Title: 13
Author: JBG
Last saved by: Paul D
Company: GDC

David’s Heir		13-07-18.ES13-53 /

David’s Heir: Summary of Evil: Lucifer’s Devices to Counterfeit Grace: Cosmic Artisans, 2 Cor 11:13–15; Communicated with False Doctrines, Rom 12:2 cf. 1 Tim 4:1; Col 2:8; Verse 8’s Warnings against Propaganda from the Dark Side: (1) Being Captured as a Spiritual POW: Robert Burns’s “To a Mouse,” (2) Quasi-Religious Speculations, & (3) Human Efforts for Divine Approbation; In Christianity God Stipulates, Man Complies; Lucifer’s Current Assault on Divine Institutions Will Be Trumped by the Divine Decree
10.		In the angelic conflict, Lucifer must counterfeit all that God’s plan of grace is designed to do.  As a result, his devices are the highest forms of subtlety.
2 Corinthians 11:13 -	Such as these are false apostles, deceitful workers [ ™rgas…a (ergasía): artisans ], disguising [ present middle participle of the verb metaschmat…zw (metaschēmatízō): a change of outward appearance ] themselves as apostles of Christ.
v. 14 -	No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.
v. 15 -	Therefore, it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as ministers of righteousness, whose end shall be according to their deeds.
11.		These devices are transmitted to mankind by means of false doctrines:
Romans 12:2 -	Stop being molded to this age [ the world’s habit of following human viewpoint ], but be transformed [ metamorfÒw (metamorphóō): a change of internal essence ] by the renovation [ facilitation of wheel-tracks of righteousness ] of your soul, that you may prove what the will of God is, namely, the good [ divine viewpoint ], the well-pleasing [ divine good ], and the complete [ experiential sanctification ].
1 Timothy 4:1 -	The Holy Spirit explicitly states, that in the later times some believers will become apostate, paying attention to deceitful spirits and concentrating on doctrines from demons.
Colossians 2:8 -	See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the traditions of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ.  (nasb)
12.		This verse contains thorough descriptions of evil and its manifestations, so we will conclude our study of Cosmic Two by an exegetical analysis of it.
13.	We start with the present active imperative of prohibition of the verb blšpw (blépō).  This is a warning so we translate it “be on guard.”
14.	The Colossian believers are in danger from those who would challenge the validity of what Paul has taught them.
15.	Paul knows that new believers are vulnerable to the counterattacks of religion so he is giving them early warning to be alert for this.
16.	He introduces the antagonist with the negative conjunction m» (mḗ): “lest.”  “Often used after an expression denoting fear or apprehension.” 

Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 15th ed., s.v. “lest.”

17.		There is an ellipsis here.  The sentence has no verb; the one that is understood is the future tense of the verb “to be”: “Constantly be on guard lest there not be anyone.”
18.		The danger is identified next by the present active participle of the verb sulagwgšw (sulagōgéō): “taking you prisoner.”
19.	   	This is a compound verb from sÚlh (súlē): “booty,” referring to the spoils of victory in warfare, plus ¥gw (ágō): “to lead away captive.”
20.		Paul’s use of captives taken as POWs is a metaphor for believers’ souls taken captive by false teachers.  These are Lucifer’s warriors in the Invisible War.
21.		Four lines in Robert Burns’s poem “To a Mouse” speaks of the danger of assuming nothing will interrupt your status quo:
The best laid schemes of mice and men,
Go often awry (Scottish dialect: Gang aft agley),
And leave us nothing but grief and pain,
For promised joy!
22.		How this is accomplished is by means of “philosophy”:  the preposition di£ (diá) plus the noun filosof…a (philosophía).  This is the source of the English word “philosophy,” however; the word does not carry the same idea in Greek as it does in English.  An explanation is necessary:
The modern definition of the word must not be read into its use in the Bible.  Philosophy, as the study of reality, knowledge, and values, is a profitable and biblically supported endeavor.  However, this is not the meaning of the word in Scripture.  There it carries a negative connotation and refers to quasi-religious doctrines and speculations (e.g., gnosticism) all of which are irreconcilable with the Christian faith.

Spiros Zodhiates, gen. ed., “filosof…a,” in The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament, rev. ed. (Chattanooga: AMG Publishers, 1993, 1447.

23.	The Dark Side propagandizes weak believers with human viewpoint speculation and rationales.
24.	Here Paul indicates that the attack will be from quasi-religious rationales such as Gnosticism.  He then describes these false doctrines as “empty deceit.”  The phrase begins with the ascensive use of the conjunction ka… (kaí), translated “even,” followed by the adjective kenÒj (kenós): “meaningless,” and the noun ¢p£th (apátē): “delusion.”
25.	Those that have been captured by the delusions of religion become evangelists for Lucifer’s policy of evil.  Those in reversionism are vulnerable to accepting the presentation of false doctrine.
26.	The content of this false doctrine is mentioned next beginning with the preposition kat£ (katá): “after.”  The use here is metaphorical which expresses the relationship one thing stands with regard to another.
27.	The standards communicated are called par£dosij (parádosis): e.g., the principles of Gnosticism, the oral law, or the requirements of idol worship such as the practices at the temple of Artemis over in Ephesus.
28.	Religions are the products of man being led by demonic influence to construct a relationship with a higher power based on human norms and standards.
29.	It is irrational for man to assume that he could win the approbation of a higher power without direction from the one being worshipped.
30.	The worship and lifestyle of Christianity, and even Judaism, is based on the directives of divine revelation.  God stipulates; man complies.
31.	Religion imagines what the gods require and bases its followers’ relationship on how well or how often they fulfill their self-devised acts of obeisance.
32.	This is the wasted energy of those who follow the “principles of men,” in the worship of imagined gods.
33.	This is further addressed in the next phrase which begins with the second use of the preposition kata: “according to.”   This is followed by the noun stoice‹on (stoicheíon): which refers to a philosophical system of the Greco-Roman world.
34.	Currently, the antagonistic philosophical system is Progressive ideology which is a philosophy that has morphed into a political agenda.
35.	 The ideas that define Progressive ideology are totally speculative since past efforts in communistic and totalitarian governments have proved dreadfully inept.
36.	Consequently, the propaganda that is being disseminated in Colossae is strictly anthropocentric speculation as is Progressive ideology today.
37.	No system that bases its principles on human speculation can hold up under the divine regulatory system of the laws of divine establishment.
38.	Ignoring the four divine institutions has such ripple effects that all efforts to control human happiness by speculation are doomed to failure from the outset.
39.	The Long March makes significant impact upon the divine institutions due to the loss of thought within a population.
40.	However, ramifications of its implementation are reflected in the resultant causes, conditions, successions, and relations that unhinge its fulfillment.

© 2013 by Joe Griffin Media Ministries.  All rights reserved.	www.joegriffin.org