“For false
christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so
as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.”
Matthew
24:24
“9 The
coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false
signs and wonders, 10 and with all wicked deception for those who are
perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 Therefore
God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, 12 in
order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure
in unrighteousness.”
2
Thessalonians 2:9-12
I used to
think it was strange when the Bible said that many believers would be deceived
by the coming lawless one or antichrist. It is easy to think about non-believers
being deceived, because their eyes are blinded by the god of this age. But
believers are those who seek the truth, how can they be among those who are led
astray?
Yet all I
have to do is look at my social media feeds and see how many Christians are
saying that the nation that calls itself Israel is an agent of blessing, and I
see that again the Bible is far more aware of our humanity than we give it
credit for. Jesus laid out the possibility that even some among his elect would
fall for the nonsense of the spirits of the age. Note what he says, “For false
christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so
as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.” It does not even take THE antichrist
to achieve this, many lesser false christs and many lesser false prophets are
capable of this as well.
A big part of
this problem is that a nation calling itself Israel is a powerful physical
symbol or sign that it is hard for people to look past. All someone has to do
is open their Bible and see the word “Israel” and look at a map and see a place
called “Israel” and in their mind this is enough to convince them.
Take my
devotional passage for this morning, Psalm 25. I read in there, in verse 22,
this, “Redeem Israel, O God, Out of their troubles!" If you are looking
through eyes of flesh you would read that, see the situation Israel is in now,
and think, “See God is not done with his country, Israel needs our prayers.”
Now, I would never deny that the nation that calls itself Israel needs a lot of
prayer, as do our own nations as well. But this passage is talking about the King
of God’s people interceding for God’s people. We should see here the
congregation of God, the Church, spiritual Israel. Some among physical Israel
are of the true Spiritual Israel, of course, but this is a prayer by God’s
representative for his people.
However, the
physical symbol of a nation calling itself Israel is to compelling for many
people to look past. Nothing deceives people better than a physical image. It
doesn't even have to be an image, people will fall down in front of a wall and
cry because they are told it was special. People will travel to a special grave
site of a dead saint, or search out a particular tree, or fulfill this desire
for a physical symbol of devotion in so many ways. Living by faith is hard.
Needing physical, visible signs is a part of our flesh that is hard for
Christians to give up, especially those who have been raised to see this physical
symbol, of a nation calling itself Israel, as a vindication of their faith.
Physical
images have always been a stumbling block to human beings and always will be.
The eyes of the flesh struggle not to attach spiritual ideas to physical
realities. This is a human trait that is well exploited by the powers of this
age. Many Christians are not aware of how they
have been propagandized by secular campaigns[1] to turn their religious affections
to a secular nation. However, this trait is so entrenched in human beings that
many churches do not need to be influenced externally by such campaigns. The
vision of a physical symbol was enough to capture their attention. They will
push this focus on a secular, non-believing nation for free, believing they are
representing God and will be blessed for doing so.
The
fascinating thing in this case is that as far as images go this one doesn't
even rise to the level of a pale shadow of the nation in the Bible. If it were
a physical idol, it would not even look like the thing it is being drafted to represent.
But just the constant reiteration of the name "Israel" attached to a
couple of out of context Bible verses, coupled with a propaganda arm that spins
never ending subsidized conflict with "victory", and you see people
say the strangest things about this being the work of God.
I cannot
think of a better example of a false sign than this one. It is a more compelling
example than the false arm extension signs, and other common examples.
Jesus told us
to judge a tree by its fruit. When we look at the nation of Israel do we see
the fruit of blessing or righteousness? No, not at all. Look I will state this,
you could say the same about Germany, France, Australia, Britain, the USA and
countless other places. But the difference is that no one is saying that those
countries are agents of blessing in the world, so we don’t need to work hard to
establish that.
Physical symbols are a real weakness among the people of God. The enemy appears to know this but many Christians do not. Hence, why the deception is so strong.
List of
References
[1] https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-to-spend-up-to-4-1m-in-bid-to-bolster-support-among-christians-in-western-us/
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