Satan tries to get us to believe erroneous things. The Scripture tells us he is a liar. In fact, he is the father of lies. (John 8:44)
You are probably familiar with the passage where Jesus is tempted by the devil in the wilderness. Read Luke 4:1-13 here. There is so much we can learn about how Satan operates from this passage, but I want to focus on one particular scheme he likes to use.
If you look at verses 9-12, we see the devil attempting to make Jesus misapply Scripture. The devil says,
“If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down from here. For it is written: “‘He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’”
Satan actually quoted Scripture to Jesus! I find that amazing! But Jesus knows Satan is trying to get Him to misapply God’s Word. Jesus knows the full counsel of the Word of God. He knows that in Deuteronomy 6:16, the Scripture also says,
“‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”
This passage shows me that one way the devil will try to deceive us is by getting us to misapply the Scripture. This is easy for him to do if we take verses out of context.
This is exactly how false doctrines are taught and spread. To correctly understand the Scripture, we must study the Bible in context, not by picking a verse here and a verse there. We must study the Bible in its entirety, not relying on books about the Bible.
If in your heart you love the truth, you can trust God to teach you His Truth.
“But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth.” John 16:13 NIV Read full chapter
It always boils down to the condition of my heart. I must ask myself, do I really love and desire truth, or do I want to prove my personal beliefs? Am I studying the Bible for myself or do I read books about God from a Best-sellers list?
“Search me, God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.” Psalm 139: 23-24 NIV Read full chapter
“Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” Psalm 51:10 NIV Read full chapter
God is faithful. He will do it!
With Love, Cindy
Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?
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Real Christian Women 
This is an important call to action to all believers Cindy, to read and study the Word of God for themselves. We are sitting ducks for Satan and his minions if we don’t know God’s Word.
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Yes we are. Thanks for commenting. Blessings, Alan!
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An important question to ask ourselves- if we study the Bible for ourselves or rely only on other books.
Studying the Word in its entirety is so very important.
A necessary reminder for all of us today.
Blessings Cindy 🌺😊
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Thank you, Perth. Many blessings!
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“It always boils down to the condition of my heart. I must ask myself, do I really love and desire truth, or do I want to prove my personal beliefs? Am I studying the Bible for myself or do I read books about God from a Best-sellers list?”<——–THIS is something I will be posting above my desk. Thank you for posting this!
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Blessings, Leigh! How’s that book coming along? 🙂
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It’s coming…lol. I am still in research mode and am waiting on several people to get back with me regarding some questions I had for them as they are in ministry and I want to get their point of view. 🙂 Thank you for asking! Keeps me motivated!
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Good one!
As you say, it is SO important to read and study the whole Bible – God gave it to us for His purposes. Jesus, of course, knew the entire Bible and infinitely more because He was there and created all. But, He gives us His Holy Spirit so that we may rightly divide the Word of Truth.
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Amen! Thanks for commenting. Blessings, Kathy!
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Good stuff, Cindy. Yes, it is so important to read and study the whole Bible; if we don’t, we can become subject to false doctrines–or even teach/spread them ourselves.
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I agree. It is dangerous not to study the Bible. Blessings, Keith!
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