Seriously . . . I'm to Recognize the Teachings of Demons?

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Let’s take a look at what the apostle Paul wrote in chapter 4 of First Timothy and lock in on a particular subject he highlights,

“Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons” (I Timothy 4:1 – NKJV)

Some time back I asked a group of class members, many professing to have been saved for many years if the Bible addressed specifically “teachings of demons,” and if it did, where would we find it in Scripture. They all sat for a while, searching their memory banks, but were not able to think of any place in the Bible that such a thing was specifically referenced. They started to come at me with different suggestions regarding my question, but the quizzical looks on their faces assured me I was going somewhere they had never been. I was in awe! (But I’ll note that I did not allow my initial reaction to manifest itself but waited . . . then measured my response so as not to show my negative feelings about their lack of biblical knowledge, despite having claimed to be Christians for years.)

“Doctrines of demons,” teachings from hell! We see the reality of them all around us. My group had the look of . . . “Seriously, there is such a thing?”

I remember a young teen named Annie. It was back a while, but I remember her well. Annie was the daughter of a good Christian friend and she and her family, along with brothers and sisters, would attend church services on a regular basis. Was Annie a believer? At the time I didn’t think so, but if asked she would have more than likely told you that she was.

Annie was a product of the public school system, a teen exposed to years of secular teaching, her mind constantly bombarded with precepts and concepts and growth hormones that had at their very core an evolutionary foundation. The “teaching of demons,” oh so prevalent, fed 5 days a week into the mind of a young girl while exposure to biblical teaching was, at the best, very minimal.

All this “teaching” and its evil core came to its fruition when, on several occasions, Annie began to talk about taking her life. Annie wanted to commit suicide. The thought was very real to her and she was in a constant state of tossing it around in her mind. She kept pursuing it . . . and there was a real concern for her well-being.

I remember talking to her, attempting to turn the tide. My efforts were not as successful as they should have been for I was new in the Faith, and though well-intentioned, lacking in my ability to counsel her effectively.

Annie eventually, to the best of my knowledge, since it has been a great amount of time since I’ve seen or talked to her, turned from her intent to take her life. She did not carry out the lie that was dominating her thoughts as a young teen, a lie that personifies the “doctrines of demons.”

Think about it! What do you think was at the very core of the thought process that Annie had embraced? I think we can say without a doubt that it’s not from the teaching of Scripture. No . . . it was “teaching” that came from “demons.” Annie was embracing a lie, one that, maybe, if left unchecked at the time, she would have attempted to carry out.

By this singular case, we can begin to understand this reference Paul had to the “doctrine of demons.” Lies that enter into the thought processes of people and cause actions that achieve what “demons” desire . . . the destruction of their targeted subjects. In Annie’s case, she was targeted and she was unable at the time to discern the lie of “demons,” and realize that she was on the road to fulfilling their evil intent.

Case history . . . and just one of so many that affect those around us today . . . even those in the church. Teens, especially those who are brought up in the secular education system, seem to be especially vulnerable to “teachings of demons.”

Awake to the reality of these “teachings” and ready yourself to deal with them with counsel from the Word of God, a Word that is able to thwart the “doctrines of demons.” Seriously . . . I’m to recognize the “doctrines of demons?” Yes, we are!