The Prophetic Telegraph - No 65
COMPARISON AND CONTRAST
An investigation into the characters of Lucifer and the Son of God
PART ONE. GENESIS THREE. THE SERPENT IN THE
GARDEN OF EDEN.
Can it be that God has
said, 'You shall not eat of every tree of the Garden?' Here is a questioning
attitude, engendering doubt in God's word. How often the Serpent uses this
ploy. Sometimes the doubts arise quietly in our own brains, and the sun goes
in, or else he uses someone else to do his dirty work for him. But the result
is always the same. For a while we lose our sense of balance, until we cast out
the doubt instead of entertaining it.
Eve answered - 'not
eat - - nor touch - - lest you die.' Note the inaccuracies.
Nothing was said initially about "not touching the tree," and the
certainty of God's word "You shall surely die" was watered down into
"Lest you die." A certainty had become a contingency. Why? Surely
memory couldn't fail in unfallen man? No, it was the Serpent's questioning that
acted like a sheet of frosted glass across the mind, reducing the clarity of
vision. That which had beforehand been crystal clear, was now becoming fuzzy.
That is how the Serpent undermines us even today, unless the questions are
resisted immediately.
"You shall
NOT surely die." The "Father of lies" now speaks his most damnable lie.
"God knows
that when you eat it your eyes shall be opened, and you shall be as God,
knowing good and evil." In effect the Serpent says, "God is deceiving you. He is
withholding something from you that you ought to have. Better follow my
instructions." It's still unclear as to why they were willing to entertain
this denial of God's original words.
She saw that it was (a)
good to eat, (b) pleasant to the eyes, (c) desirable to make one wise. Notice
how self-centred these three things are. Eve had paid little attention to the
tree before, knowing and accepting that it was best to leave it alone. But now
- - her eyes were seeing things in quite a different light.
They ate, and their eyes
were opened, and they knew they were naked. Instead of gaining something, they
lost something. Oh yes, their eyes were opened, and yes, they were aware of
good and evil, but they had now placed themselves under servitude to Satan.
PART TWO. BEHIND THE SCENES. ISAIAH 14.
LUCIFER'S EARLY HISTORY.
You said in your heart (But
probably not in the hearing of others)
1. I will ascend
into heaven. By my own prowess and ability, by my own will-power,
which is entirely my own.
2. I will exalt
my throne above the stars of God. My throne is entirely my own,
and I have total control over my own will. I WILL be exalted, in the prime
place in heaven, over all these other angel-stars. They WILL observe my
greatness, and properly recognise it, and worship me.
3. I will sit on
the Mount of Meeting, in the sides of the north. And sitting there
in solemn conclave, I expect my voice to be heard in ALL matters relating to
the government of Earth.
4. I will rise
above the heights of the clouds. On the summit, above the cloud
layer, that is the place for me. I must have a clear view of heaven's dominion.
5. I will be
likened to the Most High. [NOT "I will be LIKE the Most
High." The verb is passive.] I will be seen AS the Most High. If He won't
take the sceptre of authority and display Himself properly, showing the world
just what He is, then I will do it. I want to be SEEN to be doing what He ought
to be doing.
Here is the
"mind-set" of Lucifer in the beginning. Isaiah's words come directly
from the throne of God. God alone knew what was brewing in the Luciferian mind
before he had ever had a chance to work on it. It was of God's mercy that He
gave Isaiah these prophetic insights, because the work of the Serpent is always
so subtle, often so difficult to unravel from what God is doing.
It must be stated with
firmness and clarity, that one should NOT be looking for the works of Satan in
the Public House, the Cinema, the Drug Den, the Amusement Arcade, the Bingo
Hall, the Terrorists' Hideout, the Gambling Den, the Casino, the Race Track,
the Television, the Girlie Magazines, the Computer Porno-disk or any other of
man's habits/inventions/playtoys. These are all but the outworking of man's
fallen nature, the legacy he has received from Father Adam. Oh yes, Satan uses
them, but they are not the THRUST of his work, they are not the HUB of his
activities.
Satan's MAJOR work is
depicted by Jesus in a parable. It is where God sows His good seeds that Satan
sows his tares. We should be looking for the Serpent's Trail RIGHT IN THE
CHURCHES. It is there that he operates with the most amazing trickery,
subtlety, treachery, and destruction. Mankind in general "lies
asleep in the arms of the Wicked One", and he can happily
leave them to get on with their lives. They are no threat to him. But in the
life of God's churches, he must enter, infiltrate, scheme, attack, and if
possible wreck God's work.
PART THREE. BEHIND THE SCENES. EZEKIEL 28.
SATAN AS THE KING OF
You were the
blueprint, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. And THAT was how he appeared to
Eve.
You have been in
Eden, the
You were the
Anointed Cherub who covers (the glory of God). I set you so. Covering God's glory. Some find it
difficult to understand the "shyness" of God, His absolute abhorrence
of "showmanship". Satan despised Him for it, thinking that HE had the
better way. He wanted to blast everything into the open.
You were perfect
in all your ways from the day that you were created. Perfect, yes, but he failed to
account for the fact that he was a CREATED BEING. All the glory should have
been given back to God, not kept for himself.
Until a turning
away, a declension, was found in you. It had been growing in his mind for some time
of course, but it was not classed as "sin" until he ACTED on it, and
deceived Eve. And so the "questioning" attitude had been nibbling
away at his mind, long before he tried it out on Eve.
By the abundance
of your trade, commerce, they have filled your heart with all the ill-gotten
gains of your regime. Heavenly competition. "They" are the other heavenly beings
who, being lured into the trap of praising him, were soon to be cast out of the
upper heaven with Satan. Their applause for his magnificence only served to
magnify his importance in his own eyes. He was the cause of their downfall, as
he was Adam and Eve's.
Your heart
became lifted up because of your beauty. Here is the origin of vanity, whereby we
imagine that we possess something good which is totally our own.
You have defiled
your wisdom because of your brightness. All power corrupts; absolute power corrupts
absolutely, to quote Sir J.E.E.Dalberg Acton. In human history this sad tale
was repeated in the life of King Solomon. As a 14-year-old lad he ascended the
throne of his father David, feeling overawed at the position he held. When God
asked him what he wanted, he asked for wisdom. The Lord was pleased, and not
only gave him wisdom, but also riches in abundance. But therein lay the test of
wisdom. Would he corrupt his wisdom by reason of his brightness, as Satan did
before him? For many years things went well, but eventually he came to rely on
his own wisdom/might, instead of remaining humbly dependent on God. This began
the downward pathway towards idolatry and self-dependence. The judgment of God
then fell, as it did for Satan. The kingdom was removed from him and given to
his servant Jeroboam (save a small portion which was reserved because of the
faithfulness of his father David.)
PART FOUR. WHAT SATAN SAID TO THE LORD JESUS IN
THE WILDERNESS.
Command these
stones that they be made bread. "Go on, do something spectacular! You
say you are the Son of God, so surely you must be able to cater for your
present needs." But Jesus would have none of it.
Throw yourself
down from the
Look, all the
Kingdoms of the World are in my possession. They've been given to me, and I'm
able to hand them over to anyone I wish. Isn't that why you've come? Didn't I
hear you say that you wanted to retrieve these Kingdoms from me? Well now, I'll
make a bargain with you. I believe my way is best. Throw in your lot with me
and I'll hand over ALL those Kingdoms to you. This was the crux of Satan's
thinking, and the Lord objected to it so strongly that with anger in His voice
he ordered him away, saying that ALL worship should be directed to God alone.
How similar these
temptations were to the ones in the Garden of Eden.
The first related to the
lust of the flesh - "Eve saw that it was good to eat".
"Jesus was hungry".
The second related to the
lust of the eyes - "Eve saw that it was pleasant to the
eyes" "Throw yourself down (and the eyes of everyone will be on
you)"
The third related to the
pride of life - "Eve believed that it was good to make one
wise" "Just accept my way. I'll give you all those Kingdoms. Don't
you think that is the wisest choice to make?"
But Adam and Eve succumbed
to the temptation and fell into the Serpent's trap, whereas Jesus attacked
Satan at every point by quoting the authoritative word of God - "It is
written -."
By the fall of
one man (Adam) death has passed through to all men. By the obedience of one man (Jesus) "in
Christ shall all be made alive." In
all history, in God's sight, there are but two men, Adam and Jesus. Adam fell,
and Jesus has saved him. That is the story of redemption. We who have descended
from Adam are born "in Adam". God's purpose is for us all to be born
again "in Christ." When that has happened, then God's work will have
been accomplished. Judicially it is already secure. But the task of
implementing it is taking much time. But God is Alpha and Omega, the Beginning
and the End, and He will fully conclude His work.
PART FIVE. AN ANALYSIS OF SATAN'S CHARACTER
Satan believed in himself.
He was fully aware of how wonderfully he had been created, but for some reason
he came to believe that what he was, and what he possessed, were his own
property. The wisdom he used was from his own mind, part of his own creating.
His will-power was totally his own, to use as he wanted. And because of this,
he desired to be appreciated - which God saw as "worship", and this
was disallowed.
This is the root meaning of
worship. To accept that everything good comes from God, and to speak well of
Him, is equivalent to worshipping God. To believe that anything belongs to us,
whether it be our mental ability, our creative ability, even our will-power, is
to take from God what is His sole right by creation. Hence the first
commandment, that we should worship God alone, and have no other gods to parade
before Him.
Note the manner in which
the Serpent approached Eve in the Garden. As a result mankind fell, and we have
all become a bit like him, and subject to his overlordship. But when man comes
to his senses, and asks the Lord Jesus to take His rightful place in his life,
Satan is robbed of a member of his Kingdom. That is why he reacts so violently.
He has lost some of his property.
What are Satan's
characteristics?
1. Love of power, which
leads to ostentation, exhibitionism, pomp and pageant. And this in turn causes
people to turn to him and worship him because of the power and display. He
likes nothing more than to show off and flaunt himself before man.
2. Love of competition. He
encourages us to copy him by creating competitive games, which breed rivalry,
lust for position and eminence, superiority and praise. The Olympic Games are
perhaps the greatest example of this. But in every sphere of human life,
wherever man has set up a competitive exercise, he no longer looks at the
beauty and joy of individual achievement, but to applaud the one who is
considered the BEST. All the rest get forgotten as "also-rans."
3. Then he has a love of
pleasure, and drives mankind to copy him, by making him focus his mind on food,
drink, beauty, sex, possessions, music, and even drugs. Anything to feed the
"flesh". The world obeys without any qualms, because it belongs to
him. But his real thrust is to introduce this appetite to the church. The
latest pleasure binge has come from
If any of God's children
oppose Satan's regime of Power, Competition, and Pleasure, they are despised,
mocked, and despitefully treated. The sad part today is that the mockery comes
from other Christians. By this the Enemy is amused to be able to use us as his
own weapons.
PART SIX. QUOTATIONS FROM THE NEW AGE MOVEMENT
Sun Myong Moon. "God
and man are one. Man is incarnate God."
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi,
founder of T.M. "Be still and know that YOU are God."
Received from a
"Channel". "The simple truth is to know yourself. And to know
yourself is to know God."
The Maitreya. "Man is
an emerging God - - my plan and my duty is to reveal to you a new way - - which
will permit the divine in man to shine forth."
Groups which call
themselves "Human Potential" and "Cosmic Consciousness" -
"Man is a deity equal to God, and therefore he can do no wrong.There is no
sin, no reason for guilt in life."
John Randolph Price.
"The Christ will rule over a new age on earth, and the antichrist is
anyone who denies the divinity in man." [But of course he wasn't speaking
about Jesus when he mentioned "the Christ"]
J.Z.Knight and the channel
called Ramtha who speaks through her. "The
Shirley MacLaine, the
actress, who claims the presence of a channel has written a book entitled,
"Going within - a guide for inner transformation." In this book she
says, "The total understanding and realisation of myself might require
eons for me to accomplish. But when that awareness is achieved I will be
aligned completely with that unseen Divine Force we call God. For me to deny
that Divine Force now, would be tantamount to denying that I exist. I know that
I exist, therefore I AM. I know that the God-source exists, therefore IT IS.
Since I am part of that force, then I AM THAT I AM." [What blasphemy!]
George Lucas. The
"Star Wars" films. The "force" depicted in the films
presents the same idea that Shirley MacLaine believes in.
Secular Humanism, which
elevates man to the position of God. It is the Western world's way of
expressing Hinduism. "The true self must be treated as sacred. Meditation
is essential. Let the 'divine light' diffuse throughout your being."
Peter Russell, in a book
entitled "Global Brain." "All cancer cells in the global brain
must be exported into the non-physical realm. - - All defective seeds, if
allowed to live will destroy for ever the opportunity of Homo Sapiens to become
Homo Universalis. The self-centred members must be destroyed. There is no
alternative." [He defines the "cancer cells" as (a) true
Christians, (b) orthodox Jews, (c) orthodox Moslems, all of whom believe in one
God.]
Carl Gustav Jung (1875 -
1961) formulated the theory of the "collective unconscious" whereby
images, ideas, prophecies, and dreams, are drawn out of the "world-pool of
archetypes." [This theory is much in favour with all the New Age
movements.]
David Spangler, a leading
figure in the New Age. "When man entered on the pathway to SELF, he
entered into a great creative adventure - - of learning the meaning of divinity
by accepting to himself the responsibility of a microcosmic world unto whom he
is god. - - The being who helps man to reach this point is Lucifer, the Angel
of man's evolution.
Here then is the
"bottom line". David Spangler openly admits that the mind and the
energy behind all the New Age teaching is none other than Lucifer himself. He
is not the only one to admit this, but others have realised that to advertise the
fact too openly may be a deterrent to obtaining a following. For example
Benjamin Creme used to be the head of The Lucifer Trust. But of more
recent years this has been changed to The Lucis Trust.
Benjamin Creme has been
adopted by The Maitreya, (who calls himself The Christ,) to act as his
intermediary with mankind. Hence the huge adverts that appeared in the major
newpapers some years ago, (
However, the Christian
Church is being sucked in to various "global activities". Of recent
years we have seen the "Global Prayer for Peace" organised by Pope
John Paul II, along with Tony Verna. This was on the day of Pentecost,
Later in the year there was
the "Global Day of Peace" at
Then we were presented with
the "Peace Prayer" and the "Great Invocation" The peace
prayer was introduced by Mother Teresa of
The end is in sight. Global
war is being waged. Lucifer is struggling to hold on to his empire. But we are
at the cross-roads of history. The Lord's return is near. That is why deception
is so rife.
PART SEVEN. CHRISTIAN QUOTATIONS
Goethe, the 18th century
philosopher. "People never notice the Devil, even when he has them by the
throat."
Martin Luther. "Where
God builds a Church, there the Devil would also build a Chapel."
George MacDonald. "The
one principle of Hell is 'I am my own.'" And - "The love of our
neighbour is the only door out of the dungeon of self."
John Ruskin. "When a
man is wrapped up in himself, he makes a pretty small package."
Oswald Chambers. "What
we possess often possesses us - we are possessed by possessions. 'This is mine,
you must not touch it!'" And - "I have a right to my own
opinions" [The cry of the natural man]
PART EIGHT. THE MIND OF CHRIST
Philippians chapter two.
Let this mind be
in you that was also in Christ Jesus, who -
1. existing in
the very form, or essence, of God
2. deemed it not
robbery to be equal with God
3. but emptied
himself
4. taking the
form of a servant (a slave)
5. being made in
the likeness of mankind
6. and being
found in fashion as a man
7. he humbled
himself
8. and became
obedient unto death
9. even the
death of the cross.
10. Wherefore
God highly exalted Him,
11. and gave Him
a name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should
bow, of those in heaven, (all the angelic throng) of those on earth, (all those
alive at any one time) and those under the earth, (all those who have died from
Adam onwards)
12. and that
every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the
Father.
This is the true way, the
only way, and we are encouraged to be followers of Jesus, in humility,
self-denial, and worship of God.