIRIT of the man is

conscious of it, not his senses. The

faculties of those present are alert and

clear and they retain freedom of action.

The SPIRIT is made tender (Psalm 34.18),

and the will pliable to the will of God.

All the actions of a person moved by the

true and pure Presence of God are in

accord with the highest ideal of harmony

and grace.

 

C 2. The counterfeit of the Presence of

God is mainly felt upon the body, and by

the physical senses, in conscious

"fire", "thrills," etc. The counterfeit

of the "Presence" in the atmosphere is

felt by the senses of the body, as

"breath", "wind," etc., whilst the MIND

IS PASSIVE OR INACTIVE. The person

affected by this counterfeit "presence"

will be moved almost automatically to

actions he would not perform of his own

will, and with all his faculties in

operation. He may not ever remember what

he has done when under the "power" of

this "presence", just as a sleep-walker

knows nothing of his actions when in

that state. The inaction of the mind can

often be seen by the vacant look in the

eyes.

 

T 3. GOD IN AND WITH MAN IN THE SPIRIT:

John 14.23. The Father in heaven is

realized to be a real Father (Galatians

4.6), the Son a real Savior, the Holy

Spirit a real Person; manifested as One

IN THE SPIRIT of the believer, by the

Holy Spirit: with resulting effects as

in Romans 8.9-11.

 

C 3. Evil spirits counterfeit, as the

occasion serves them, each Person of the

Trinity, and can thus produce

manifestations given to the senses, in

which the real SPIRIT-SENSE may have no

part.

 

T 4. CHRIST MANIFESTED in the believer

by His Spirit, so that He is known as a

Living Person on the Throne in heaven,

and the believer joined in spirit to Him

there, with the result that Christ's

life and nature is imparted to him,

forming and building up in him a "new

creation" (Galatians 1.16, 4.19,

Colossians 1.27), the believer growing

up into Him in all things. [See

"Counterfeit" for difference between

turning inward to a subjective

manifestation, instead of relying upon

the Living Christ in heaven. The

reliance and fellowship with the

Glorified Christ draws the believer to

live out of himself (Ephesians 2.6), and

thus have a wider vision, and clearer

fellowship with all saints.]

 

C 4. Christ apparently manifested

inwardly as a "Person", to whom the soul

prays, or with whom he holds communion,

yet there is no real evidence of the

expression of the Divine nature, or true

growth of the Christ life, with a

deepening fellowship with the Christ in

heaven. On the contrary the Christ in

heaven seems far away. The counterfeit

centers and ends in an "experience"

which keeps the person introverted or

self-centered (spiritually).

 

T 5. CONSCIOUSNESS OF GOD: Felt in the

SPIRIT, and not by the physical senses.

 

C 5. "Consciousness" of "God" in BODILY

sensations, which feed the "flesh" and

overpower the true spirit-sense.

 

T 6. THE HOLINESS OF GOD: When realized

by the believer produces worship and

godly awe, with a hatred of sin. On the

ground of the blood of Calvary God draws

near to men, seeking their love, but His

presence does not terrorize.

 

C 6. Evil spirits counterfeit this by

giving a TERROR of God, which drives men

away from Him, or forces them into

actions of slavish fear, apart from the

use of the mind, and volition, in glad

voluntary obedience to Him.

 

<154-155>

 

T 7. SURRENDER TO GOD: Of spirit, soul

and body, is a simple yielding or

committal to Him of the whole man, to do

His will and be at His service. God asks

the full CO-OPERATION * of the man in

the intelligent use of all his

faculties. Romans 6.13.

        * ["Co-operation" versus

"control" is the distinction between the

true working of God in and with men, in

contrast to the working of evil

supernatural powers.]

 

C 7. Passive yielding of spirit, soul

and body to supernatural power, to be

moved automatically, in passive, blind

obedience, apart from the use of

volition or mind. Evil spirits desire

"CONTROL" of a man, and his passive

submission to them.

 

T 8. FELLOWSHIP WITH THE SUFFERINGS OF

CHRIST: The result of faithful witness

for Him, and in such "suffering", the

joy of the Spirit breaks forth in

SPIRIT. (Acts 5.41.)  The fruit of true

conformity to Christ's death in the

"fellowship of His sufferings" is seen

in life to others, and growth in

tenderness of spirit, and

Christ-likeness in character.

2_Corinthians 4.10-12.

 

C 8. "Suffering" caused by evil spirits

is characterized by a fiendish

acuteness, and is fruitless in result --

the victim being hardened instead of

mellowed by it. The demons can cause

anguished suffering in spirit, soul or

body. "Possession" manifested in

abnormal SUFFERING, may be the fruit of

(unconscious) acceptance of sufferings

caused by evil spirits, often under the

name of the "will of God".

 

T 9. TRUSTING GOD: A true faith given of

God in the spirit, having its origin in

Him without effort reckoning upon Him to

fulfil His written Word. Co-existence

with the full use of every faculty in

intelligent action. "Faith" is a fruit

of the Spirit and cannot be forced.

Galatians 5.22, 2 Corinthians 13.

 

C 9. "Trusting evil spirits" comes about

through trusting blindly some

supernatural words, or revelations,

supposed to come from God, which

produces a forced "faith", or faith

beyond the believer's true measure, the

result being actions which lead into

paths of trial never planned by God.

 

T 10. RELIANCE UPON GOD: An attitude of

the will, of trust and dependence upon

God, taking Him at His word, and

depending upon His character of

faithfulness.

 

C 10. Reliance upon evil spirits means a

PASSIVE leaning upon supernatural help

and experience, which draws the person

away from faith in God Himself, and from

active co-action with Him.

 

T 11. COMMUNION WITH GOD: fellowship IN

THE SPIRIT with Christ in the glory as

one spirit with Him. The consciousness

of this is in the SPIRIT (John 4.24)

only, and not in "feelings" in the

senses. See for conditions of true

communion with God, 1_John 1.5-7.

 

C 11. "Communion" with evil spirits may

take place by retiring within to enjoy

SENSE communion, in the "exquisite

feelings" which absorb and render the

soul incapable of the duties of life.

The "flesh" is fed by this spurious

spiritual "communion" as really as in

grosser ways.

 

T 12. WAITING ON GOD: The Spirit in

restful co-operation with the Holy

Spirit, waiting God's time to act, and

to fulfil His promises. The true waiting

upon God can be co-existent with the

keenest activity of mind and service.

 

C 12. A "waiting for the Spirit to

come",  in hours of prayer, which brings

those who "wait" into passivity, which

at last reaches a point of "seance"

conditions, followed by an influx of

lying spirits in manifestations.

 

T 13. PRAYING TO GOD: Having access to

the Holiest of all, on the ground of the

blood (Hebrews 10.19). Penetrating in

spirit through the lower heavens to the

Throne of Grace. Hebrews 4.14-16. True

"prayer" is not directed toward God as

WITHIN the believer, but to a Father in

heaven, in the Name of the Son, by the

Holy Spirit.

 

C 13. Praying to evil spirits comes

about by praying to "God" in the

atmosphere, or within, or possibly to

"pictures" of God in the mind; instead

of approaching the Throne of Grace

according to Hebrews 10.19.

 

T 14. ASKING GOD: An act of the will in

simple faith, making a transaction with

God in heaven, on the ground of His

written Word. "Answers to prayer" from

God are usually so unsensational and so

unobtrusive that the petitioner often

does not recognize the answer.

 

C 14. "Asking" evil spirits, by speaking

to some SUPERNATURAL PRESENCE in, or

around the person. The "answers" are

generally "dramatic", sensational,

calculated to over-awe the person, and

make him feel he is a wonderful

recipient of favor from on high.

 

T 15. GOD SPEAKING: Through His Word, by

His Spirit, IN THE SPIRIT and conscience

of the man, illuminating the mind to

understand the will of the Lord.

 

C 15. Evil spirits speaking, either

puffing up, accusing, condemning or

confusing the person, so that he is

bewildered or distracted and CANNOT

EXERCISE HIS REASON OR JUDGMENT. The

"speaking" of accusing spirits resembles

the "thinking" or speaking to oneself,

when the words are not uttered audibly.

 

T 16. THE VOICE OF GOD: Is heard and

known IN THE SPIRIT of man, wherein the

Spirit of God dwells. God also speaks

through the conscience, and through the

written Word never confusing or dulling

the faculties of the man, or perplexing

him so as to hinder clearness of

judgment and reason. The true voice of

God does not make a DEMAND of

unreasoning obedience to it,

irrespective of the man's free volition.

 

C 16. The counterfeit "voice" of God is

usually loud and comes from outside the

person. It is frequently imperative and

persistent, urging to sudden action.

Confusing and clamorous, or subtle in

suggestion; producing FEAR through its

insistent demands, making the man a

slave to supernatural power. May also be

distinguished from the voice of God by

its sometimes trivial objective, and

fruitless results when obeyed.

 

<156-157>

 

T 17. DIVINE GUIDANCE: Through the

spirit and mind; i.e., "drawing" in

spirit, light in the mind: spirit and

mind brought into one accord in harmony

with the principles of the Word of God

(Ephesians 5.17; Philippians 1:9-11

AV.m.).

 

C 17. Satanic guidance by supernatural

voices, visions, leadings, drawings, are

all dependent upon the passivity of the

mind and reason, and take place in the

sense-realm as a counterfeit of the true

in the spirit.

 

T 18. DIVINE "LEADINGS": Are in the

spirit; demand co-operation of the man

in every faculty of mind, and spiritual

intelligence in correctly reading the

monitions of the Spirit. The WILL IS

ALWAYS LEFT FREE TO CHOOSE AND ACT. The

true "leading of the Spirit" is never

out of accord with principles of God's

Word.

 

C 18. Satanic "leadings" and impulses,

demand passive surrender of mind and

body. They are compulsory in effect, and

all "compelling" and "compulsion" from

the supernatural realm indicates the

work of deceiving spirits.

 

T 19. DIVINE "VISIONS": When given, come

(1) without seeking for them, (2) with

definite purpose, (3) are never

abortive, and (4) are co-existent with

active use of the mind and faculties.

 

C 19. Satanic visions (1) demand a

passive state, (2) are broken by mental

action, (3) are frequently contrary to

truth, and (4) fruitless in result.

Destroy all faith reliance on God.

 

T 20. OBEDIENCE TO GOD: An act of

deliberate will, choosing to do the will

of God, when made known to the believer.

A full examination of the SOURCE of the

command preceding intelligent decision

to obey, is co-existent with true

obedience.

 

C 20. Counterfeit of "obedience" is a

passive, automatic, blind yielding to

supernatural power or voices, apart from

intelligent apprehension of results or

consequences. The person fears to

question or EXAMINE the source of the

command.

 

T 21. GOD GIVING POWER: By the Holy

Spirit in the man's spirit,

strengthening him in spirit, so as to

energize his mind and every faculty of

his being to their fullest use, and

enabling him to endure and accomplish

what he could not bear or do apart from

God (Ephesians 3.16).

 

C 21. Evil spirits give power in a

supernatural energy -- generally

spasmodic and unreliable -- dependent

upon the man being passive in spirit,

soul and body. This "power", when it

ceases, leaves the man dull and

exhausted, the effect generally being

attributed to natural causes.

 

T 22. GOD GIVING INFLUENCE: Means that

the believer draws others to God, not to

himself. True Divine "influence" does

not "control" others automatically, but

constrains them to turn to God.

 

C 22. Evil spirits giving "influence",

means a control or power over others

which causes them to act apart from

their volition, or reason. This "power"

may be exercised unknowingly by persons

the demons can use in this way.

 

T 23. GOD GIVING "IMPRESSIONS": Means a

gentle movement IN THE SPIRIT, which

leaves the person free to act of his own

volition, and does not COMPEL him to

action. "Impressions from God" are

WITHIN in the shrine of the spirit; and

not from a "power" outside, e.g., in

"touches" on the body, or an exterior

compelling force.

 

C 23. Evil spirits' "impressions" are

from outside, UPON the person, and

require certain conditions for the

"impressions" to be given -- i.e., a

sitting still and waiting, etc. These

conditions can also be fulfilled

unconsciously by cultivating passivity

of the whole being.

 

T 24. DIVINE LIFE FROM GOD: Is known,

not by "consciousness", but RESULTS,

enabling the believer to bear and suffer

what he could not bear or suffer

humanly. There is rarely any "feeling"

of strength or life, because

consciousness of Divine life would draw

the man from the path of faith to rely

upon his experience.

 

C 24. "Life" in thrills, etc., given by

evil spirits, is known by its being in

the SENSES, giving pleasant sensations,

rather than true power. When it passes

away, the person is dulled or weakened,

and may go into spiritual darkness

through numbness of sensibilities, e.g.,

he says he is "like a stone".

 

T 25. DIVINE LOVE: Shed abroad in the

heart by the Holy Spirit, is co-existent

with keen and faithful dealing with sin;

with acute hatred to sin and Satan, and

all that is contrary to righteousness.

        God's love does not dull, but

energizes every faculty to fulfil the

action for which it was intended in

creation. It has no "craving" in it, nor

does it weaken those to whom it flows

out.

 

C 25. Counterfeit of the "love of God"

makes the recipient cover over sin,

compromise with it; dulls him to

keen-edged righteousness; makes him

incapable of true hatred to the things

that God hates, for the faculty which

"loves" is the faculty which hates.

        The counterfeit of love, whether

human or Divine, given by evil spirits,

grips the sensibilities with an

overmastering and painful "craving" for

its object.

 

T 26. FIRE FROM GOD: Is a purifying

through suffering (Matthew 3.11-12), or

a consuming zeal in spirit, which

deepens into white heat intensity to do

the will and work of God, which no

trials or opposition can quench. Fire

from God is spiritual, not literal, and

therefore falls upon the SPIRIT, not the

body.

 

C 26. "Fire" caused by evil spirits is

generally a glow in the body, which the

believer thinks is a manifestation of

"God" in "possession" of the body, but

afterwards results in darkness, dullness

and weakness with no reasonable cause;

or else it continues deceiving the

believer into counterfeit experiences.

 

T 27. TEXTS FROM GOD: These are given

through the organ of the spirit to the

mind, when the spirit is (1) calm,

(2) unstrained, (3) at liberty, (4) open

to the Spirit of God. They do not

confuse, and when acted upon are found

to be confirmed in Providence, and are

always in accord with the keen use of

the faculties. Intelligent knowledge of

the broad principles of Scripture is

needed for the true interpretation of

"texts" which arise in the spirit, lest

they be misused through human

conceptions of Divine things, e.g., the

MIND may take literally what God means

spiritually.

 

<158-159>

 

C 27. Texts from evil spirits "flash"

into the mind: rush with force; come

from without (audibly), or in the mental

sphere. They elate or crush, condemn or

puff up; confuse or turn out fruitless,

leading those who obey them into vain

actions, or into wreckage of

circumstances. Evil spirits give a false

"experience", and then "texts to confirm

it", whereas true experience confirms

the truth of the statements of the

written Word. Evil spirits make use of

all misconceptions of truth.

 

T 28. SIN FROM THE FALLEN NATURE: Is

from within, carries the will with it,

or else forces the will by its pressure.

The man knows the movement to sin is

sin, and yet yields to it. Romans

6.6,11-12 is God's way of dealing with

the fallen nature, and its workings, as

the believer stands on the ground of the

Cross, and wields Christ's finished

Calvary work as a weapon for victory.

The Holy Spirit bears witness to the

Cross in setting free from sin, when it

is the outcome of the evil nature.

 

C 28. Sin caused by e.s., apart from

temptation, is also within, BUT IS

FORCED into the spirit, mind or body,

against the desire of the man, and

should be recognized as distinctly not

of, or from himself, e.g., blasphemous

thoughts and unexplainable "feelings".

If the "sin" infused by demons is dealt

with as from the evil nature, although

the person stands on Romans 6.6,11, and

refuses it, no deliverance comes, but

when it is recognized as the work of

demons, and resisted on the ground of

the Cross, freedom is quickly given.

 

T 29. SELF-EXAMINATION IN THE LIGHT OF

GOD: A discrimination of his own actions

exercised by the SPIRITUAL man, which

does not produce "despair",

"disappointment," a "crushed feeling,"

etc., but leads to rapid decision of

action, and a joyous faith in the

co-operating work of the Spirit in

deliverance from all that does not bear

the verdict of the light of God. John

3.21.

 

C 29. Self-introspection is made use of

by evil spirits to throw the believer

into self-accusation and despair. This

drives the person inward and downward to

crushed impotence and faithlessness. GOD

NEVER CRUSHES HIS CHILDREN. He convicts

only to reveal the remedy. Evil spirits

seek to turn souls into self-centered

absorption whereas God moves in them to

live and care for others.

 

T 30. CONVICTION OF SIN: Comes from the

Word of God, or by the direct action of

the Holy Spirit, to the conscience, in

times of quiet prayer or reading. It is

never "vague" or confusing, and ceases

directly the man decides to obey the

Word, or go to God for cleansing in the

blood of Christ. True conviction is also

a deepening experience, as the light of

God shines into the conscience and life.

 

C 30. Evil spirits' accusations, which

are a counterfeit of conviction, are

from without, in the ear (audibly), or

to the MIND, in a "nagging", persistent,

confusing kind of "speaking", often

without definite purpose or specific

reason. No "confessing" or "step of

obedience" affects these accusations,

and they come again and again over the

same things. Many live under a perpetual

cloud through the attacks of accusing

spirits. They are under the shadow of

being "always wrong".

 

T 31. CONFESSION OF SIN: To God and man,

should be the deliberate act of the will

in obedience to the Word of God, and

conscience. It should be followed by

sincere repentance and putting away of

the confessed sin, and have the witness

of the Spirit to the conscience that the

sin has been put away through the

efficacy of the blood of Christ.

 

C 31. Compulsory confessions, by the

driving power of evil spirits upon the

mind in accusation, or from remorse; or,

to silence the accusing voices, the man

is sometimes impelled to "confess"

"sins" which have no actual existence.

 

T Notes.

        Without exception the

manifestation of the Holy Spirit is

marked by (a) a Christ-like spirit of

love, (b) soberness of spirit vision,

(c) keenness of vision, (d) deep

humility of heart and meekness of

spirit, with lion-courage against sin

and Satan, and (.) clearness of the

MENTAL faculties with a "sound mind".

2Timothy 1.7.

        "Wherefore be ye not foolish,

but understand what the will of the Lord

is. ..." (Ephesians 5.17 RV).

 

C Notes.

        Speaking generally, proof of

"sense-manifestations" being from

deceiving spirits may be found in the

SPIRIT being wrong alongside of

"manifestations", e.g., (1) Condemning

spirit and judging spirit; (2)

Spirit-vision dulled; cannot see marks

of God at work in other ways; (3)

Absence of true Spirit-power in (a)

conviction of sin, (b) deliverance of

souls, or (c) salvation of souls; (4) Or

the spirit is "sweet" in a weak sense,

with MIND DULLED, and unable to work

with clearness.

 

<End of WAR ON THE SAINTS by Jesse

Penn-Lewis.>