02 Nov Series Eight
Hello family!
Talk about line on line precept on precept. We just keep going deeper and deeper into this concept of “Conversations with God.”
This week we looked at the conversation God had with the devil in the book of Job and the conversation that Jesus had with Satan in the wilderness after fasting. So much deep revelation in these two conversations. However the overriding principle was God is ultimately over, in and through all things.
He reigns supreme and there is no one above Him. His Sovereignty over our lives means He is in control of every event and orchestrates all in accordance with His will and purpose. He has the power and authority to stop or circumvent any plot of the enemy against our lives. However we must be mindful that our conversation can determine our fate.
We dealt with the truth at Satan is the accuser of the brethren, but he needs a legal door in order to gain entry into our lives. The things that give him access is either our disobedience to God or our beliefs. He has to have permission to devour us and he can do no more than what God allows.
The standard that can be raised against him is the Word of God.That is exactly what Jesus did when he was tempted. He kept holding up the word of God. After three attempts Satan gave up and retreated from Jesus.
We learned about the different levels of conversations and the fruit of them. Perhaps the most amazing revelations were the three we finally concluded.
- The most powerful conversation you will have will take place in your mind. It will affect what you do which will determine your outcome.
The Message Bible says that “we are destroying speculations (reasonings, pretensions) and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ” 2 Cor. 10:4-6
The Phillips Bible gives us this interesting interpretation. “The truth is that, although of course we lead normal human lives, the battle we are fighting is on the spiritual level. The very weapons we use are not those of human warfare but powerful in God’s warfare for the destruction of the enemy’s strongholds. Our battle is to bring down every deceptive fantasy and every imposing defence that men erect against the true knowledge of God. We even fight to capture every thought until it acknowledges the authority of Christ.” That is so powerful. So our own thoughts can do a great deal of damage that sets us up as setting ducks for the enemy to take advantage of us.
- Any conversation you have with the enemy must be based on the conversations you have had with God.
We talked about the fact that every part of the armor of God was a conversation with God. The helmet of salvation—what God says about our future should protect our minds when Satan tries to question our security in God. The breastplate of righteousness is what God says about who we are and should protect our hearts from the enemy piercing us with insecurity.
The girdle of truth is what God says about everything concerning us that keeps our garments of praise firmly in place. The shield of faith is everything we have heard from the mouth of God that should extinguish the flaming arrows the enemy tries to shoot to make us doubt God’s goodness. The gospel of peace on our feet is Gods’ conversation about what we believe and why we believe it that gives us a great sense of peace that reconciles not just us, but others to God as well.
The sword is the only violent part of the weaponry. It is the word of God that separates truth from lies, soul from spirit, bone from marrow. It goes deep to destroy anything the enemy might try to use against us. Dressed in our conversations with God we are covered and equipped with everything we need to submit to God so the enemy flees from us because it sees our resistance is real.
Wow! We danced on this one! It was so liberating to know that the battle has already been won by Jesus and we are merely defending the ground He already won. It says in Ephesians 3 :10Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon.” We are standing firm against all the strategies of the devil.
- The most powerful conversation you will ever have with the devil will be a silent one based on your lifestyle and the choices you make.
(There are lots of people who pray a lot and the devil still devastates them because they are not under the protective covering of obedience to God.)
James 4:7 So humble yourselves before (submit to) God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
That was a mouthful! The enemy will have to go if I am in the right position with God and my conversation with God equips me to stand firm and remain obedient to Him. It was one of the most empowering things we’ve learned so far.
Ask yourself:
What arguments do you have within that give the enemy a foothold in your life?
What promises do you stand on to keep yourself secure in the faith?
In what area of your life could you be more obedient?
I can’t wait for next week!
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