“And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season” (Revelation 20:2).

 

Until Satan is bound and thrown into the bottomless pit for a thousand years, his deceptive influences will remain here on earth. Satan is the father of deception and roams to and fro across the globe deceiving earth’s populous. Over the past 6,000 years or so he has perfected his lying, his deceitful ways -- promoting his craftiness with all tenacity. Many of us can plainly see his blatant attempts at distracting mankind, leading them into all sorts of diversions, which ultimately leads them to believe the devil’s deceptions. But there are many satanic distractions, which most people, even professing Christians, would never associate with Satan.

 

Let’s first get an idea of just what those three words – distractions, diversions, and deceptions mean. The three “D’s”:

 

1.) Distractions: anything, which takes a person’s attention away from something else.

2.) Diversion: a change in the direction or path away from what was originally set forth.

3.) Deception: the practice of deliberately making somebody believe things that are not true, an act, trick, or contrivance intended to deceive or mislead somebody.

 

Distraction, diversion and deception: are promoted by the satanic realm for the purpose of manipulation. Who is being manipulated? You and I are. As Christians, when we become distracted or diverted from what God would have us be involved in, it’s then that the deceptions of the enemy begin to have an adverse effect on our lives. Imagine the effect those three D’s named above have on the unsuspecting Christ rejecters.

 

“While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:18). We can’t see into the realm of the eternal, but Christians believe there is another dimension where those who’ve not rejected God’s free gift of salvation will end-up. There are marvelous unseen things in heaven awaiting the children of God.

 

Although it’s probably a real good thing that we can’t currently see into the realm of the supernatural, because along with the marvelous things that await us there’s a realm of extreme evil, which surrounds us. But thanks to God it’s invisible to humans. The malevolent realm of the supernatural has been kept from our sight because of our inability to contend with pure evil. We have a difficult enough time avoiding the pitfalls of the enemy as it is.

 

The worldly distractions with which we’ve all been overwhelmed in this life are actually diversions created for a distinct purpose. Nothing we see or do which brings pleasure into our lives is of God, unless God is centered in that pleasure. From birth to death our God should be our center. God, Himself, is never going to involve us in schemes and diversions that drag us farther away from following Him and His Word. All distractions, which eliminate or supplant God, are satanically created to deceive, and they are endless.

 

There are too many satanic distractions, diversions, and deceptions to mention them all. Suffice it to say they are all tried and true as far as creating a wall of separation between us, and our God. As I’ve stated numerous times in various commentaries, television is the enemy’s three D’s tool of choice. If we are staring at a television screen watching reruns of LA Law, are we not being diverted away from God?

 

When our senses are inflamed with obscene jocularity by watching some perverse TV comedian are we giving any thought to God? The Internet with its saturation of instant pornography must surely follow at a close second behind television’s huge allure. There are many other distractions, which can easily be seen for what they are. Using the common sense God gave us to evaluate distractions, diversions, and deceptions it isn’t difficult, but we must be willing.

 

Diverting us away from God is the enemy’s goal as he attacks us with his endless lies. Satan will never cease his deceiving ways, especially as long as we continually comply with his agenda. Some people are thoroughly reliant on those three D’s for their entertainment. It’s not until we finally realize what Satan is doing and resist him that he will flee from us. “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (James 4:7).

 

Our young children attend public schools where God is forbidden to enter. How long are we going to allow our children to be indoctrinated with the humanistic agenda? I’ll tell you. Long enough to allow the enemy to divert them away from God, the God who created them in His likeness. Research shows that 95% of all Christian students who graduate from a secular high school leave behind all Christian fellowship by the time they enter collage. This is a disturbing statistic and it can be verified by doing a search on the Barna Research Group website.

 

For many years the world has been introducing our young children to every kind of immoral and degrading wickedness known to man. Large numbers of very young children are now experimenting with sex, drugs, and alcohol. The enemy has begun a series of distractions, diversions, and deceptions aimed predominately at preschoolers through teens. The enemy’s tactic is to convince them to not only accept his deceptions as truth, but to fully embrace all his doctrines. Abortion, homosexuality, sex out of wedlock, mind-altering drugs, and the list goes on and on. 

 

Organized and professional sports can be just as deceptive when we consider how much time we devote to them. The distractions and frenzied actions of crazed fans that we see displayed in the modern sports stadiums have its roots in the ancient Roman coliseum where violence and death were condoned. Those Roman games were staged to entertain the populous.

 

As the citizens of Rome watched people being beaten, stabbed, and run through with spears, they were worked into such a frenzy that they became a part of the slaughter urging the participants to either let the defeated participant live or die. What they were watching was the very public spectacle of sanctioned murder. Then it occurred to the leaders of Rome that it would be highly beneficial to Caesar’s rule to eliminate that new sect of people who were not bowing to Rome’s god – Christians – and the deceived masses went wild. I am fully aware of the fact that many of my brethren feel they couldn’t get by without sports. Be that as it may, this is an area where Satan has excelled at his deceptions and he will never stop. 

 

“What do you suggest we do for entertainment and fun, Ron, that’s exciting and fulfilling?”

 

There is pure joy in serving God, and it is better than any worldly activity or sport. When we do we will find our joy and satisfaction complete in Christ. Each time you watch an individual get baptized after becoming born-again you’ll be cheering right along with God and all the whole host of godly angels as you recognize the joy of the Lord in that event. That baptism would be far superior to any 100-yard touchdown or grand slam ever witnessed.

 

The question the children of God should be concerned with is how do all these distractions honor God? When we finally stand before our Christ at His Bema Seat of judgment, how will we respond to this question Jesus might pose “I’ve watched you through the years and I see you’ve memorized the baseball scores of your favorite teams, but can you quote 5 verses from my word?”

 

Of course I’ve only scratched the surface when it comes to all of the successful satanic distractions, diversions, and deceptions with which humanity is continually being tempted. This commentary could go on and on and I’m sure right about now many of you will think of me as quite legalistic or even a raving lunatic. If you are still focused on baseball you probably think I’m way out in left field somewhere. Let me finish by saying that in heaven there will not be any of the satanic distractions, diversions, and deceptions that keep our minds off our God. And no, you will not miss them.

 

“Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart” (Psalm 37:3-4).

 

When we get to heaven we will truly desire to be a part of God’s kingdom. The desires of our heart will be fully aligned with our God’s heart. Some claim the verse above points to our being given the desires of our heart when we reach heaven – including sports of any kind. We can’t claim the verse above pertains to what our desires will be in heaven because of the verse that precedes it “Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land.”

 

The context of the entirety of those verses point to dwelling in the land – on earth. Therefore, if you believe the desire of your heart is to crave professional sports after you leave planet Earth then the desires of your heart are most assuredly satanic. Nothing of Satan’s will ever enter heaven again, only the things of God.

 

God bless you all,

 

Ron Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

www.straitandnarrowministry.com

ron@straitandnarrowministry.com

 

All original Scripture is “theopneustos” God breathed

 

Please continue your prayers for my health. The diabetes has taken a detrimental effect on my eyesight, the Myasthenia is worsening and both the MG and the diabetes have begun to take a real toll on my body. The prostate cancer is back and I must begin hormone treatments again.  Through all this, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me” (Philippians 4:13).

 

I’m very grateful to those of you who have been led by God to send gifts of support. God is the giver of all good gifts. I’ve placed this little acknowledgement here at the bottom of my commentary because some of you ask if you can send a gift. My response as always is: If God is leading you to send a gift of support, then “yes.” Please send your gift to Ron Graham – 96 County Road 5480, Salem, MO, 65560. For those of you who have suggested it, I have set up a PayPal account using my email address twotug@embarqmail.com as my account access number. Thank you my brethren, God bless you all.

 

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