The Attack of the Evil One....

I was with a precious friend of mine tonight, and listening to her pour her heart out, as she's going through a really tough time.

At one point she said, "Jes, I just don't know when the thoughts that I battle are from the enemy and when they aren't!"

So I thought about it for a minute...I really pondered it with her.

I know what she means. I totally understand her question.

It is hard to know sometimes if what we're battling in our head is from the evil one or just from our own selfish flesh.

I suppose I'm still thinking about it...but one thing I believe is this....God doesn't work through condemnation.

Satan does.

He is called the accuser of the brethren, and it's a tactic he has polished well over the centuries.

Once you belong to the Lord, having repented of your sin, turned from it, and put your faith in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, and followed Him, you are given the gift of His indwelling Holy Spirit.

The Bible says that the Holy Spirit came to CONVICT the world concerning sin, righteousness, and judgement.

The Holy Spirit CONVICTS.

The enemy CONDEMNS.

That's the difference. Look at it through the lens of God's Word for a minute....

Regarding the Holy Spirit, this is Jesus speaking:

John 16:7
"But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you.
John 16:8
"And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; John 16:9
concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me;
John 16:10
and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me;
John 16:11
and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.

Regarding the enemy, satan:

Zec 3:1
Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him.
Zec 3:2
The LORD said to Satan, "The LORD rebuke you, Satan! Indeed, the LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?"
Zec 3:3
Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments and standing before the angel.
Zec 3:4
He spoke and said to those who were standing before him, saying, "Remove the filthy garments from him." Again he said to him, "See, I have taken your iniquity away from you and will clothe you with festal robes."
Zec 3:5
Then I said, "Let them put a clean turban on his head." So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments, while the angel of the LORD was standing by.

Do you see that? The enemy stood before the angel of the LORD to accuse one who God had plucked from the fire!

So, that's the litmus test for me....are the thoughts I'm battling ones of condemnation or of conviction?

Ones that accuse me and try to convince me of my worthlessness, or ones that make me bow before my Father, and submit to Him...

If the former, I'd be wise to say as Jesus did,

Zec 3:2 ...."The LORD rebuke you, satan!" and
Matt 4:10
..."Go, Satan! For it is written, 'YOU SHALL WORSHIP THE LORD YOUR GOD, AND SERVE HIM ONLY.' "

If the latter, I'd be wise to listen, submit to God, and obey Him.

Merry Christmas!
Jes

Scripture Acting - Team #2

My little brown eyed girl and her best friend! :)

The verses they are doing are Proverbs 15:1-3...

"A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

The tongue of the wise makes knowledge acceptable, but the mouth of fools spouts folly.

The eyes of the LORD are in every place, watching the evil and the good."

There are so many good questions that you can ask your child regarding these verses...one of my favorites at this time of year deals with the Sovereignty of God and Santa Claus.

We don't do "Santa" in our home, but I do realize that we're in the minority...and attach no judgement to the decision of others..we were just led by God not to do "Santa", and followed His leading on it.

However, my kids still hear the song about Santa, when we're out that says that "He sees you when you're sleeping. He knows when you're awake. He knows if you've been bad or good so be good for goodness sake!"

The above verse, #3, is a perfect one to use to explain to children that Santa is not Sovereign..only God is, and that only God sees everything.

In addition, apart from the power of the Risen Lord, through the Holy Spirit, we can't "be good" no matter how hard we try..for true goodness is holiness, and we are only made Holy in the site of God through His Son, who imparted righteousness to us when we accepted Him as our Lord and Savior.

OK...video #3 to hopefully come soon. :)

Have a great night!

Jesica