June 30
2 Kings 16:19-20; 2 Chronicles 28:26-27; Isaiah 13:1-16:14
“I don’t have time for God”. “I am my own man, make my own decisions, chart my own destiny”. “I am who I am, and I cannot change”. “I can do anything I set my heart to do”. “I am special”. In our world of self-deification, where we pump up “self” and allow each person to be their own god (though most would not admit this), realize that these are similar statements that came from the mouth of Satan, himself. Many falsely think they are allowing their children, etc. to make their own decisions to follow God or not, and don’t even realize they are placing them in Satan’s camp.
In Isaiah 14:12-14, we read, “How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations! For you have said in your heart: ‘I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High’”. Notice which word is used 5x in verses 13-14, “I”. Satan’s main sin was pride, and it is his major tool to stumble humanity, as we read his words to tempt Eve in the garden in Genesis 3:5, “You will be as God, knowing good and evil”.
Paul rightly warned the people in 2 Corinthians 13:5, “Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves…”. So, you believe you’re going to heaven because you are a “good” person, based on what, the same criteria Eve would have used, or that Satan used? You either raise yourself and see yourself as compared to others and society’s standards or humble yourself under God’s standards and see yourself as the unworthy recipient of God’s mercy and grace. We, as parents, must realize our words are not innocent, but formative in directing our children. The same holds true in the workplace and amongst friends and acquaintances. We either direct towards God or Satan, it is never neutral.
Messages from Pastor Lloyd Pulley: