The Devil's Religion

Sermon OverviewScripture Passage: Acts 8:5-24Contrary to popular belief, the devil is very much for religion; in fact, he uses religion to oppose the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In the Book of Revelation, the Bible prophecies that in the Last Days, there will not be a lack of religion; there will be more than ever. Men will have religion without reality; they will not know God, and yet they will be very religious. It is vital that we recognize the warnings and refute the devil’s religion, lest we fall into its deception.-Beware of the devilish power of false religion.-Beware of the devilish pride of false religion.-Beware of the devilish pretense of false religion.-Beware of the devilish poison of false religion.In Acts 8, a man named Simon was practicing what the Bible calls “sorcery.” He had tapped into a devilish, unholy, supernatural power so great, it left his city in awe.We must remember that the devil is a deceiver, and he often uses miracles and signs to deceive even those who believe they are Christians.Acts 8:9 says, “But there was a certain man, called Simon, which beforetime in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one.”Simon was inflated with ego. The hallmark of false religion is pride. Remember: It was pride that made the devil, the devil.There are two kinds of believers described in Acts 8:12-13: possessors and pretenders.The difference is in the object of their belief. Simon the sorcerer was interested in power that he could get hold of. When he saw the apostles, filled with the Holy Spirit, laying their hands on people and giving healing and restoration, he wanted it.Adrian Rogers says, “Because false religion is egocentric, it is always rooted in what I can get and not in what I can give.”False religion poisons everything it touches. It can’t make a person free; you are ensnared and undelivered from sin and temptation, left unfulfilled and unsatisfied, bitter and in bondage.The only remedy to false religion is repentance of sins of the spirit. Receive the Holy Spirit through a relationship with Christ.Apply it to your lifeHave you been ensnared by the dangers of false religion? Do you need to repent of the sins of the spirit? Repent; stand on the word of God.