How the Enemy Tries to Distract You From God's Plan | Tony Evans Sermon

The Journey of Life

In this section, the speaker uses a metaphor of a dangerous journey to describe life. He explains that everyone is on this journey and it's full of dangers that can destroy one's life. However, God has given us a map (His word) to navigate through these dangers.

The Map of Life

• God has given us a map (His word) that shows where all the dangers lie in our journey of life.

• This map is essential because our lives depend on it. It helps us avoid undetected landmines and explosives.

• Our attitude towards this map will affect how well we do on our journey. We must treat it as the most precious thing in our lives.

Consequences and Strategy

• Everyone faces consequences for unwise decisions they make in life.

• Satan has game film on us, meaning he knows our every move and orientation. He has tailor-made strategies to defeat us and bring negative consequences into our lives.

• Understanding Satan's strategy can help us better see the landmines in our path and handle them more appropriately.

Contract Out On Us

• There is a contract out on us to bring about negative consequences in our lives, even as believers.

• The goal is to bring about our inability to finish the journey of life.

Overall, the speaker emphasizes the importance of using God's word as a guidebook for navigating through life's challenges. He also highlights Satan's strategy to defeat believers but encourages them to stay vigilant by understanding his tactics.

The Strategy of the Enemy

In this section, the speaker discusses how Satan uses craftiness and deception to infiltrate our lives and cause negative consequences.

The Crafty Serpent

• Satan chose a crafty creature, the serpent, to achieve his goals.

• Crafty means sneaky or clever.

• Satan knows how to choose and maneuver slickly to get our attention.

Religion vs. Relationship

• Satan's first conversation with humans was about God but left out relationship.

• He wants us to be religious but not relational with God.

• He doesn't mind God talk as long as there is no relationship with God in between.

Using Good for Bad

• Satan used a good creature, the serpent, to bring death and consequences to humanity.

• His strategy is to use something good to create something bad.

• He distracts us from what he's really doing by doing something over here while doing something else over there.

Deception

• Satan uses counterfeit doctrine, miracles, spirits, and teachers in order to deceive us.

• We can be tricked into thinking we're getting something good when it's actually bad.

Satan's Strategies

In this section, the speaker discusses three strategies that Satan uses to deceive people.

Strategy 1: God is Holding Out on You

• Satan wants people to believe that God is holding out on them.

• He makes people think that they are missing out by not doing what they want.

• Satan wants people to think that God is keeping them from having a good time.

Strategy 2: God's Word Cannot Be Trusted

• Satan tries to make people doubt the truth of God's word.

• He plants thoughts in their minds until they begin to think differently than they should.

• The Bible says that we should trust God's word and not listen to those who disagree with it.

Strategy 3: There Will Be No Consequences

• Satan tells people that there will be no consequences for their actions.

• He wants them to believe that what God said will not happen.

• The Bible says that we should let God be true and every man a liar.

Singleness vs Marriage

In this section, the speaker talks about how singles should be happy and enjoy their freedom.

• Paul says in Corinthians 7 that singles should be happier than married folk.

• It's like a child complaining about the one toy they didn't get at Christmas and not enjoying the ones they did receive.

• God's whole point of restriction was to enhance freedom.

Satan Cannot Make You Sin

In this section, the speaker explains that Satan cannot make people sin.

• The death of Christ defeated Satan, so he cannot force people to sin.

• Satan messes with people's minds by deceiving their thought patterns.

• People make their own decisions influenced by Satan, not enforced by him.

This transcript is in English.

God's Word Cannot Be Trusted

The speaker talks about how Satan wants to deceive us and make us doubt the truth of God's word. He tells a story about a banker and a farmer to illustrate this point.

Deception

• The speaker says that God's word cannot be trusted like Don Cornelius and the Soul Train Scramble Board.

• Satan wants to deceive us by getting all the words out of order so that we can't trust what we hear.

• We need to check who is talking to us, whether they are a child of the father or liars.

Story of the Banker and Farmer

• The speaker tells a story about a banker who was duck hunting and shot a duck that fell on a farmer's land.

• The farmer claimed ownership of the duck because it fell on his property, but the banker claimed ownership because he shot it.

• They agreed to resolve their dispute by hitting each other as hard as they could, with whoever screamed less getting the duck.

• Satan just wants to hurt us.

Sin Plays With Us

The speaker talks about how sin plays with us when we play with it. He emphasizes that we are in charge of our actions, but sin can quickly take control if we let it.

Playing With Sin

• When we play with sin, sin winds up playing with us.

• We are in charge one moment, but then sin takes over and controls us for months, years or even decades.

Bombarded by Temptation

• We are being bombarded with temptation on every level in our world today.

Satan's Strategy

The speaker talks about Satan's strategy to deceive us and make us doubt God's word. He explains how Satan wants us to be independent of God and become like Him.

God is Selfish?

• Satan tells Eve that God is selfish and doesn't want anyone to be like Him.

• If we eat from the tree, we will know as much as God knows and be as smart as He is, which would make us His equal.

• Satan wanted to be God's equal in Isaiah 14.

Rebellion for Independence

• Our rebellion is a desire for independence because if we're like God, we don't have to submit to Him anymore.

• If man can become like God, they don't have to answer to Him because they are like Him.

• Wearing Jordans or a jersey with number 23 doesn't make you fly or become like Jordan. Similarly, acting the part doesn't make you like God.

The Tree of Knowledge

In this section, the speaker talks about the tree of knowledge and how it represents the desire for independence from God.

The Google Tree

• The tree of knowledge has two things on it: good and evil. It's a Google tree because it represents information and knowledge.

• Eating from the tree will give you comprehensive knowledge without needing God.

• You will be like God but won't need Him to discover your own truth.

Independence from God

• People want their independence while still depending on others.

• Dying with regret, debt, or bad relationships is a consequence of sin that we all face on various levels.

Teenagers Wanting Independence

In this section, the speaker talks about teenagers wanting to be independent while still depending on their parents.

Teenagers Wanting to Be Like Their Parents

• Teenagers talk like professionals and experts because they want to be like their parents.

• They want their independence while still depending on their parents.

Consequences of Insisting on Independence

• Living in a world that insists on independence has consequences.

• Dying with regret, debt, or bad relationships is a consequence of sin that we all face on various levels.

Verse Six

This section discusses the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, specifically focusing on Eve's temptation to eat from the tree of knowledge.

The Temptation of Eve

• When Eve saw that the tree was good for food, delightful to the eyes, and desirable for gaining wisdom, she ate from its fruit.

• Satan let her see the tree through his eyes, causing her to look at it differently than before. She only saw the good part of the tree and not the evil part.

• Deception works by only showing people the good part and hiding the outcome.

• People need to be able to see themselves with evil outcomes in order to make better decisions.

Degrees vs. Divine Revelation

This section discusses how education can sometimes conflict with divine revelation.

Education vs. Divine Revelation

• People often allow their degrees to rule over God's word.

• Whenever human wisdom conflicts with divine revelation, people are ignorant.

• Spiritual people have discernment between good and evil because they eat from the tree of life which gains wisdom.

• People should respect those who have accomplished great things but not turn them into an American idol.

Lack of Discernment

This section discusses how lack of discernment is a major problem today.

Lack of Discernment

• Lack of discernment is the biggest problem today.

• People get impressed with the front stuff that looks impressive because they haven't discerned the back stuff.

• Spiritual people know how to discern between good and evil because they eat from the tree of life which gains wisdom.

• James 1 sums it up by saying that each person is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust, then when lust has conceived it gives birth to sin.

Satan's Strategy

In this section, the speaker discusses Satan's strategy and how he uses good things to create bad outcomes. He also talks about how Satan is crafty and sneaky in his approach.

The Crafty Serpent

• Satan's strategy can be boiled down to using something good to create something bad.

• When Satan wanted to make his move, he chose a crafty creature consistent with what he wanted to achieve.

• The serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field which the Lord God had made.

• The serpent said "hath God said" instead of "the Lord God" because he wants to talk about religion but leave out relationship.

Using Good for Bad

• Satan used a subordinate creature that man and woman were supposed to rule over in order to bring death and consequences.

• Satan uses something that is good to create something that is bad so that you can have negative repercussions.

• Satan is not going to tell you up front that he's here to destroy your future; he will be crafty, sneaky, and slithery.

Deception

• The devil doesn't mind if you're in church as long as you don't have a relationship with the Lord.

• We know what it looks like to have been duped or tricked because it didn't look like deception at first.

• Credit card companies use tactics to make you feel good about yourself, but behind it all, there are consequences.

Introduction

In this section, the speaker introduces the topic of Satan's strategy and how he uses good things to create bad outcomes.

The Talking Snake

• Satan knows how to maneuver slickly and whine and dine in order to cause you to have a conversation with him.

• The very first conversation between a human being and a person is about God.

• The serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field which the Lord God had made.

• The serpent said "hath God said" instead of "the Lord God" because he wants to talk about religion but leave out relationship.

Religion vs Relationship

• We can be religious but not relational.

• Satan used something good (the serpent) to bring something bad (death and consequences).

• Satan is going to use something that is good to create something that is bad so that you can have negative repercussions.

Deception

• Satan is not going to tell you up front that he's here to destroy your future; he will be crafty, sneaky, and slithery.

• The devil doesn't mind if you're in church as long as you don't have a relationship with the Lord.

• We know what it looks like to have been duped or tricked because it didn't look like deception at first.

Introduction

The speaker introduces the topic of God and independence.

The Tree of Knowledge

• God did not want people to create an image of him because anything they come up with would make him look bad.

• God is in a class by himself and is not who people want him to be.

• Eating from the tree of knowledge gives comprehensive knowledge, making one like God without needing Him.

• People insist on independence, wanting their data without God. This leads to consequences such as death.

Teenagers Wanting Independence

The speaker talks about teenagers wanting independence while still depending on their parents.

Teenagers Wanting Independence

• Teenagers want to be independent but still depend on their parents for certain things.

• There is conflict between teenagers and parents because teenagers want to be like their parents.

• People living in a world that insists on independence are dying with regret, debt, and relationships that are not working out.

Consequences of Sin

The speaker talks about the consequences of sin.

Consequences of Sin

• Death is a consequence of sin which we all face on various levels.

• Many people are dying with regret, debt, and relationships that are not working out due to sin.

Verse Six

This section discusses the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, specifically focusing on Eve's temptation to eat from the tree of knowledge.

The Temptation of Eve

• When Eve saw that the tree was good for food, delightful to the eyes, and desirable for gaining wisdom, she took its fruit and ate it.

• Adam allowed Eve to see the tree through his eyes, causing her to view it differently than before. She only saw the good part of the tree and not its potential consequences.

• Deception works by showing only the good part and hiding the outcome.

• People often make decisions based on what feels good in the moment without considering long-term consequences.

Intellectual Appetite

This section discusses how Satan tempted Eve by increasing her physical, emotional, and intellectual appetite.

The Danger of Human Wisdom

• Many people allow their degrees to rule over God's word.

• Whenever human wisdom conflicts with divine revelation, it is ignorance.

• Spiritual people have discernment between good and evil because they eat from the tree of life which gains wisdom.

Increasing Appetites

• Satan increased Eve's physical appetite by making her desire food from the forbidden tree.

• He also increased her emotional appetite by making her feel desirable towards eating from this tree.

• Finally he increased her intellectual appetite by making her believe that eating from the tree would make her wise.

Lack of Discernment

This section discusses how lack of discernment is our biggest problem today and how spiritual people have the ability to discern between good and evil.

Lack of Discernment

• Our biggest problem today is our lack of discernment.

• We get impressed with things that look impressive on the surface because we haven't discerned what's behind them.

• Spiritual people know how to discern between good and evil because they eat from the tree of life which gains wisdom.

Temptation

• James 1 explains that each person is tempted when they are carried away by their own lusts.

• There is a way that seems right to man, but it leads to death.

Overall, this transcript discusses the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, specifically focusing on Eve's temptation to eat from the tree of knowledge. It also explores how Satan tempted Eve by increasing her physical, emotional, and intellectual appetite. The section concludes by discussing how lack of discernment is our biggest problem today and how spiritual people have the ability to discern between good and evil.

Thank you for the instructions. I will follow them to create a clear and concise markdown file that makes use of timestamps when available.

Satan's Strategy

In this section, the speaker discusses Satan's strategy and how it can be boiled down to three main tactics.

Satan's Three Tactics

• Satan's strategy can be boiled down to three main tactics: deception, division, and destruction.

• Deception involves lying and distorting the truth in order to mislead people.

• Division involves creating conflict and discord among people in order to weaken them.

• Destruction involves causing harm or damage in order to break down individuals or groups.

The Armor of God

In this section, the speaker discusses the importance of putting on the armor of God as a way to protect oneself from Satan's attacks.

The Armor of God

• The armor of God is a metaphorical representation of spiritual protection against evil forces.

• The belt of truth represents honesty and integrity as a foundation for one's life.

• The breastplate of righteousness represents moral purity and uprightness as a way to guard one's heart.

• The shoes of peace represent readiness and preparation for spreading the gospel message.

• The shield of faith represents trust in God as a way to deflect doubts and fears.

• The helmet of salvation represents assurance and confidence in one's salvation through Christ.

• The sword of the Spirit represents the Word of God as a powerful weapon against Satan's attacks.

Prayer and Watchfulness

In this section, the speaker discusses the importance of prayer and watchfulness as a way to stay alert and protected from Satan's attacks.

Prayer and Watchfulness

• Prayer is a way to communicate with God and seek His guidance and protection.

• Watchfulness involves being alert and aware of one's surroundings in order to detect potential dangers or threats.

• The speaker emphasizes the importance of praying for others as well as oneself.

• The speaker encourages listeners to be vigilant in their spiritual lives, guarding against complacency or apathy.