I Either LOVE the Truth or Am Under a Deluding Influence

Mark Virkler's picture

We are living in a time when domination, control, fear, deception, and emotions are running high. Our desire is NOT to be deceived, whether by fear tactics, control freaks or by workers of miracles who are not followers of Jesus Christ. We are truly in a war so we need to also be wise as serpents or our voice will be removed from the public forum, as only the party platform is allowed there, and those who disagree with the "party line" vanish.

The one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders, and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved. For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false (2 Thess. 2:9-11).

How do I protect myself from receiving a deluding influence?

  1. Well, obviously, I do not need to follow those who can do signs and wonders and who are not followers of Jesus Christ (2 Thess. 2:9-11 and Matt. 7:22,23). I am meek enough to look to see if they are obeying some biblical command that I'm not and if so, I will begin obeying it. However, in addition, I will fill in from Scripture any additional truths which they are not obeying. So yes, anyone can help me see insights from Scripture which I may have missed, but the whole counsel of God as revealed in Scripture will be my foundation and ultimate guide.
  2. My burning question is: “Do I have a LOVE for the TRUTH” regardless of what it will cost me - fame, money, reputation? Truth must come before these things. I must be willing to give up fame, money, reputation - everything - if declaring the truth requires this. Truth overrides these things.
  3. I must carefully select who my teachers and informers of truth and reality are. Do they have a proven track record? Are they here to serve me or to lord it over me? Do they drive with fear or draw with faith? I turn off the lies of the secular news media who do not know God. Their version of reality is completely wrong. Listening to news that proclaims lies defiles one's soul and spirit with fear and untruths.  
  4. Since the Holy Spirit is the One Who leads me into all truth (Jn. 16:13), I always ask, "Holy Spirit, what are Your thoughts?"
  5. When "scientific evidence" is being presented I ask, "Who presented it? Who paid for the research? Was there a profit motive in it for them if they come up with a particular point of view? Was the study honest or set up in an improper way to prove their position?"

For example, many times on health websites I find the statement, "There is no evidence to support the belief that ...."  then they mention some natural health approach which they have chosen to scorn. What they hope this phrase means to the listener is, "This idea has been tested and proven to have no health benefits." However what their statement actually means is, "We have never taken the time to do studies on this approach to see if it is valid or not." So if they were honest in their communication style, they would say,


"We have no idea how effective this might be because we have never taken the time to study it.
It may work well, or it may not. We just don't know."

Doesn't that sound much more honest than, "There is no evidence to support..."?


Now the reason they have not done studies is that the natural health approach is not something they can patent and make money from, so they ignore it and call it quackery, or if they do perform a study they make sure the experiment is set up improperly so it shows poor results. I have witnessed this over and over and here are some examples of this taking place. Here is another example of the fact that vitamins vary greatly in their effectiveness, so it is wise to purchase whole food, easily assimilatable vitamins so they produce health and not sickness. When a study says it examined a particular vitamin, my question is, "Was it a food-based formation of the vitamin?" I'm sure it wasn't because they make no distinction in their minds between whole food and synthetic vitamins. "Did they provide a sufficient amount of the vitamin to get the job done?" In the studies I've reviewed, they sure didn't. "Did they combine it with the right nutrients that are necessary to make the vitamin work well?" Not in many studies I've evaluated. But yet they exclaim, "See it doesn't work," or more precisely they say, "There is no evidence to support the belief that this health approach works."

I am astounded at how blinded we can be to the truth. People believe what they want to believe and discard any evidence or biblical support for any position other than the one they hold. We must not allow this to happen if we want to walk in God’s truth, protection, and blessings. Believing and acting on lies leads to destruction and death. Either LOVE truth more than you love your pet doctrines, or come under the spirit of deception. Understanding that people are under a spirit of deception is the only explanation I have of the behavior of certain people. They have forsaken love for the truth.

Just to let you know my stance: I have had a sign on my desk for years which says "Don't bother to agree with me, I've already changed my mind." I believe growing involves a constant acquisition of new ideas. I shall keep changing until I live as Jesus did, and all I pray for are healed. Until then, I continue to change and grow. I love growing!

The sources I trust to provide valid information include

  1. My own exhaustive concordance Bible meditations in which I use e-Sword. Much of this research is available in my 60 books and my 600 blogs.
  2. Switch to this true, godly, inspirational newscast with outstanding new programs twice a week and amazing resource links at the bottom of their webpage which are worth reviewing. I believe we have viewed about every broadcast they have put out since they began a year ago. It is Christian, faith-filled, and fact-filled. These are all things I hunger for. This displaces some "Christian broadcasters" who are NOT faith-filled and promote fear and negativity rather than faith and hope. Choose very wisely. God rules. Satan was defeated at Calvary. The Church is now doing mop-up operations as we complete the commission to disciple all nations, bringing them under the rule of Christ.
  3. Check out Charisma NewsCBN NewsThe Western Journal, Lindell TV, and America's Constitutional Coach. Intercessors for America has an informative email newsletter that provides up-to-date information on current situations which need earnest prayer. By all means, subscribe to their newsletter, and to the newsletter of America’s Frontline Doctors. Check out American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) and Turning Point USA, whose purpose is to educate, train, and organize students to promote freedom.
  4. I find answers concerning health questions by typing the name of an affliction, disease, or condition into search bars at each of the following websites: Dr. Axe, Life ExtensionMercola, GreenMedInfo, Dr. Schulze. I have hundreds of blogs on health available here. We have some whole food nutrition available here, and we also purchase many items from R-Garden. When I test out R-Garden's products with my Qest4 unit I find they are better than anything I can find anywhere, so we purchase lots from R-Garden.
  5. Listen to thought-provoking, authoritative clips. For example here and here.
  6. Acknowledge that since 1/4 of the nations in the world live longer than U.S. citizens, there is something strategically wrong with America's health care system, since America spends more per person per year on health care than any other nation by far. Explore and learn so you can live as long as those in other nations.
  7. You want good mentors in each and every area of your life. Politically, spiritually, health-wise, etc. Make sure you have them! The lives you save will be yours and your loved ones. The nation you save will be yours. The believers you bring into spiritual intimacy will be your friends. YOU DO make a difference. Minister life, not death, faith not fear, hope not gloom, light not darkness!
  8. White paper containing many insightful links

Two prophetic words for 2022


So we have the prophetic word made more sure,
to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place,
until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts. (2 Pet. 1:19)

You shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free! (Jn. 8:32)


 

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Healthier Today than Yesterday - Book Cover

Healthier Today Than Yesterday eBook

Mark and Patti Virkler | 103 Pages

I am healthier at age 60 than I was at age 40! That excites me. I want to share with you what I have learned in the last 18 years since I wrote the book Go Natural. I researched and wrote that first book on health when I was 40 years old because my body was beginning to break down. The truths I learned then improved my health and many others have written to tell me that it improved the quality of their health, as well.

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Hearing God Through Biblical Meditation ebook

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Explore the many methods Jesus used to heal. Recognize the significance of the fact that more than half the time, the word used for these healings was the Greek word for "therapeutic," which means "cure". Become aware of 28 therapeutic cures which are either mentioned in the Bible or, if not specifically mentioned, are compatible with biblical principles.

Price: $19.95

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This book is my story of how my cardiac event was resolved by combining the best in medical care, Christian spirituality, and nutrition. 

I was NOT supposed to have a cardiac event. I ate a healthy diet, exercised several times a week, consumed lots of great nutrition and sought to live destressed by abiding in Christ. This story contains the lessons I learned in the months of healing after having emergency surgery which involved five heart bypasses.

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How Do You Know? eBook

by Mark and Patti Virkler | 180 Pages

How do you know? What is the process you use to discover truth? I did not ask that question during the first 25 years of my life. I used various methods for discovering truth such as: if my parents said so, then it was so. If my teacher said it was so, then it was so. If my pastor said it was so, then it was so. If my theology said it was so, then it was so.

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How to Build a Winning Team eBook

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How to Deal Effectively with Your Sexuality eBook

by Six Contributing Authors | 80 Pages

Question: How do I handle my sexuality? It is such an intense, persistent and driving force. I battle with pornography. How do I tame this monster within me? I see so many people and even Christian leaders fall, and I don't want to fall. I want this to work! I feel trapped and no-one is preaching a sermon on how to handle this. So I grit my teeth, try my hardest, and fail over and over again, and then get consumed with shame. Can you help me? Have you found any answers that work?

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by Mark and Patti Virkler | 44 Pages | Published 2002

This brief booklet walks a person through the main obstacles to speaking in tongues, and shows how each one can be successfully overcome. It is down-to-earth, practical and biblical, and in it Mark Virkler shares the struggles he went through before he was able to speak in tongues. Some were theological issues and some simply practical issues, like the fact that if I am going to speak in tongues, I will need to speak. Otherwise, nothing happens.

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How to Walk by the Spirit eBook

How to Walk by the Spirit eBook

by Mark and Patti Virkler | 136 Pages

Are you like many western Christians who have been taught little about how to sense their spirits? Do you have trouble even defining what spirit sensations feel like within you, much less recognizing them? This training was birthed from Mark’s passion to live out of his spirit, and thus release the anointing of God. The problem he faced was lack of clear biblical definition as to what his spirit felt like. So Mark looked up every verse in the Bible on heart and spirit.

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Imagine That eBook

Imagine That eBook

by Rev. Jimmy D. Smith | 85 Pages

Beginning sometime around my 72nd year, my imagination really started to wake up again.  I was reading Dialogue with God, by Mark and Patti Virkler, when wheels began to turn.  In the weeks that followed I decided that this was a “do” book, not just a “read to learn” book. I began to do what the book suggested. Somewhere along the line I felt that the Lord gave me permission to experience the freedom of using my imagination to worship Him, to talk to Him, and more importantly to hear from Him.

Price: $7.95

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