“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
The Spirit-enabled ability to distinguish between a genuine manifestation of God’s power and a demonic counterfeit is called discernment. In Philippians 1:9-10, Paul says, “…it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ,” which is the purpose of discernment.
Hurting people are vulnerable people. When you or someone you love is struggling with chronic pain, suffering, or is in the process of dying, the grief and fear can be overwhelming. This compels us to try almost anything to bring health and stop suffering, including spending large sums on medical treatments or even taking risks on experimental medicine.
The demonic realm is so evil that demons look for opportunities to exploit hurting people. The devil and his demons will even heal someone if it’s a way to lead them away from the Lord. This is Satan’s counterfeit to God’s healing. Think of it like an evil doctor infecting a patient without his knowledge with the intent of making him sick and then charging him an exorbitant fee for the antidote. Jesus warned of this very thing: “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)
Why would Satan do this? He is willing to trade short-term physical suffering on the earth for long-term spiritual suffering in Hell. If it takes a healing miracle to get someone to worship a guru, false god, or spiritual deception, he will heal someone to lead them astray. This explains the occurrence of real healing miracles in false religions and spiritualities – demonic forces bring sickness and relieve that suffering in exchange for powerful and delusional deception. It is better to suffer in this life and be healed in eternity than to be healed in this life and suffer for eternity.
Isaiah 53:4-5 promises that one day, in the Kingdom of God, every believer in Jesus Christ will have total and eternal healing: “Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.” Until then, we are living in this tension where we are already citizens of the Kingdom but not yet residents of the Kingdom. The Kingdom of God has already begun but is not yet completed.
In tomorrow’s devotional, we will answer the question of whether or not Christians can be demon-possessed.
Is there any area in your life presently where you need discernment?
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