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Discernment
We are continuing in our series on discernment. Because we are living in the last days, we must be aware that discernment is something that God wants us to use when dealing with people and situations. One of the things the enemy tries to use to come against us is our relationships with our family and friends. We must not be so naive as to believe that someone that we are in a relationship with is above being used by the enemy. We must use our discernment in every area of our lives.
*We must also be aware of deception that can take place within our families and within people we have relationships with.
Jeremiah 12:6 NIV “Your relatives, members of your own family-- even they have betrayed you; they have raised a loud cry against you. Do not trust them, though they speak well of you.”
Matthew 10:21 NLT “A brother will betray his brother to death, a father will betray his own child, and children will rebel against their parents and cause them to be killed.”
Matthew 10:34-35 “Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.” “For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.”
Mark 13:12-13 NASB “Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and have them put to death. You will be hated by all because of My name, but the one who endures to the end, he will be saved.”
Luke 12:51-53 NLT “Do you think I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I have come to divide people against each other! From now on families will be split apart, three in favor of me, and two against--or two in favor and three against. 'Father will be divided against son and son against father; mother against daughter and daughter against mother; and mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.'"
Psalms 12:2 NLT “Neighbors lie to each other, speaking with flattering lips and deceitful hearts.”
Psalms 28:3 NIV “Do not drag me away with the wicked, with those who do evil, who speak cordially with their neighbors but harbor malice in their hearts.”
Psalm 41:9 NLT “Even my best friend, the one I trusted completely, the one who shared my food, has turned against me.”
Proverbs 23:7 “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, said he to you; but his heart is not with you.”
Micah 7:5 GWT “Don't trust your neighbors. Don't have confidence in [your] friends. Keep your mouth shut even when a woman is lying in your arms. A son treats his father with contempt. A daughter rebels against her mother. A daughter-in-law rebels against her mother-in-law. People's enemies are the members of their own families.”
You may feel like these verses are a bit negative or that your friends and family would never operate like that. My job is to tell you what the Lord tells me to. These verses are in the Bible for a reason and for a season. We still walk by faith, but we also walk by the wisdom shared in God's Word. If God's Word warns you about how to operate, you should take heed to that wisdom. Seeing that these are the last days, I believe that we should be aware and that the season is now.
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Questions
1. Do you believe that those you love and are close to can be deceived?
2. Do you believe that the enemy will try to use your friends and family against you?
3. Do you take the Word of God literally or do you pick and choose what to believe?
4. Do you believe you will stand on God's Word even if you have to stand alone?
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