Confusion Can Be Our Ally
 
by Dr. Ken Matto
 
(Psa 70:2 KJV) Let them be ashamed and confounded that seek after my soul: let them be turned backward, and put to confusion, that desire my hurt.

This weekend, we in America remember two great battles which were turning points in World War 2. Today, June 4th, we remember the battle of Midway in 1942, in which the U.S. Navy attacked the Japanese Fleet as it had prepared to attack the island of Midway. This battle was significant for two reasons: The first, it halted Japanese expansion in the central Pacific; Secondly, it boosted American Morale because the Navy sunk the four carriers which were used to attack Pearl Harbor. This defeat of the Japanese at Midway allowed the U.S. sufficient time to rebuild the fleet and then begin the war in Pacific which eventually led to the downfall of Japan.

The second great battle we remember this weekend is D-Day, when combined allied forces hit five strategic beaches in France and began to liberate Europe. I believe it was the Lord who sent confusion into the German High Command because they did not move the 15th Panzer division from Calais. Instead, they were convinced the Normandy invasion was a ruse and the real invasion was to come at Calais and be led by General Patton. This confusion no doubt saved the lives of hundreds of soldiers.

I think it was quite interesting that confusion played a part in the Allied victory at Normandy and the Battle of Midway. At Midway, there was much confusion with Admiral Nagumo’s staff. When their fleet was attacked by US Navy planes, they had wasted valuable time in trying to decide whether they should continue to bomb Midway or if they should re-arm their planes and go after the American fleet. That wasted time cost them the battle and four of their first line carriers. The confusion at Normandy also caused the Nazis to lose the war. If they would have engaged the 15th Panzer Division, it could have prolonged the war long enough for Hitler to develop nuclear weapons and stick them on a V-2 and obliterate England.

In our verse today from Psalm 70, we read that David was asking the Lord to send confusion into the camp of the enemy. Why didn’t David ask the Lord to destroy them? As a commander of an army, David knew that confusion is the greatest enemy of victory. One of the most excellent verses on divine confusion is found in 2 Chronicles 20:23-25:

(2 Chr 20:23-25 KJV) For the children of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of mount Seir, utterly to slay and destroy them: and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, every one helped to destroy another. {24} And when Judah came toward the watch tower in the wilderness, they looked unto the multitude, and, behold, they were dead bodies fallen to the earth, and none escaped. {25} And when Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away the spoil of them, they found among them in abundance both riches with the dead bodies, and precious jewels, which they stripped off for themselves, more than they could carry away: and they were three days in gathering of the spoil, it was so much.

As we see in this battle, when Jehoshaphat sent the singers first, the Lord sent confusion into the enemies of Israel and they began to destroy one another, so the men of Israel did not even have to partake in the battle, they just gathered the spoils of it for three days. It is the same with the Christian, the battle against sin and Satan was won by Christ and we partake in the spoils of that victory, namely eternal life. The principle here is that it was confusion that defeated this enemy. Even in modern times, we see a similar scenario. Some who are in the religion of Islam are killing their own people. We see bombs going off in Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries as they slaughter each other. Confusion seems to play a big part in the lives of the enemies of God.

False teachings are also an enemy of God as they usurp the truth which He has given us in the Scriptures. The sad truth is that with the many false teachings which are being invited into the church, many Christians are walking around in a state of confusion and God is not the author of confusion. Christians are in a battle for truth and if they begin to acquiesce to the enemy of truth, then they will suffer the same fate as the enemies of God. The Lord will allow confusion to rule the spiritual thinking of these people who rely on the teachings of men as their primary method of understanding the Scriptures. The problem is that men are telling us what they think the Bible says and what they think it should mean, in other words, they are skewing the Bible toward their way of thinking. This is why in every church there is more difference of opinion than uniformity of biblical thought.

Ask the average Christian what they believe and they will normally quote somebody else. Too many Christians today if you want their opinion, you have to ask their pastor. Discernment is an at all time low as many just turn to prophecy books or theology books and adapt to their systems. I am on PalTalk on the Internet normally each day and one thing I hear discussed continuously is what theologians believe. I will tune in and hear things like, “Well this theologian believes this and that pastor believes that, etc.” It seems that these people have become the new versions of the Bible, whatever they say seems to be the final authority on the subject. People read book after book after book and with each differing opinion they read, they wonder why there is no spiritual stability in their life. Consistently reading the works of man is definitely going to bring confusion into a person’s life. I am not saying don’t read, what I am saying is that their opinions do not carry the same weight as the Scriptures. That is an important point we all must remember because sometimes when we like a certain theologian or pastor, we may think that everything they say is absolute truth and if we are not careful, we may get to the point of never questioning any teachings anymore.

We need to glean a great principle from Jehoshaphat. When Israel began to focus totally on the Lord, He sent confusion into the other camp. If they would have begun to focus on their own abilities to try and fight this enemy, they may have been routed like the group which attacked AI and thirty six of them died. If our minds are basically programmed to the Bible, there is very little chance that Satan can throw anything our way which will cause confusion into our biblical thinking.
(Isa 26:3 KJV) Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. Perfect peace is the absence of confusion because confusion causes much anxiety and confusion can lead to loss. Just look at the three battles I mentioned which were lost by confusion.

Have you ever been in a situation when you hear Christians talk and you don’t know what to believe? That is because there is too much attention being paid to man’s words. Whenever you hear a teaching, always take your Bible and filter that teaching through the Scriptures. Don’t try to fit the teaching, if the teaching is correct, it will be confirmed by your search of the Scriptures without any over-justification. Don’t do just a cursory study but do an in-depth study to see if the teachings you are hearing are correct. If they are incorrect, then you are under no obligation to go with the crowd an accept them. Remember, you are to be faithful to the Lord and not to men. Once you get past that hurdle, you will see that confusion will crop up less and less.  (6/4/04)
 
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