The Earth Is The Lord’s

Dealing With Deception

Journey Into The Promised Land

Luke 4:1–13 (CSB)

THE TEMPTATION OF JESUS

4 Then Jesus left the Jordan, full of the Holy Spirit, and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness ²for forty days to be tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and when they were over, he was hungry. ³The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.”

⁴But Jesus answered him, “It is written: Man must not live on bread alone.”^,,

⁵So he took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. ⁶The devil said to him, “I will give you their splendor and all this authority, because it has been given over to me, and I can give it to anyone I want. ⁷If you, then, will worship me, all will be yours.”

⁸And Jesus answered him, “It is written: Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.”

⁹So he took him to Jerusalem, had him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here. ¹⁰For it is written:

He will give his angels orders concerning you,

to protect you,^, ¹¹and

they will support you with their hands,

so that you will not strike

your foot against a stone.”^,

¹²And Jesus answered him, “It is said: Do not test the Lord your God.”^,

¹³After the devil had finished every temptation, he departed from him for a time.

The position God has planned for His chosen people to take is not that of weak, cowardly soldiers running in defeat. As we approach the coming Day of the Lord, the position God has planned for us to take is marching forward, conquering an enemy that has already been defeated.

There are four basic facts you must know about Satan in order to be prepared to face his deceptions and seize the victory. These are very basic truths, but until you have a revelation within your spirit where you know that you know that you know, you will not be able to exercise the power and authority God has given you to defeat Satan in the circumstances in your life

Satan is not in control over the earth.
Satan’s power is limited.
Satan has no power over you, except what you allow him to have.
Christians are not exempt from persecution.

Satan’s strategy has been to lie and to keep you from knowing these truths. Our counterattack is to expose Satan’s lies.

The first lie Satan perpetrates is that he has power and dominion over the earth. There are many Christians today who have been deceived by this lie. They believe that when Adam and Eve yielded their wills to Satan and sinned against God, that God turned the earth over to Satan to rule. They base their belief on Satan’s claim to power during the time he tempted Jesus in the wilderness.

Satan took Jesus up to a high mountain and showed Him the kingdoms of the world. He told Jesus: “…All this power will I give thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it. If thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be thine” (Luke 4:6-7).

Satan is a liar and he is the father of lies (John 8:44). Satan claimed that all the kingdoms of the world had been delivered into his hands. This is a lie! God has never relinquished control of the earth to Satan and He never will! Satan is not in control over the earth. It does not belong to him; it belongs to God: “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein” (Psalm 24:1).

Make this declaration:

This earth and the fullness therein belongs to God — including my friends and family, my possessions, and me!

*Adapted from MCWE email – Journey Into The Promised Land by Morris Cerullo

The Earth Is The Lord’s – 9/4

Dealing With Deception

Journey Into The Promised Land