T
sounds obvious, and for the Christian it is....but I want to focus on something that I have found a lot of Christians don't understand.
In scripture, Jesus says that "Satan is the father of lies, and when he lies he speaks according to his character."
So, what does Satan lie about?
I would like to suggest that foremost he lies about what we want. He makes us believe that we want things we do not want at all...
This is the beginning of all sin and deception. And, if we let ourselves be swayed and led astray we end up far off course.
It just came to my mind the attitude of my heart toward prayer. When I am in prayer, and resting In God's presence, it seems like the sweetest thing in the world, and I would not give anything to be taken from it...but when I have made a habit of not being always retreating into my prayer "huddle with God", I find Satan lying to me and causing the "noise of this world" distracting me from prayer.
I know its the same with everyone, I see it all the time--how someone can go from being at peace with God and content to being consumed with busy-ness and not doing the thing that is essential...reminds me of Mary and Martha...it seems like there is too much work/fun to be done than to just pray, and pray begins to seem less and less fun and profound...
Like tonight, I could stay awake to pray, but my body is deceiving me into thinking I need not pray and saying, what I need is sleep and sleep will heal me in a way that prayer cannot. I am not saying we do not need sleep. But Jesus stayed awake many nights in prayer, retreating to the hill, and this was not for himself but "to show us something essential". He also slept when everyone else was rowing on the lake, so we can see that he did sleep.
Anyway, I am getting a bit sidetracked. I think if we listen to Jesus when he prayed with his soul sorrowful to death, about their spirits being willing but their bodies being weak, we may learn something about pressing forward into God's presence.
I am not saying to constantly talk or tell God things, but draw near to listen to what he tells you and be at peace.
God's plans are always awesome. But Satan also plays a subtle trick in leading us astray. He convinces us either that we "are too insignificant to make a difference" or that "it does not matter what we do" which are both lies. There is a point in modesty of understanding that before God we are but dust and ashes, but we also have to stand in Jesus and say we are also beloved of God for Jesus' sake and that makes every Christian amazing...and the second is one I struggle with now, God gives me awesome things to do and instead of audaciously doing them, I put them on a check list and wait for "when I feel like doing them". The lie here is that Satan--like he did with Job--can often play with how we feel in situations and make every moment feel like the wrong moment though God gave us a truth to share with somebody or a group of people, or perhaps just something wonderous to do in Jesus' name. It is not "us" who do them, but it is important to "forcefully advance into the kingdom" as the Bible says...if there were not opposition, no one need force their way into it, but the Bible warns us that we will be opposed. The Jews would have whistled Dixie into the promised land instead of being terrified at first at physical appeareances, and then only forty years later having the courage that comes with God.
I once told a group of young adults that Satan loves to twist the scripture where Jesus says that the Pharisees strain out a gnat and swallow a camel. The devil often twists this verse in people's minds and hearts into thinking that camels are gnats. What I mean is that Satan would convince us that every pit he puts in our way is really just a puddle and that "such and such a sin is acceptable within certain limits" but "that abomidable other sin is comdemnation." Not hating on 'organized churches', but I have often seen churches that swallow greed for breakfast, lunch, and dinner; and in their high esteem commend themselves for certain other menial sins. I understand in a 'human way' why this is, "almost everyone wants to be rich" so greed of whatever form is acceptable to most people to a certain limit...but we have to remember that other word Jesus said that "what is highly valued among men is an abomination in the sight of God. And also, how he describes the person fasting and looking down on the humble tax collector's prayer...
So how has satan lied to you? Lets expose the traps of the enemy. And help those caught by some net.
God bless
tony
In scripture, Jesus says that "Satan is the father of lies, and when he lies he speaks according to his character."
So, what does Satan lie about?
I would like to suggest that foremost he lies about what we want. He makes us believe that we want things we do not want at all...
This is the beginning of all sin and deception. And, if we let ourselves be swayed and led astray we end up far off course.
It just came to my mind the attitude of my heart toward prayer. When I am in prayer, and resting In God's presence, it seems like the sweetest thing in the world, and I would not give anything to be taken from it...but when I have made a habit of not being always retreating into my prayer "huddle with God", I find Satan lying to me and causing the "noise of this world" distracting me from prayer.
I know its the same with everyone, I see it all the time--how someone can go from being at peace with God and content to being consumed with busy-ness and not doing the thing that is essential...reminds me of Mary and Martha...it seems like there is too much work/fun to be done than to just pray, and pray begins to seem less and less fun and profound...
Like tonight, I could stay awake to pray, but my body is deceiving me into thinking I need not pray and saying, what I need is sleep and sleep will heal me in a way that prayer cannot. I am not saying we do not need sleep. But Jesus stayed awake many nights in prayer, retreating to the hill, and this was not for himself but "to show us something essential". He also slept when everyone else was rowing on the lake, so we can see that he did sleep.
Anyway, I am getting a bit sidetracked. I think if we listen to Jesus when he prayed with his soul sorrowful to death, about their spirits being willing but their bodies being weak, we may learn something about pressing forward into God's presence.
I am not saying to constantly talk or tell God things, but draw near to listen to what he tells you and be at peace.
God's plans are always awesome. But Satan also plays a subtle trick in leading us astray. He convinces us either that we "are too insignificant to make a difference" or that "it does not matter what we do" which are both lies. There is a point in modesty of understanding that before God we are but dust and ashes, but we also have to stand in Jesus and say we are also beloved of God for Jesus' sake and that makes every Christian amazing...and the second is one I struggle with now, God gives me awesome things to do and instead of audaciously doing them, I put them on a check list and wait for "when I feel like doing them". The lie here is that Satan--like he did with Job--can often play with how we feel in situations and make every moment feel like the wrong moment though God gave us a truth to share with somebody or a group of people, or perhaps just something wonderous to do in Jesus' name. It is not "us" who do them, but it is important to "forcefully advance into the kingdom" as the Bible says...if there were not opposition, no one need force their way into it, but the Bible warns us that we will be opposed. The Jews would have whistled Dixie into the promised land instead of being terrified at first at physical appeareances, and then only forty years later having the courage that comes with God.
I once told a group of young adults that Satan loves to twist the scripture where Jesus says that the Pharisees strain out a gnat and swallow a camel. The devil often twists this verse in people's minds and hearts into thinking that camels are gnats. What I mean is that Satan would convince us that every pit he puts in our way is really just a puddle and that "such and such a sin is acceptable within certain limits" but "that abomidable other sin is comdemnation." Not hating on 'organized churches', but I have often seen churches that swallow greed for breakfast, lunch, and dinner; and in their high esteem commend themselves for certain other menial sins. I understand in a 'human way' why this is, "almost everyone wants to be rich" so greed of whatever form is acceptable to most people to a certain limit...but we have to remember that other word Jesus said that "what is highly valued among men is an abomination in the sight of God. And also, how he describes the person fasting and looking down on the humble tax collector's prayer...
So how has satan lied to you? Lets expose the traps of the enemy. And help those caught by some net.
God bless
tony
