2 Thessalonians 2:9-10 – The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.
Genesis 6:1-6 – When man began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives any they chose. Then the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years.” The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown. The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart.
In the earliest days of our ministry, the city we lived in was reported as a place of common coven activity and witchcraft. We saw many young people coming to Christ from backgrounds of witchcraft, deep drug use, and the occult. They shared about horrifying night terrors they were having and supernatural experiences they could not explain.
Among the most vivid was a young new mother. She literally grew up in a witchcraft store where covens met and spells were cast. She had been a practicing black witch from a young age but had gotten saved. She told us that her husband had looked in on her rocking their baby, and he found the rocking chair reportedly floating a few feet off the ground while she and the baby slept in it.
These kinds of things were fairly common in our first two decades of ministry—numerous demonstrations of spiritual power that were counterfeits to Christ. We’ve not seen nearly as much supernatural activity in our second church plant, likely because of a much higher concentration of mature saints who are devoted to praying for protection over our church.
God creates. Satan counterfeits. That simple truth is significant. Anything valuable is counterfeited—from Air Jordan shoes to women’s handbags to financial currency. Since the kingdom of God is invaluable, it is not surprising that the devil and his demons counterfeit the works of God. The goal, like that of all counterfeiting, is to fool people into settling for what is fake rather than finding what is genuine. God creates angels; Satan’s counterfeits are demons.
God creates truth; Satan’s counterfeit is lies. God creates the kingdom; Satan’s counterfeit is the world. God makes people Spirit-filled; Satan’s counterfeit is making people demon-possessed. God makes covenants; Satan’s counterfeits are inner vows. God creates blessings; Satan’s counterfeits are curses.
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