As Above, So Below: Hollywood’s Hocus Pocus :: By Vanessa P.

As Above So Below

“In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1). He created a beautiful angel, Lucifer, who rebelled. He wanted more than he was given and wanted to be exalted. He wanted to be God. He’s the ruler of this world. This is HIS domain. The evil you see is all due to Satan and the angels /demons who fell with him. He has had thousands of years to perfect his evil plans for man through trial, error, and time. The One-World socialist beast has risen, and Lucifer is controlling the wheel.

The Bible says Satan will tempt you; and if his temptation fails, he will regroup and come back again later. He doesn’t simply give up. We are in a spiritual war.

Luke 4:13 “Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time.”

In Luke 10:18, Jesus said He saw Lucifer thrown from heaven. “And He said to them, ‘I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.’”

Satan is devious. “Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made” (Gen 3:1).

He puts evil thoughts into your heart and mind. “And supper being ended, the devil having already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray Him” (John 13:2).

He’s a liar and murderer. “You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it” (John 8:44).

He’s a a deceiver (Rev 12:9; 20:7-8) and also a gossiper (Gen 3:1, 3:4).

He’s conniving and looks for your weaknesses. “…lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices” (2 Cor 2:11).

He was evil from the very beginning. “He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning” (1 John 3:8).

And he knows Scripture (Luke 4:10-11).

He’s disguising himself as an angel of light to deceive the world. “And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works” (2 Cor 11:14-15).

His centuries of trial and error have brought us Hollywood.

The Holly tree (toyon tree) is where Hollywood got its name. The wood from the holly tree was used by Druids to make wooden magical wands. The Druids believed that the holly tree had magical powers. The tree, when planted near your home just as harvest season starts, would protect your crops.

To the Druids in the first two centuries after Jesus, the holly was sacred in its power and spirituality.

Today, in witchcraft, the holly tree is still used for magic. It’s especially sacred to Wiccans/Witches. After the turn of the century, not long before the silver screen of Hollywood came to life, the Holly tree grew in abundance in the Hollywood hills, especially Santa Monica. In 2012, the Los Angeles City Council passed a motion designating the Toyon as the city’s official native plant.

Magic is a tool for mind control, and through Hollywood, this has been achieved. In ritual uses, Holly is associated with the life, death and re-birth symbolism of Lughnassadh/Lammas, which is the first harvest of the year in Gaelic.

The tiny white flowers of holly bloom in May, and were even once thought to have power to turn water into ice if it was sprinkled onto its surface. During Christmas, holly is used as decoration in homes all over the world.

Hollywood mesmerizes people. We get emotional. We become happier, angry or sad, depending on the movie. We feel their emotions through the screen. We fall in love with, or even grow to hate characters in movies we watch as though we know them personally.

Many of these entertainers have claimed to meditate to get themselves into the role they play. Denzel Washington claimed he was changed into the character he was playing. Some entertainers won’t answer to their actual name while filming because they are that into the character they play.

Quote from Greek Philosopher Plato:

“The gods don’t communicate to mortals directly but intermediary spirits. So mortals need figures to communicate with the gods, and thus daimon (demon) becomes the figure needed of the petition, a source evolving into sacrifices and initiations, incantations, prophecies, divinations, and magic spells, sacred poems.”

Quote from Anton LaVey, founder of The Church of Satan:

“Keep yourself constantly…open to the demons who will whisper in your ear. An old meaning of demon used to closer to muse- guiding inspirational spirit.”

Actress Shirley MacLaine had this to say about channeling in her acting career:

“I had seen so many channels and mediums over the past few years. I decided I would apply the same thing to show business. I simply channeled a character that we created… This time I allowed the character to inhabit me… I trusted the magic would work.”

MacLaine has been a huge promoter of the New Age Movement for decades. Today, actors have openly promoted channeling.

https://youtu.be/D5oOY2C9wdI   Denzel Washington

https://youtu.be/Z1JyukEGjb0 Nicholas Cage

https://youtu.be/MDkL1s2IHSQ Shirley McClain

Many Hollywood stars use a form of “Shamanism.” Shamanism is said to come from ancient Siberian tribes who used techniques that helped awaken the spiritual world within. It is a channeling of spirits in which the Shaman, the person channeling, reaches out and speaks to spirits. These spirits, in turn, talk through them. The spirits can change the Shaman’s personality, how he behaves and who he even thinks he is.

These abilities that they believe they have, come through the spirit world by a range of different rituals like chanting, fasting, immersion into nature (environmentalism), trance-dancing (several were doing this after the 2016 election), and of course, drugs.

Hollywood knows exactly what it’s doing, and your children are the main target.

There are numerous TV shows and movies that depict vampires, sorcery, witches and satanism. TV shows include talking to dead people, practicing witchcraft, and spell-casting. And these types of movies make the studios millions. This has all been an attempt to make the dark world become appealing to our youth.

Behind the scenes, dark forces have even taken over our media.

The media helps shape the mood of the nation. The media has essentially attacked this country from within by disparaging our duly elected President for over two years.

The media and entertainment are tools that are being used to shape our thoughts, our views, and even religious beliefs. Very rarely do you hear anyone from the entertainment industry talk of their relationship with Jesus Christ, but you will hear them speak of God. Which God? The god of this world, Satan.

During Hitler’s reign, he brainwashed the youth of Germany by opening theaters where thousands of kids watched hours upon hours of newsreels showing the Nazis in a positive and heroic light.

Oprah Winfrey once said:

“You cannot only use your body and physical self; this is how I see acting: I ask my body to be the carrier for spirits of those who have come before me in a way that is most meaningful to the character…just become the vehicle for that carrier. I try to empty myself and let the spirits inhabit me.”

Christian Bale recently thanked Satan for inspiring his role as Dick Cheney during his golden globe acceptance speech.

David Duchovny of the X-Files is heavily involved with the spirit world. He also has no problem mocking Jesus, as is evident from a skit where he played “Tiny Jesus.” He attended Yale before breaking out in Hollywood. Did he also attend the secretive satanic rituals in the old tombs?

Johnny Depp said he knows he is full of spirits, and joked about them. “I know I have demons; I am 30 different people sometimes.”

Entertainment has been used as an occult propaganda machine for almost a century. Those that run Hollywood are active in witchcraft and satanism. They worship Baal and despise Christianity. Hollywood produces numerous movies that mock and corrupt Christian and Family values. This is by design and no coincidence. Entertainment has been used to desensitize us, and that includes video games. TV networks are continually pushing the envelope to see what they can get away with.

People begin to accept and believe that what they see on TV is real.

Romans 1:28-31 “And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient; Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, Without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful…”

Satanism is all around us, and it’s not out there in your face; it’s a deceiving spirit. Jesus warned us that we would be involved in a spiritual fight. Paul said we would all suffer persecution. As a spiritual world, you may suffer persecution as a Christian that you don’t even realize. Have you ever met someone that immediately made you uncomfortable? Could it be your spirit warning you of another spirit? Good verses evil, darkness verses light.

Satan is hard at work.

On June 1, 2016, the Gotthard Train Tunnel in Erstfeld, Switzerland, had an occult and deeply satanic ceremony for its grand opening. Hundreds of leaders from around the world attended, including the Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, Switzerland’s President Johann Schneider-Ammann, Germany’s  Angela Merkel, and France’s President Francois Hollande.

If you’ve never seen this strange, but obvious, satanic ceremony, you must see it.

https://youtu.be/zW5gklIKcDg

They used Italian and ancient Germanic language. Ancient Germanic has roots firmly connected to paganism, druidism and the occult.

The tunnel opening included a dancing figure representing Satan, wearing a goat head. As he emerged, background audio consistently played the sounds of evil growling and demonic laughing.

On the extra-large screen, a picture of the goat head transforms into a man’s face who is screaming. The background resembled fire. Then, the dancing women begin provocative and obscene poses directly in front of the attendees. They are “offering themselves” to the audience, which of course is mostly men. In ancient Goddess worship, temple prostitutes would offer themselves to men for money. They would then give the money to the temple.

The dancers then kneeled and began bowing before a large stopped clock, acknowledging and welcoming the new age and the reign of Satan. The ceremony was purely demonic and was not without meaning. Baphomet was prominent throughout the “ritual.”

Satan wants to be God, so he imitates him. At one point, this figure playing Satan began having sex with a woman in red who gives birth to a being that isn’t fully human.

The screen then showed an upside-down tree which represents, “As above, so below,” which is a main belief of satanism and witchcraft. On the statues of Baphomet, two fingers on the right hand point up towards the heavens, and two on the left hand point down, towards the earth, which means “as above, so below.” Satanists use this phrase and the Baphomet to refer to the reign of Satan in Hell and His presence here on Earth. The spiritual world being a reflection of the material world. The Baphomet is the universal symbol for Satanism.

In witchcraft, the belief is that universe is the same as God, God is the same as man. There is no dividing line between “what is running the universe” and “human beings on earth.” The Baphomet shows the path to enlightenment, coming to Lucifer, to get power.

Isaiah 5:20-21: “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!”

The Lord’s prayer was even changed to include “as above, so below.”

It was changed from “Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” to “Do what`s best; AS ABOVE, SO BELOW.”

Who changed it? A Presbyterian minister, Eugene Peterson. On whose authority? Certainly not God’s! Here is the Lord’s Prayer according to Peterson’s The Message Bible:

“Our Father in heaven,

Reveal who you are.

Set the world right;

Do what’s best— as above, so below.

Keep us alive with three square meals.

Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others.

Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil.

You’re in charge!

You can do anything you want!

You’re ablaze in beauty!”

Peterson said his goal was to fix the biblical texts that had lost meaning by time by other translators from different periods into fresh meanings that American readers would understand. And the Lord’s Prayer isn’t all he changed. Surprisingly, evangelicals were some of his biggest fans.

The phrase “as above, so below,” originated from Hermes Trismegistus, an Ancient Greek deity in the Hellenistic period. His father was Zeus, the highest deity or god. Zeus was none other than Baal. Hermes fathered many children including Autolycus, Odysseus, Pan, and Cupid and Hermaphroditus (a son with both male and female organs) with Aphrodite.

The opposites on Baphomet represent conflicting forces in the universe.

On Baphomet’s stomach there is a Greek symbol of two serpents entwined around a staff. The pentagram is prominent on his forehead. Baphomet is part female, male and animal.

The word baphomet first appeared during the crusades. Many believe it to be a misunderstanding of the name Mohammet, or Muhammad. Christian soldiers also recorded that mosques were called “Bafumarias.” Another translation of Baphomet. Some of the crusaders were accused of worshiping false gods on their marches to Jerusalem. Could they have been converting to early Islam? The soldiers that were accused were put to death.

Lucien Greaves is the co-founder of the Satanic Temple and is actively fighting for the statue to stand opposite of God’s law (Ten commandments). He had this to say:

“For us it symbolizes reconciliation of the opposites – such as having a Satanic monument opposite a Christian one…. We think that’s a powerful message when it’s sitting opposite the Ten Commandments – you can have these dualities, differences without conflict…. It contains all these binary opposites – above and below, part animal, part human. Male and female, it embodies opposites and celebrates contrasts.”

The Baphomet statue that Greaves recreated, there’s an addition: an inverted cross.

Greaves said, “This inversion is Satan’s perception. It asks people to reconsider their cultural grounding, look at the evidence and reconsider their values…. You have this one-sided vision with institutionalized religion as the arbiters of moral correctness…. It prevents them considering whether they could be incorrect today on issues such as gay marriage and reproductive rights…. It’s true you don’t have to identify with Satan to take on those causes. But the image of Satan resonates for us.”

His Satanic Temple has filed several lawsuits demanding that the Baphomet statue be allowed on Capitol grounds in various states.

Just last month, he won a huge victory in having Satanism recognized as an official religion with tax- exempt status, just like a church.

The Satanic Temple has over twenty chapters across the U.S. with affiliates in Canada, Australia, Germany, and the UK. Greaves recently released a documentary titled “Hail Satan.”

Another addition to the Church of Satan’s Baphomet statue is children. A young boy and girl look lovingly and trusting into the face of this satanic beast.

The entertainment industry is full of Illuminati symbolism. In 2014, Katie Perry’s video “Dark House” was filled with symbolism from the Illuminati, the main focal point being “The all-seeing eye.” It was prominent throughout the video, including her hair.

The “all seeing eye” can be traced to ancient Egypt and the Eye of Horus. Horus being the son of Nimrod and Semiramis. The eye is surrounded by rays of light, and Nimrod was thought to be the actual sun.

https://www.raptureready.com/2019/04/04/spirit-jezebel-rising-mistress-baal-vanessa-p/

Jesus said in Matthew 6:22, “The light of the body is the eye.”

The Bible specifically told us that Adam and Eve’s eyes were opened to the knowledge of sin.

Genesis 3:7 “Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.”

The eye is a symbol of knowledge. In the spirit world, it represents knowledge between good and evil.

We are living in the most prophetic time since Jesus walked the earth. Prophecies have fulfilled before our eyes. We witnessed Israel being restored and the return of Jerusalem to Israel. The collapse of the Middle East has happened, just as prophesied. The joining of Russia and Iran (Persia) has happened, just as Ezekiel said it would.

Since the restoration of Israel, technology has exploded. The Bible prophesied of this knowledge increase.

The signs are around us; we are THAT generation that Jesus spoke of and was warning.

The last three generations were GEN X, GEN Y, GEN Z. The generation the kids growing up today are in is GEN ALPHA, and it ends in 2025.

I am the Alpha (beginning) and the Omega (the end). Just another coincidence?

We are experiencing apostasy at an astronomical rate. Belief in Jesus is rare; belief in some god, any god, is on the rise. This generation is ready to follow a spiritual leader, especially if he promises to end global warming. Global warming has turned into an occult-like organization.

The dark forces of this world hide and deceive in secret. Satan comes in many forms, and he can be hiding and using someone you least expect. Jesus said we would know them by their fruits, though.

Satan didn’t speak to Eve as the devil; he spoke to her as a serpent. He deceived her.

He hides, but Jesus does not.

John 18:20 “I spake openly to the world … in secret have I said nothing.”

Matthew 7:15-16 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits.”

One of the most blatant, Satanic films to come out of Hollywood was Eyes Wide Shut. It reveals the satanic rituals that go on with the elites of this world. You? You’re nothing, disposable. So are your children.

Eyes Wide Shut was filled with Illuminati symbolism. It wasn’t the lead characters, Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman, who did anything out of the ordinary; it was what was going on around them. First, over twenty minutes of the movie was cut just prior to release, and it’s been kept hidden. There are rumors and speculation that they went into more detail with the satanic rituals and sexual ceremonies.

The movie seems to depict the leaked photographs of an actual 1972 Rothschild party in which guests were secretly photographed wearing dark and strange masks. These included goat heads or deer heads. Some women simply wore large antlers. The party was clearly satanic in nature, and the Hollywood elite were there.

Audrey Hepburn was photographed wearing a bird cage over her head, and she wasn’t the only one to use birds as symbolism. It represents enslavement or a controlled existence.

Another wore a costume that consisted of an apple which was inspired by the painting “Son of Man.” it was making a direct biblical reference to Eve eating the forbidden fruit from the Garden of Eden.

In the movie, you can see a double eagle on the chair of the “high priest” after Cruise was found to be an imposter; this was after a satanic ritual. A double eagle also happens to be The Rothschild’s family crest. On tables in the leaked photos from the Rothschild home on the night of the party, baby-doll parts were strewn all over tables. The menu consisted of “cadaver” and Sir Loin, as in a man, not sirloin.

Many believe the producer of Eyes Wide Shut, who died only days before the release, was murdered for releasing the film. The production studio ordered him to cut 24 minutes from the film, but he refused. When he died, the final 24 minutes were cut anyway. Another coincidence?

Saul Alinsky said, “The very first radical known to man who rebelled against the establishment and did it so effectively that he at least won his own kingdom – Lucifer.”

That “establishment” that he spoke of was the Christian family. If you break up the family and remove God, you can enter the home much easier.

Mark 3:27 “No man can enter into a strong man’s house, and spoil his goods, except he will first bind the strong man; and then he will spoil his house.”

Lucifer has even gained his own television show, appropriately titled “Lucifer.”

Within the first few minutes of the show, we learn that Lucifer is a smooth-talking, handsome and funny man who cracks jokes. He also thinks he’s a victim of God. He’s a hero of sorts who helps the LAPD catch criminals. Yeah, you read that right. Lucifer catching criminals. More like deceiving man!

Hollywood has to be one of Satan’s greatest inventions.

This is Satan’s domain, and he knows his time is short. We are entering a period like no other. I warned last year that the “Trump hatred” would soon turn to “Christian hatred,” and it has. Our faith, values and Savior are under attack. Will you stand for Him in these difficult times? Are you ready to defend Him with His word? When witnessing and defending, it’s truly all you need.

Satan can bind you and even take away God’s Word from unbelievers.

Mark 4:15-16 “When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts. These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness.”

Satan can cause illness, as seen in Job. He stands in front of God, accusing you and exposing you.

But, Satan is not allowed to do anything without God’s approval.

Luke 22:31-32 “And the Lord said, ‘Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.’”

Satan is a temporal being and cannot be in multiple places at the same time. That’s what his demons are for; they are just as evil and hate you just as much…making Satan’s hatred known everywhere.

Luke 4:13 “Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time.”

He does not know your thoughts and prayers, and he can’t foretell the future or tear you away from God. He can, however, offer you worldly possessions.

Luke 4:6 “And the devil said to Him, ‘All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish.’”

The good news is Satan’s rule over this world is coming to an end, and soon. No more evil or wickedness. No more sickness and death. Jesus will wipe every tear from our eyes. There will be no more chaos over who is President, and no more socialism under the guise of unity and globalism, which is the world beast we were warned of. When Jesus returns, it won’t matter who is President, because Jesus is King!

Vanessa P

Womanofchrist@yahoo.com

https://heistruth.home.blog/

https://www.facebook.com/HeisTruth20/

…Perspective on Global Spiritual Contamination :: by Jean-Louis Mondon

International Perspective on Global Spiritual Contamination 

“Update to “The Poison of False Teachings”

A few years ago, I was researching for an article I was writing on the subject of “The Poison of False Teachings.” I found an interesting comment related to the theme posted by a brother on a French site “VoxDei.” The comment might be sufficient to illustrate the main idea of my article since I cannot locate the original French text. See the additional commentary below.

My original article was written in the spring of 2005 when I had just come back from my second trip to Brazil. While shopping in a Christian bookstore, I was surprised and dismayed to see the same books we could find on the racks of most Christian and secular bookstores in the US. They were translated and sold quickly because of their popularity in the US. Needless to say, discernment is absent and sorely lacking from a lot of Central and South American Churches.

Back in the US, I was hit with the news that the conservative church I was attending since 2001 had started a Sunday School study program with Warren´s book “Purpose Driven Church.” I was helping the pastor in the Hispanic mission; and after talking to him about the book, he invited me to teach a class on the New Age Movement and false teachings instead of Rick Warren´s book. Our Hispanic brothers were very receptive, the discussions were lively and interesting, and often expanded on other ramifications of the deceptive nature of other Christian emergent and other “movements” and their misleading doctrines.

I could sense a real hunger and thirst for knowledge and the need to be equipped to expose the lies when they were witnessing to people in the community. I was greatly helped in my research by Warren B. Smith´s first edition of his book “Deceived on Purpose” that can be purchased at “Lighthouse Trail Research.”

While still in the US, I started blogging about the same time as the book “The Shack” by Paul Young was received so openly with great fanfare in the Christian Community – since, after all, it was only fiction and we Christians also need to be entertained by writers who are not teaching doctrine, but simply are using their God-given inspiration in relating true experiences so touching and personal that they resonate with the majority of readers. Hoorah for sanctified imagination!

Well, back to the present with a movie based on “The Shack” and the recent release of another book “Lies We Believe about God” which doesn´t leave a lot of wiggle room as to the intent in writing his first book. Find the excellent review by the “Lighthouse Trail Research” where you can also purchase the new booklet “The Shack and its New Age Leavenat this link.

The Poison of False Teachings

There is an ever-pressing need for spiritual discernment in today´s church.

The following is an illustration demonstrating the process of contamination (based on my own experiences both physical and spiritual as a flower grower and supervisor on a chrysanthemum flower ranch in S. California).

Setting the stage:

A greenhouse full of flowers and plants.

It´s time to fertilize the plants to help them grow and to become strong and beautiful.

Equipment needed:

A tank for mixing, water, a pump and a hose with a nozzle to carry the water, and fertilizer mixture under pressure to spray the plants.

Worker´s equipment:

Waterproof protective suit, boots, gloves and a protective respirator mask.

Fertilizer: (Percentage not accurate, solely used for the story).

Chemical contents in a paper bag in soluble powder form.

Inert ingredients: 99.5 %

Active ingredients: 0.5 %

Instructions:

Fill the tank, dilute the appropriate dose of fertilizer, and start spraying the plants.

Expected results:

Plant growth.

Change of scene

Now let´s imagine a scenario in which, instead of fertilizer somebody inadvertently, without paying attention to the warning on the label or perhaps intentionally, would mix an insecticide or pesticide into the water.

Everything stays the same, the place, the worker, the plants and flowers, the water, the equipment, even the inert ingredients in equal measure; everything, except the 0.5 percent (more or less) of the lethal amount of poison for the plants.

What would be the effect on the plants? At least, they would wilt, become yellow, lose their vigor, their beauty and even die if the insecticide concentration was strong enough.

Now let´s change the scene once again.

Let´s imagine any church building. We see the building, the people, the praise group or choir, the musical instruments, the pulpit and the pastor preaching from the word of God, the Bible.

Or it could be a Sunday school or a home group meeting in which the leader and participants share their testimonies, stories or illustrations aimed at helping the group understand the lesson.

So you see the parallel with the situation in the greenhouse.

Every time someone (the worker spraying the plants) brings the Word of God and explains simply, clearly and faithfully the Scriptures under the anointing of the Holy Spirit, the listeners (represented by the plants) grow in wisdom, understanding, love, inner strength, etc., and are consoled, encouraged in all the aspects of Christian living if they practice the lessons of the Scriptures with diligence and obedience to the Lord´s words and his commands.

The stories, illustrations, parables, poems and personal testimonies can be compared to the inert ingredients that help to carry the biblical message to the participants. They are neutral and serve as a framework for the spiritual content. They can be interesting, fascinating, but what provides the growth in the Christian hearer is the powerful and penetrating Word of God that operates a work of conversion in the sinner, purifying the human heart and spirit. It is the Holy Spirit who through the Word illuminates, establishes and edifies by giving him or her light, strength, peace and consolation. The list of blessings and benefits of the Word of God in the life of the believers is inexhaustible.

The Word of God is so filled with life, power, and is so efficacious that just one verse of the Bible is enough to change a hard and impenetrable heart – to open the mind and change the life of a man and to draw him from death to eternal life, from darkness into His marvelous light – by the power of the Holy Spirit who applies the Word of Life in the heart of the sinner and operates His invisible and yet manifest work. Jesus said: “My words, they are life and they are spirit.”

New change of scenario.

Here we have the same situation, the same building, the same congregation, the same praise group, instruments, pulpit, the same pastors, the same Bible; everything is similar.

It could happen that some illustrations, poems or stories accompanying the message or the biblical lesson contain doubtful and imperceptible doctrinal elements and false teaching, read from a book or watched and remembered from a radio or a TV program. Or even worse, a deliberate departure, addition to or subtraction, or distortion from the very meaning of the words, verse or context – an action forbidden by God himself who made this very clear in the scriptures of the Old and New Testament.

Let´s suppose that the person doing it lacks discernment and speaks with no knowledge of the origin, nature or the impact of what he is relating. It does not matter; the effect can still have devastating consequences in the life of the people who hear, absorb and assimilate the teaching because poison is poison even in small quantities, even coming from a well-intentioned person. Depending on the vulnerability and lack of discernment of the believer, the influence and its effect will be more or less serious.

In the church, our Father God gave us everything we need: the structures, the equipment, the pastors, the teachers, the brothers and sisters participating in the worship. He gave the breath and the voice to praise him, to proclaim his message of love and pardon, our mind and heart to receive, believe and share the good news of the Gospel. This Word, and the practice of good works that the Father entrusts to our responsibility helps us to grow, mature, and to be conformed to the image of our Lord Jesus. His Word is pure and cannot be mixed with anything else that is impure.

A teaching that is contrary to the Word of God is poison to our soul. We must not allow our mouth to transmit what is poisonous (venom coming from the serpent mouth) to others ears.

Pastors and teachers, of course, bear a greater measure of responsibility when it comes down to exercising wisdom and prudence towards preaching and teaching the Word of God. Indeed, every Christian ought to use the Word (written) as a filtration system to judge what is good and true when spiritual teaching is involved. (See Acts 17:11 as Paul talks about the noble Bereans.) The Scriptures along with the help of the Holy Spirit help us to discern and to protect our minds from error; and we must handle them as an offensive weapon to combat the lies and wiles of the adversary.

Antidote, protection, discernment of the Spirit and preserving our freedom in Christ.

The best antidote if we inadvertently or willingly swallowed spiritual poison is the truth of the Word of God that purifies us (Eph. 5:26-27). Interestingly enough, the hope of seeing our Lord and waiting expectantly for his soon return purifies us also (I John 3:3).

Confessing our participating in the process is important to be cleansed according to 1 John 1:9: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Deception by false teachers involves both false teachers and those with itching ears who prop them on a pedestal that will eventually be exposed and fall. Unfortunately, the followers will suffer great harm and suffering when their eyes are finally opened. Matthew 15:14: “Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if a blind man guides a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”

The Word of God is compared to bread. Jesus warned us that our bread must be kept from any addition of the yeast of the Pharisees that is hypocrisy when we embrace the position and conduct of those who spread false teachings and add burdens that the Lord himself has not given us. It is interesting to note that the leavening that the baker uses to make the bread rise can only be effective in a lukewarm environment described perfectly in the spiritual condition of the church of Laodicea in the book of Revelation. Yeast cannot survive or thrive in hot or cold temperatures which neutralize its active properties. It is enough to observe the effects to recognize the causes.

Zeal without knowledge is unprofitable (Prov. 19:2; Romans 19:2).

Knowledge without love puffs up like yeast.

“Now about food sacrificed to idols: We know that ‘We all possess knowledge.’ But knowledge puffs up while love builds up. Those who think they know something do not yet know as they ought to know. But whoever loves God is known by God” (I Corinthians 8:1-3).

“For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision, nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love. You were running a good race. Who cut in on you to keep you from obeying the truth?  That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you. ‘A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough.’ I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion, whoever that may be, will have to pay the penalty” (Galatians 5:6-10).

“Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him” (Proverbs 30:5).

“For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.

“Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:12-16).

In conclusion, here is a strong word of exhortation to love and walk in the Spirit in order to preserve the freedom to which we were called and for which Christ died.

“You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other. So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law” (Galatians 5:13-18).

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Additional commentary on the effects of the spiritual contamination of false teachings:

Philippe, a French blogger, shared the following in a comment: (Translation by this blogger)

“I found an article on false doctrines with the following passage with a good explanation of the mixture with false teachings.

In the Greek text of 1 Thessalonians, the name for the impurity rising to the top through the infiltration of an erroneous teaching is “Akatharsis.” The opposite term in Greek is Katharsis, from which the English name “Catharsis” is derived. This term does not mean impure in the sense of “our sin not being washed.” (In that case, a very different word “Absolusio” would be used, where we get the term “Absolution” from.)

It does not mean either “separate the evil and hold on to the good.” The Septuagint translates this from the Hebrew text with the meaning of “take the good from the evil,” using again another Greek word “Ekagageis” found in Jeremiah 15:19. The impurity of “Akatharsis” means that there is a mixture that cannot be washed and for which there exists no efficient process of separation. In “Katharsis,” there is a purifying form of some substance. However, in Akatharsis, we find something which is a mixture of pure and impure.

This mixing is not simply something superficial that can be washed away. We are dealing with a homogeneous blend that needs to be discarded and totally replaced.

It seems impossible to me, once the leaven incorporated to the dough has risen, to separate the flour from the leaven.

Therefore, we must leave the churches that spread false doctrines, because it is impossible to change them.

We need to leave them before we become contaminated ourselves.”

For a deeper study of the passage in 1 Thessalonians 5:21-22, link to:

1Thessalonians 5:22—The Sin Sniffer’s Catch-All Verse

Jean-Louis

http://lightnseed.blogspot.com