Seducing Spirits
Have you ever known someone of great Christian character who later fell into a lifestyle of licentiousness or debauchery? The national media salivates at the opportunity to report on a fallen minister. Every local community has their stories of once great local churches that were ripped apart by scandals in the pastorate. You may even know laymen servants who were once so dedicated to church and family who are now not even a reflection of their former selves. As a pastor, I can personally testify that I have witnessed wonderful Christian people cast away their faith in exchange for something that just yesterday was unimaginable to them. I have had the “salt of the earth” sit across from me and lie with an ungodly talent that surpasses the best poker player in the world. Typically, we often think that such a person’s faith was never real in the first place. We usually concede their entire Christian experience as bunk. Most Christians are willing to throw such a brother or sister on the spiritual junk heap without ever considering how this happened in the first place.
Be careful: You may become who you are willing to attack. Galatians 6:1 says, “Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, YOU WHICH ARE SPIRITUAL, restore such a one in the spirit of meekness, CONSIDERING YOURSELVES, LEST YOU ALSO BE TEMPTED.” I have seen this too many times. People go on a witch hunt for the brother or sister that fell. This just proves how unspiritual people are. Truly spiritual people first think of how to restore a fallen brother. Then they consider themselves, they examine their own lives, and learn to take heed knowing that it just as easily could have been them.
This is what we have failed to understand: Some of these cases were the result of a person giving heed to seducing spirits. 1 Timothy 4:1 says, “Now the Holy Spirit speaks expressly that in the latter times, some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils.” We have forgotten to look behind the veil and see that there are forces pulling on people that we cannot see. The Bible tells us that there are certain demonic agents that are assigned to persuade people off the right path. These spirits seduce as to make the “grass seem greener” on the other side. These spirits will try to convince you that another woman would satisfy you more than your wife. These spirits will tell you that a life of premarital sex is better than living for God. These spirits will do everything in their power to make serving God seem lonely. They make worldliness seem appealing. These spirits try to make the temporal seem eternal.
A person that is filled with God’s Word and Spirit can identify such things and bring help to a person under the influence of seducing spirits. This is why every Christian needs a strong pastor. Also, in my experience, every person I have spoken to that fell to these spirits, all testify that they spent very little personal time in prayer and Bible study.
Pastor Tim
Family Church Jamestown is a non-denominational church located in Chautauqua County in Jamestown between Lakewood and Busti, NY. The senior pastor of Family Church is Pastor Tim Stahlman a native to the Jamestown, NY area.
