September 5, 2005
It Takes Two to
"Tango" -- Are You Being Seduced?
by Dennis Cramer
www.denniscramer.org
Spiritual seductions within the body of Christ are not rare. Sadly, they occur
every day in, and to, some of the most sincere, Spirit-filled saints. And, as
sincere a believer as you may think you are, you too could be one of them! Who?
Me? Yes, you!
In Stealth...
Spiritual seductions always begin with a high degree of stealth. They must be
cleverly disguised in order to succeed. At first, they may appear harmless, even
complimentary to the person being seduced. However, in the end, spiritual
ruination is the inevitable outcome.
A Biblical Warning!
Perhaps one of the strongest and most ignored warnings of the New Testament is
found in I Timothy 4:1. Curiously, it is not a warning to evil witches,
warlocks, spiritists, or Satanists. Not at all. This contemporary, biblical
warning is addressed to believers in Jesus Christ -- New Testament, Spirit-filled
believers, just like you and me.
Have you personally considered this warning lately? Are you possibly being
seduced? Are "doctrines of devils" possibly infiltrating your Christian mind and
heart? Is this infiltration, this invasion of your spiritual orthodoxy, even
possible? The Bible tells us that it is more common than we dare imagine.
To Christians, God wrote these very sobering words:
"Now the Spirit speaks clearly that in the latter times some (Christians) shall
depart from the (Christian) faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines
of devils."
This tells us we must be on guard against demonic spirits AND their doctrines or
teachings. A doctrine is a collection of information accepted as authoritative
and valid. Seducing spirits want you to believe in them and their collection of
information -- their doctrine. What they don't tell you is that their information
--
their doctrine -- is straight from hell! One small detail they always seem to
omit!
It's All Going to Be Over Orthodoxy!
These myriad of spirits want you to accept them, to validate them through belief
in what they espouse or present as truth. And they'll do whatever it takes to
seduce you into their way of thinking, into their hellish state of mind. Their
ultimate goal is your deception and destruction as a child of God. And it all
begins by undermining the orthodoxy of scripture - the accepted, traditional,
"rightly dividing the word of truth" interpretation of the scriptures. The
opposite of this would be "personally interpreting the scriptures," which the
Bible says we do to our own destruction.
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First, notice that this I Timothy 4:1 warning
is a "now" warning. "Now" warnings only benefit those who receive them now. If
this is a true "now" warning, it must also have a true "now" application -
relevant to the reader today. It states, "Now..." The term now, means now! The
warning is "now" because the danger of doctrinal deception is also always "now."
Are you possibly being seduced even now? Are doctrines of devils soon to follow?
An over-reaction you say? I think not.
Warnings Only Benefit Those Who Receive
Them
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Second, it is none other than the Holy Spirit
of God Who is issuing this relevant "now" warning. It states, "Now, the Holy
Spirit…" When the Holy Spirit issues a warning as strong as this one you should
listen. So, are you listening? The constant threat of doctrinal impurity always
exists in every new generation of believers.
Heresies Abound Where the Word of God
Is Relegated to a Secondary Role in the Church
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Third, this New Testament "now" warning could
be a matter of life or death, at least spiritually. He emphatically states, "Now
the Holy Spirit speaks clearly or directly…" I believe He, the very Holy Spirit
of God, is speaking "clearly and directly" right now. Seducing spirits and their
subsequent false, demonic doctrines may be attempting to dilute and pollute your
spiritual life and cause you to compromise your doctrinal integrity. Are you
scripturally and doctrinally chaste and pure, or are you being victimized by a
seduction meant to undermine the integrity of God's written word, the bible, in
your life?
Hear me....
It is time for you to be warned! This is a
season in the church of potentially great deception and seduction, leading to
false doctrine. A new wave of pseudo-scriptural, demonic information is currently
being unleashed on the Bride.
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Fourth, this is a specific warning for those of us alive in the latter-
times Church. It states, "Now, the Spirit speaks clearly that in the latter times…" In
case you didn't realize, it you are living in these same latter times today.
The latter-times Church may be more vulnerable to deception, due to the mere
volume of false, deceptive doctrine being heaped upon her - a literal deluge of
false and destructive half-truths being accepted as biblical, orthodox truth.
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Fifth, we are told that some (not all) Christians will forsake God, abandoning
true faith in Jesus Christ, and will begin to listen to voices or influences
other than that of the scriptures. It states, "...some will certainly depart
from their faith (in Jesus Christ)." You depart from the faith when you depart
from the bible and its orthodox teachings. So, exactly how orthodox is your
theology?
Departing From The Faith?
This verse is a stern warning about what you are giving your ear to, what you
are spiritually listening to, and what, or who, is influencing your spiritual life.
It is time, once again, to intelligently judge the message we hear and the
messenger who brings it. Jesus said MANY false prophets are out in the
world. Many means many!
Is it possible, you too may be departing from the faith? The term "departing"
is better understood as a gradual process, rather than a sudden, single event. Has
the destructive process of seduction, leading to departing from the faith,
started in your life? I pray not.
"The term "departing" is better understood as a gradual process,
rather than a sudden
event."
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Sixth, apparently many believers will listen to these seducing spirits. It
states: "...many (not a few) will give heed or listen to these terrible demonic
spirits.." Notice that these seducing spirits were mentioned
in the plural. I believe there is an actual army of new seducers currently being
unleashed against the beautiful, but unsuspecting, Bride.
"I believe there is an actual army of new seducers currently being unleashed
against the beautiful, but unsuspecting, Bride."
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Seventh, these false spirits are specifically identified by their main character
trait. These are seducing spirits. Seducing spirits seduce. This is all that
they do. In the Greek, this word has a unique meaning. It is used only once in
the entire Bible. It means: a fraudulent spirit, a straying from orthodoxy or
straying from true piety spirit, a deceiving or deluding spirit, a demonic
spirit who moves people away from the truth as in to rove or wander, an imposter
spirit, a spirit of error who purposefully misleads others.
Move, Rove, and Wander...
These deadly spirits want you to move away from the orthodoxy of scripture. This
means the traditional interpretation and application of scripture. They want you
to exchange sound doctrine for demonic doctrine.
These spirits want you to rove or wander away from living a truly pious life,
demonstrating true holiness and Christ-likeness. They want you to follow an
imposter spirit, a spirit who will purposely mislead you and take you into
deception and self-delusion. They want to dilute and pollute your spiritual
life, to neutralize your effectiveness, and curtail your spiritual progress.
These spirits want more, than anything, to neutralize the eternal Word of God,
which is forever settled in heaven. Bluntly stated, these are Bible-hating
demons!
"The church is being bombarded with a deluge of new and horrible Bible-hating
demons!"
A Seducing Spirit Came To Me In A Dream…
Here is my reason for warning you at this critical time: I recently had a powerful
dream from the Holy Spirit for the church of Jesus Christ. I believe it was a
timely dream, warning about a new and dangerous army of seducing spirits, who
are being unleashed upon the church today. Had I not been warned in a prophetic
dream about these heinous demons, I too might have fallen victim to them. I, very
well, could have been their next spiritual fatality. Thank God for this dream!
It All Started So Normally...
My prophetic dream began with three Christians (notice these were Christians)
sitting in a comfortable, modern day living room, innocently watching television.
Two of them were husband and wife, happily married for a long time. They were
two solid, devoted, and committed partners in a wonderful, Christian marriage.
The third party was a younger woman, a "spiritual daughter" to this Christian
couple. She was a long time friend and disciple of this husband and wife. Like
any true father / daughter relationship, this spiritual father loved his
spiritual daughter. There was never even a hint of physical temptation or sexual
misconduct between this man and the young female disciple.
The Seduction Begins
The Christian wife was watching TV just a few feet away, when suddenly, this
spiritual daughter began to act in a sexually inappropriate manner towards the
husband. She began to physically touch him, and soon she was passionately kissing
him.
Obviously, the reaction of the husband was one of shock and amazement at what his
"spiritual daughter" was doing to him. He was being reluctantly seduced right in
front of his wife, and he hoped that this young woman would soon be exposed.
He thought to himself, "What in the world is this young woman doing to me? Any
second now, my wife is going to see her kissing me." He felt both helplessness
and embarrassment.
Clearly, the husband was being victimized by this seductress.
He was deeply hurt and felt as if he was being sexually attacked by someone he
had loved as a spiritual daughter.
Then I awoke from this traumatic, but significant, spiritual dream.
So What Is God Saying To You?
The message here is simple. This was not about sexual immorality at all. This
was a powerful, spiritual dream to warn you (and me) of the dangers of being
spiritually seduced.
Please hear me:
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Your seduction may be closer than you think, and may come from an unexpected
source. You cannot be seduced from a distance. Access must be provided for a
seduction to successfully take place. Don't you provide that accessibility! The
difference between a potential seduction and a successful one are the number of
willing participants. For a spiritual seduction to take place, both participants
must cooperate. Keep your doctrinal guard up! Don't cooperate!
In Christianity, the objective always judges the subjective. This means only the
Bible, God's objective word, judges our subjective or personal experiences,
feelings, thoughts, and attitudes, as well as, our doctrine and interpretation of
scripture.
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Learn to constantly ask yourself this
fundamental question about any alleged truth or church practice: Is it in the
Bible? If not, then reject it, no matter
how popular or accepted it may be. Remember, we are told to, "Buy the truth and
sell it not!"
"In Christianity, the objective always judges the subjective."
It Takes Two To Tango!
Don't dance with the devil! It always takes two individuals for a seduction to
succeed. The seducer and the one being seduced must ultimately cooperate for a
seduction to be consummated. Allow the bible to be your ultimate guide and
defense against any and all seductions and doctrines of devils.
Remember :
"Doctrinal chastity is the responsibility of the individual!"
Until next time,
Dennis Cramer
Dennis Cramer Ministries
www.denniscramer.org
~~~~~~~~
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September 9-11, 2005
Erie, PA
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September16-17, 2005
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