Satan’s Trickery

A 10-year old boy (I’ll call him, Lee) had seen the abuse of his father in the home. He starved for a father’s love. One day, he fell asleep at his mother’s friends. The 18-year old son of the family offered to carry Lee to the car. Lee pretended that he was still asleep as he allowed the older boy to pick him up. Lee expressed to me, “It felt so good to be held. I didn’t want him to ever let me go.” Lee thought that because he enjoyed a male’s caress, that he must be homosexual.

I explained to Lee that he wanted a father’s love. He only enjoyed what it must be like to have a father hold him with care and love. Lee paused, looked at me, and said, “I was crazy for thinking that I was gay, wasn’t I? I’m not gay.” I confirmed that he was not “gay” and explained to him what satan had done in this process.

Eph. 6:11 says, “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” The word “wiles” is methodeia, which is a “method,” meaning strategies, plans, schemes, trickery used to deceive, entrap, enslave, and ruin the soul of men. Satan is a deceiver and operates with just enough truth to pull one into his plan to ensnare. The devil knew what Lee needed; affection and love. He attempted then to confuse the feelings of a genuine need for a loving father for an abnormal feeling for the opposite sex.

We read in II Cor. 2:11, “Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.” The word “device” is noema which denotes thought, satan’s plans. One translation says, “…we are not ignorant of the mind games that the devil tries to pull on us.” Satan doesn’t come with a thought only once, but over and over. Remember Rom. 10:17, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Satan knows that if he can speak his lies over and over, we will believe them. The word “devil” is also “diabolis.” The word “ball” is found in “diabolis.” Now listen to it’s definition: “one who strikes again and again until finally he penetrates the mind with slanderous accusations.” Just as a ball bounces up and down striking the ground, so does the devil bounce a thought upon us over and over, unless we stop it.

II Cor. 10:5 in the Amp. Bible says, “[In as much as we] refute arguments and theories and reasonings and every proud and lofty thing that sets itself up against the true knowledge of God: and we lead every thought and purpose away captive into the obedience of Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One).” We must not be “ignorant of satan’s devices.” We must be able to judge our thoughts, and the only way to do that is to have a heart filled with God’s Word. You can then judge the thought either being from God or satan. If it is satan’s thought, cast it down in Jesus’ name and declare God’s thoughts, which is His Word!