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The Angel of Light
by Jerry Ousley Early one morning I saw something that illustrated what the Apostle Paul meant when he wrote in 2 Corinthians 11:14, "And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light." Paul had been talking about false teachers trying to corrupt the Church. He was basically saying, "It's no wonder these men do this because even the devil can make himself to appear as a good angel." We had just moved a few months prior to this incident, into the house where we still live. It was about twenty years ago. For a month or so we heard strange noises in the house. We might have be sitting in the living room minding our own business, and maybe just have gone to bed and not quite asleep yet, when the most terrible racket you'd ever heard came from our basement. It was as if something had knocked over a whole stack of things. It made a crashing noise like someone had taken their arm and just knocked everything off a shelf. I'd go down to check it out and never could find the mess I was expecting to see. It was a bit unnerving to say the least. One early morning before the sun had risen, I had gotten ready for work, and Deb was in the bathroom also getting ready for her day. Our infant daughter slept in her own room but it was her practice when she woke up to walk across the short hallway to our bedroom and climb into our bed. So when I looked up and saw a small white figure going through the hallway I thought nothing of it, assuming that she was just going to climb into Mom and Dad's bed. Then in a few moments, I looked up again and saw her emerge from her room and come into the living room where I sat. I was confused and bum-fuzzled. Hadn't I just seen her go into our bedroom? But then I noticed that she wasn't wearing a long white gown but a pair of footy PJ's. I scratched my head and went to look in our bedroom, still not believing what I had just witnessed. Nothing was there except our unmade bed. I finally figured out that I had actually seen an evil spirit in the guise of a little innocent girl go prancing through our house. Now I don't want to sound fanatical or out there on a crazy limb or something, but folks, I know what I saw. That was it. Before the day was over Deb and I went into every room of our house and prayed that God would drive out whatever evil spirit had been left by previous residents. It may sound crazy to some, but it worked. After that we never heard another noise in the basement again, and I never saw that innocent little girl in our hallway again. Some people believe in ghosts. I don't. I do believe that evil spirits can take the shape of people who are dead and gone and if I had the time I'd go through the scripture and prove it to you. When someone claims that they've seen a ghost what they have really seen is an evil spirit in disguise. Paul said that even the devil can transform himself into an angel of light. In other words, he can make himself appear beautiful and handsome and make it seem like he's a good old boy who wouldn't hurt a fly. Many have been deceived by his sly disguises. Do you think for an instant that in the Garden of Eden Eve would have given his temptations a second thought had he come to her ugly and hideous, spewing out threats and angry words? I don't. Instead he came as a thing of beauty that caught her eye, and he spoke with words that sounded like they were filled with wisdom. That's the way the devil and his demons come to us most of the time. He wants us to yield to his temptations and trust him. He can appear as a thing of beauty speaking only enough truth to make the temptation sound plausible and perhaps even like a good idea. But don't be fooled. How can we tell the difference? Only by knowing God's word; when we know what the Bible says we won't be fooled by his wise sounding words and enticements. We will recognize him for who he is: transformed at that moment into an angel of light. Jerry D. Ousley is the author of ?Soul Challenge?, ?Soul Journey?, ?Ordeal?, ?The Spirit Bread Daily Devotional and his first novel ?The Shoe Tree.? Visit our website at spiritbread.com to download these and more completely free of charge. Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com |