Who is your real enemy?
This week’s devotions are based on Week 10 of the Series Ephesians: Becoming Who You Are (CLICK HERE)
Do you realize how many spiritual battles we face every day?
Preaching on the topic this past weekend has made me more aware how many interactions each day are a spiritual battle. However, I often miss what it really is and start fighting the wrong thing.
Here’s an example…a little transparency with you this morning!
I spent time entering transactions and updating our financial expenditures for the past month and found myself frustrated that we spent as much as we did. I felt myself getting upset at my family for spending on things that seemed unnecessary, car A/C repair that was needed, and upset in general at our government for allowing inflation to make energy more expensive and every trip to the grocery store north of $50 or more. I made my family, the car manufacturer, and our government my enemy in a short period of time. As a result it was their fault and they were the ones that were responsible for my frustration.
But were they? Perhaps on the surface I can make a case they were and if their behaviors would change, my emotions and feelings would change. But…the situation was far less about all of them than it was about me. What was going on wasn’t just a practical dialogue about what our monthly budget should be, it was an internal struggle that was challenging my contentment, led me to battle greed, made me aware again of basing my mood on financial issues, and much more. At the heart of the battle was Satan working to lead me away from the love and promises of God, the family I treasure, and the country I am blessed to live in.
Of course it was.
As Paul wrote to remind me and you: Ephesians 6:12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
Are you fighting the right enemy?
How many times have you fought a person instead of Satan’s influence in your heart and soul?
How many times have you blamed God for what Satan is really causing?
How many times have you created unrest in your relationships because you started fighting a person instead of the root of all lies and evil?
All too often.
We will get to the weapons tomorrow…but for today remember this.
Satan and his influence is all around us. It may not always manifest in an obvious way, but we can notice when he is at work when our emotions are one of fear, discontent, anger and the result in our relationships are division and discord. If these things are happening, we are fighting the wrong enemy and losing the battle. We are fighting evil and darkness in our own hearts and in the hearts of people around us. We are living with the reality of evil and darkness around us which can lead us to despair and live in unrest.
God wants us to recognize our real enemy. For when we are aware of who the real enemy is and his tactics, we will be better able to use the armor God gives us to win the victory each and every day.
Apply: Reflect on the past 24 hours. What situations did you miss seeing who the enemy was and begin to fight against flesh and blood and miss the reality of Satan and the evil and darkness he was bringing into your heart and life?
Prayer: Lord, let your light shine through the darkness. Let your power overcome evil and let my discernment always see life through the lens of spiritual warfare. With your power, promises, and truth, let me win the victory each and every day. AMEN.
Do you know the devil’s schemes?
This week’s devotions are based on Week 10 of the Series Ephesians: Becoming Who You Are (CLICK HERE)
Ephesians 6:11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.
Have you ever stopped to think, “What are the devil’s schemes?”
Sometimes you can sense from a friend that they are “up to something” but you can’t quite figure it out until the “surprise party” happens.
Sometimes you know there is a plan going on to move you out of your job or off the team…and you find out about it too late.
Sometimes as a parent, you catch your child in the middle of creating a prank for a younger sibling and you intervene just in time to thwart the plan.
There is not a time when Satan is not scheming to get you to fall away from your connection to your heavenly Father. However, there is a lot of time that we do not carry an awareness and vigilance to understand how the devil schemes.
One of the best writings done (outside of the Scripture) to help the Christian understand the schemes of the devil is C.S. Lewis’ Screwtape Letters. In this writing, Screwtape is a seasoned demon and temptor. He is writing to Wormwood to help him understand the Patient (the Christian) and how to go about tempting him to leave the Enemy (God). Here are a few quotes. Each one hints at one of the schemes Satan uses. Read them each a few times. Can you see how deceptive Satan is in his work to separate us from the love of Christ?
- There is nothing like suspense and anxiety for barricading a human’s mind against the Enemy. He wants men to be concerned with what they do; our business is to keep them thinking about what will happen to them.
- If you can once get him to the point of thinking that ‘religion is all very well up to a point,’ you can feel quite happy about his soul. A moderated religion is as good for us as no religion at all- and more amusing.
- Never forget that when we are dealing with any pleasure in its healthy and normal and satisfying form, we are, in a sense, on the Enemy’s ground. I know we have won many a soul through pleasure. All the same, it is His invention, not ours. He made the pleasures: all our research so far has not enabled us to produce one. All we can do is to encourage the humans to take the pleasures which our Enemy has produced, at times, or in ways, or in degrees, which He has forbidden.
- Prosperity knits a man to the world. He feels that he is finding his place in it, while really it is finding its place in him.
- All extremes, except extreme devotion to the Enemy, are to be encouraged.
- Indeed the safest road to Hell is the gradual one—the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts.
The devil is not obvious in many cases, but when we understand how he schemes to deceive and trick us, we will be better able, with the Spirit’s help and the armor of God fully in place, to thwart the schemes of Satan before they bring spiritual harm to our souls.
Apply: Which of the Screwtape quotes got you thinking the most? How does Satan use this scheme in your heart?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, please build my awareness and insight into how Satan works on my heart and soul. Forgive me when I have fallen prey to his schemes. Equip and empower me with the wisdom of your Spirit and the strength of your armor to stand up against every scheme Satan throws my way. AMEN.
Note: All quotes above came from the following website: https://bookroo.com/quotes/the-screwtape-letters
Be ready for battle!
This week’s devotions are based on Week 10 of the Series Ephesians: Becoming Who You Are (CLICK HERE)
The annals of war history are littered with accounts of surprise attacks which found the opposing forces unaware. The art of deception and surprise is still one of the key elements to winning a victory in battle. From the Trojan Horse deception of the 12th century BC to the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941, military people have been caught by surprise and deceived by their enemy. The result is usually catastrophic to the group that is being attacked. So what is the answer? Always be ready.
The US Coast Guard has adopted this slogan Semper Paratus to keep the mission of their men and women before them. They do not desire to be caught by surprise or in a situation where they are unprepared. To do this one must always be training and preparing so when the time comes, the readiness to confront whatever is moving against them is ready.
So what about you and spiritual warfare?
This week we finish our series from the book of Ephesians with the familiar “Armor of God” section of Ephesians (6:10-20). As Paul lists various elements of the Roman soldier’s armor, it is couched under the theme, “Be ready.”
Ephesians 6:10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.
Some commentators that write about the period between World War 1 and World War 2 speak of the west as having “willful ignorance” as to what Hitler was doing to rebuild the military strength of Germany as well as build the desire to take revenge on all those that stood against Germany in World War 1. Underestimating the nature of Hitler, when he began to invade the surrounding countries, the European continent found themselves fighting from behind.
At times, this is our down fall with spiritual warfare. We know of Ephesians 6. We like the picture of the “armor of God.” We like the idea of defeating Satan and standing our ground. We believe God is stronger than Satan…but then we carry a mindset of this, “This will never happen to me.” We fail to take time to study the tactics of our enemy. We fail to recognize the weaknesses in our spiritual armor. We get too busy to take time to train with the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God to fight against the lies, deceptions and tactics of Satan. We can study the glorious truth of the Gospel, but fail to take seriously the tactics of Satan which God Adam and Eve in their perfection to bow to his temptations.
“Be Ready!” is not just a pithy statement for the Christian, it is a daily reality. Satan and his influence in the world are bombarding us with threats to our faith and walk with Jesus. We can not sit in our easy chair enjoying Scripture like Ephesians 6 and be thinking, “I’m glad that’s not happening to me.” or “I don’t think I’ll need that today.” As soon as we have a spirit of complacency and apathy, the enemy will strike and we will find ourselves unprepared and defeated at worst or unprepared and scurrying to put on our armor and fight back and best. This week my prayer is the message and the devotions will help us to be a little more prepared for the spiritual battle that is real every day. Know your enemy…Know how your enemy fights…and put on the armor of God so you can win!
Apply: On a scale of 1 to 10, what awareness of spiritual warfare do you carry on a daily basis? What changes when your awareness heightens?
Prayer: Lord God, thank you for your power and strength to overcome the attacks of Satan. You have won the ultimate victory over sin, death and the devil. You have promised your power and strength when the enemy attacks. Let me not be complacent but always ready to face the onslaught of Satan to stand safely always in your grace. AMEN.
JOY in relationships!
This week’s devotions are based on Week 9 of the Series Ephesians: Becoming Who You Are (CLICK HERE)
Have you noticed a theme in all the discussions about relationships and how a Christian is to engage in them? Marriage…parenting…employment? Perhaps as we engage in these relationships, we know that each one of them can be great or horrible depending on the day. Our marriage can be super one day and on the rocks the next. Our relationship with our children can be great one day and worst enemies the next. One Monday morning at work can set a tone for a great week or one interaction can leave you wishing for the weekend.
Relationships are challenging (Next week we will see the spiritual battle that often ensues in our relationships). But do we need hundreds of books to help us sort out the complexity of relationships? Maybe some are helpful, but let me end the week with a simple acronym that maybe many of you have heard before…but let’s apply it to relationships:
J.O.Y.
Jesus
Others
Yourself
All of the relationships we’ve looked at this week start with one premise: I won’t understand the earthly relationship until I understand my relationship with Jesus. The fact of grace that God, in his love, connected you to Christ by faith is the most profound relationship that any human being can experience. In the context of that relationship, I grow to realize how much God loves me, how much he sacrificed for me, how much he desires to grow me, and how in love he leads me. Every other relationship stems first from our relationship with Jesus, or better said, his relationship with us.
The Apostle John said, “We love because he first loved us.” How true is that! How can I love my wife as Christ loved the Church if I have no connection to the love of Christ? How can a wife submit to her husband when she is not part of the Church? How can I parent my child to walk in the ways and word of the Lord if I myself am not hearing from my Savior in his word. How can I work with all my abilities if I first don’t understand who gave me those abilities or how can I lead in the work place if I first don’t recognize the leadership of Christ in my own life.
Only with Jesus first can I be a blessing to Others.
Paul says in Ephesians 5:21 “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” The ability to yield my will to another only comes when I do it to glorify Christ, not myself. My natural inclination in relationships is to get as much as I can for myself out of them. Not so for the CHristian. The blessing of relationships is to realize they are gifts from God and opportunities for me to glorify my Savior who brought me into relationship with him.
But the amazing thing is Jesus does not leave us personally without blessing and benefit from godly relationships. As you’ve been able to honor Christ in your marriage, is it not true that you have been blessed by that? Do you not enjoy the peace, the mutual service, the support and love that your spouse gives as they reciprocate the love Christ has shown to them? Is not parenting more of a reward when you see the Spirit of God work in the lives of your children because you have taken time to train them in the ways of the Lord. Does not work become more of a blessing for you when you spend your day first and foremost serving the Lord?
When God designs something it is not to cause chaos and heartache, but rather to give us peace and joy in the relationships into which he has placed us. So as you head through your day and into the days ahead, approach every relationship with J.O.Y. – Jesus first…then Others…then yourself.
Apply: What is one thing you can do in your relationships to better model JOY in them?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for putting me first in your life of sacrifice and love. Lead me in all my relationships simply to model the love you shown me. AMEN.
Work for the Lord…not your boss!
This week’s devotions are based on Week 9 of the Series Ephesians: Becoming Who You Are (CLICK HERE)
Chances are many of you who are reading this are off to work this morning. Perhaps for some, you really enjoy your work and can’t wait to get at it every morning. For others, you may be dreading your day and maybe others are counting down the days to retirement. Sometimes work can be seen as a “necessary evil” to provide an income to allow for paying for things of life for you and your family.
Work is not always easy. Personalities rub you the wrong way. Hours can get long. Work seems unfulfilling at times. Office culture is draining. Perhaps we wish we didn’t have to work.
Today is a good time to allow God to speak into the reality of work in our lives. Like with many blessings the Lord gives, sin can mess up the blessing and make it drudgery. So what’s the answer?
Paul speaks to slaves. Slavery was part of the social structure in his day and while some slavery perhaps was similar to American slavery, slaves also could be in that condition because of debt, enemies of the country, or other reasons. Paul is not speaking to the morality of slavery, but rather encouraging slaves in their status. The direction he gives them helps to guide us as employees. Here’s what Paul gives in Ephesians 6:5 Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. 6 Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. 7 Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, 8 because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.
The reminder Paul gives is that a slave is first serving the Lord, then his master. The same is true whatever work you have to do today. You are first serving the Lord, then the company or people you work for. So here’s a few summary points as you show up for work today:
- Work hard throughout your day…you are serving the Lord
- You may like or not like your boss…but work with sincerity of heart as you would if Christ were your boss.
- Don’t just work hard when your boss is watching, but do your best at all times with a heart that desires to honor the Lord through your work.
- If your supervisor doesn’t always notice or reward you for your hard work, it’s ok, the Lord will reward you for the good work you do!
If you are in the position of leadership, take these words to heart: Ephesians 6:9 And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him. Be Christ to those you lead. Treat those you lead with love and respect as Christ has treated you!
So whatever work you have to do today, tackle it with joy and enthusiasm as it is an opportunity for you to serve the Lord and be a blessing to the people around you as you do!
Apply: What can you do differently today at work to shift your mindset and heart to work for the Lord instead of just working for your company?
Prayer: Lord, thank you for the gift of work. May I show up today and give my best simply to reflect you in my workplace! AMEN