To condition. One definition of condition is to “bring (something) into the desired state for use.” Synonyms for condition include treat, prepare, prime, temper, process, acclimate, season.
The Bible is the book of truth, promise, & prophecy to name only a few descriptors.
Every word of the text is important – from cover to cover. It is Truth. It is God’s very word. His Standard is on display for any to see. The God who is angry with the wicked every day (Psalm 7:11-12) and the same God who offers mercy to man through the sacrifice of Jesus (1 John 2:2) resonates through and on every page. God is the Lamb. God is the Lion. He is a God of mercy. He is a God of vengeance.
Satan has fought hard to distort people’s acceptance of the whole Gospel. Sometimes, we can only see Satan coming if he yells, “Death to Christianity!” In those times, we clearly see him, and it is much easier to dismiss him. In the form of ISIS, we can spot the so-called horns and pitchfork. It is also easier to dismiss him in the form of an atheist.
But, you see, Satan presents himself in many forms.
Satan has been working at this deception thing a very long time. He has been tempering and priming people since the Garden. Let me be more specific: He has been conditioning the church (at least those within the church who allow him to do so) to believe a lopsided distortion of the Bible. He doesn’t have to say, “Death to Christianity” directly. He just has to distort it enough so that it becomes a false gospel under the guise of the True Gospel. A false jesus under the guise of the real Jesus.
Most of us have heard that if you place a frog into a pan of water and gradually heat up the water, the frog won’t even realize his death is imminent. Why? He gradually acclimates to the rising temperature, and because this is so gradual, he never thinks to jump from death to life.
What a tragic plan.
2 Corinthians 11:13-15
13 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.
14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.
This subtle serpent even attempted to distort the Bible with Jesus Himself. Jesus: the Word made flesh. Do we believe he doesn’t attempt this with followers of Christ? Have we fallen for it?
Matthew 4
1 Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the
devil.
2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.
3 And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.
4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,
6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. (Satan quotes the Bible to Jesus)
7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;
9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.
10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
11 Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.
Do we see how Satan presented scripture to Jesus? Do we really see this? Satan quotes the Word of God to THE Word of God. Satan does not approach Jesus by revealing his true plan: “Jump off this pinnacle and kill yourself!” No, he slithers in with subtlety. Satan cannot push a person to sin, but he can quietly and helpfully entice. “Do this sin. God will rescue you.” A little twisting of scripture makes it much easier to swallow the poison.
Do we see Jesus’ response to the serpent’s subtlety? “It is written again.”
Both figures say, “It is written.” One figure seeks to distort the Truth of God’s Word, and the other seeks to establish the Truth of God’s Word. Both use the Bible to do so. However, Jesus uses the Word properly to counteract Satan’s distortion of the Word.
The whole book must be eaten. Although sweet and bitter, all of it is Truth. We cannot afford to become acclimated to the sweet only. Or the sour only. That is distortion. And that is of the Devil.
The Lord spoke to me once in a dream: He said, “They have replaced sackcloth and ashes with sugar.” We see this trend in so many churches: "Only use the easily digested verses."
Such sugary, lopsided conditioning by the Devil leads those who have been acclimated or tempered by him to strongly oppose the other side of the Truth when they hear it. This is dangerous. This has and will lead to a falling away.
Read the word, follow the word, and warn those who are in error. Warn them in order to help them, not to hurt them. God knows who wants the whole Truth and whose ears refuse to hear it. If the Lord has called you to complete a specific work in the body, do the work God has given you to do.
Be tempered by the whole Word of God in order to stand, or be conditioned by the Devil’s distorted version only to fall.
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