"In Disguise"

"And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light." 2 Corinthians 11:14

I received a message on my Face Book warning about a virus that was going around. It disguises itself in two ways- by saying it comes from a friend and by appearing to be a YouTube video. This warning made me think about our adversary, satan, who does the same thing.

Often his attacks against us aren't "out in the open"; he comes to us in disguise. He always presents himself and his destructive plans as something they are not. He did this back in the Garden of Eden. Disguised as a serpent he beguiled Eve into disobeying God.

What's the disguise? He often comes as something "familiar", something unsuspecting, something that we may even feel comfortable around. Like friends and familiar- he will use them to come against us. He comes as an "angel of light". He comes as a wolf in sheep's clothing. He comes in the form of entertainment, something that looks "tall, dark and handsome", something that seems so innocent, something that may have pleasure attached to it.

Why the disguise? So that we won't recognize him. If he were to come against us in a way that was easily recognizable- like Goliath came out against David on the battlefield- we would defeat him. He knows that we have power over him through Jesus Christ. But if you don't recognize your enemy how can you defeat him?

It is no secret or big mystery that satan comes many ways, and all his ways are through deceptive disguises. That is not the main point this morning. The main point is- do you recognize him when he does? It may not always be easy to spot a "fake", but it is possible. And it is possible for us to spot him when we stay in God's word- which exposes all that is false- and keep an open ear to the Holy Spirit's warnings.

Have a great day. We don't have to be deceived by satan's disguises. He can't hide behind a disguise from God and if we stay close to God through reading His word, prayer and listening to the Holy Spirit, he can't hide from us either.

For further reading:
1 Peter 5:8
Matthew 7:15
Hebrews 11:25
Genesis 3:13; 2 Corinthians 11:3
Ephesians 6:12
Luke 10:19