For we are not ignorant of his schemes

Im sure you have seen this scripture…

But one whom you forgive anything, I forgive also; for indeed what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, I did it for your sakes in the presence of Christ, so that no advantage would be taken of us by Satan, for we are not ignorant of his schemes. – 2 Cor 2:10-11

His schemes. They stretch right back to the original sin. No. The original sin was NOT Adam’s or Eve’s. The original sin was when iniquity was found in lucifer, satan, the devil when he rebelled.

You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created till wickedness was found in you. – Ex 28;15

For quite some time I’ve been amazed at the interplay between God… the Father, Son and Holy Spirit… and us His followers. I see and understand the dependancy that we have on Him. But Ive also been trying to understand why He chooses to depend on us. And not just why, but how… in what way? Why does He allow us to be so free, to come and go, to choose to co-operate or not to co-operate with Him?

When I was an employer I simply TOLD people what to do. If they didn’t… then I fired them. It’s really not complicated.

But when calls me to intercede for a country, I am free to check my schedule, I can decline, I can go watch a movie. Perhaps He then simply offers the invitation to the next person, if I dont want it. But I dont get punished for being disobedient. He just keeps on loving.

By contrast, the enemy’s kingdom is one of hierarchy, control, fear and dominance.

Just think… he tricked one third of the angels to rebel against God. His logic would have been something like this… God cannot handle sin… so, simply do abominations and we will drive Him away from His sanctuary… we win!

And he said to me, “Son of man, do you see what they are doing, the great abominations that the house of Israel are committing here, to drive me far from my sanctuary? – Ez 8:6

And seeing that logic they rebelled and encouraged Adam, Eve to sin. Pretty soon everyone was throw out of the garden. And ever since then the enemy has been encouraging everyone to commit abominations… to drive God away from us and keep Him away from us.

The enemy knew we could never become free of our own sin. They knew we could never be clean. They knew we would always be trapped.

But. They never saw that God Himself would take our sin. How could they see that? They are separate from the source of life. They have no goodness in them. They lack love. Their existence is one of darkness and hate. They could not fathom the lengths to which true love will go to rescue the one that he loves.

Just think, countless angels gave up God’s Presence in order to be a part of a separate kingdom in which they expected to reign and rule. But what did they get?

Instead, demons now stand still, not daring to move, in one place, holding their “dominion”… they give up freedom and life with God… the source of all life… without which you have no life… and although they probably didn’t expect it, they exchanged it for a soul-less existence of fear of higher level demons.

Now they stand at intersections of roads, or they stand wherever they are assigned, and they stand there for hundreds or even thousands of years. What a terrible existence. Just standing in one place because of fear.

They rebelled in the hope of gaining “real” freedom (from God?!) but now they live their lives in darkness, domination, they live in fear of more powerful demons above them… their job is assigned to them and they do their job without any question… day in and day out, perhaps for hundreds or thousands of years.

And it’s the same when we rebel. We think we are finding what the enemy calls “real freedom to express ourselves” when we try hallucinogens or “free love” but instead of finding freedom we find addiction and slavery. We become alienated from God and we lose any connection to the Source of LIfe… God Himself… all good things come from Him… and instead we live like a slave, committing sin and living in the presence of death.

The enemy initially offers us freedom, or “religious tolerance”. He presents himself as someone who is interested in your greater good. He says he wants you to prosper. All you have to do is compromise your values. Truly the enemy masquerades as an angel of light…

And no wonder, for satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. – 2 Cor 11:14

… offering his “light” to the world… he offers esoteric wisdom to those who become involved with him, offering insights into his kingdom… but in actual fact he is demonically enslaving those who choose to follow him, removing their emotions, reducing their ability to feel, creating a hierarchy of authority.

The two kingdoms could not be more different.

For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, – Col 1:13

In God’s Kingdom there is forgiveness extended to everyone. He wants us to forgive all debt for everyone every 7 years. He wants everyone to have a job and to enjoy the work of their hands. Everyone should have a house to live in. Everyone has the ability to have children… we are all born with that ability.

But in the enemy’s kingdom the best is preserved only for the best. Only the most beautiful, or the hardest working, or the people who get the “edge” will be rewarded. If the enemy could, he would reserve sex and child bearing for only the people who somehow earn it or are proved worthy.

You have a choice… the enemy’s kingdom starts with an offer and all you have to do is compromise… just a little bit…

• All you have to do is look good in other people’s eyes.
• Just learn some worldly wisdom… after all proverbs says wisdom builds the house! Just be cool. Just fit in. Just be relevant. Just be ordered. Just be relate-able. Just be tolerant of other people’s views. Just bend a bit. Just live and let live. Respect other people’s choices.
• Don’t be so fundamentalist. Dont be so ignorant. Dont be so opinionated. Dont be so inflexible. Dont be so religious. Dont be so arrogant to think you know it all.

The choice is set before you… life or death… prosperity or adversity…

“But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may observe it.

“See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, and death and adversity; 

in that I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in His ways and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His judgments, that you may live and multiply, and that the LORD your God may bless you in the land – Deut 30:14-16