Then, few days ago, while we were traveling down the road, we got a call from our son. He was asking me about the illusion widget, where I got it, how it worked, etc. Silly me. I thought maybe he wanted to check it out or add it to his desktop or something. However, he was calling to let me know that the illusion for that day had a drawing on it that was not good at all!! (For those who may have noticed it, I’m sure you were shocked and offended.) Because we were on the road, I had to give my son directions over the phone on how to delete it. I never saw it, so I'm not exactly sure what it was, but I hate that it happened. I am so embarrassed and I would like to apologize to each of you that saw it. I thought I had checked it out well, and that it would be something fun that would add interest to our weblog… but apparently, I was mistaken. But you know, illusions are like that!
When I was in grade school, there was a boy in my class who came to school and amazed the rest of us kids with a card trick that his visiting uncle had taught him. I don’t remember now, exactly what the trick was, but what I do remember is, whatever it was that he did, we were all WOWed by it!!! We all just knew that it HAD to be real magic, because none of us thought Bobby was clever enough to pull something like that off without some "real magic"!
Well, we watched Bobby do that trick over and over all day long, but none of us could figure out how he was doing it… and he wasn’t telling! (His uncle told him that “real magicians” never revealed their secrets.) But, this boy liked me, and I used this “newly realized power over the opposite sex” to make myself the exception to his “real magicians” rule! I convinced him that, if he really liked me, he would show me how it was done! So, after school, we went around to the side of the school building where no one could see, and he explained to me how he did it.
When I was in grade school, there was a boy in my class who came to school and amazed the rest of us kids with a card trick that his visiting uncle had taught him. I don’t remember now, exactly what the trick was, but what I do remember is, whatever it was that he did, we were all WOWed by it!!! We all just knew that it HAD to be real magic, because none of us thought Bobby was clever enough to pull something like that off without some "real magic"!
Well, we watched Bobby do that trick over and over all day long, but none of us could figure out how he was doing it… and he wasn’t telling! (His uncle told him that “real magicians” never revealed their secrets.) But, this boy liked me, and I used this “newly realized power over the opposite sex” to make myself the exception to his “real magicians” rule! I convinced him that, if he really liked me, he would show me how it was done! So, after school, we went around to the side of the school building where no one could see, and he explained to me how he did it.
Well, let me tell you, I was so surprised (and disappointed!) at how easy his “amazing magic” really was! I had been following him around all day, watching him do this stupid trick, and I hadn’t seen it! Now that I knew how he was doing it, it was… uh... it was… so…… It was so…… OBVIOUS!!
Suddenly, I felt dumb… and angry!! Furthermore, I’m ashamed to say, I wasn't sure if I was angrier at myself for not catching something so obviously simple, or angrier at Bobby for impressing us big time with such a stupid little trick!!
However, I have to tell you, that after that day, (of which I have since repented) I have been fascinated with all kinds of various kinds of tricks and illusions, as well as the illusionist who can make impossible things look so convincing and real!
I still love card tricks. I love to watch illusionists or “magicians”, as they are otherwise known, do their thing, whether it’s pulling coins from someone’s ear, sawing someone in half, or making an elephant seemingly disappear. I also love to rent movies with lots of “movie magic”, or computer generated graphics in them. It is astounding to me how these computer “magicians” can make their world look so believably real on the big screen! I even love how, with clothes, makeup and/or wigs, you can make someone look totally like another person!
I looked up the word “illusion” in several sources to get the official definition of the word. Here’s some of what I found:
n.) il•lu•sion (plural il•lu•sions)
However, I have to tell you, that after that day, (of which I have since repented) I have been fascinated with all kinds of various kinds of tricks and illusions, as well as the illusionist who can make impossible things look so convincing and real!
I still love card tricks. I love to watch illusionists or “magicians”, as they are otherwise known, do their thing, whether it’s pulling coins from someone’s ear, sawing someone in half, or making an elephant seemingly disappear. I also love to rent movies with lots of “movie magic”, or computer generated graphics in them. It is astounding to me how these computer “magicians” can make their world look so believably real on the big screen! I even love how, with clothes, makeup and/or wigs, you can make someone look totally like another person!
I looked up the word “illusion” in several sources to get the official definition of the word. Here’s some of what I found:
n.) il•lu•sion (plural il•lu•sions)
1. Something with deceptive appearance: something that deceives the senses or mind, e.g. by appearing to exist when it does not or appearing to be one thing when it is, in fact, another.2. A false idea, conception, or belief about somebody or something
3. deceptive power of appearances:the ability of appearances to deceive the mind andsenses, or the capacityof the mind andsenses to bedeceived by appearances
Another dictionary said:
n.) The word basically refers to something which deceives by producing a fake or misleading impression of reality.
We encounter illusions every day without giving them much thought. For example, the moon gives the illusion of shining brightly to light our way in the night, but that is a "fake or misleading impression". The "reality" is that the moon has no light of its own and really doesn't shine at all! What we see at night is the light from the sun reflecting on the surface of the moon! A crescent moon is seen when the earth gets between the moon and the sun and limits that reflection. Although I'm certain we all know this fact, still, we make misleading statements such as, "Wow, the moon is sure shining brightly tonight!"
Did you know that God’s Word has many stories where people were deceived by a fake or misleading impression of reality or, in other words, an “illusion”? Let me give you a couple of examples. This initial example is a story involving the very first “illusionist” and an example of how he works.
Did you know that God’s Word has many stories where people were deceived by a fake or misleading impression of reality or, in other words, an “illusion”? Let me give you a couple of examples. This initial example is a story involving the very first “illusionist” and an example of how he works.
Example one: In Genesis 1 and 2, we have the amazing, but TOTALLY TRUE and FACTUAL account, of how God made our unfathomable universe, our wonderful world, and every single living thing within it! What He did was no illusion, trick, or “sleight of hand. It was a “miracle”!
Our awesome and omnipotent God didn’t need an amoeba, a germ or a speck of ANYTHING to get started, either! He created EVERYTHING from absolutely NOTHING!!! He SPOKE it ALL into existence. All, that is, except for man.
When it was time to make man, the Great Creator of the universe, knelt in the dust of the earth and using such gentleness, care and attention to detail, formed man with His own two hands! Then, He tenderly lifted the lifeless form until He held man’s face very close to His own and using His own sweet, holy breath, He softly blew into the man’s face. It was in that moment that God “breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” (Gen. 2:7) How do I know all this to be true? Because God’s Word tells me so!!! AND GOD CANNOT LIE!
God created man because, even though Scripture tells us that “God is love” (1 John 4:16), He had no one on whom He could focus that love and sadder still, no one to give Him the love He so needed and deserved!
That first man, Adam, and his wife, Eve, lived in perfect bodies in a perfect world with a perfect climate. EVERY plant and animal, fish and fowl were created for their pleasure. EVERY need was provided for them. And on top of that, God Himself was not only their Creator, but also their Father and Friend. Life was good… No, wait… Life was great!… Better than that… it was PERFECT!
Even so, then, in Genesis chapter 3, the great “illusionist”, Satan, enters the picture. He deceives them into thinking that just maybe their perfect little world isn’t so perfect after all. He gives them the illusion that God has lied to them and is keeping something from them that is even better than their perfect world. And what would that something be? It was power! He told them that God did not want them to eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil because, basically, God was selfish! He told them that if they ate the fruit of that tree then they, too, could know, not only good, but also evil! He said that once they knew that, they would be as gods and that God was just trying to keep all the power for Himself. THIS was the first “great illusion”. And so… they believed Satan rather than God, ate of the fruit and sin entered the world! (Gen. 3:1-6; Romans 5:12)
When it was time to make man, the Great Creator of the universe, knelt in the dust of the earth and using such gentleness, care and attention to detail, formed man with His own two hands! Then, He tenderly lifted the lifeless form until He held man’s face very close to His own and using His own sweet, holy breath, He softly blew into the man’s face. It was in that moment that God “breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” (Gen. 2:7) How do I know all this to be true? Because God’s Word tells me so!!! AND GOD CANNOT LIE!
God created man because, even though Scripture tells us that “God is love” (1 John 4:16), He had no one on whom He could focus that love and sadder still, no one to give Him the love He so needed and deserved!
That first man, Adam, and his wife, Eve, lived in perfect bodies in a perfect world with a perfect climate. EVERY plant and animal, fish and fowl were created for their pleasure. EVERY need was provided for them. And on top of that, God Himself was not only their Creator, but also their Father and Friend. Life was good… No, wait… Life was great!… Better than that… it was PERFECT!
Even so, then, in Genesis chapter 3, the great “illusionist”, Satan, enters the picture. He deceives them into thinking that just maybe their perfect little world isn’t so perfect after all. He gives them the illusion that God has lied to them and is keeping something from them that is even better than their perfect world. And what would that something be? It was power! He told them that God did not want them to eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil because, basically, God was selfish! He told them that if they ate the fruit of that tree then they, too, could know, not only good, but also evil! He said that once they knew that, they would be as gods and that God was just trying to keep all the power for Himself. THIS was the first “great illusion”. And so… they believed Satan rather than God, ate of the fruit and sin entered the world! (Gen. 3:1-6; Romans 5:12)
Another example: The disciples and many of Jesus’ followers had Him heard talk of certain future events, namely, His resurrection and His coming Kingdom. They hated the Roman oppression, and so this was exciting news for them! They just couldn’t wait to get “on the Jesus bandwagon”! (Of course, Satan knew about these things, too.) Nevertheless, one day, Jesus was taken prisoner by the Roman soldiers. He was falsely accused and sentenced to be crucified! After He was mocked and beaten, His followers saw the soldiers drive the nails into His hands and feet. They also saw the cross raised into the air and Jesus’ mangled body hanging between Heaven and earth. They saw the rivulets of blood running down the splintered wood of the cross and the ever widening dark stain of it soaking into the earth. They were there when He proclaimed, “It is finished!” and they heard that last ragged painful breath leave his body. Later, they saw the spear as it pierced His broken heart! Then, some of these same followers, lovingly removed Jesus' from that bloody tree and prepared His lifeless body for burial. Carefully, they laid Him in a borrowed tomb and watched as the boulder was rolled in front of the opening and sealed. With heavy hearts made their way home to wait. With each passing minute and hour that Jesus lay in that grave, their despair... and their hope, sank lower and lower, while Satan’s smug smile, spreading across his evil face, got wider and wider.
By the morning of the third day, it certainly seemed to them, that all that Jesus had said and claimed to be was nothing more than a cruel joke and all was lost. By this time, Satan’s smug smile had turned into a triumphant laugh! He had won!!! God’s Son was dead!!! The world was his!!!
But, imagine his rage when he realized that his victory was just an “illusion”… or, in other words, a “fake or misleading impression of reality”. The truth was… the resurrection story was real!! Instead of Jesus being dead and Satan victorious, Jesus was alive and Satan had been defeated! All that Jesus had said was true, sin, and the grave had been conquered. Satan had lost and Jesus, along with His plan of providing redemption for lost sinners, was victorious!!! In our world today, so many are still being deceived by illusions! You may ask, “What do you mean by that, Debbie?”
Notice:
Of course, the list could go on and on! Nevertheless, something that is very disturbing to me is, nowadays there seem to be so many Christians seemingly deceived, or at least in denial, and there is a great illusion surrounding our world today.
I don’t think anyone who loves the Lord would disagree with me in saying that, all around us, we see things getting worse and worse. We look at the decline in our economy, the moral decline, the horrendous abortion rate, the rampant homosexual problem, incest and cruelty to children, corruption in our legal and government systems, alcohol and drug addiction, pornography addiction, etc., etc. Wrong is being touted as right and right as wrong! We could go on and on! Even “mother nature” seems to have turned against us! It seems like every week we hear of earthquakes, fires, hurricanes, volcanoes, and other extreme weather and natural disasters. .People are angry and frightened and some are beginning to feel desperate and hopeless! It certainly looks as if Christianity, God's Word, and even God Himself is losing the battle!! Nevertheless, I’m here to tell you it's not true!! IT’S AN ILLUSION!!!
I don’t think anyone who loves the Lord would disagree with me in saying that, all around us, we see things getting worse and worse. We look at the decline in our economy, the moral decline, the horrendous abortion rate, the rampant homosexual problem, incest and cruelty to children, corruption in our legal and government systems, alcohol and drug addiction, pornography addiction, etc., etc. Wrong is being touted as right and right as wrong! We could go on and on! Even “mother nature” seems to have turned against us! It seems like every week we hear of earthquakes, fires, hurricanes, volcanoes, and other extreme weather and natural disasters. .People are angry and frightened and some are beginning to feel desperate and hopeless! It certainly looks as if Christianity, God's Word, and even God Himself is losing the battle!! Nevertheless, I’m here to tell you it's not true!! IT’S AN ILLUSION!!!
God’s Word tells us that as Christians (those who have acknowledged their sin, repented, and accepted Jesus free gift of salvation) we have already won!
“But thanks [be] to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 15:57
“For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, [even] our faith.” 1 John 5:4
“And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, [and] over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God.” Revelation 15:2
That does not mean that we should give up and give in! That just means that we should not lose hope, but continue to fight! We need to fight for Biblical principles and the truth of God’s Word and stand tall and firm upon that foundation!! And we need to fight, not for victory, but IN victory!
Like the moon, we need to reflect brightly the light of the Son! We must not allow the world get in the way and block the Son in our lives, dimming our light! The more light that we reflect of the "Son-shine", the more likely we are to lead them out of the darkness and into the "Son-light"!
Dear child of God, please, don’t believe the “illusion” that Satan has put before the world. It is a “fake or misleading impression of reality”. Read the end of The Book, my friend!
WE WIN!!!
And as my husband said yesterday morning in his sermon, “The final score is
GOD – EVERYTHING! SATAN – NOTHING!
“Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.” Romans 8:37
NOTE: Dear friend, if you are reading this and you are not sure whether or not you are on that winning side, if you are not sure if you will go to Heaven when you die, you CAN BE SURE! To learn how you can KNOW, please click on the tab above that says “How you can KNOW you’re going to Heaven” or if you will leave your info, I will be happy to personally contact you and show you what God’s Word says. PLEASE, don’t be deceived by Satan’s illusions!
1 comment:
Very good.
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