The devil made me do it!

I know that is false doctrine.  The devil cannot make us do anything without our consent.  But the phrase perfectly describes my feelings when I am being mischievous.  One of the things I like to do is trick my fellow bloggers and those I hang out with on email discussion lists.  I find a scriptural verse or several that teach a true principle.  Then I paraphrase it so that it is no longer recognizable as scripture while staying as close as possible to the intent or meaning.  Finally, I post it in blog comments, in a post here on the Iron Rod, or send it to one of the email discussion lists, and I post it as my personal opinion.  Then I sit back and see who agrees and who disagrees.  It is informal test to see if the reader can recognize truth when he sees it.

This actually does not always tell me who does and does not believe the scriptures.  There are too many argumentative know-it-alls on the Internet who would take issue with anything that I or anyone else posted online even if they knew it was true.  Others who know and dislike me would take issue with the “opinion” just because I said it.  Were I to say, “Grass is green, and the sky is blue,” they would point out that sometimes grass is brown and the sky is gray.  Were I to say, “Trees are taller than grass,” they would point out that a Japanese bonsai tree is shorter than bamboo, a type of grass.  Some people just cannot stand agreeing with me.  Others cannot stand agreeing with anyone.

Yes, I know that the devil does not make me do this, but I am mischievous online from time to time.

Spiritual Wickedness In High Places

In my last post I reviewed some of what the prophets have taught about “churches” and the fact that ultimately there are only two: the church of Jesus Christ, and the church of the devil. Today, I would like to add what I consider to be a related scripture from the New Testament. I think it is especially pertinent today because of the primary campaigns being waged here in the USA by both the Republicans and the Democrats who are vying for the office of President of the United States.

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. (Ephesians 6:12)

This is the Apostle Paul, of course. But what was he writing about, and how is it relevant to our day? Is it relevant? On the official Church website, this verse is cross referenced in the Topical Guide to Darkness, Spiritual; Secret Combinations, Governments, and Wickedness among others. Does Paul imply by this that governments are or can be a threat to the gospel of Jesus Christ? Is the Church in danger from such threats around the world? How about here at home? What can we learn from Church History? I personally feel it likely that our national elections are very much influenced by the machinations of evil men combined to get power over the people. What to do about it is much less clear to me. But I am weary of our elected leaders obviously serving someone else rather than those who voted for them and put them in office.

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