____________________________________________________ THE GOSPEL OBSERVER "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19,20). ____________________________________________________ July 6, 1997 ____________________________________________________ Lies the Devil Tells by Jason Moore The Devil is crafty. The fact that he appeared in the form of a serpent to Eve should tell us something. He is subtle, slippery. He slides around and shows up in places we thought inaccessible to evil. But he blends in with the scenery and looks to belong. He is recognized too late. The Devil's ploys have not changed. The tactics he uses to murder the souls of men and to lull them into a spiritual slumber are no different than they were in the beginning. At times he may strike like the viper, but he seems more often to charm his victim with false hopes. He dazzles with his many colors. He slips himself around the unsuspecting a coil at a time and slowly strangles their spiritual inclinations. The Devil's chief tool is falsehood. Jesus called Satan a liar. The ``father of lies'' in fact (John 8:44). There is no truth in him. Only falsehood. Men have concocted clever tales. They have contrived sagacious and wily schemes. But none so clever as the Old Serpent's. While his methods have not changed they have also not diminished in their effectiveness. The same old lies are dangled in front of man. And the unwary swallow the bait, never perceiving the carefully concealed hook that finds its place in the depths of his soul and makes him the Devil's catch. Consider some of the lies with which Satan baits his hook. ``One time won't hurt.'' How many have been encouraged to take their first drink, first puff, first pill, first tryst with that kind of justification? How many down the road can still remember how it all started? One time hurts. Sometimes one time leads to a lifetime of hurt. Ask King David. Ask the prodigal son. Ask Eve. One time will hurt sometime all the time. It may not be now. It may be later. But it will hurt. And the longer it takes the hurt to come the worse it will be when it comes. You can count on it. One time will hurt you. ``Nobody will know.'' Nobody will know, but you will. You'll wake up at 2 AM some morning and you'll remember and it will terrify you. Conscience will scream ``Guilty!'' in the middle of a sermon and you'll want to cry. You'll come across an old picture, or a letter, or see an old friend, or drive by a familiar place and memories will haunt you. Besides all that, have you forgotten that He knows? Do you suppose that just because you didn't see Him, that He didn't see you? So what that it happened under the veil of night or behind closed doors or in your own private thoughts. He saw it. ``You can repent later.'' Who says that there will be a later? What arrogance there is in that supposition. A turn is always harder to negotiate once we have built up momentum. Repentance is just that. It is a turn. It is turning around. Not just forty-five degrees, or even ninety. It is a one hundred eighty degree turn. The longer you proceed along a sinful course the harder it is to make the turn necessary in repentance. And you can guarantee that it will take you as long to get back from your trek into the world as it took you to get there. Probably longer. ``You deserve it.'' A lot of sin has been constructed on that lie. Look back at Eve's temptation. ``Indeed, has God said that you shall not eat of any tree of the garden?'' You see the subtlety of that question? God is withholding from you is the implication. Theft, gambling, fornication, feminism, disobedience to parents and all sorts of illegitimate and ungodly crimes have been fomented by that little suggestion of the Devil that we've been mistreated by somebody. The timelessness of the Bible is a marvel. The fact that its most recent truths penned nearly two thousand years ago apply with great facility to our times is a tremendous testimony to the power of God. Yet the timelessness of the Bible is also a testimony to the fact that man hasn't learned much. He never outgrows his need for the Scriptures. The mistakes of today's generation do not differ from the mistakes of yesterday's. We have not been well tutored by history. Satan has not become more sophisticated in our generation. He just leads us to think that we have become sophisticated. And the fall of Eve who sought to ``become like God'' is duplicated. ``Resist the devil and he will flee from you'' (James 4:7). Don't believe him when he comes to you. Don't even listen to him. Resist him no matter how good it sounds. There's a hook in there somewhere. There's hurt. There's death. There's hell. He's just camouflaged it with a lie. -- Via Online Southside Reminder, Nov. 1, 1995 ___________________________________________ All That Glitters Is Not Gold by Dee Bowman Many years ago, my brothers and I went to New York City. We arrived very early in the morning. We could not wait to get our bags into our room and get our first look at Times Square. I shan't soon forget the sight. It was as if we were immersed in a sea of lights. There were lights that cascaded like water falls, lights that sparkled like Christmas, lights that wrote messages, lights that twinkled. There were pulsating lights, performing lights, lights that made little paths around huge pictures of people. The scene seemed to take you along with it, whether you wanted to go or not. It was as if you were in a current the strength of which was so overpowering you had no resistance. Society is like those lights. It has a strong attraction. It pulls people with great subtlety. You're caught up in the flow of it before you know it; and when you're in the flow, it takes great power--more than most of us have--to dislodge yourself. With its various methods of seduction, society invites us into the slime pit of sin. It accomplishes this by making sin attractive. If sin were left to its own, nobody would get involved in it. It promises things; it holds out a certain satisfaction. Sin is never presented to you in its bare form. It's always dressed up in something. And the trappings are well thought out. The Devil is a master of disguises. He conjures up all manner of packages in which to place this most deadly enemy of mankind. When he has it just right he presents it with deadly skill. You can be in it before you know it. How do we fight this kind of attraction? What can we do? Get to know yourself. Each of us is different. Each has his own vulnerabilities, his own weaknesses. Only when you get to know yourself can you prevent the hypnotic spell. Paul said, ``Examine yourself...'' (I Cor. 13:5). Such an introspection is private; no one can do it for you. It takes an amount of courage, a sort of ``push yourself'' attitude. The Devil would like you to just ``go with the flow,'' and ``not fight against the feeling.'' But when you know yourself, you're able to guard against getting into trouble before you know it. Decide what's important. The Devil wins lots of folks simply because he convinces them, ever so subtly, that it's OK to major in minors. How often we dedicate ourselves to that which is of so little value. How does he do that? Well, he just dresses it up so that you can't see it for what it really is. How many people have been deluded into thinking that life consists of the abundance of the things possessed? (Cf. Lk. 12:15) How many times have fame and material things blinded the vision of some unsuspecting person? After all, success is important isn't it? Sure it is; but only if it's real success--the kind that relates to the eternal. Store up the message. The word of God is the key to overcoming the Devil. Jesus proved that when He was tempted by Satan (Matt. 4). His answer still works today. But if you've not stored up the information, you can't use it when the moment of disaster is near. ``It is written'' cannot be used by him who doesn't know that it's written. Store up the information and be ready. It's a war, folks. And we can't fight it without the armaments necessary for the conflict (Eph. 6:11-ff). Take control of your own life. It's amazing how easy it is to surrender yourself. Almost without thinking you can surrender yourself to some hobby, to some project, to some dominant personality, to some movement of some sort. That's how the Devil's process works. It's like those lights--you're mesmerized before you know it. Paul told the Romans, ``Know ye not that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are whom ye obey?'' (Rom. 6:17). It's your choice. You don't have to surrender to anybody. You choose the one you serve. Be careful. Follow through. Follow-through is important whether it's a good tennis stroke, a good golf swing, or a disciple's obedience. Intention without follow-through--a most sagacious ploy. He doesn't have to get you to decide not to do what's right if he can just get you to put if off. Oh, you intend to, you just haven't gotten around to it. And intention--isn't that something which is commendable, something good? Sure it is. But only if you follow through. James said, ``to him that knoweth to do good and doeth it not, to him it is sin`` (4:17). After we had seen the lights in the black of night we went back to the hotel with visions of brightness still burning in our minds. The next morning, we went to the same area of and saw Times Square in God's light. What a difference! Litter, last night's confetti, drunks in the doorways, alleys filled with filth. Things aren't always what they seem. -- Via Online Southside Reminder, July 26, 1995 ___________________________________________ NEWS & NOTES Nancy Atkinson, a former member here, had been very sick lately with abdominal pains and fever. She was admitted to a hospital for testing. Thus far, the doctors believe it is an intestinal blockage -- and one that can be remedied without surgery. As of July 2, she has been feeling somewhat better: her fever is down, her white blood cell count is normal, and her appetite is back. The doctors, however, are still concerned about her enlarged pancreas. Les Atkinson's mother fell about three weeks ago, broke her hip and shoulder. She is slowly recovering in a rehab hospital and is now doing better. David Posey writes: ``Faithful gospel preacher Frank Thompson, who is now living in Blackfoot, Idaho, is very ill with Alzheimer's and other problems. We request prayers for the family.'' Dudley Ross Spears posted the following: ``Norman Smith, faithful Christian from Conway, Arkansas, died Monday around 12:45 p.m....Norman and his kind will be missed. He loved the Lord and served him faithfully. He is survived by his good wife, Fanny, and a daughter.'' Leon Mauldlin: ``I just received word that Wayne Moore, a fellow Gospel preacher, died today [July 2]. He was a son-in-law of Irven Lee....'' Also on the obituary list is Bill Allen of Charlotte/Dickson, Tennessee, who passed away the 2nd of this month. We want to thank Rick Fleeman for preaching in my stead last Sunday. I was in Lexington, Kentucky, preaching both the morning and evening services for the good brethren there. I also took a look at their impressive, new building which they will soon be using -- maybe even now. I had an enjoyable time visiting with some of them during the afternoon and after the evening service. Bill Robinson, Jr., their regular preacher, was away holding a gospel meeting. I will also be preaching a Gospel meeting August 3-8 at the Daugherty Street church of Christ in Charleston, West Virginia. Do you live in our area and need a ride to the services? Feel free to call. One of the members will be glad to provide you with transportation. We also have free Bible courses available upon request. Why not write or call for one today. Bible film slides are also available for those who live nearby. We have a 5-lesson series that we would enjoy showing you. Internet users, please make note of my new e-mail address and the bulletin's new web site address listed below. ________________________________________ Tri-State CHURCH OF CHRIST 713 13th Street, Ashland, Kentucky 41101 Sunday: 10:00 A.M. Bible class 10:50 A.M. Worship 6:30 P.M. Worship Wednesday: 7:30 P.M. Bible study evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards (606) 325-9742 e-mail: tedwards@zoomnet.net Gospel Observer web site: http://www.zoomnet.net/~tedwards/go ________________________________________