2002-11-06
Good Morning Fellow Believers,
Yesterday, we looked at the preparation for the fierce battle to which God has called us to fight with Satan and his followers. Our salvation and what it has brought to our lives allows us to enter such a battle on the grounds of the cross. We do this knowing we are fully equipped to carry it to victory in the name of Jesus Christ, because we have been told that God will not abandon us, He will provide the leadership we need (if we will listen and obey), and He will let us know how and when we should take action. The waiting for His time is difficult, and impatience on our part can interfere with God’s will. The stakes are higher than any other stakes in our experience, because our very spiritual lives depend on our faithful obedience to Him. But the reward for placing our trust and obedience in Him is eternal life, and there is nothing that matters more than that.
Now, let’s look at some of the forms this battle can take. PR 5: 3-6 is found in a section of King Solomon’s God-given wisdom about adultery. He warns against it in the hope that the person tempted will think first about how unacceptable the consequences are before taking action. “The lips of another’s man’s wife may be as sweet as olive oil, but when it is all over, she leaves you nothing but bitterness and pain. She will take you down to the world of the dead; the road she walks is the road to death. She does not stay on the road to life; but wanders off, and does not realize what is happening.” Such a situation takes us right to the face-off between giving in to the desires of the flesh, and pleasing Satan, or resisting them in favor of what God has taught us about the sanctity of marriage. Satan would like nothing better that to enjoy the sight of a person who has lost his self-respect amidst a cacophony of regrets the morning after committing a breach of EX 20:14, “Thou shalt not commit adultery.” Satan’s greatest desire is to see a person break his covenant with God, chalking up another victory for himself. PR 5: 22-23, “The sins of a wicked man are a trap. He gets caught in the net of his own sin. He dies because he has no self-control. His utter stupidity will send him to his grave.”
As long as we are on the subject of sexual immorality, it is appropriate to use one more example from the Scriptures, PR 7: 24-27. This citation is in a section on the immoral woman and deals with fornication, sex between unmarried partners. Once again, Satan tempts the person without faith or with very weak faith through the demands of the flesh. I’ve written a lot about EPH 5: 21-33, the section which really gives us a clear picture of God’s will for marriages. Nowhere in the Bible do we ever find God giving permission for unmarried people to engage in sexual relations. Certainly, He has shown us through stories like the coupling of Abraham and Hagar [GN 16: 1-4] , Sarah’s maidservant, that disastrous consequences follow [the seemingly eternal conflict between the Arabs and the Jews, for example]. PR 7: 24-27, “Now then, sons, listen to me. Pay attention to what I say. Do not let such a woman win your heart; do not go wandering after her. She has been the ruin of many men and caused the death of too many to count. If you go to her house, you are on the way to the world of the dead. It is a shortcut to death.” When we look at a teaching such as this against the backdrop of what we see on TV and in the other media today, we can begin to appreciate just how far our own society has fallen from grace. Fornication is taken as an accepted practice based on the rationalization that people are getting married later than in the past. Don’t believe the lie that this is acceptable or that God has changed His standard. It isn’t, and He hasn’t!
I was in a class just the other day where the question was asked: In which order of importance should we place the following in our lives: our spouse; our children; the Lord? That question isn’t always easy to answer for many people. They might comment: How can I make a choice between God and my spouse?; it’s an unfair question. In actuality, it is not unfair at all. A struggle to make that choice reveals the heart-attitude and a poor understanding of God’s attributes. God has never asked us to so anything unfair in His eternal existence; He has no evil in Him. The truth is that God should always be first. Here are some citations that show us why. PS 138: 3-4, “Your wife will be as fruitful as a grapevine, and just as an olive tree is rich with olives, your home will be rich with healthy children. That is how the Lord will bless everyone who respects Him.” PS 103: 13, “The Lord is like a Father to His children, tender and compassionate to those who have reverence for Him.” PS 145: 8-9, “You are merciful, Lord! Your are kind and patient and always loving. You are good to everyone, and You take care of all Your creation.” When we put the Lord first in our lives, He will see to it that all those we love are nestled under His loving and protective wings.
PRAYER: O Lord, there are so many forms that the fierce battle with Satan can take, but Your magnificent word gives us the discernment to recognize them all and the direction for how to wage our individual battles. While our lives on earth are rarely easy, the battle is worth fighting when one considers both the rewards for doing so and the consequences of not doing so. When we choose to take on the battle, breaking the stranglehold of addictions, refusing to commit adultery or fornication, rejecting lack of ethics in the workplace, honoring parental responsibilities, worshipping You with genuine and open hearts, standing up against any kind of evil, we have joined Your winning side. In PR 8: 10, You command us to “Choose My instruction instead of silver; choose knowledge rather than the finest gold.” You are the real Gem in our lives, finer than silver, more costly than gold, more beautiful than diamonds. You offer us instruction, comfort, encouragement, correction (when we need ), and place us on Your winning team against Satan when we trust and obey You. How very clear You made it to us when, through Solomon, You said in PR 9: 10-12, “To be wise you must first have reverence for the Lord. If you know the Holy One, you have understanding. Wisdom will add years to your life. You are the one who will profit if you have wisdom, and if you reject it, you are the one who will suffer.” Your gentle, tender mercies extend to us when we suffer and face loss at the hand of the adversary. You have told us You will never abandon those who love You. For what more could we ask as we become sanctified and prepared for eternal life with You? Today, we humbly confess our sins before You and offer You our eternal adoration, worship, loyalty, diligence, trust, obedience, glory, honor, thanks, and praise. In Christ’s holy name, we pray. Amen.
As we engage in fierce spiritual battles against Satan and his unseen soldiers, we can rest assured that when we endure in our faith, God will see to our needs and protect us from permanent harm. We might even lose our physical lives in this war, but we will never lose our spiritual ones. Tomorrow, we will look at some of what God has told us about His intervention in these battles. Remember the compassion that Christ showed when he wept with Mary as she grieved for her brother, Lazarus, in JN 11: 32-33? Have we considered the love God showed when He watched His only Son suffer and die on the cross as a perfect substitute sacrifice for all the world’s sins [HE 10: 10]? Our Messiah and the Father have more compassion and love than any man can have. All of this is directed to anyone who will repent and have faith in Christ-anyone! How many of us would make such sacrifices for those who don’t deserve it or show such compassion for ones whose faith is not rock-solid? He inspired David to say in PS 26: 3, “You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in You, whose thoughts are fixed on You. Trust in the Lord always, for the Lord God is the Eternal Rock.” The love and compassion of our God is the solid Rock upon which we can stand! Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn