NEIL ANDERSON DAILY DEVOTIONAL
from Freedom in Christ Ministries

April 13

A Truth Encounter

Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore it is not surprising
if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness (2
Corinthians 11:14, 15).

Another common misconception of the spiritual world is that demonic influence
is only evident in extreme or violent behavior and gross sin. Most Christians
suffering from demonic activity lead relatively normal lives while experiencing
serious personal and interpersonal problems for which no cause or solution has
been found. Since they relegate satanic involvement only to mass murderers or
violent sex criminals, these ordinary problem-plagued individuals wonder what’s
wrong with them and why they can’t just “do better.”

Satan’s first and foremost strategy is deception. It is not the few raving
demoniacs who are causing the church to be ineffective, but Satan’s subtle
deception and intrusion into the lives of “normal” believers. One Christian
psychotherapist who attended my conference on spiritual conflicts and counseling
said, “I discovered that two-thirds of my clients were having problems because
they were being deceived by Satan–and so was I!”

A final misconception that must be dispelled is that freedom from spiritual
bondage is the result of a power encounter with demonic forces. Freedom from
spiritual conflicts and bondage is not a power encounter; it’s a truth encounter.
Satan is a deceiver, and he will work undercover at all costs. But the truth of
God’s Word exposes him and his lie. His demons are like cockroaches that scurry
for the shadows when the light comes on. Satan’s power is in the lie, and when
his lie is exposed by the truth, his plans are foiled.

When God first disciplined the early church in Acts 5, He did so in a
dramatic way. Peter confronted Ananias and Sapphira: “Why has Satan filled your
heart to lie to the Holy Spirit?” (verse 3). God wanted the church to know that
Satan the deceiver can ruin us if he can get us to believe and live a lie. If I
could infiltrate a church, a committee, or a person undetected, and deceive them
into believing a lie, I could control their lives! That’s exactly what Satan is
doing, and his lie is the focus of the battle.

Lord, enable me to stay alert to the enemy’s wiles and arm myself with Your
truth.

This daily devotional is published and distributed by
http://www.GOSHEN.net/ . It is written by Neil Anderson at
http://www.freedominchrist.com/ .