Village Schools of the Bible

WHAT IN THE WORLD IS GOING TO HAPPEN?
Part 4: A Spirit of Deception Will Influence Many Away
from the Truth of Christ Jesus
by Max Frazier, Jr.

Editor’s Note: This is the fourth in a series of articles on prophetic issues relevant to our times.
See the Philogian Archives for previous articles: The Antichrist (February 2007),
the Russian invasion of Israel (May 2007), Israel's return (February 2008).

Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.” (Matthew 24:4, 5)

“…and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people.” (Matthew 24:11)

“At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect – if that were possible.” (Matthew 24:23-24)

In His Sermon on the Mount of Olives, given to His disciples just days before He was to be crucified, Jesus related to those followers some of the events that would occur prior to His appearing to establish His Kingdom. Of course we are most familiar with His warnings about wars and rumors of the wars; of nations rising up against nations; of famines and earthquakes; and of persecution being inflicted upon the Christians. But, what is often overlooked is the strong admonition of Jesus against being deceived in those days. Three times Jesus used the word “deceive.” That alone should tell us of the importance Jesus placed upon our being aware of the dangers of such deception.

The words “deceive” and “deception” come from the Latin word meaning “to take from.” The dictionary defines “deceive” as: “to make (a person) believe what is not true; delude; mislead.” The dictionary then goes on to state that “deceive implies deliberate misrepresentation of facts by words, actions, etc., generally to further one’s ends.” So we can say that deception is the act of causing someone to be led away from the truth.

In this brief article I would like to explore just how this act of deception might occur in those days. In order to do that we need to understand how Satan is using deception today to cause many to believe more in themselves than in God’s love.

Deception Through False Teaching
Friends, if I were to ask you to identify the most powerful lie in all the world, what would your response be? Well, the most powerful lie is also the oldest lie. In fact, it really was the very first lie. You will find it recorded for us in Genesis 3:4, 5 – “You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” Adam and Eve bought that lie. Countless millions of people buy the lie every year. It is appealing to be “the captain of your own ship; the master of your own fate” (from the poem Invictus, written by William Ernest Henley).

Recently I was made aware of a new program being offered through the XM-Satellite Radio broadcasts of Oprah Winfrey. It is entitled, “A Course in Miracles.” The year-long course was written by Marianne Williamson. The course was purported to have been given to a Columbia University Professor of Medical Psychology by the name of Helen Schucman in 1965. Dr. Schucman stated that she received this new revelation from a person named Jesus to help mankind work through the problems of this troubled age. The process of this revelation took seven years.

I became intrigued to learn more. So I visited the websites of Oprah Winfrey and the “Course in Miracles” and became aware how Satan was using this innocent-sounding program to deceive millions. Let me share from a few of the lessons:

From Lesson 61 (aired on March 1, 2008): True humility requires that you accept today’s idea because it is God’s Voice which tells you it is true. This is a beginning step in accepting your real function on earth. It is a giant stride toward taking your rightful place in salvation. It is a positive assertion of your right to be saved, and an acknowledgement of the power that is given you to save others (emphasis added by this author). My friends, there are two subtle, yet very dangerous, statements that are made here. First is the assertion of your right to be saved. We live in an age where rights and entitlements have become watchwords. “You owe me” and “I deserve” echo the sentiments from our hearts. But, am I entitled to salvation? Do I have a right to be saved? Does God owe me anything? The answer to all these questions is absolutely no! In fact, the only thing I deserve is God’s wrath and judgment because I have willingly turned my back upon Him. Listen to these words of David: For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are proved right when you speak and justified when you judge (Psalm 51:4, 5). Does that sound like David is saying that God owes him salvation? I don’t think so. In fact, David understands that unless he can plead God’s mercy, God’s wrath is the only thing that he can expect from God. You and I may live in an age of rights and entitlement, but salvation is not one of those rights.

The second dangerous statement is the statement that power has been given us to save others. You and I have been commanded by Christ to be His witnesses: But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). Now there is a marked difference between witnessing for Christ and saving someone else. In my witnessing I share with another person how Jesus Christ can save them, for salvation is only from God (Jonah 2:9). I am helpless to save anyone; but I am privileged to help another come to Christ.

Let’s look at another example. This is from lesson 63 (aired on March 3, 2008). You are indeed the light of the world with such a function. The Son of God looks to you for his redemption. It is yours to give him, for it belongs to you. Accept no trivial purpose or meaningless desire in its place, or you will forget your function and leave the Son of God in hell. This is no idle request that is being asked of you. You are being asked to accept salvation that it may be yours to give (emphasis added by this author). Wow! Did you get that? Jesus is looking to us for His salvation! Unless we act, the Son of God will remain in hell! Friends, this is not only deceptive, but it is heretical. First of all let us be absolutely sure of this truth: Jesus Christ never needs redeemed because He never sinned. Read the following passages to be reaffirmed of this truth: 2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 4:15; Hebrews 7:26; 1 Peter 2:22; 1 John 3:5. And the Bible makes it absolutely clear that Jesus Christ is today seated at the right hand of the Father in heaven, thus He is not in hell awaiting our help. Read the following passages to be reaffirmed of this truth: Hebrews 12:2; Acts 2:33; Acts 5:31; Romans 8:34; Colossians 3:1; Hebrews 1:3.

Allow me to share one more example. This is from lesson 70 (aired on March 10, 2008). The lesson is prefaced with this quote from Ms. Williamson: Today’s lesson helps you to do the inner work of accepting responsibility for your salvation. As you come into agreement with God, you realize His will and your will are the same and that your salvation and the world’s salvation are in you. The author continues by stating: The seeming cost of accepting today’s idea is this: It means that nothing outside yourself can save you; noting outside yourself can give you peace. She concludes by stating: My salvation comes from me. It cannot come from anywhere else. First let me ask this question: Is my will and God’s will ever the same? God’s will becomes my will only as I yield myself to Him. I surrender my will to His will. I lay my will upon the altar of His will. Again, we see Ms. Williamson declare that salvation is dependent upon my own actions.

Friends, can you see how subtly deceptive this teaching is, especially to those who have not been grounded in the Scriptures? According to Ms. Williamson, this is a new revelation from Jesus himself giving us guidance in how to live successfully in this age. All some people have to hear is that this is from Jesus and they will accept the teachings without further investigation. Will such people find God’s will in the “Course in Miracles?” Of course not! Instead they will fall into the trap set by Satan himself. They will be told that they are the masters of their own fate. And they will be eternally lost because they have put their faith in a false gospel.

Deception through a Distorted Truth
Please allow me to share one final passage that God has reinforced in my life in recent weeks. The passage contains the final earthly words of the Apostle Paul to his young disciple Timothy. Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage – with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths (2 Timothy 4:2-4).

Part of the great deception today is a distortion of truth. And, unfortunately, many church leaders have bought into that deception for the purpose of building successful ministries. The prevailing philosophy runs something like this: I want to attract people to my church. In order to do that, I need to tell them what they would like to hear. Then, when they are firmly entrenched in my church, I can share with them the Gospel of Christ. Friends, Jesus never built His ministry upon the distortion of truth. In fact, He often discouraged people from following Him because He shared the truth. Look at Jesus’ dealings with the Pharisees in Matthew 23. He dared to share absolute truth with them. But they did not want to hear it. And Jesus let them walk away. Remember Jesus’ discourse with the rich young ruler in Luke 18. Once again Jesus was honest with this man who desired to have eternal life. Jesus did not share with him what he wanted to hear, but what he needed to hear. And the man walked away. And Jesus let him go. Jesus understood that the distortion of the truth will never lead to the salvation of the masses. It is only the truth that can set a person free…not a distorted truth, not a compromised truth, not a watered-down truth.

Friends, this is the fourth article in the series “What in the World Is Going to Happen?” And it has been the most difficult one to write because this subject hits home. My heart breaks when I consider the millions of people around the world who are hearing and believing the deceptive teaching of Marianne Williamson and her “Course in Miracles.” And my heart aches when I hear of pastors who have begun watering down the message of truth in order to build successful ministries. It is so easy to compromise truth, but once you have started down that road, it is difficult to turn around.

How I appreciate your prayers for the Village Schools, for our associate teachers, for our Advisory Council, and for myself that we would never compromise the truths of the Word in order to become successful by the world’s definitions. God’s truth is not negotiable. Pray that we will share God’s truth in love accompanied with His grace. But also please pray that we would have the resolve of a Daniel not to be defiled with a compromised truth. These are critical days as we approach the end of the age, so thank you for praying for God’s strength to be given to each member of the Village Schools family.

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