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I can't honestly give you a warm welcome to the False Trail. It's really not a place where we want to, voluntarily, spend a great amount of time. The difficulty of the trail is that it arouses our natural fears of the unknown. You never know when rocks will start falling and the trail give way under foot. If you're unwilling to sort through the rubble created in your mind, and clear your path toward the Truth, there's a chance that the unpredictable falling rocks of fear and doubt will convince you to turn back. On the other hand, like the author of lies (Satan himself), the False Trail can appear to be one of the most beautiful trails in existence. The False Trail can make evil appear good, and good appear to be evil (Isaiah 5:20). What is right can be mistakenly replaced with what is wrong.— I look at it this way; since we need to become truly aware of what false teaching is, how it operates, and what ravaging physical disasters and irrecoverable spiritual desolation can result from it, then we have absolutely no choice but to gear up and hike this trail ! — Take a good rope along for scaling the ledges of reality. You don't want to fall into the ravine of complacency, where the spirit of blind allegiance dwells...
The name, Satan, literally means; an adversary. He is the chief of fallen spirits, the grand adversary of God and man. He is the ruler of a powerful kingdom standing in opposition to the power of God. Within this kingdom he exercises authority in two different realms; 1. He is the head of a vast organization of evil spirit beings; "his angels". (Matthew 25:41, Revelation 12:7) 2. He is "the mighty prince of the power of the air", skillfully directing an organized host of wicked spirits in the heavenly realms who do his bidding. (Ephesians 2:2 & 6:12) Spirited by an unrelenting hatred against God and all goodness, Satan is engaged in a worldwide and age-long struggle against God, ever seeking to defeat the divine plans of grace toward mankind, and to seduce men to evil and to, ultimately, their ruin. As the "deceiver of the whole world" (Revelation 12:9), his primary method is that of deception; about himself, his purpose, his activities and his upcoming final defeat. The whole world is in the grip of and, not offering a truly conscious resistance, is yielded to his power (1st John 5:19). This power over mankind he holds by virtue of his ability to capture (2nd Timothy 2:26) and to devour (1st Peter 5:8) the hearts and minds of the human race. His fiercest conflict, yet most targeted prey, is with the Christian (Revelation 12:17); He first and foremost subtly distorts the Word of God (Genesis 3:4). He hinders the work of God's servants (1st Thessalonians 2:18). He will blind the minds of potential believers to the Truth of Gods' Word (2nd Corinthians 4:3-4) and persuades them to believe his lie instead (2nd Thessalonians 2:9-10)... If they do come to know the Truth, he is able to snatch away what they have learned (Matthew 13:19). He also cunningly (with great strategy) places counterfeit christians among true Christians (Matthew 13:25, 38, 39 & 1st Timothy 4:1). He can also cause great physical disasters upon the earth and has caused death and grief among families, which we have mistakenly labeled; acts of God (Job 1:13-19). He can plunge men into war and he is the absolute author of sickness and death (James 4:1, Luke 13:16 & Hebrews 2:14). Satan masquerades as the angel of light. Though he is limited as to what God will allow him to do, he has indeed great power of deception and influence, far above and sometimes* beyond the comprehension of any human being. (2nd Corinthians 11:14, Job 1:12 & Luke 22:31, *2nd Corinthians 2:11) He was once a beautiful angel, ambitious to place his reign above that of God Himself . He did not honor the position of God, nor did he stand with Truth and, as a result of his rebellion, fell from heaven. (Isaiah 14:12, 14:13,14, John 8:44, Luke 10:18) In his fall from heaven, Satan drew an immense number of celestial creatures (angels) with him (Revelation 12:4), which the Bible refers to as; demons, evil spirits, principalities, powers, world rulers of darkness and spiritual hosts of wickedness. Therefore, the nature of our daily struggle in life is not at all physical. Not one bit. It only appears that way because of Satan's ability to disguise it as such. In reality, our individual lives are a very tiny but notably significant part of a great spiritual warfare with the unseen evil rulers of this world, and with those wicked spirits in the heavenly realms (Ephesians 6:12).— We're not therefore put here on the earth to fulfill our own agenda. We are here to attain to daily spiritual victories within our lives, each one being part of an infinitely larger victory for the Lord. We push on toward winning, giving glory to the Lord by which we, so to speak, strike a blow for God in heaven (Philippians 3:13-14 & Hebrews 12:1). We are approaching the trail junction now where you can hike through a list of the current and most popular false teachings of this age. It includes, to the best of our ability to reason, the reasons behind why they are false. Some are obvious, others are exceptionally deceiving. Keep in mind that the angel of light is much more powerful than you or I. Only our personal acknowledgment, belief, and literal walk (abiding) in God's pure Truth can quench the brightness of the angel known in the spiritual realm as, the son of the morning (Isaiah 14:12), and known also by many other names. — Beware, my hiking friend, at all times on your journey through life... beware and stay continually alert...
All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition... (Mark 7:9) Some of the more popular false teachings of this age: The altar call, sinner's prayer & personal savior Teachings Many Faiths A Good Person * 1. The altar call, sinner's prayer, and personal savior teachings were more popularly spread throughout this nation during the '60's and '70's, and are considered by true Christians to be the most damaging to the ranks of Christianity itself in this century, in that they allow people to label themselves "christians" who have not truly been "born again" according to the pure teachings of the Scriptures; Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he/she cannot enter the kingdom of God (John 3:5). Ninety percent of the world's religious people who today call themselves "christians" have fallen victim to these false teachings. This fact not only emphasizes the depth of Satan's deceptions, but our total obliviousness to them as well. Here is a brief overview of these teachings: The altar call and sinner's prayer; A time in a religious service where people are asked to come forward from an assembly, asked to get on their knees (usually), and while in front of the congregation and a supposedly sacred altar, are to ask Jesus to "come into their heart". Sometimes the preacher will pray along with them, teaching them what to say, and then allowing them time to repeat what he has said before proceeding on. This is sometimes referred to as "the sinners' prayer". The teacher, or preacher, then "touches" them, usually on the head, and pronounces them, "saved". They rejoice emotionally and they "feel" that they are now among Gods' saved children. This example of conversion is found nowhere in the New Testament. The personal savior teaching; (A popular "television evangelist" teaching, similar to the altar call above) At a certain time in a religious service, usually at the close of a sermon or lesson, when the preacher (or teacher) informs people that they need to pray, no matter where they are; at home in front of the television, in their car, or in the evangelist's audience, confessing that they have sinned, but that they have now "accepted Jesus Christ as their personal savior", and are to ask Him to "come into their heart and save them, forgiving their sins".— When they have completed this prayer, usually their emotions have convicted them of their supposed salvation. This example of conversion is found nowhere in the New Testament. Mainly because we cannot "accept" Jesus in our wretched condition. It is He rather who accepts us. Dear reader, the altar call, sinners' prayer, and personal savior teachings each stem and flower from people (Bible teachers included) not having a true perception of the basic structure of the Bible, through which they misunderstand, misplace, and distort its truth. These teachings are found nowhere within the Scriptures' examples of New Testament conversions. They are a profound example of Satan's deceptive and all powerful masquerade! Ignorance of this will not be a valid excuse on the day of judgement. (2nd Thessalonians 2:10,11) Jesus has said; "On judgement day many will tell me, 'Lord, Lord, we prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many wonderful works in your name.' But I will say, 'Depart from me, for I never knew you.' — Solomon also wrote, There is a path before each person which seems right, but it ends in death." (Matthew 7:22,23 Proverbs 14:12) Only a study of the Biblical book of Acts can point one to the fullness of God's plan for redeeming man. Today there are not now many teachers like, Apollos, of New Testament times who, when corrected by his peers regarding salvation, went on to preach the truth with all vigorousness (Acts 18:24-26). Apollos was a very learned man with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures, yet, he was not blind to his ability to teach in error. He was of course a man of reason and not a follower of tradition. We sure need more like him today! — Bottom line: The "altar call", "sinners' prayer", and "personal savior" teachings on salvation today are misleading. So many who truly believe they have "seen the light" are, in truth, still "living in darkness", taken in by Satan and deceived through the ignorance of men... Though these folks are not far from the kingdom of God, they have not yet obeyed the true gospel of Christ. (Mark 12:34, Matthew 7:21, Romans 6:17) Perhaps to understand the teachings on the New Birth more clearly and in depth, you may want to hike on the New Birth Trail at this website. Our aim is to teach you the truth regarding salvation, if you are willing to be open-minded and patient enough to learn. Surely if you were in need of an operation on your physical heart, you would be quite particular in choosing a doctor. In the same way, you want to be sure it is God's Word that is teaching you about salvation, and not the teachings or traditions of men. You can "click" here on the compass to hike directly to that trailhead: NEW BIRTH TRAIL  False teaching examples 2 and 3 are considered the most damaging to the true Christian Faith, as a whole, throughout the world: 2. There are MANY FAITHS by which we all can gain access to the same God. A popular teaching, but obviously false; Ephesians 4:4,5; "There is one body and one spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called,.. one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all..." Important Note: The practice of all world "religions" are incomplete or false ways to God. God can only be understood and approached through the truth of Jesus Christ, by whom and through whom every human being must come to God. No matter what any world religion believes or teaches or practices, Jesus is absolutely the one and only way of salvation. (John 14:6, Acts 4:12) Christianity is not a "religion". It is instead the way of truth—a profound walk into reality. For more information on this subject, hike the Trail of Time to Consultation Lake and Trail Crest at this website. 3. I can believe what I want. As long as I am a GOOD PERSON, I believe God will accept me. After all, He is a forgiving God! A very popular and seemingly logical thought process, but deceptively false; Romans 3:10-12, "There is no one good... no, not even one." ...Hebrews 12:29, "Our God is a consuming fire." ...2nd Thessalonians 1:7, 8, "He will come with His mighty angels, in flaming fire, bringing judgement on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey our Lord Jesus. Only by believing and acting on the truths taught in the Bible will God forgive you and add you to His family. Because of our sinful nature, we need a Savior on a daily basis. Only through Jesus will anyone be pronounced, "good". SORRY, TRAIL TEMPORARILY CLOSED AT THIS POINT.  Under Construction [Trail of Time] [New Birth Trail] [Mountain & Valley Trail] [Desert Trail] [Lake Trail] [High Sierra Trail] [Wilderness Trail] [A Hawk's Trail] [False Trail] [Monthly Newsletter] [Newsletter Archives] [Questions & Answers] [On-Line Church] HIKING THE TRAIL OF TRUTH Mark S. Taylor |
