2003-01-09
Good Morning Faithful Ones,
Yesterday, I was led to begin writing about how to use God’s word in spiritual warfare. Knowing and understanding it through the Holy Spirit is the first step. That allows us to know that we can claim victory over evil on the grounds of the cross. That victory happened the second that Christ lost His physical life and is proven by all those witnesses mentioned in 1 COR 15: 3-8 who actually saw Christ die and rise again. Christ was by no means alone when he ascended into heaven to sit at the right hand of the Father, while God makes His enemies a “footstool under His feet” [AC 1: 8-9; PS 110: 1]. From JN 12: 31 and HE 2: 14, we see that Christ’s victory over Satan cut off Satan’s plan to spread evil permanently to all mankind. This victory was accurately predicted in GN 3: 15 with the crushing of the serpent’s head while mankind’s heel is only bruised.
So, the question becomes: If the victory is already won, why does mankind have to engage in spiritual warfare? The answer is found in an understanding of God’s plan, that plan to bring as many people as possible to salvation, to sanctify them, and then to bring them safely home for an eternal life of joy, peace, and fellowship with the Father. Encased in that plan is the promise that since Christ is the “first among many brothers” [RO 8: 29], then we who endure through all of Satan’s fiery arrows sent against us will also be resurrected. God actually uses Satan’s evil activity as an opportunity for us to be sanctified through doing battle with the adversary and his followers. COL 1: 13 reminds us that God rescued us from the power of darkness, bringing us safely into His Kingdom through Christ’s death on the cross and our faith in Him. That’s the big picture, now let’s look at some verses that can help us not only to find a way to build our own faith, but also to help build faith in others.
I often cite HE 10: 10 and will do so again without apology here. “Because Jesus Christ did what God wanted Him to do, we are all purified from sin by the offering that He made of His own body once and for all.” Further elaboration on this magnificent truth is found in RO 3: 24-25, “But by the free gift of God’s grace all are put right with Him through Christ Jesus, Who sets them free. God offered Him, so that by His death He should become the means by which people’s sins are forgiven through their faith in Him.” In some versions, Christ’s death is described as the “propitiation” for mankind’s sins. That word means a satisfactory substitute sin sacrifice, satisfactory to the Father. No other sacrifice need be made, which is why Christ’s comment shared by the author of Hebrews in HE 10: 5-7 is so precious to all of us. [Christ speaking to God] “You do not want sacrifices and offerings, but You have prepared a body for Me. You are not pleased with animals burned whole on the altar or with sacrifices to take away sins. Then I said, ‘Here I am, to do Your will, O God, just as it is written of Me in the book of the Law.’” Hebrews is not the first place we see these words. They are directly from PS 40: 6-8. They were spoken by Christ at the time He was about to come into the world, and were shared by God when He inspired the Psalmist to write them down. From this, we can use Scripture to speak to a traditional Jew considering the question if the Scriptures are consistent and if Christ appears in the OT. Of course, that Jew cannot come to faith in Christ unless the Holy Spirit brings it about, but at least we know that we have the tools we need in God’s word to set the stage for the Spirit’s work.
An understanding of and a belief in the truth of the book of Revelation allows us to know from Scripture that God’s power to wrest dominion over the earth from Satan is stronger than Satan’s ability to resist Him [REV 5: 5]. I am convinced that my messages each day would be worthless without the use of Scripture to explain the points I’m led to make in them. Each of us must consider the circumstances of his own life and the people with whom we interact. If we ask ourselves just how useful Scripture is in the conduct of our lives as believers, we will soon see it is crucial. Christ found it to be so, and in tomorrow’s message, I am led to share some incidents after His temptation in the wilderness which will illustrate my assertion. I personally can testify to how my own use of Scripture was helpful in bringing others to where their hearts were open to the Holy Spirit and also in building faith. Admittedly, my own faith was the hardest for me to build. It’s because of innate stubbornness and foolishness on my part that this was so. Other believers were very helpful over the years with this effort. This points out how much God knows we need each other to help us over such stumbling blocks and through times of Satan-caused pain and sorrow. That’s why our loving Abba brought us into congregations, commanded us to serve Him in them, and through His Son in JN 13: 34-35, told us to love one another, as He loves us.
PRAYER: O Lord, long ago a little known Jew named Jabez offered a prayer, which has recently resounded through the Christian community, revealing what is on the mind and in the heart of an honorable man. 1 CH 4: 9-10, “And Jabez was more honorable than his brethren; and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, ‘Because I bare him with sorrow.’ And Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, ‘Oh that Thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, and that Thine hand might be with me, and that Thou wouldest keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me!’ And God granted him that which he requested.” This is a prayer all us would do well to pray daily. Jabez’s greatest desire was to serve You, Dearest Abba, and that is ours too. His mother’s childbirth pains might have hard on her, but she must have realized they were worth her initial sorrow when she saw what a fine son she had. Your pain at watching Your own dear Son suffer on the cross must have been difficult for You, but His perfection in the face of awful temptation must make Your sacrifice of Him that day well worth it. Today, He and Jabez are with You, and the war with Satan has been won. We examine Jabez’s pleas to You and by the understanding given to us by the Holy Spirit of them, we realize those should be our requests too. Your blessing, Your trust in us to increase the number of people we can influence for You, Your power granted to us to do Your work, and Your willingness to protect us from evil are all vital pleas on our part. They matter greatly to us. We offer You heartfelt thanks for giving us Your word to use against Satan and to do Your work. We dedicate ourselves to never forgetting PS 119: 105, “Your word is a lamp unto our feet, a light for our path.” With contrite hearts and humility we confess our sins. You are an awesome God and we offer You our adoration, worship, loyalty, diligence, glory, honor, trust, obedience, thanks, and praise. In Christ's name, we pray. Amen.
As promised above, tomorrow’s message will be about some examples of how Christ used Scripture to do God’s work in combating Satan. The subject of demon possession is very sensitive in this day and age. Yet, it is a reality and not just some ancient attempt to explain what is known to be a diagnosable disease today. The discernment we need to recognize what is happening to someone whose behavior is aberrant is a gift that comes from studying the Scriptures. When this behavior is diagnosed as a mental disorder, then we and the doctor who diagnoses it must realize that his skill to do so came from God. The bottom line is that faith in our Lord is the only real defense or effective offense against Satan’s evildoing. As hard to discuss as this subject is, I cannot help but see this use of God’s word as another manifestation of His love for us. As I have so often said, we are truly a blessed people to be the children of God. Peter and I send each of you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn