We have told our children that the monsters don't really exist. We have told them that they are not in the closets or under the beds. In some ways we have been wrong.
There are spiritual beings which attack God's creation. They are led by someone called the devil or Satan. He takes his demons across the earth to destroy anything that brings God glory. He attacks the world because God so loved the world that He sent His only Son to die for it. Satan is evil to the core and people should know that he is attacking God's world.
How does he attack? Paul gives us some indication by giving us the armor that Christians should wear each day. All but one item on the list is defensive.
Satan attacks the truth. He attacks your ability to know the truth and live the truth. He challenged what Adam and Eve knew to be truth in the Garden. They doubted this truth, gave into believing Satan's lies and thus mankind fell. You should stick to the truth that God has delivered. Any attack upon the truth is an attack of Satan. He may be using human beings to speak his words but it is still him. Hold fast to the truth.
Satan attacks righteousness. He wants God's people to abandon righteousness. The lack of righteousness separates us from God. It makes us much more vulnerable to whatever else Satan would like to do. He wants sinfulness in the believers. He does not want believers to confess to God and be cleansed of all unrighteousness. He doesn't even want believers to know that is possible. He keeps telling believers that their sin cannot be forgiven.
Satan attacks salvation. He not only wants people to doubt their salvation, he wants them to act as if they are not saved. A person detached from their salvation is a person who does not know if he or she knows God. They will stop praying. They will stop asking God for strength if they do not believe in Him. They will become empty and run after the same things that the world runs to. They will lose the glory that God is seeking to restore in them.
Satan attacks faith. Faith believes God when all the circumstances point to something else. Faith brings salvation. Faith is the assurance of things hoped for; the evidence of things not (yet) seen. Faith extinguishes Satan's lies. Faith stands on God's Word. Faith makes us pray. Faith causes actions which will defeat Satan.
Satan attacks a person's witness. He puts fear in the hearts of believers. He tells them that others need to share the gospel rather than them. He tells them to be silent. He warns them of what they might lose. He says that they could do more harm than good. He keeps the believer silent and even encourages the believer to be silent when others are ridiculing the gospel and Christ.
Satan is not worried about people taking the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God, if he can get them to do these things listed above. They will not read God's word daily. They will let is sit on the coffee table between Sundays. They will live empty lives. They will not carry God's glory.
He can hurt God this way.
Has Satan been attacking you? Victory comes from staying in God's word. If you have neglected His Word, he is already winning.
No comments:
Post a Comment