2002-01-01
Good Morning Faithful Ones,
Yesterday, we got a good look at how we can recognize the enemy and his followers, even when they appear as righteous servants of God. Today, I am led to cite places in the Scriptures that show us some of the things Satan and his followers try to do. Not one moment of our time is wasted in gathering this "combat intelligence" that God gives us, so we can go into spiritual warfare knowing everything we need to know to defeat the enemy. This may sound like tough talk, but we have to be realistic that Satan and his evil followers present us with tough problems. That does not mean that they can win, but it does mean that we have to be alert and prepared to meet them. Paul was very aware of Satan's attempts to undermine God's work in the early church. That is why he spoke of them in his epistle to the Thessalonians on this subject. He wanted to visit them again. 1 THESS 2: 18, "We wanted to return to you. I myself tried to go back more than once, but Satan would not let us." Further response to this difficulty was revealed in 1 THESS 3: 5, "That is why I had to send Timothy. I could not bear it any longer, so I sent him to find out about your faith. Surely it could not be that the devil had not tempted you and all our work had been for nothing!" It was appropriate that Paul had this concern, as there was Jewish opposition to the early church there and questions had arisen about the return of Christ that needed addressing.
The second epistle to the Thessalonians contains a prophetic discussion of the coming of the antichrist at the onset of the Tribulation in 2 THESS 2. In 2 THESS 2: 8-10, 12, we learn about the power this evil member of the unholy trinity will have. "Then, the Wicked One [antichrist] will be revealed, but when the Lord Jesus comes, He will kill him with the breath from His mouth and destroy him with his dazzling presence. The Wicked One will come with the power of Satan and perform all kind of false miracles and wonders, and use every kind of wicked deceit on those who will perish. They will perish because they did not welcome and love the truth so as to be saved...The result is that all who have not believed in the truth, but have taken pleasure in sin, will be condemned." We may not have to be afraid of Satan, because we know that God has equipped us to successfully battle him and that God has limited the time and scope of what evil he can do, but we would be fools not to remain alert and stay connected closely to our Source of discernment, God's word and His guidance through prayer. Satan is shifty, and so will be the other members of the unholy trinity: the antichrist and the false prophet. They will use all their wiles to deceive us, and we must be ready for it.
Christ spoke eloquently about Satan's activities in the Parable of the Wheat and Tares in MT 13: 24-30 & 37-39. A man sowed wheat see in his field. That night, the enemy sowed tare (weed) seed among the wheat and then left. Once the plants came up, it became obvious what had been done to the man's servants and from where the tares had come. The man knew it was the enemy; he told his servants to let both the wheat and the tares to grow to maturity together. Then, they were to harvest the tares first, bundle, and burn them. Afterward they were to harvest the wheat, bundle it, and store it in his barn. MT 13: 37-39 are key verses in Christ's explanation of this parable. "Jesus answered, 'The man who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man; the field is the world; the good seed is the people who belong to the Kingdom; the tares are the people who belong to the evil one; and the enemy who sowed the tares is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age and the harvest workers are angels." How can we miss the consistency of God's messages to us about Satan? Everything this adversary says and does is hateful and evil. His actions cause pain, but we must be reminded that we were told in GN 3: 15 that while he bites us in the heal, an act that causes us pain and suffering, mankind will crush his head, an act which destroys. The man who will do this in the end is God's Son, Jesus Christ.
Dear Ones, we have an Intercessor and Advocate in heaven who takes our prayers for protection against Satan directly to the Father [HE 8: 1-2]. A friend sent me a verse I had almost overlooked that needs citing, IS 65: 24, "Even before they finish praying to Me, I will answer their prayers." Our Father wants us to pray and pray often. He knows that our need to remain connected to Him this way is essential to our ability to overcome Satan's attacks. We must reflect on what today's citations mean to our lives.
PRAYER: O Lord, We can see from all of these citations that Satan knows where we are vulnerable just as You do. However, when we engage in two-way communication with You on our knees and listen to You speak first, You are able to guide us through his attacks and not be defeated by them. We must never forget this. Satan cannot defeat us if we live in righteousness and are willing to confess our sins openly to You. You alone have the capacity to forgive us through Your Son's Atonement; forgiveness in not part of Satan's personality. We pray as intercessors for those who are still deceived by the wicked one just as David did in PS 10: 15-18, "Break the power of wicked and evil men; punish them for the wrong they have done until they do it no more. The Lord is King forever and ever. Those who worship other gods will vanish from His land. You will listen, O Lord, to the prayers of the lowly; You will give them courage. You will hear the cries of the oppressed and the orphans; You will judge in their favor, so that mortal men may cause terror no more." We beseech You to enact Your justice on those who reject You as a lifestyle. You are kind and do what is right; You are merciful. Today, we come before Your altar to express our deepest adoration for You. We worship and praise You for who You are in our lives and thank You for Your consistent guidance and presence in them. We pledge as Your servants and Your friends to be loyal and diligent in obeying Your commands and in trusting You. We yield to Your glory and honor You. Most of all we offer You our heartfelt thanks for the sacrifice of Your Son on the cross, the gift of the Holy Spirit given to us, and bringing Your goodness into our lives. We acknowledge that You have done all that is necessary to protect us from Satan's arrows, if we are willing to let You lead in our lives. In Christ's name, we pray. Amen.
Tomorrow's message contains citations that help us to understand how we can best serve God despite the snags Satan puts on our paths and more about God's power through Christ to care for those who love Him. PS 34: 15-18, which I have cited previously and am led to revisit, gives us insight into the depth of God's love for His children. "The Lord watches over the righteous and listen to their cries; but He opposes those who do evil, so that when they die, they are soon forgotten. The righteous call to the Lord, and He listens; He rescues them from all their troubles. The Lord is near to those who are discouraged; He saves those who have lost all hope." We are truly a blessed people to be in a loving covenant relationship with our Lord, Who is always righteous and keeps His promises. Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn