12/31/2024
This topic we're going to talk about is ways in which Satan corrupts mankind.
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Let's see.
So yeah, we got a very good topic for you today.
We're going to talk about ways in which Satan corrupts mankind.
And you may not believe it, but we're going to talk about knowledge.
Knowledge and maybe a little bit about science, right?
Because we know there's good knowledge and then knowledge can actually overtake us.
So these are ways we're going to look at how could knowledge be something that could corrupt
us?
Something we might not never think about because we always look at the surface level of things,
but not really into the depth of everything.
So let's say we have some from New York.
We have some from Vancouver, Philippines, or else we, Uganda.
Let's see.
Please say my name or Orly.
Or, let's say your mom's stuff.
Orly.
Amber.
All right.
So yeah, so welcome to join us today, brothers and sisters.
We're just coming in again.
Go ahead and post where you're from.
As we like to see where everybody's joining us from.
I hope everybody had a good Thanksgiving last week.
You know, everything's starting to get back to normal now.
I actually got to see my mom.
My mom lives in California and she came up to my daughter's house over the Thanksgiving.
So I got to see her, which was really, really nice.
Hopefully everybody else had a nice, safe Thanksgiving.
Pray for me.
Heartbroken.
I'm sorry to hear that.
You're heartbroken.
That's from Philippines, North, Northwest.
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And right now it's a good time, right?
It's the holiday season, right?
We're coming up on Christmas this next month.
And you know, what, what do people celebrate Christmas for?
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be glad to get you in.
And so today we're going to talk about knowledge, right?
Knowledge.
How can knowledge be a way in which Satan corrupts mankind?
Is that possible?
Right.
Because we all may think knowledge is good, right?
I think knowledge, knowledge is a good thing, right?
Because when we have knowledge, we, we learn more, we can get a better job and things like
that.
But you know, there's, there's five different ways in which Satan corrupts mankind.
And the first one is knowledge, right?
And the second one is science and traditional culture, superstition, and social trends.
And today we're going to talk about knowledge and science, how Satan uses these things to
corrupt mankind.
We may talk about the others next week, but when I learned this topic, I was, I thought,
wow, you know, I never, never thought about these things because I always thought knowledge,
knowledge was something that's good and it is good.
Right.
But it has to be used correctly, right?
There's good knowledge and there's bad knowledge, right?
And also there's good science and there's bad science.
It depends on how it affects a person's belief in God.
And that depends on whether it's good or bad, right?
Because if it draws you away from God, it's bad.
Anything that draws you away from God is bad, right?
So how could knowledge, how could knowledge be bad?
How could it be bad in relation to our relationship with God?
Because Satan uses knowledge to mislead and to corrupt people and it uses fame and gain
to control us, right?
Fame and gain.
And fame and gain is not really searching to be rich, right?
It's searching to have a good future and things like that, which we're taught to do, right?
But sometimes these things, we get too involved in them and they can draw us away from God.
And anything that draws us away from God is a bad thing.
Something that draws us closer to God is a good thing.
We have to think about these things as believers in God in our everyday lives, right?
So really, really important.
Let's see, we got some, yeah, comments there.
Look at the comments.
So knowledge is one of the most powerful tools that Satan uses to corrupt humanity, right?
So when we think of knowledge, it seems very necessary, right?
To live life.
And it also seems very harmless.
Something that is valuable and necessary for personal growth and success, right?
That's what we all look at knowledge as.
And you might think, well, how can knowledge corrupt mankind?
Well, beneath the surface of knowledge, there lies a very hidden danger to all of mankind.
And this danger has to do with your relationship with God, right?
Satan presents knowledge as an enticing bait.
And this bait is used to convince us that through hard work and education, we can achieve
our dreams and live fulfilling lives.
Does that sound great?
Right?
But it's a bait, right?
This message, it seems positive, even very inspiring.
But it unknowingly leads us away from God's truth and into a life dominated by worldly
ambitions.
And when you have worldly ambitions, do you have time for God?
No, we have less time for God when we have worldly ambitions.
And the Lord says in Matthew 6, 19 to 21, it says, "Lay not up for yourselves treasures
upon earth, where moth and rust doeth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal.
But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doeth corrupt,
and where thieves do not break through nor steal.
For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."
Amen.
Amen.
So we can see in comparison to knowledge and striving to have a successful life and things
like that, are we storing up treasures in heaven or are we storing treasures on earth?
Right?
So this is where the bait is if you really think about the source of the bait, because
you can have a good life, but if your good life draws you away from God, then this is
a bait to lead you away from God.
And this is what happens sometimes.
We don't see it until we're stuck in this fame and gain and this striving in life, and
then there's no time for God.
Right?
So it's a subtle little bait, because knowledge is a good thing, but it also can be a bad
thing.
We look at also in Matthew 6, 33 to 34, it says, "But seek ye first the kingdom of God
and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.
Take therefore no thought for the morrow, for the morrow shall take thought for the
things of itself.
Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof."
So if we seek first the kingdom and his righteousness, then everything we need will be added unto
us.
Right?
So Satan's approach, it's very indirect and it's very, very calculated in using knowledge.
It doesn't openly show its hidden intentions.
Right?
Instead, it works through the very seemingly innocent process of learning.
And think about from a young age, right, we're encouraged to study hard.
We're encouraged to get good grades and strive for success.
Right?
I know that's what I taught my children.
I taught my children to get good grades in life and so you can get a good job.
And it kind of forgot about bringing God into the equation.
Right?
We're told that knowledge is the key to unlocking opportunities and achieving greatness.
So over time, we internalize this message, believing that our worth is tied to our achievements
and how much we know.
So we measure ourselves according to how much knowledge we have, how much wealth we have,
how many materialistic things we have instead of do we seek God's kingdom and his righteousness
as first?
Do we measure ourselves on how good our relationship with God is?
That's really how we should measure ourselves, not according to material wealth.
So are you starting to see how knowledge corrupts us in a way?
Are you starting to get the picture a little bit, hopefully?
Because as we pursue knowledge, Satan plants specific ideas in our minds and this is where
the corruption lies.
What do we favor most in life?
What do we seek most in life?
What do we spend most of our time in life doing?
We're exposed to stories of the great leaders of the past, heroic figures and successful
individuals.
Right?
You learn this in school history.
In these stories, they often emphasize qualities like patriotism, loyalty, and ambition.
While these values may appear very noble, they serve a very hidden purpose.
They encourage us to adopt a mindset focused on personal glory and recognition.
And then we start to believe that to live a meaningful life, we have to achieve greatness.
And to be recognized by others or leave a mark on history.
And that's what knowledge tends to do to us and looking back on other great figures throughout
history.
And then we strive to leave a mark on history, strive to be something great in this world.
And when we're striving to be something great in this world, aren't we storing up treasures
on earth instead of thinking of storing treasures in heaven?
So our mind, our goals have switched.
Right?
The more knowledge we gain, the more our goals seem to switch from seeking things of the
kingdom to seeking things of the world.
And we don't see it.
Right?
It's a subtle change.
We don't really recognize it in ourselves because as we're striving to become great in the world,
we're trying to achieve a good future, we've lost our way away from God.
And that's where the harm is, is losing our way away from God.
And hopefully you're starting to see how Satan uses this to corrupt mankind.
It's also through literature, right?
History and the media that Satan indirectly influences our worldly view.
Right?
We look at the world and we see this big, vast world.
I remember as a kid seeing that, right?
Striving to go, "I want this nice car.
I want this big house.
I want to be something great.
I want people to look up to me."
And this was at a young age.
So the more knowledge you gain, the more you think you can gain these things.
But we're not looking to think, "Oh, how can I be approved by God?
How can God look highly upon me?
How can I please God's heart?"
That's different than seeking materialistic things, right?
So we start to learn about famous historical figures and their achievements.
And we're encouraged to emulate their ambition and their drive.
Don't be lazy.
Get out there every day and work hard and you'll have something.
And that's what I was taught from a young child.
That was what my dad used to tell me.
"You know, Tina, you need to get up every single day and you need to work hard and eventually
you'll have something."
And I believe that.
Growing up, I believed that and that's what I did throughout my life.
Then I got older and I thought about this.
I thought about, "Is there anything that you really like to do?"
I thought, "I don't know what I like to do."
I was too busy working my entire life and I thought, "What do I have?"
I don't have my sanity.
I'm stressed out all the time.
I don't have peace in my heart.
So what do I really have?
Oh yeah, I have a car.
I have a house.
I have all this stuff.
But I didn't have the things that were meaningful, which is a quiet heart, you know, peace in
your heart, sanity, right?
Not less stress in your life.
I didn't have those things.
I had material things, but I didn't have the things that were important.
So this is where we get corrupted, right?
We hear about these national heroes who sacrificed everything for their country and we're taught
to admire their spirits and we read biographies of successful people and we're inspired to
set similar goals for ourselves about these successful people.
But think about what are we really learning from these stories?
We're learning how to copy them, how to be something great in the world.
Satan uses these stories in a sense to instill certain values, the importance of being successful,
the need to be recognized and the desire to leave a legacy behind in this world.
And to leaving a legacy, that's storing a treasure on the earth.
It's not storing treasures in heaven.
Because leaving a legacy on this earth, is that approved by God?
I have to think about those things, right?
So we start to believe that true fulfillment comes from achieving fame and gain.
We set ambitions, we set goals, not realizing that these aspirations are rooted in pride
and self-interest.
That's what they're rooted in.
They're rooted in pride and self-interest.
So Satan uses these things, seemingly positive ideas to lead us down a very dangerous path.
And it is focused on ourselves rather than focused on God.
And ask yourself, is that true?
Think about the knowledge that you've gained through your life.
What did it cause you to do?
Did it bring you closer to God?
Or did it bring you more focused on yourself, self-righteousness and your goals in life?
What did it actually do?
All the knowledge that you've gained throughout your life.
Think about that.
You can post in the chat what you think.
I can see your messages.
But when I learned about this, I was like, wow, this is a very subtle way to lead us
down the wrong path, to get us on the path in opposition to God, to start us leading
us of a life focused on ourself and a life without God.
So at the core of Satan's strategy are two powerful temptations.
And these two powerful temptations are fame and gain.
Wanting to make something of your life, to be successful, to have others look up to you,
to be better than others, have more than others, have a luxurious life, have money, have status,
and have reputation in the world.
And when we have money, status, and reputation in this world, where is our heart?
Our heart is of things of the world, not things of above.
This is where the harm of knowledge is, of what it creates us to think about, what it
creates us to strive for in life.
And when I learned that, I was like, wow, wow, if you really don't think about these
things, you don't see the harm that it does.
And these are some of the things that we learned, that I've learned by joining the sermons,
too, of the word of God.
Because God can reveal how Satan has deeply corrupted mankind.
Because God's been observing mankind for thousands of years.
And God knows everything, every little trick that Satan will use to corrupt us, to draw
us away from God.
And so these are some of the things I've learned in the sermons, and later on, of reading
the word of God.
So if you want to come join our sermons, let us know, and we'll be glad to get you in
to come join them.
So very, very important.
So think about, everything we're encouraged to pursue in this world, whether it's a successful
career, whether it's social recognition or personal achievements, it ties back to these
two concepts, fame and gain.
When I first learned about fame and gain, I thought, you know, I'm not striving to be
famous.
But yeah, I strive for fame and gain in this world because I strive to be better.
I strive to do the best.
I strive to build my business as the best business in the area.
And to be better than the competitors, that's striving for fame and gain.
And it causes a lot of stress in my life.
It causes me to think about my own self and draws me away from God.
And Satan knows that once we become obsessed with fame and gain, we're going to be too
preoccupied with our own ambitions to seek God.
And once Satan sees that, that's like a hook, line and sinker.
It hooks you in and then reels you in.
And once you're reeled in, it don't let you back out because now you're tied down with
all these different things.
You're tied down with all these obligations.
So consider how deeply these ideas influence our lives.
Now take a moment to think about that.
How deeply do these ideas of seeking to be a great person in this world influence your
life?
From childhood, from a little young child, we're taught to dream big, dream big, set
goals and work hard to achieve success.
I think all of us are taught that.
So we're told that a successful person is someone who has wealth, status and recognition.
We're not taught a successful person is one who has a good relationship with God, are
we?
I know I didn't teach my kids that.
I wish I would have.
I really wish I would have known better and really would have taught my kids no matter
what, God should come first.
And you know, my dad, my dad sort of taught me those things, but he didn't live according
to that.
His words were louder than his actions because he always told me to work hard and you'll
have something.
But he also told me to keep God in my life.
Right.
So kind of confusing.
Which do you do?
So the messages, these messages that we instill in our children, that were instilled within
us, they shape our ambitions and drive our actions.
Maybe we have friends and their, their parents are rich.
And we think, oh man, they have such a good life.
Look, their children, they get everything they want.
And then we strive to think, oh, we don't have that.
But when I get older, I'm going to strive to be rich.
I'm going to strive to have all these material things that I never could have.
Right.
And then we, we tried, then we tried to attain our goal.
So we end up enduring years of hard work and sacrifice.
And what are we sacrificing?
We're sacrificing our soul, we're sacrificing our mind and our heart to Satan.
Right.
And we believe that achieving fame and gain will bring us happiness.
Look at people that have wealth, the rich people in the world, some of the rich people
that end up committing su***de.
Are th
