07. God's Sovereignty Over Deception

Chapter 7 God’s Sovereignty Over Deception And even if our Gospel is veiled, it is veiled in them that perish: in whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should not dawn upon them (2 Corinthians 4:3-4). The god of this world is Satan, but he does not run this world. He is called the god of this world because this world worships and serves him whether they know it or not. Anyone who serves the lusts of their flesh worships and serves Satan as their god. He is the father of the flesh, which is also called the old man. God never gives Satan credit in the Scriptures for being sovereign. Jesus said, “All authority hath been given unto me in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18). Satan blinds the minds of the unbelievers so that they do not understand and see the light of the Gospel. We can see from other Scriptures that Satan received his authority from the Lord to blind the unbelievers. (1 Peter 5:8-9) Be sober, be watchful: your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: (9) whomwithstand steadfast in your faith…. We have the ability to withstand Satan when we walk by faith, but the word “may” here implies that he has permission to devour those who do not. With Christians or non-Christians, unbelief gives permission to Satan. The faith that resists and binds Satan is a gift from God (Ephesians 2:8). Satan has permission to devour those who do not have that gift.

(John 12:35)Jesus therefore said unto them, Yet a little while is the light among you. Walk while ye have the light, that darkness overtake you not: (Notice that word “overtake.” This indicates that darkness is chasing all of us. The Lord is saying that for a little while we are going to receive the light but do something with that light while we have it, so that the darkness does not overtake us.) and he that walketh in the darkness knoweth not whither he goeth. (John 12:36) While ye have the light, believe (trust in and act on) on the light, that ye may become sons of the light. (If we do not act on the light now, the impression will leave us and the darkness will again close in. When we pass by the moment, we have been tried and failed if we have not done something with the light.) These things spake Jesus, and he departed and hid himself from them (Jesus hides Himself from those who do not value the light enough to act upon it.) (John 12:38-40) that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spake, Lord, who hath believed our report? And to whom hath the arm of the Lord been revealed? (39) For this cause they could not believe, for that Isaiah said again, (40) He hath blinded their eyes, and he hardened their heart;Lest they should see with their eyes, and perceive with their heart, And should turn, And I should heal them. It is clear from the text of Isaiah 6:9-10 quoted below that the “He” who blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts is the Lord. Israel had the light for a long time, and they did not bear fruit of it. Many Christians have the light, but do not act on it. They start out in a blaze of glory, but soon the cares of the world, the deceitfulness of riches, trials, and persecutions hardens their hearts and allows the darkness to overcome them (Matthew 13:19-23). We must believe and walk in the light while we have it so that Jesus does not withdraw and hide himself.

(Isaiah 6:8-10) And I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then I said, Here am I; send me. (9) Then he said, Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, yet understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not. (10) Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and turn again, and be healed. God is blinding eyes and hearts through the devil. God makes us responsible when we see His Word to walk in the light of its truth. (1 John 1:7) But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanseth us from all sin. Walking in the light sanctifies us.

God has a method for weeding the Church which most do not understand. (2 Thessalonians 2:3) Let no man beguile you in any wise: for [it will not be,] except the falling away come first… (2 Thessalonians 2:8-12) And then shall be revealed the lawless one, whom the Lord Jesus shall slay with the breath of his mouth, and bring to naught by the manifestation of his coming; (9) even he, whose coming is according to the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, (10) and with all deceit of unrighteousness for them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. (11) And for this cause God sendeth them a working of error, that they should believe a lie: (12) that they all might be judged who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. We see here that falling away comes through the deception of Satan. However, God is sending this working of error to those who do not love the truth so that they might be judged. By the way, this letter is addressed to the Church. Only Christians, using the term loosely, can fall away. There is a great falling away today, but an even greater deception is coming. Before God sends judgment, He sends “a working of error” to weed out the Church. Who will believe a lie? It is the evil and wicked who will believe a lie. (Proverbs 17:4) An evildoer giveth heed to wicked lips;And a liar giveth ear to a mischievous tongue. (Proverbs 17:11) An evil man seeketh only rebellion; Therefore a cruel messenger shall be sent against him. The evildoer will be weeded out by deception. They are going to be seen clearly for who they are because they are going to buy the lie and fall away. The righteous love God’s Word and the truth, and will not be deceived.

(1 Corinthians 11:19) For there must be also factions (Greek: “heresies”) among you, that they that are approved may be made manifest among you. It is necessary for heresies to be among us, so that they that are approved by God may be known. God is doing two things with deception and evil: He is revealing the wicked, and revealing the true. This is God’s method throughout history for separating His people from the tares. Birds of a feather flock together. God will gather the tares into bundles to burn them.

Deception is one of God’s methods for proving who will be counted worthy of the kingdom of heaven. Remember this working of Satan will come through power, signs, and lying wonders. These are placebos to pacify the Church with replacements for the genuine to confirm the lies being taught. The genuine are listed as gifts of the Holy Spirit in 1 Corinthians 12:4-11. The gifts of the Holy Spirit are the word of wisdom, word of knowledge, faith, healings, workings of miracles, prophecy, discernings of spirits, kinds of tongues, and interpretation of tongues. For our own safety, we should obey Paul who said, “Learn not to go beyond the things which are written” (1 Corinthians 4:6). Now so many can believe that some of these things we have been seeing are Scriptural manifestations of the Holy Spirit is beyond me. When we look at the value of these silly signs as far as salvation, healing, deliverance, or provision, there is no comparison.

(Deuteronomy 13:1-2) If there arise in the midst of thee a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and he give thee a sign or a wonder, (2) and the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods (Elohim), which thou hast not known, and let us serve them. Here we have a false prophet speaking a sign that comes to pass. No false prophet can command something and have it come to pass unless God says so. (Lamentations 3:37) Who is he who saith, and it cometh to pass, when the Lord commandeth not? This is clear that God is trying His people with error. This prophet is saying, “Let us go after other gods.” This is not as uncommon as we may think. Actually, the Hebrew word for “gods” here is the same word used everywhere else in the Old Testament for our God “Elohim”. In this case, he is talking about a false elohim. There are many false elohim, because anyone who has a Jesus of their own making and not the Jesus of the Bible has a false elohim. (Deuteronomy 13:3) Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or unto that dreamer of dreams:for the Lord your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. False prophets prove us for God by deception. God is saying it is necessary for us to be proven by deception to see if we love Him. Those who love Him will not buy the lie. (Deuteronomy 8:2) And thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God hath led thee these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble thee, to prove thee, to know what was in thy heart,whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or not. This is the whole point. A prophet, a dream, a vision, a teaching, or anything that comes to us that is not according to the commandments is a trial from God, to see if we are going to be counted worthy of the kingdom.

(Ezekiel 14:1-3) Then came certain of the elders of Israel unto me, and sat before me. (2) And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, (3) Son of man,these men have taken their idols into their heart, and put the stumbling block of their iniquity before their face: should I be inquired of at all by them? An idol is anything that demands more of our love, time, or money than God; self-will being the most evil idol. Should we ask the Lord’s direction if all we want is what we want? It is dangerous to inquire of the Lord with self-willed motives before our face. We may satisfy our flesh but lose a blessing. (Ezekiel 14:4) Therefore speak unto them, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord: Every man of the house of Israel that taketh his idols into his heart, and putteth the stumbling block of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to the prophet; I the Lord will answer him therein according to the multitude of his idols.

God is not our God, and we are not His servants when our will is more important than His Will. Before we ask God, we should ask ourselves if we would be as willing to go in the opposite direction should He give that answer. If we would not, then we have an idol. We should deal with our idol first. (Ephesians 5:5) For this you know of a surety that no… covetousness man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. The Greek word for “covetous” only means “to desire more”. A person who desires more than is necessary is an idolater. The word “idolater” comes from two words, eidolo, meaning “that which is seen” and latres meaning “a servant to”. Those who constantly desire more are servants to that which is seen (physical things), not the Lord. These things can be anything – possessions, a job, a religion, or people, to name a few. People can be serving themselves. They can be their own idol, like the son of perdition who sits in the temple of God making himself god. Judas, whom Jesus called the son of perdition, sat among the disciples who were the temple of God. He was his own idol because he only wanted to please himself. There are many Judas’ today. (Exodus 20:3) Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Whatever is more important to us than the Lord is going to deceive us if we do not renounce it.

(Ezekiel 14:7-8) For every one of the house of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn in Israel, that separateth himself from me, and taketh his idols into his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to the prophet to inquire for himself of me; I the Lord will answer him by myself: (8) and I will set my face against that man, and will make him an astonishment, for a sign and a proverb, and I will cut him off from the midst of my people; and ye shall know that I am the Lord. Those who are separated from God through their idols will be answered according to the lusts of their own heart. God is going to give them an answer that is not a true answer because He will be answering their lusts. Remember God said, “I the Lord will answer him by myself.” The Lord’s answer may come through an apostate prophet, a religion, a thought, a dream, a word or a doctrine, but it will come to deceive. This could bring chastening or even reprobation as we see in verse eight.

(Ezekiel 14:9) And if the prophet be deceived and speak a word, I, the Lord, have deceived that prophet and I will stretch out my hand upon him, and will destroy him from the midst of my people Israel. A true prophet who has idols or a false prophet can be deceived by a false word from God, as we shall see. (2 Thessalonians 2:11) …God sendeth them a working of error, that they should believe a lie. The Lord sends the word because people do not love Him, but the world. (1 John 2:15) …If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. We are here to prove who it is that loves God.

God is going to cleanse His Church in these days because there are many idols. Religion can be an idol. When the Word of God says one thing, and we believe our religion, which says another, our religion is our Babylonish idol. God will send deception. We can see how it can be an increasingly degenerative road to travel. The more we believe religion, instead of God, the more deception comes in. Nothing but the Word of God should move us. (Romans 3:4) God forbid: yea, let God be found true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified (accounted righteous) in thy words, And mightest prevail when thou comest into judgment. When we agree with God in the midst of judgment, we will prevail. These are the people whom God accounts as righteous. When we receive a prophecy, vision, dream, revelation, or a word that agrees with the Word of God, praise the Lord because the Word does not give many specifics. It does not tell us where God wants us to live or work or whom He wants us to marry. It gives us principles to find out the true will of the Lord in all areas. We can desire something so much, we hear “the Word of the Lord.” We can become convinced that this is what the Lord wanted us to do, only to find out later that we missed God. We need to be careful, because if our desires are not for the will of the Lord, first, we can be deceived.

Let us look at Balaam’s situation again from another angle. The children of Israel were in the plains of Moab. Balak, the King of Moab, was very fearful of the Israelites. He gathered together the elders of Midian and Moab. They decided they would hire Balaam to curse these people. Balak said to Balaam, “I know that he whom thou blessest is blessed, and he whom thou cursest is cursed” (Numbers 22:6). He did not realize it was not Balaam but God who counted in this situation because “the curse that is causeless alighteth not” (Proverbs 26:2). If Balaam spoke the Word of the Lord, it was going to come to pass. The “profit” Balaam went to the Lord with the promise of rewards in his heart and a request to curse Israel on his lips. (Numbers 22:12-13) And God said unto Balaam, Thou shalt not go with them; thou shalt not curse the people; for they are blessed. (13) And Balaam rose up in the morning, and said unto the princes of Balak, Get you into your land; for the Lord refuseth to give me leave to go with you.

Balak did not give up. He sent more honorable princes who offered to bestow upon Balaam a very high honor and give him anything he asked. Balaam decided to ask the Lord again since this sounded like a pretty good offer. (Numbers 22:19-22) Now therefore, I pray you, tarry ye also here this night that I may know what the Lord will speak unto me more. (20) And God came unto Balaam at night, and said unto him, If the men are come to call thee, rise up, go with them; but only the word which I speak unto thee, that shalt thou do. Balaam did not like God’s “no,” so God, wanting to put to death his covetous self-will, gave him a “yes”. (21) And Balaam rose up in the morning, and saddled his ass, and went with the princes of Moab. (22) And God’s anger was kindled because he went; and the angel of the Lord placed himself in the way for an adversary against him. Notice that God was angry that He went contrary to the first word spoken to him. The ass carrying Balaam to his reward saw the angel with his sword in the way and stopped, saving his life. Balaam, still ignorant of the angel, was furious and beat the ass. Then God opened the ass’s mouth to reason with Balaam, who was so blinded by the prospect of reward that he did not realize that an ass was reasoning with him and making more sense than he was. (Numbers 22:32) And the angel of the Lord said unto him, Wherefore hast thou smitten thine ass these three times? Behold,I am come forth for an adversary, because thy way is perverse before me. The Hebrew word translated “perverse” here means “headlong” or “self-willed”. Because of this self-will, the Lord gave Balaam what he wanted to hear and told Balaam to go and speak what he was told to speak, but when Balaam went, the angel of the Lord was waiting to kill him.

Balaam got the following revelation through this: (Numbers 23:19) God is not a man, that he should lie,Neither the son of man, that he should repent: Hath he said, and will he not do it? Or hath he spoken, and will he not make it good? God does not have to change His mind; He is God and does not make mistakes. From our perspective, God changes His mind because He warns or makes promises that are conditional upon our reactions. Balaam really wanted God to change His Word. Have we ever been there? It is a dangerous place to be in if we want a straight answer from God. God can send deception that will lead to crucifixion of the flesh or in more stubborn cases reprobation, like a sword in our way. (Jeremiah 4:10) Then said I, Ah, Lord God! surely thou hast greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, Ye shall have peace; whereas the sword reacheth unto the life. (Jude 1:11) Woe unto them! for they went in the way of Cain, and ran riotously in the error of Balaam for hire, and perished in the gainsaying of Korah. We can be hired by our own selfish desires. Balaam wanted God to tell him “yes” and refused to hear God’s “no,” so God told him “yes”. Be careful how much you want something from God. God wants us to submit our will to His, to desire what He wants, and to take Him at His Word. Do not let your flesh be pampered by voices that speak contrary to what the Word has already spoken, or God will send deception. (2 Thessalonians 2:11-12) And for this cause God sendeth them a working of error, that they should believe a lie: (12) that they all might be judged who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. Many have adopted deceptive doctrines that appease their selfish desires such as doctrines of materialistic prosperity rather than sacrifice, unconditional eternal security so that they may live after the flesh without fear of God’s warnings, rapture without purification through trial, eternal life without discipleship and holiness, etc. God’s people have justified just about anything to appease their flesh such as unscriptural divorces, abortion, drunkenness, drugs, lying, stealing, etc. Peace for the flesh is deception. Satan and his ministers are anxious to tell us what our flesh wants to hear. (2 Corinthians 11:14-15) And no marvel; for even Satan fashioneth himself into an angel of light. (15) It is no great thing therefore if his ministers also fashion themselves as ministers of righteousness….

Balaam learned a lesson temporarily. (Numbers 22:18) And Balaam answered and said unto the servants of Balak, If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the word of the Lord my God, to do less or more. These were words of truth that came from a deceitful heart. Balaam still was covetous and eventually gave in to bribery again. He ended up teaching Balak how to cast a stumbling block in front of the children of Israel, in teaching them how to eat food sacrificed to idols and to commit fornication (Revelation 2:14). Balaam could not curse the children of Israel, because of their position with God. Therefore, Balaam taught Balak to tempt Israel into a place where God would curse them. And that is exactly what happened. God knew what Balaam was doing. Israel was tried and flunked the test.

After David sinned with Bathsheba, his own son Absalom usurped the kingdom, and David had to flee for his life. Absalom inherited two counselors from David. (2 Samuel 16:23) And the counsel of Ahithophel, which he gave in those days, was as if a man inquired at the oracle of God: so was all the council of Ahithophel both with David and with Absalom. So the counsel that Ahithophel was giving to Absalom was good, just as if it was coming from God. (2 Samuel 17:1-2) Moreover Ahithophel said unto Absalom, Let me now choose out twelve thousand men, and I will arise and pursue after David this night: (2) and I will come upon him while he is weary and weak-handed, and will make him afraid; and all the people that are with him shall flee; and I will smite the king only. He wanted to catch David with a small quick force before David reached the depths of the wilderness.

After they received this counsel from Ahithophel, Absalom called for Hushai the Archite, the other counselor. Hushai was secretly loyal to David. He advised the king to gather all Israel together, and catch David and the people with him, and smite every one of them. Hushai knew that it would take a while to gather all the people of Israel. Meanwhile, he sent word to David to quickly flee into the wilderness where he would be safe. (2 Samuel 17:14) And Absalom and all the men of Israel said, The counsel of Hushai the Archite is better than the counsel of Ahithophel. For the Lord had ordained to defeat the good counsel of Ahithophel, to the intent that the Lord might bring evil upon Absalom. With God’s help, all the men of Israel agreed with the bad advice, which helped David escape and cost Absalom his life.

Never follow the multitudes of those who profess religion. They follow a leadership that has usurped authority. When the Lord wants to judge someone, He can give a multitude of bad advice and lead him to take it. In these days, many will listen to the bad advice of their apostate leaders so that they will be judged. Ten of the twelve tribes of Israel worshiped the image of the beast, the golden calf, at the advice of their leadership (1 Kings 12:25-32). So it is today among those professing to be God’s people because history always repeats itself (Ecclesiastes 1:9). Most of what is only called Christianity will take the mark of the beast, but the true disciples will not be deceived for they love truth.

Ahab, the evil king of the apostate northern ten tribes of Israel, was trying to convince Jehoshaphat, the good king of Judah, to align with him and go to war against the Syrians at Ramoth-gilead. This story applies to making alliances with evil and deception today. (1 Kings 22:5-6) Then Jehoshaphat said unto the king of Israel, Inquire first, I pray thee, for the word of the Lord. (6) Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, about four hundred men, and said unto them, Shall I go against Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall I forbear?

Remember these four hundred men were not the prophets of Baal. Elijah killed them in 1 Kings 18. Then, the prophets of the Lord took over. We shall see, these prophets of the Lord belonged to Ahab. So he gathered up these four hundred “yes-men” and inquired of them about going to battle with the Syrians. (1 Kings 22:6-9) ...And they said, Go up; for the Lord will deliver it into the hand of the king. (Jehoshaphat still felt uneasy because the Lord put this in his heart to warn him.) (7) But Jehoshaphat said, is there not here a prophet of the Lord besides that we may inquire of him? (8) And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, There is yet one man by whom we may inquire of the Lord, Micaiah the son of Imlah: but I hate him; for he doth not prophesy good concerning me, but evil. And Jehoshaphat said, Let not the king say so. (9) Then the king of Israel called an officer, and said, Fetch quickly Micaiah the son of Imlah. (1 Kings 22:11-15) And Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made him horns of iron, and said, Thus saith the Lord,With these shalt thou push the Syrians, until they be consumed. (12) And all the prophets prophesied so, saying, Go up to Ramoth-gilead, and prosper; for the Lord will deliver it into the hand of the king. (13) And the messenger that went to call Micaiah spake unto him, saying, Behold now,the words of the prophets declare good unto the king with one mouth: let thy word, I pray thee, be like the word of one of them,and speak thou good. (It is tempting to agree with consensus.) (14) And Micaiah said, As the Lord liveth, what the Lord saith unto me, that will I speak. (15) And when he was come to the king, the king said unto him, Micaiah, shall we go to Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall we forbear? And he answered him,Go up and prosper; and the Lord will deliver it into the hand of the king.

Realize that Micaiah’s words “Go up and prosper” were from the Lord. Micaiah made a vow that what the Lord said, he would say. God through Micaiah was telling the king to go up and prosper because that was the answer King Ahab wanted. Like Balaam, he got the answer he wanted. God is sovereign over deception but no one is guiltless when they are deceived. (1 Kings 22:16-19) And the king said unto him,How many times shall I adjure thee that thou speak unto me nothing but the truth in the name of the Lord. (17) And he (Micaiah) said,I saw all Israel scattered upon the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd: and the Lord said, These have no master; let them return every man to his house in peace. (One truthful prophet who was not motivated by gain prophesied the death of Ahab and the loss of the battle.) (18) And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, Did I not tell thee that he would not prophesy good concerning me, but evil? (19) And Micaiah said, Therefore hear thou the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left. In Job 1:6, the sons of God were gathered together before the Lord, and Satan was there among them. What was he doing there? It says here, “All the hosts of heaven… on His right hand and on His left.” Whom did the Lord gather on His left? It was the goats and the wicked (Matthew 25:33). (1 Kings 22:20-23) And the Lord said,Who shall entice Ahab that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead? (The Lord was asking for a spirit to deceive Ahab.) And one said on this manner; and another said on that manner. (21) And there came forth a spirit, and stood before the Lord, and said, I will entice him. (22) And the Lord said unto him, Wherewith? And he said,I will go forth, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. (Notice that the spirit said, “his” prophets, not “your” prophets.) And he (God) said,Thou shalt entice him, and shalt prevailalso: go forth, and do so. (23) Now therefore, behold, the Lord hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets. Notice “thy prophets”. These prophets did not belong as much to the Lord as they did to Ahab. The apostate leadership of the northern ten tribes was deceived by God to lead them into a battle they could not win. Here are four hundred prophets of the Lord prophesying by a lying spirit. They were probably fed from Ahab’s table and desired his favor. It was four hundred false prophets to one true prophet. That is the same case we have today. They loved the hire of wrongdoing. What motivates a Christian to agree with their religion or preacher when they disagree with the Word of God? This is the idolatry that deceives their heart.

We must be true to the Lord and not be influenced by respect of men. I was a guest speaker in an assembly once where the pastor was to speak before me. As he walked around sharing some things, he walked by me and said, “Isn’t that right, David?” I softly said, “No” and shook my head. The pastor did a double take but walked away and went right on speaking. Later, he walked by me again and the same thing happened. Finally, the man behind me could not stand it any longer and asked, “Did you say, ‘No’?” I answered, “Yes, and if he didn’t want my truthful opinion, he shouldn’t ask.” After the service, the pastor came and asked me what was wrong. I told him that his statements were wrong and the truth was such and such according to the Word. I also asked him not to ask me any more questions in the assembly. Well, he did not throw me out, and I ended up doing a lot of the teaching there for a while.

Ahab did not trust his four hundred prophets and he feared that one prophet. (1 Kings 22:30) And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself, and go into the battle; but put thou on thy robes. And the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into the battle… (1 Kings 22:34) And a certain man drew his bow at a venture (Hebrew: “in his simplicity”) and smote the king of Israel between the joints of the armor. It appears that this Syrian was shooting in the general direction of the enemy, and smote Ahab right in the joints of his armor. We cannot fool God. I do not know who was simpler, the man who drew the bow or Ahab who thought he could hide from the wrath of God by changing his clothes. There are several good morals to this story. Firstly, you cannot go by the majority. Here was a case of four hundred to one, and the majority was wrong. Throughout history, the majority of what is called God’s people have been wrong. Secondly, you have to look carefully at your motives when you inquire of the Lord. If your motives are impure, you will get an answer that your flesh wants. In this case, Ahab got the answer he wanted and was killed. Jehoshaphat was chastened and almost lost his life for making an alliance with an evil king. He did not learn his lesson and later aligned with Ahab’s evil successor, losing his life and his works (2 Chronicles 20:35, 2 Chronicles 21:1). We can be deceived by wanting our desires or following the majority. It does not have to be a prophet that speaks to us. The Lord can give us a dream, vision, doctrine, or man we respect who can lead us astray. God can answer us according to our idols before our face. When Jeroboam was the king of the northern ten tribes, he was afraid that his people would go and worship in the ordained temple at Jerusalem and, in so doing, stay and serve the king of Judah. He decided that he would erect altars for the people in Bethel and Dan. Jeroboam then made two golden calves and called them in Hebrew Elohim (1 Kings 12:28). He put the name of our God on his own creation. Aaron did the same thing when Israel came out of Egypt. He built a golden calf and called it in Hebrew YHWH and Elohim. The apostate religions teach a Jesus of their own creation, not the Jesus of the Bible. Paul called him “another Jesus” (2 Corinthians 11:4). Jeroboam and his people were serving another Jesus. The golden calf was the Egyptian god Apis who was called the creator. In other words, they were worshiping the god they knew in the world before they ate the Lamb and came out of Egypt. Many “Christians” are worshiping a Jesus that is acceptable to the world and the flesh. He is not the true God but an impostor. Jeroboam and his apostates were also making priests (ministers) who were not Levites (1 Kings 12:31). This tells me that in ten of the twelve tribes, the ministers were not ordained of God but apostates. That is exactly what has happened in the church today. Of the twelve spies, ten brought an evil report and died in the wilderness because they made the congregation to speak against the Lord (Numbers 14:36-38).

God sent a young prophet to prophesy against the altar in Bethel. In Hebrew, “Bethel” means “house of God”. Of course, they called it the “house of God,” but it was a false house of God because the true house was in Jerusalem. At that time, the king was standing at the altar offering incense before the people. When the prophet prophesied against the altar, the king stretched out his arm and pointed his hand at the prophet and told his men to seize him. At that point, the king’s hand dried up and he could not draw it back. The altar rent and ashes poured out, which the prophet prophesied would happen. This, obviously, symbolized that God did not accept their sacrifices in this place of apostasy. The king asked the prophet to restore his hand, so the prophet prayed, and the Lord restored the king’s hand. As a result, the king wanted to take the prophet home and reward him. The prophet declined for he was commanded by the Lord to neither eat bread nor drink water in that place (1 Kings 13:8-9). What place was that? It was the place where God’s people were in apostasy and where their leaders were not ordained of God. It was an apostate religious system.

We must not eat their bread! This represents partaking of a false Jesus since He was the bread of life (John 6:48). Jesus is also the Word (John 1:1). Jesus said to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees. Leaven changes the bread (the Word) to make it more acceptable to the flesh. Neither should we drink their water, which represents the false spirit formed by a false word. Jesus commanded us to come unto Him and drink of the living water of the Spirit through the Scriptures. (John 7:37-39) …Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink. (38) He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, from within him shall flow rivers of living water. (39) But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believed on him were to receive. Without this, any Jesus we might know is another Jesus. The prophet was being obedient and was leaving those backslidden people. In this city of Bethel, there was an older prophet who had heard what the young prophet did. He saddled his ass and caught up with him. (1 Kings 13:15-19) Then he said unto him, Come home with me, and eat bread. (16) And he said, I may not return with thee, nor go in with thee; neither will I eat bread nor drink water with thee in this place: (17) for it is said to me by the word of the Lord, Thou shalt eat no bread nor drink water there, nor turn again to go by the way that thou camest. (18) And he said unto him,I also am a prophet as thou art; and an angel spake unto me by the word of the Lord, saying, Bring him back with thee into thy house, that he may eat bread and drink water. But he lied unto him. (19) So he went back with him, and did eat bread in his house, and drank water. The young prophet falsely believed that God had changed His Word that was originally given and so ate and drank of the apostate word. We are told in Jude 1:3 to contend earnestly for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints. Today many without scriptural foundation tell us that after the apostles God changed what He called an “eternal covenant” (Hebrews 13:20). This lie has robbed the Church of its power by replacing Jesus with a golden calf. Daniel and his three friends would not defile themselves with Babylon’s food (Daniel 1:5-16). After refusing Babylon’s food, they were said to have ten times the wisdom and understanding of those who did eat (Daniel 1:17-21). They also were the only ones to not bow down to the image of the beast (Daniel 3:12, Daniel 3:18), Babylon’s version of the golden calf. The young prophet was deceived into a modern gospel. (1 Kings 13:20-22) And it came to pass, as they sat at the table, that the word of the Lord came unto the prophet that brought him back; (21) and he cried unto the man of God that came from Judah, saying, Thus saith the Lord, Forasmuch as thou hast been disobedient unto the mouth of the Lord, and hast not kept the commandment which the Lord thy God commanded thee, (22) but camest back, and hast eaten bread and drunk water in the place of which he said to thee, Eat no bread, and drink no water; thy body shall not come unto the sepulchre of thy fathers. The Lord tried the young prophet; but he was said to have “not kept the commandment” of the Lord, which was synonymous with partaking of apostate spiritual food. He lost his life in that place as many do today. The old prophet of God spoke a lie for personal gain. That place had leavened him, and he was now a false “profit”.

We must respect the Word of God so much that nothing can turn us away from it to another Jesus. We have to remain on guard, for even vessels of honor can be used as vessels of dishonor to try us. When the young prophet left a lion met him in the way and slew him. (1 Kings 13:26) …Lord hath delivered him unto the lion, which hath torn him, and slain him, according to the word of the Lord…. The lion was given permission from God to kill the one who ate the apostate spiritual food. (1 Peter 5:8) …the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour. “May” is used here because the devil must have permission to devour. He is ordained to devour apostates. The penalty for the young prophet’s apostasy was that he would “not come unto the sepulcher of thy fathers,” spiritually meaning he was not joined with his fathers in death, therefore, he would not be among the righteous resurrection. One who partakes of a false word from the false Jesus will lose his life by the devil and will not be among the righteous in resurrection. (Revelation 22:18-19) I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, if any man shall add unto them, God shall add unto him the plagues which are written in this book: (19) and if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the tree of life… (Galatians 1:8) But though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach unto you any gospel other than that which we preached unto you, let him be anathema (Greek: “cursed; devoted to destruction”). The Lord tested the apostle Paul by His Spirit. (Acts 19:21) Now after these things were ended, Paul purposed in the spirit, when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, After I have been there, I must also see Rome. Neither “spirit” here nor “Holy Spirit” in the following verses is capitalized in the Greek because the Greek language has no capitalization. This means we must determine from the text if “spirit” is “Holy Spirit”. Since “the” and not “his” is used before spirit, we know that God is speaking of the Holy Spirit. Therefore “spirit” in this and the following verse should be capitalized in English. That was a translator’s mistake. Paul determined in the Spirit, that he was going to Jerusalem and then to Rome. He could have only gotten that revelation from God because it was in the future. (Acts 20:22-23) And now, behold,I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem,not knowing the things that shall befall me there: (23) save that the Holy Spirit testifieth unto me in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions abide me. It was the Holy Spirit telling Paul to go to Jerusalem where he could expect bonds and afflictions.

(Acts 21:4) And having found the disciples, we tarried there seven days: and these said to Paul through the Spirit, that he should not set foot in Jerusalem. Notice that this was just the opposite of what the Holy Spirit had told Paul he was going to do three times before. I suggest to you that Paul was being proven by “the Spirit” as to whom he would listen. Other disciples were offering a new word. He was being given an opportunity to obey his flesh and avoid the spiritual cross just as in the cases of Balaam and the young prophet. (Acts 21:10-14) And as we tarried there some days, there came down from Judea a certain prophet, named Agabus. (11) and coming to us, and taking Paul’s girdle, he bound his own feet and hands, and said, Thus saith the Holy Spirit, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth this girdle, and shall deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles. Having been told by the Spirit again that he would go to Jerusalem and be persecuted, he was now going to be tried by human sentiment. (12) Andwhen we heard these things, both we and they of that place besought him not to go up to Jerusalem. (13) Then Paul answered, What do ye, weeping and breaking my heart? for I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus. (14) And when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying,The will of the Lord be done. Paul was tried by human sentiment and prophecy, and overcame. He obeyed what the Lord told him, which is the important thing. The Lord will try us by His Spirit to see if we will believe what He has told us. To Abraham was born the long-promised seed Isaac. God promised to make His covenant with Isaac and his seed after him (Genesis 17:19), a seed which God said would be as the stars for multitudes (Genesis 15:5). (Genesis 15:6) And he believed in the Lord; and He reckoned it to him for righteousness. This was not enough for God; Abraham’s faith had to be tried. After many years of waiting in faith, Isaac was born. Then an even greater trial came. (Genesis 22:1-2) …God did prove Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham. And he said, Here am I. (2) And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son, whom thou lovest, even Isaac, and get thee into the land of Moriah. And offer him there for a burnt-offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of. (Hebrews 11:17-19) By faith Abraham, being tried, offered up Isaac... (18) even he to whom it was said, In Isaac shall thy seed be called: (19) accounting that God [is] able to raise up, even from the dead; from whence he did also in a figure receive him back. Abraham believed God’s original promise to him to the extent that even if he sacrificed Isaac, God would have to raise him up to fulfill the promise. We need to believe the original promises above all that we see and hear. God will prove or try us through religion, ministers, spoken word, or well-meaning friends. We are tried by external circumstances, but we are tempted by our own lusts, not God (James 1:13-14). External trials and internal temptations are necessary to prove who loves God (James 1:12). God waited until the last seconds, when Abraham was about to plunge the knife into Isaac, stopped him and said unto him, “Now I know that thou fearest God” (Genesis 22:12). There is no proof that we believe God’s promises until we are tried. The Lord then provided a ram caught in a thicket for a sacrifice in the place of Isaac, the seed of Abraham. This, of course, typified Jesus who died in the place of all the seed of Abraham, including we who believe.

I once asked God to give me a new car, which He did six months later. After a year or so, He told me to sell it. I was a little grieved and preferred to sell my other car because it was smaller and I had five children. I obeyed the Lord and offered the car in the papers for a fair market price. After advertising it for a couple of months, I asked the Lord why, if He wanted me to sell it, were there no buyers. He said to me, “I wanted you to sacrifice it as Abraham sacrificed Isaac.” I said, “But, Lord, Abraham did not sacrifice Isaac.” Then I saw that the Lord was trying me in the same way as Abraham, to see if I would sacrifice what was important to me. God told me to sell my other smaller car, which I did not need at the time. I was relieved.

God will tell our spirit what He wants us to do. Dreams, visions, revelations, or spoken words will agree with our spirit, but not our flesh. When God sends us to a cross, we are going to be tried to not go. We can also be tried to go beyond the Lord. A brother had a vision he believed was from God. I felt it was a trial. In the vision, the Lord told him to sell everything, and go out on the mission field. Many come back from the mission field wounded because they were sent by religion, not God. We considered whether this was a true word from God or a trial. I asked him a few questions. He was afraid to go, but he didn’t want to miss God and lacked faith. I knew this brother was there to be fed and prepared to minister, but I knew he was not ready. I advised him to pray, but if God did not speak it in his spirit, to ignore it. Thank God he did. We should do nothing when we are uncertain of God’s direction. We should not be led by prophecy or by dreams and visions when they disagree with our own spirit. These are wonderful confirmations and direction for what we feel in our spirit. We are to be led by the Spirit of God.

If God puts something Scriptural in our spirit, we should let no one talk us out of it. Peter was used to try Jesus in this way. Jesus told the disciples that He was to die at Jerusalem, and Peter rebuked Him. (Matthew 16:22-23) And Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall never be unto thee. (23) But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art a stumbling-block unto me: for thou mindest not the things of God, but the things of men. Jesus knew that He was being tempted by Satan through Peter to do his own fleshly will.