Derek Prince - Be On Your Guard Against Being Deceived
This is an excerpt from: True & False Church - Part 1
The Scripture warns us that in the last days, the close of this age, we are going to be threatened with many forms of deception. If you turn for a moment to 1 Timothy, chapter 4, and verse 1. Now the Spirit [the Holy Spirit] expressly says [or explicitly says] that in latter times [or near the close of this age] some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons. You cannot depart from the faith if you’ve never been in it. You cannot depart from St. Augustine’s Church if you’ve never been in it. So, this is not talking about people who’ve never been believers, but it’s talking about people who have been believers and then are deceived by demons and led astray into false teaching. Some of you might be surprised to know that years ago in the great city of London I used to preach regularly on the streets, three times every week, mainly at Speaker’s Corner, Marble Arch, which was a different place then from what it is now, believe me! It was a bear garden.
More than once I was physically assaulted by people who didn’t approve of what I was preaching. But we saw many people come to the Lord. I mention that because there was a young man who had a dramatic conversion. His first name was Paul. He was saved on Sunday night, baptized in the Spirit on Tuesday night and received the gift of prophecy on Thursday night. Well, in those days that was something of a record! But, after awhile he began to talk to me about ideas he was entertaining. The more I heard the less I liked it. And he said in effect: Something tell me, and then he would tell me these ideas. The more he spoke the more I realized that he was passing on to me the teaching of Christian Science. But when I investigated, he himself had never studied Christian Science. So that was just the demon instilling that teaching into him. And he did not remain faithful to the Lord. He was seduced into error.
So, I know that this happens. I mean, I’ve seen it happen not just in one life but alas, I’ve seen it happen in many lives. It’s a reality that we have to deal with. And then again, I’d like to turn to Matthew 24. Some of you may not know that the prophecy that we had, or the interpretation that came earlier, was based on Matthew 24, verse 14. This good news of the kingdom shall be proclaimed in all the world as a witness to all the nations. But if you look at the preceding verses you discover it’s not going to be that easy. If you look in Matthew 24, beginning at verse 9: Then they shall deliver you [you being us] up to tribulation, and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. And then many will be offended and betray one another, and will hate one another. We’ve seen a little of that maybe in this nation, but in some nations in the Soviet Union, China and elsewhere these are daily realities. They are happening now on a large scale.
Then it says: Then many false prophets will rise up, and deceive many. And that, alas, is also happening. Almost every place where the New Testament speaks about the close of this age, the thing that it emphasizes the most is the need to be on your guard against being deceived. There is not one of us who is not in danger of being deceived. I’ve been a Christian now 48 years. I’ve never backslidden; I have served the Lord to the best of my ability. But by no means do I take it for granted that I could not be deceived. People who rely on their own experience or their own intelligence are prime candidates for deception. There’s only really one safeguard and that is to be very humble with the Lord. Pride is the lever that opens the door to deception. Be on your guard against it. And then in the same context Jesus goes on to say: Because lawlessness will abound, the love of many [many Christians] will grow cold. And then he says: but he who has endured to the end will be saved.
So, there’s something to endure, you understand? It’s not idle talk. There’s persecution, there’s betrayal, there’s opposition, there’s deception, there’s lawlessness. And in the midst of all that Jesus says: but if you’ve held out to the end you will be saved. That doesn’t mean you’re not saved now but it does mean to stay saved you’ve got to endure. Jesus said by your endurance purchase yourselves. That’s the price of your soul, is enduring. And then the next verse is: This gospel of the kingdom shall be proclaimed in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end of the age will come. What’s the final mark that the age is coming to an end? The proclaiming of the good news of the kingdom in all the world to all nations. I say that because proclaiming the good news in all the world is not going to be an easy job. The pressures, the opposition and the dangers are increasing. But in the midst of all that God is going to raise up a breed of Christians that will set their faces like flint and go through with the task. That’s the way I believe it.