IDentity Theft

Bill was buying a car. The finance assistant gave him forms to fill out, and unbeknownst to the dealership, she gave him an extra form. He put all of his information on that sheet: social security number, driver’s license, bank account information, even a credit card number. Six months later, his bank account had been emptied, fraudulent charges appeared on his credit card, and several notices came in the mail of loans that had been taken out in his name.After months of inquiry, and thousands of dollars of investigation costs, the information leak was tracked to a girl who had worked for a short time at the dealership where he bought his last car. She also absconded with several hundred thousand dollars from many other unsuspecting victims. The money was never recovered and the dealership eventually filed for bankruptcy due to resulting lawsuits. The girl was part of a ring that either fled the country or melded into the population.Identity theft: It’s very real. My card was suspended when I supposedly bought a membership to a health club in Mozambique. Some of you have stories of ruined credit and serious fraud. It’s a big problem.You wouldn’t think it was in Jesus’ day. They didn’t have credit cards. But Jesus said to his friend, Peter, “Get behind me, Satan!…You do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.”What? Jesus called the same man who he, himself, had named, Peter (meaning “Rock”) and referred to him as being a cornerstone of the church; he called him, “Satan” in Mark 8? Wow! That’s identity theft!It is a horrible thing when we allow Satan to take our Christian identity and use it to blaspheme our God! But every time a Christian man uses God’s name in vain at work, and every time a Christian woman compromises Biblical morality, when Christian couples turn their backs on their marriages or on their kids, they turn their identity over to Satan.This is also why Jesus warned Peter, “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to have you, to sift you like wheat” (Luke 22:31). And Peter understood this full well, which is why he later wrote, “Be careful! Watch out for attacks from the devil, your great enemy. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for some victim to devour” (1 Peter 5:8).There is also a real devil. And like Peter, he would love to steal your identity and make it look to everyone else that you belong to him. Be on guard! Don’t let him do it!Let this world see who you really are and live like the child of God that He has called you to be! “Conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.” – Philippians 1:27