I'm sure we have heard the term "fake news".... Am I right?
When we think of it, we mostly think of it about the media reporting news information that supposedly isn't true on a particular candidate or political party.
Have you heard any lately?
In fact, it has become the most over used phrase in politics.
You can't turn on the television or radio, without hearing someone talk about "fake news."
It's all over the internet as well...
Can I get a witness on that?
Today I want to share this thought Fake News.
If you pay any attention to the elements that speak into your life and walk with God, you are probably hearing some of it...
Fake News that could be causing your faith in God to be keeping you from living Life More Abundantly.
Over the next several days, as part of a series, we'll be taking a looking at The Abundant Life.
I believe this is going to be a great series.
I’m so excited to share this with you, I hope you'll enjoy it
and won't want to miss any part of it.
"The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly."
John 10:10
Let’s take a closer look at the later part of John 10:10. Jesus said, I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
That is what God wants for our lives..
Abundance:
Plenty
Richness
A Lot of
Pressed Down
Running Over
Shaken Together
A Whole Lot Of
Abundant Life
Abundance in our spiritual condition
Abundance in our relationships with others
Abundance in our finances
Abundance in our health
Abundance in our faith
Abundance in our hope
Abundance in so many aspects of our spiritual and physical existence
Now, let’s look at the first part of John 10:10
"The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy."
If you're like most followers of Christ, you’ve been trying to get to "The Abundant Life"
in your walk with God, and perhaps, you feel that it's been eluding you.
So, we might need to think again about the first part of this scripture...
"The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy."
We need to recognize that we have an adversary, whose desire is to keep you from receiving what it is that God has for your life.
How does he do that?
Scripture tells us…
He steals
He Kills
And He destroys
I don't know about you, but this adversary we're told about sure doesn’t sound like a nice guy does he?
That's because he isn't!
So, I've got to ask of all you something, maybe you can help me out here...
Why then, are people flirting with this guy?
Why are people even messing around with him?
I mean, in what part of your life, do you really need this guys involvement?
How would you like to have him as your neighbor?
I mean, after all, Scripture tells us he kills, he steals and he destroys!
But sadly enough, for many people, this guy isn't just their next door neighbor..
he is actually living INSIDE their house!
You see living next door isn't good enough for him, He wants to set up shop stealing, killing and destroying right inside your own home, in fact IN YOUR LIFE!
So, would it be fair to say today that NONE of us really want the thief working in our lives?
The lives of our families? Our closest friends? At work?
Good, I couldn't agree more!
So let’s talk about something we call Fake News.
Many people believe is something new, but it's actually been around for quite some time,
So long, in fact, it might just surprise you..
According to Wikipedia, Fake news (also known as junk news, pseudo-news, or hoax news) is a type of yellow journalism that consists of deliberate misinformation or hoaxes spread via the traditional print, broadcasting news media, or via Internet-based social media. Fake news is written and published usually with the intent to mislead in order to damage an agency, entity, or person, and/or gain financially or politically, often using sensationalist, dishonest, or outright fabricated headlines to increase readership.
Similarly, clickbait stories and headlines earn advertising revenue from this activity.
Here is what it's saying, the bottom line is, people LOVE fake news!
It doesn't seem to matter how fake an article is, how ridiculously stupid it is..people will tune in, dial in, or just click away on it believing all the stupidity and making some liar whose making millions of dollars on advertisement and click revenue. And the information is FAKE!
You see, Fake News has been around a long, long, time!
It's Not a new thing!
In fact, since the beginning of time…
Let's take a look at Scripture, Genesis chapter 3...
"Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made.
And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”
And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ”
Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die."
Genesis 3:1-4
Now you can see why he's so good at what he does, he’s been at this for a long time!
He used Fake News when he lied to Eve in the garden,
He actually tricked her and Adam into losing their preeminence and rule over Satan, with false information!
As a result of their sin, they were subject to death and diseases, and the hardships of life.
They were actually living in a paradise, but when the Thief got through with them…
They were living by the sweat of their brow among the thorns and thistles!
If you want to know where sickness, poverty, hunger, pain and suffering came from,
there it is, right here in Genesis 3.
And it all happened because the Thief stole from them what God had prepared for them.
The craziest part of all of it is, they did it almost willingly!
I often wonder how differently things might have turned out,
if that serpent would have wore a sign around his neck that said "LIAR!"
Maybe Eve wouldn't have believed him! At least we hope so... Am I right?
But he didn’t wear a sign and as a result things got really bad for these two people really quickly.
This is why God, has given us... You and me a sign around the devil's neck!
It's found in the New Testament... It's called John 10:10!
A sign that reads:
He gives you FAKE NEWS!
He is a THIEF!
He is a LIAR!
He wants only to DESTROY your life!
So, every single person on the face of this planet has a choice to make....
you're either going to listen to Jesus and what He has to say
or you're going to listen to the thief, and lies and his fake news!
I don't know about you, but it seems pretty much like a "No Brainer" to me?
But you need to know that depending on which voice you choose to listen to,
you are going to have two very different outcomes in your life!
You are either going to have your all of your God given blessings and abundance ripped away and stolen from you, along with that Death not only spiritually, but the death of all that God would give birth to in your life...
And you are also going to have destruction in your life.
I personally, know people just can’t figure out, why no matter what they do to improve their circumstances, their situations, their life, destruction just keeps coming..... and COMING!
OR you are going to have LIFE AND THAT MORE ABUNDANTLY!
Here's some of the FAKE NEWS he's spreading around...
God, there's more than one and you can believe in whatever one you chose
God doesn't really love you
God doesn't really want you, just look at all the mistakes that you've made
God doesn't really care about how you live your life, what profanity you speak
God doesn't expect anything from you
God doesn't really want a commitment from you, for you to turn away from your sin
And God doesn't really care if you believe His Sons life, death and resurrection was payment for your sins
And Salvation has to be earned, and you'll never measure up!
It isn't really a free gift, that all you need to do is accept it.
He tells people all the time, every day, everywhere that God, Jesus Christ isn’t listening to YOU!
And He doesn’t hear your prayers and cries..
I think that we need to turn our noses away and stop listening to the fake news he's pushing in our faces, and get our noses into God's Word and start hearing the GOOD NEWS!
I think it's safe to say there’s way too much trouble our homes, in the churches, in our lives for us to say that we are living The Abundant Life that God has planned for each and every one of us right now.
Here's a hard truth for you: A lie can sound like the truth if you really do not know the difference!
If all you are doing is listening to every news report on every channel, every article of news on the internet,all you’ll get very confused in regards to the REAL issues our country is facing right now.
And the same is true, if you are listening to every word that every preacher in the world is saying and what the Thief is saying in your life, you are going to be very confused in your walk with God.
Because I'm here to inform you, there's a lot of both that is filled with FAKE NEWS!
Scriptures says:
"Those who do wickedly against the covenant he shall corrupt with flattery; but the people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits."
Daniel 11:32
That’s talking about The Abundant Life.
Look at that you are either going to be corrupt by his flatteries or you are going to Know Your God and be Strong and do Exploits.
"Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son."
1 John 2:22
Right there you know the Thief is talking!
You know the Thief is talking, when someone says that Jesus isn’t the Christ and He can’t make a difference in your life,.. And that’s a voice you don’t want to listen to!
When Jesus was speaking to Peter, He had no problem pointing His finger at the wrong voice in His life and neither should you or I.
"You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it."
John 8:44
"Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you."
James 4:7
"Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?”
Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.”
Acts 2:37-40
Do you see that? God wants to give you the Gift of the Holy Ghost!
Let's read verse 39 again:
"For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call."
That sounds to me like He’s still giving it away!
I had a preacher tell me one time that the Holy Ghost is not for people today. That was only for those people back in the Bible days.
You know what my response was? You’re too late! I have already received it!
Now here is the Good News for you:
A lie cannot have an negative effect on someone who knows the truth!
When you have your nose in the Book that has Good News, the Fake News can’t Kill, Steal and Destroy in your life.
The message is simple and it’s supposed to be a simple message!
So God says one thing, and the devil is saying something else.
One is speaking Eternal Life!
And the other Eternal Destruction.
I believe it’s important to know which of these voices we are listening to!
There are some promises that God has made and a hope that He gives in our lives…
But we cannot tap into it if we don’t know what it is!
And if we don’t understand how to see it come to place in our lives.
And now may the the Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.
Now and forever, in Jesus' name
Amen
Brian Monzon Ministries