22 All at once he follows her, as an ox goes to the slaughter, or as a stag is caught fast 23 till an arrow pierces its liver; as a bird rushes into a snare; he does not know that it will cost him his life. ~ Proverbs 7:22-23
I recently watched The Twilight Zone for the first time. It was an episode called “To Serve Man,” and it really just made me think, this is exactly the Church. See, this 9-ft-tall alien came to Earth to solve all of mankind’s problems. Poverty, World Hunger, as well as international conflicts. And when he followed through on these promises, mankind gave him and the rest of his people (the Kanamits) their trust. They trusted them so much that more and more Kanamits came to Earth, and in return thousands of humans went to their planet. The Kanamits end goal? They were taking mankind to their planet to cook them and eat them. They were keeping them in rooms and serving them fattening food to get them ready for slaughter like an animal.
The Kanamits were able to conquer all of humanity without a single weapon. Not one single threat. They simply offered to fix all of their problems and followed through on it. They asked for nothing in return from humanity other than trust. That’s all they asked for. For mankind to trust them. That was all they asked. Nothing more, nothing less. And because they gave mankind everything they promised, mankind in turn gave them their trust.
The Kanamits painted the perfect planet to mankind. Even sending them back letters from family members praising how amazing the planet was. A foolproof plan to manipulate mankind into willingly coming with them to become their food source. Like an ox going to the slaughter, none knew it would cost them their life. This is the Church today.
The enemy doesn’t always show up like a roaring lion prowling around seeking someone to devour. Sometimes, the enemy shows up like a friend, promising to fix all your problems. Promising that he will give you all of these wonderful things, and in return? You just have to trust him. And by the time you realize what’s really going on, he has your soul, and there’s no return. There’s no hope, but thanks be to God that He has given us an out. That He has sent His Son, Jesus, to destroy contracts and redeem us from all that we have done.
Thank You, LORD, that You have always given us a way to return to You. That from the beginning of time You were working to our Salvation. To our redemption. Thank You for sacrificing Yourself for me. For redeeming me from darkness. Please forgive me for each time I’ve given in to temptation and fallen short. Please open my eyes that I might have the Spirit of Discernment. That I might discern the attacks of the enemy. That I might see his schemes before I fall prey to his traps. Teach me how to discern between good and evil. Righteousness and unrighteousness. Please help me, LORD. Cover me in Your precious and holy blood. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.