Stealing Hearts
(2 Samuel 15:1-6)
In this lesson we are going to look at Absalom as a type of Satan. Absalom stole the hearts of the people before he attempted to take over the Kingdom from his father David. Satan, the great thief (John 10:10) steals the hearts of saved people to keep them from serving the Lord. Therefore, we can learn some things from Absalom regarding how Satan steal our hearts from God.
How Satan Steals Hearts:
1) Absalom changed his image (verse 1)
- Satan is a master at changing his image (2 Corinthians 11:13-15).
- In the Old Testament they worshipped Molech and sacrificed their babies unto him, today Satan has people fighting for the right to kill unborn babies in the name of women’s rights.
- In the Old Testament they worshipped groves, today they worship tree and nature under the cover of environmental activists.
- But we are not exempt in the church either Baptist have made God’s out of social issues, conspiracy theories and even standards. It is true that some standards are biblical, but many are preferences.
- Satan steals the heart of saved people by taking things that are not wrong but making a God out of them. Look at the example regarding the brazen serpent in (2 Kings 18:4).
2) Absalom lied regarding the King (verse 2-3)
- Satan did the same thing in the garden of Eden with Eve. In Genesis 3:5 he is insinuating that God is hiding or keeping something from her.
- This is just what he does with teenagers today, the convincing them that God or their parents are trying to keep them from fun or good things of the world by having rules and regulations for them.
- What this does is make God the enemy and that is one of Satan’s main goals.
3) Absalom promoted himself (verse 4)
- Once Satan has driven a wedge between you and God through lies, then just as Absalom he promotes his agenda.
- Saved people often forget how much power Satan has and what he can offer (Matthew 4:9). Once he has shown someone what he can offer them it steals their heart from the Lord.
4) Absalom appealed to their pride (verse 5)
- Everyone had pride of some kind. And Satan knows exactly how to appeal to it, sometimes he uses others to do it for us. We must remember that he is the King of the children of pride (Job 41:34).
- Always be careful with people who are so eager to praise you in public, they are usually the first to stab you in the back (Proverbs 27:14).