Captured by Satan

...and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.  2 Timothy 2:26

The traps of the devil, which Paul describes to Timothy as enslaving people in order to have them do his will, may not look exactly as you imagine. We often think that Satan and his servants looking like the 1980's rocker Ozzy Osbourne, biting the head off a bat.  And we might think that doing the will of the devil usually involves blood sacrifices and pentagrams.

But Scripture speaks of Satan and his servants disguising themselves in costumes of morality and righteousness. In 2 Corinthians 11:13-15, Paul describes Satan and his minions as people who could comfortably assimilate into many evangelical churches. Paul writes:
13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. 15 So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds.

It is heartbreaking and alarming that many pastors, including Georgia senator Rev. Raphael Warnock, preached a false gospel to naive and unsuspecting church attendees yesterday on Resurrection Sunday. Rather than preaching the true gospel of the all-sufficient death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, they preach a gospel of works. Instead of the Biblical gospel which tells us how we can be spared from the righteous wrath of God, they focused on self-righteous attempts to acquire salvation. Senator Warnock tweeted yesterday, "Whether you are Christian or not, through a commitment to helping others we are able to save ourselves."

There is nothing more deceitful and "satanic" than a false gospel of works. Salvation by works appeals to man’s sinful nature, it forms the basis of almost every religion except for biblical Christianity. And Satan loves to see "moral" people coming to church a few times a year, convinced that they are a "good person" and God will be pleased with them in the end. They appear as "servants of righteousness" but they are actually servants of Satan.

Jesus came and died because He is the only one who can pay the penalty for our sins. Holy God cannot let sin go unpunished. To bear our own sins would be to suffer God’s judgment in the flames of hell. Jesus came and lived a perfect life and died because we are unable to keep God's law. Jesus was the perfect Lamb to bear the sins of those who trust in Him. Salvation is not based on our goodness, but on Jesus' goodness!

Celebrate this wonderful truth every day! Preach the gospel constantly to yourself. Tell others the gospel!