STRATEGIES OF DECEIT, “Shield, Helmet, and Sword” #4 | Mac Hammond
Recap
Pastor Mac taught the fourth message in his series, “Strategies of Deceit.” Learning the strategies through which Satan will try to deceive you is imperative. For many people, the first point of deception Satan uses against them is the lie that he doesn’t even exist! Most people don’t have any trouble believing in a God. They look at creation and know that all its magnificence and complexities could not have happened by random chance. But Satan? The guy with horns and a pitchfork… how can you take that guy seriously? However, not believing in his existence is the very thing that will allow him to “eat your lunch.”
Dive Deeper
In this 4th message in the series “Strategies of Deceit,” Pastor Mac reiterates the truth that Satan can’t defeat you if he can’t deceive you.
For many people, the first point of deception is that he even exists! Many have no trouble believing in God. They can look around at creation and know that all its magnificence and complexities could not have happened by random chance.
It’s easy to believe in God, but many have a hard time believing in a Devil, a Halloween figure with horns and a pitchfork. How can you take that seriously? Not believing in his existence is the very thing that will allow him to “eat your lunch.”
The basic text is Ephesians 6:11, “To put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the Devil.”
In the Strong’s Concordance, the Greek word rendered “wiles” simply means “deceit.” So we’re to stand against the deceit, or deception, of the enemy. Who is our enemy? The Devil. We stand against the enemy by putting on the whole armor of God.
Deception is his only weapon. Therefore, understanding the strategies of deception that he uses becomes important. We can gain insight by looking at the pieces of armor and what they cover. If we do that, we can gain insight into how he is going to come against your believing to get you to believe the wrong thing.
That’s what deception is: missing the truth and believing a lie.
Ephesians 6:14 tells us the different pieces of armor: “Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness.”
The first piece of armor is truth. We are told to girt up our loins with truth, which is the Word of God and is to be the dominant source of truth in a believer’s life.
Belief in the Word will cause your life to take shape in a way that is fulfilling and a blessing. You’ll be on your way to heaven.
What happens if you don’t believe the truth? If you believe Jesus is Lord, you will go to heaven. But if you don’t believe much else of what the Bible says, you’ll not understand why things are happening to you that are happening.
So we need to girt our loins with the truth. What are loins? That’s the part of us that is able to procreate, bring life into existence. However, we’re talking about bringing spiritual life into existence. That is going to require us doing something with that creative part of us.
So what is that creative part of us? We’re made in the image and likeness of God. He’s a creator. Therefore, we create.
What do we create? We are responsible to create the experiences that we have in this life. Create the level of blessing we have. You can create tomorrow by what you do today or next week or next month. In that way, you’re a creator.
Let’s look at the Word to define “loins.” 1st Peter 1:13 says, “Gird up the loins of your mind.”
The word mind is defined as “imagination.” The creative part of us that is intended by God to create more and more of the life of God in this earth. That creative part of us is our imagination, which is our ability to mentally image future probability.
Imagination sets a course and momentum in your life toward what you’re seeing as future probability, which is imagination. You don’t need to imagine what happened yesterday or today.
Imagination has to do with how you see your future. And He said to girt up the loins of that imagination with truth—the truth of God’s Word.
As you begin to see life healed, delivered, set free, prosperous, more than a conqueror, able to do all things through Christ who strengthens you, guess what? That’s who you’ll be when you can actually see that with your mind’s eye.
Read About It
Eph. 6:11, “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”
Eph. 6:14, “Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness.”
1st Peter 1:13 says, “Gird up the loins of your mind.”