Beware of the Deceiver in your Garden!!

He was first introduced as the serpent in the Garden of Eden. The man of lawlessness, the son of destruction. He is roaming the earth seeking whom to devour. The deceiver does not come to idlers no! He goes to those that are tending their gardens to discredit them.

God created the Garden of Eden because He had Adam and Eve in thought. Before we were formed, God had us in mind and had a garden prepared specifically for us. Everyone has a purpose he/she was created to fulfill. Every purpose has instructions to be heeded to. Just like the Garden of Eden had precepts to follow.

 Adam and Eve were busy in the garden; their place of purpose.They were tending to their garden. They were in the position that God had placed them. Everything was in perfect order before the serpent came. The man and woman worked their garden in tranquility and in the cool of the day they fellowshipped with God. The man had authority over every living creature, in fact he named them all. He had authority over the animals in the field, the birds of the air, the wild animals and the creatures of the sea. God provided for them. He took care of them while in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve obeyed God’s commands and lived a fulfilled life.

 

When the serpent showed up, he brought chaos into the Garden of Eden. The place where God had made for Adam and Eve. The serpent questioned Eve on God’s rules. Genesis 3:4-5^. The serpent told the Woman, “You won’t die. God knows that the moment you eat from that tree, you’ll see what’s really going on. You’ll be just like God, knowing everything, ranging all the way from good to evil.” He planted seeds of deceit in her mind that made her question God’s rules. He instilled vile desires in her mind misleading her to disobey God.   Genesis 3:6 When the Woman saw that the tree looked like good eating and realized what she would get out of it—she’d know everything!—she took and ate the fruit and then gave some to her husband, and he ate. This was the beginning of the fall of man. God had disclosed to them that once they partake of the Tree-of-Knowledge-of-Good-and-Evil they would die. They became spiritually dead. They couldn’t discern good and evil. They lost God’s presence, their fellowship with God was lost. We all know that only God is All-knowing and no matter what we do as human beings we cannot be like God! Here Eve’s desires changed from pleasing God in their place of purpose to aspiring to be like God.

The deceiver is always roaming around trying to seek whom to devour out of their gardens. Competing with the authority that God has given you. Trying to contradict the instructions laid down for you like he did with Eve. God’s instructions are meant to be followed, not questioned. The deceiver planted seeds of disbelief into Eve’s mind before he finally made her disobey God. He questioned God’s authority and order of doing things. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it. The deceiver makes you see his deceptions as truths. He entices you and when you give him a chance, he paints pictures of deceit into your mind so that you can start desiring vile things. When someone starts to question God’s ability in your purpose and tries to beguile you to disobey or question God’s authority, then that is the deceiver’s voice- flee!.

He entraps people to fall into the same trap he did. By deceiving them to compare themselves with the creator. How can creation compare itself with the Creator? This is absolutely impossible! Once you start thinking in this magnitude, you are headed for destruction. This is exactly what the deceiver did. He tried to measure himself with God and tried to take God’s place.                                                                                                  Isaiah 14:12-14
"How you are fallen from heaven, 
O Lucifer, son of the morning! 
How you are cut down to the ground, 
you who weakened the nations! 
For you have said in your heart: 
'I will ascend into heaven, 
I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; 
I will also sit on the mount of the congregation 
On the farthest sides of the north; 
I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, 
I will be like the Most High.' 

Hearkening to the counsel of the deceiver has dare consequences. Your business starts to experience hardships, your marriage becomes rocky, and your garden tends to have challenges instead of progressing. Genesis 3:17-19

The ground is [now] under a curse because of you;
In sorrow and toil you shall eat [the fruit] of it
All the days of your life.
“Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you;
And you shall eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your face
You will eat bread
Until you return to the ground,
For from it you were taken;
For you are dust,
And to dust you shall return.”. This are some of the consequences that faced man and woman because of hearkening to the deceiver. Do not give him an opportunity to discuss your assignment. Focus on your garden.

When God allocated you to that garden, He alone gave you the instructions on how to operate that business, marriage, job or even ministry. So He alone is the one you need to inquire from. He is the one to give you counsel concerning your business, marriage, work, family or ministry. This means any other counsel that is not of God is the deceiver’s voice trying to lure you slowly by slowly out of your garden and place of assignment. Do not seek counsel from the deceiver.

You should be in a place where you are able to weigh and discern whether this counsel is from God or not. Is it creating deluded desires in my mind that do not please God? 1 John 4:1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God.

God is All knowing; knowing everything that concerns you- knowing the end from the beginning. Do not let vile desires get you out of your place of assignment. Do not let greed destroy your garden; business, work, marriage, career or family. We don't want to operate out of God’s presence.

The only way to overcome the deceiver is by putting on the whole armor of God so as to stand against his wiles. 1 Peter 5:8-9 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith. God’s word reveals light onto our lives. Let it guide you.