1 John 2:12-17

[Hidden In Him]

Overcoming Temptations, And The Offers Made By The Serpent


           

     How did early Christians overcome the temptations being presented to them through Gnosticism? As we shall see, these were the same temptations Satan offered Eve in the garden: The lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. Most Christians in the New Testament era, however, were not succumbing to these temptations, and it serves us well to ask why. Having distinguished between true Christians and the Gnostics, John now began congratulating the young men especially for having not fallen into the trap the enemy had set for them:

     I write to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven you for His name's sake. I write to you, fathers, because you have known Him from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you have overcome the wicked one. I wrote to you, little children, because you have known the Father. I wrote to you, fathers, because you have known Him from the beginning. I wrote to you, young men, because you are strong and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the wicked one. (1 John 2:12-14)

     Why had they overcome the enemy's temptations? Because the word of God abided within them. This was enabling them to keep from succumbing. By knowing His word, they were resisting the worldly lusts the enemy had on offer. As John also added:

     Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone should love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world - the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life - is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away and the lust thereof, but the one doing the will of God abides unto eternity. (1 John 2:15-17)

     By "little children," John was addressing the entire church collectively. As he will say in another few verses, "Little children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that the Antichrist shall come, even now are there many rival 'Christs,' whereby we know it is the last hour." But by "fathers" and "young men," John was addressing two specific groups of people, and for two different reasons. As shown in previous studies, the Gnostics were preaching another "Christ" and another "Jesus," a sinful one. So John was writing to encourage the fathers because they had known the True Christ from the beginning, and had trained the younger men to know the difference between the two. Because of this, the younger men had overcome the wicked one. Why were the young men in particular being encouraged for having overcome him? Because the temptation to become a Gnostic leader was in some ways a younger man's dream. They could engage in all the sexual exploitation of women they wanted to and justify it as being ordained by their religion.
     Lest the ancient world forget this temptation was on offer, Satan continued to raise up such men over the next few centuries; Gnostic magicians who were living out the "dream" the Devil was placing on the table. As Irenaeus stated concerning one Gnostic magician who was alive and operating during his time: 

     There is another among these heretics, Marcus by name, who boasts himself as having improved upon his master. He is a perfect adept in magical impostures and by this means, drawing away a great number of men and not a few women, has induced them to join themselves to him as to one who is possessed of the greatest knowledge and perfection... this man possesses a demon as his familiar spirit, by means of whom he seems able to prophesy, and also enables as many as he counts worthy to be partakers of his grace themselves to prophesy. He devotes himself especially to women, and those such as are well-bred and elegantly attired, and of great wealth, whom he frequently seeks to draw after him... (Irenaeus, Against Heresies, XII:1-6)

     He was enabling such women to "prophecy" by transferring demonic spirits from himself to them, after which, Irenaeus added:

     ... henceforth she reckons herself a prophetess, and expresses her thanks to Marcus for having imparted to her of his own grace. She then makes the effort to reward him, not only by the gift of her possessions (in which way he has collected a very large fortune) but also by yielding up to him her person, desiring in every way to be united to him, that she may become altogether one with him... But such spirits as are commanded by these men are earthly and weak, audacious and impudent, sent forth by Satan for the seduction and perdition of those who do not hold fast that well-compacted faith which they received at first through the Church. Moreover, this Marcus compounds philters and love-potions in order to insult the persons of some of these women, if not of all. Those of them who have returned to the Church of God — a thing which frequently occurs — have acknowledged, confessing too that they have been defiled by him and that they were filled with a burning passion towards him... Some of his disciples, too, by addicting themselves to these same practices, have deceived many silly women and defiled them. (Irenaeus, Against Heresies, XII:1-6)

     Why did some succumb to the temptation? Because they did "not hold fast that well-compacted faith which they received at first through the Church." This was the same thing John was stressing in our passage. The fathers knew the true Lord Jesus Christ from the beginning, and had handed this teaching down to the next generation, enabling them to see through the enemy's lies.
     More than simply offering a life of sexual promiscuity, however, the Devil was putting greater bait out there before men; the ultimate lure he offered Eve in the garden: The possibility of becoming "gods." To quote from Justin Martyr:

     After Christ's ascension into heaven the demons put forward certain men who said that they themselves were gods... There was a Samaritan, Simon, a native of the village called Gitto, who in the reign of Claudius Caesar, and in your royal city of Rome, did mighty acts of magic, by virtue of the art of the demons operating in him... And a man, Meander, also a Samaritan, of the town Capparetaea, a disciple of Simon, and inspired by demons, we know to have deceived many while he was in Antioch by his magical art... And there is Marcion, a man of Pontus, who is even at this day alive, and teaching his disciples to believe in some other god greater than the Creator. And he, by the aid of the demons, has caused many of every nation to speak blasphemies, and to deny that God who is the Maker of this universe, and to assert that some other being, greater than He, has done greater works. (Justin Martyr, First Apology Of Justin, XXVI)
 
     This was "the pride of life" John was warning to be on guard against. It was of the world and not of the Father, and since the world was passing away, so would all memory of the "greatness" one supposedly attained in this life. But even today there are those who still take Satan up on his offer. Aleister Crowley, the most influential Satanist of the 20th century, the founding father of sex magic in the modern era, and the creator of the Gnostic Mass, likewise believed himself to be a god, and taught that the true religion was for others to see themselves as "gods" as well. As Crowley stated in Magick in Theory and Practice, "This serpent, SATAN, is not the enemy of Man, but He who made Gods of our race, knowing Good and Evil; He bade 'Know Thyself!' and taught Initiation. He is 'the Devil' of the Book of Thoth, and His emblem is BAPHOMET.”

                                           

                                                                     

     But Jesus, having experienced the temptation in the wilderness, where Satan offered Him the kingdoms of this world if He would only bow down to him, forewarned the disciples about accepting Satan's offer to become virtual "gods" in this life, telling them as follows:

     What shall it profit a man if he shall gain the whole world yet lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed when he comes in His Father's glory, together with the holy angels. (Mark 8:36-38)

     As shall be shown in closing, one of Crowley's disciples practically did attain to a god-like status in this life, only to learn when it was too late that he had gained the whole world but lost his own soul in the process.


The First Shall Be Last, And The Last First

     Again it should be asked: Why were Christians overcoming Satan's temptations in the early church when mankind had failed to in the Garden? As Paul stated concerning Satan, they were no longer "ignorant of his devices." The serpent had proven himself to be a liar in the Garden, and any offers he was now putting on the table about becoming "gods" in this life were falling on deaf ears. The righteous were no longer so naive as to buy into it anymore.
     Instead, the early church strove for greatness in the next life, where it would never be taken from them. According to church teaching, becoming great in the kingdom of God meant being the exact opposites of what the Gnostic magicians were. Whereas men like Simon, Menander and Marcus taught heresy, led lives of sexual indulgence, and lorded over others, exploiting them both sexually and financially, Christ's teaching was that the greatest in His kingdom would be those who taught and lived out the word accurately (Matthew 5:19), endured sufferings for His kingdom's sake (Matthew 5:11-12), and willingly became servants to His people.
     As the scriptures state:

     Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave (Matthew 20:25-27 NIV)

     The apostle Paul was in effect the epitome of all these things, conducting himself in a manner that was 100% the opposite from the way the Gnostic magicians did. As he told the Thessalonians:

     Our good news did not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit, and in great assurance, even as you know what type of men we were among you for your sakes… For you yourselves know, brothers, that... having been treated abusively and made to suffer at Philippi beforehand, we were [nevertheless] bold in our God to speak the gospel of God to you amidst great contentiousness as you know. For our exhortation did not arise from error, nor [demonic] uncleanness, nor deceitfulness, but rather as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel so we speak, not as being acceptable unto men but God, the One proving our hearts.
     For at no time did we come forth with a word of flattery, as you know, nor with any pretext of covetousness, God is our witness, nor did we seek glory from men - not from you or from others - [despite] having the power to be heavy-handed as apostles of Christ. But we were gentle in your midst, as a nursemaid cherishing her own children. Thus, longing for you, we were pleased to have imparted unto you not only the gospel of God but our own souls as well, for you became dear unto us. For you remember, brothers, our labor and toil. We proclaimed the gospel of God to you while working night and day so as not to be a burden to any of you. (1 Thessalonians 1:5, 2:1-9)

     As Paul specified here, instead of exploiting others as a spiritual leader, he took nothing from them but worked to pay his own way; instead of portraying himself like some sort of "god" for performing miracles, he took no glory unto himself but gave all glory to God; and while he could have been heavy-handed and lorded it over the congregations he helped start, Paul was gentle among them, and instead treated them like his own children. That the faith he preached did not arise "from uncleanness" was probably a deliberate attempt to distance himself from the Gnostics, for when they used the term "uncleanness" the New Testament writers were nearly always referring to spiritual uncleanness, i.e. unclean spirits, and Paul's reference was no different here. Unlike with the Gnostics, the true Christian faith was not inspired by demonic spirits, nor supernaturally endorsed by them, but by the Spirit of God.
     And again, the clearest proof of all this was that true Christians took no glory unto themselves. Paul understood that while servants of Christ might indeed gain recognition in the eyes of the church, in the eyes of the world they would never amount to anything. Instead of being honored as "gods," they would be disdained, and be regarded as amongst the most despised men on earth.
     As he told the Corinthians:

     I suppose that God set us forth the apostles last, as appointed unto death... To the present hour we both hunger and thirst, are insufficiently clothed, receive beatings and wander homeless. But we labor, working with our own hands. Being reviled, we bless. Being persecuted, we forbear. Being defamed, we encourage. We became as the scapegoats of the world, the expiation of everyone until now. (1 Corinthians 4:8-13)

     The words here for "scapegoat" and "expiation" respectively were used of people who were offered up as human sacrifices to the gods. These victims were nearly always taken from amongst the most despised members of society. As one source stated, the words here were "used of human sacrifices which either regularly or in special emergencies [were] offered to make expiation for a community… only those in want, the hungry, cripples, etc. were usually offered, and therefore Katharma and Perikatharma became terms of contempt for the unworthy and the destitute." (Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, V.III, P.430-431)


A Man Who Gained The World, Yet Lost His Soul

     The tragic story of John Lennon is a good example of a man who succumbed to Satan's offer, took the bait, and ended up regretting it. Like other famous musicians of his time, including David Bowie and Jimmie Page of Led Zeppelin, John Lennon was a devote' of Aleister Crowley and practiced his magic as taught in Thelema. Though strange at first glance, the album cover to Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band was actually designed by Lennon himself in honor of Crowley's sex magic, though it had to be reflected in a mirror in order to see it:

                     

                                           

     That Lennon practiced Crowley's magic is clear enough from his repeated use of backward masking in his tracks, which was a Crowleyan magick technique of speaking backwards. Not surprisingly, Lennon also publicly endorsed Gnosticism, referring to the Gnostics as the only true Christians:

         

     So what was John Lennon's earthly reward? He revealed it after the final track in the Sgt. Peppers album when he repeated the phrase, "We'll all be magick supermen." The fame of the Beatles rose to superstar star status unlike anything the world had seen until that time, aside from possibly Elvis. As Lennon himself stated in 1966, "We have become bigger than Jesus Christ." But what was Lennon's REAL reward for having taken the bait to serve Satan? Today he is serving his time in Hell, with no way of ever getting out. There are two eye-witness reports of people seeing him there. The first was given by seven Columbian youths who claimed to have been taken in Spirit by Jesus Christ Himself to see both Heaven and Hell during a time of morning prayer.
     This is what one of the youths testified to them seeing:

     The place was divided into different sections of torment and suffering.  One of the first sections that the Lord allowed us to see was the "Valley of the Cauldrons," as we called it.  There were millions of cauldrons.  They were inlaid at ground level and each had boiling lava inside.  Within each one was the soul of a person who had died and gone to hell. As soon as the souls saw the Lord, they started to shout and scream, "Lord, have mercy on us!  Lord give me a chance to get out of here!  Lord, take me out and I will tell the world that this place is real!"  But the Lord didn't even look at them.  There were millions of men, women and young people there.  We also saw homosexuals and drunkards in torment.  All of the people were shouting in very great torment. The Lord allowed us to see a man who was inside of one of the cauldrons.  He was upside down and pieces of flesh were falling off his face.  He stared at the Lord intently and then started to shout and call on the name of Jesus.  He pleaded, "Lord have mercy!  Lord give me a chance!  Lord take me out of here!"  But the Lord Jesus wouldn't look at him.  Jesus simply turned his back to him.  When Jesus did this, the man started to curse and blaspheme the Lord.  The man was John Lennon, the member of the satanic music group called "The Beatles."  John Lennon was a man who mocked and made fun of the Lord during his lifetime.  He said that Christianity was going to disappear and Jesus Christ would be forgotten by all... As we started to walk on the edge of that place, the souls extended their hands toward us and begged for mercy.  They asked Jesus to take them out of there, but the Lord wouldn’t even look at them.

     The other person who reported having seen John Lennon in Hell was Maurice Sklar, a world-class concert violinist. Sklar shared the following on his Facebook account (as quoted by the HellForPeople blog):

     One time, many years ago in 1984, when I was in graduate school/college this song came on the radio. As he was singing, the LORD spoke to me very strong these words…“He isn’t imagining any longer. Now he KNOWS beyond any doubt.” Then, suddenly, I had a vision of John Lennon in torment in hell. Demons were surrounding him from all sides and stabbing him repeatedly all over his body and taunting and mocking him as he heard this song. He was screaming in agony “Now I believe! Now I believe’ but it is too late!” as then they turned him upside down and immersed him slowly into what looked like boiling oil. I shall never forget that horrifying vision.

     As the story goes, according to the book The Lennon Prophecy, John Lennon may have sold his soul to the devil in exchange for his worldly musical success. Author Joseph Niezgoda conjectured that a 20-year-old Lennon, disillusioned and saddened after being abandoned by his father and experiencing the death of his mother, entered into a deal with the Devil for fame and fortune. The author theorizes that a 20-year pact began in December of 1960, shortly before a night when Beatlemania first struck audiences on December 27, 1960, when the Fab Four played at Town Hall Ballroom in Litherland, England. As the author contends, during that performance, "The Beatles evoked a response noticeably different from anything in their past."
     Is the story tragic? Yes. Is it the last of its kind that will ever be told? No. Satanists are more numerous today than many think. The only reason they are not more visible is because they know their religion is still deeply frowned upon, and continues to be whenever they surface and try expressing it publicly. But neither Satanism nor Gnosticism are going anywhere, and in fact both are slowly on the rise.

                             

     But like Lennon, all who adopt such religions in the end-times will likewise "not know where they are going," for as the Book of Revelations states, all who practice sorcery will have their part in the Lake of Fire. But Christians who hold to these truths and preserve them for future generations will thus have the means to overcome, just as John's readers did. When all is said and done they will be seated on thrones, and reign with Christ forever in the kingdom of God throughout all eternity.



Sources:
http://hellforpeople.blogspot.com/2013/06/is-john-lennon-in-hell.html