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And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold, he is in thine hand
but
save his life Jb2:6 Simon, Simon, behold Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat Mt22:31 We are born with a sin nature We may be dealing with spiritual issues that also cause us to sin. We have an adversary who wants nothing better than to cause complete havoc with our lives. We may be one of those lucky ones who seem to go through life relatively trouble free or we may be someone who has dealt with trials, sickness, and poverty all their lives. In the parable of the rich man and Lazarus, the rich man who was trouble free ends up in hell and the suffering one in the arms of Abraham. Life is very unpredictable. One thing is certain, however, without Jesus the future is very bleak. Death and darkness await the lost. Satan hates every human being made in the image of God and those that choose to receive Christ may be in for a real battle and God allows it. Job had severe trial before he was exonerated and Simon Peter needed the prayer of Christ that his faith would not fail and that after his conversion, he was to strengthen the brethren. Real Christianity may bring with it great trial before complete sanctification occurs. With complete sanctification the devil can put something on us but, because of our faith and holiness, it cannot stay on us for long. By faith we can throw it off. Until we become the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus, until we are free of sin and free of spiritual malady, Satan may be allowed to try us to the limit. But at some point, if our faith does not fail, we become someone pleasing to God, like Jesus, “this is my Son in whom I am well pleased” and our lives become a living testimony to the power of God to save, sanctify, and deliver and make us useful in the kingdom of God. Our duty as a Christian is not to judge but to discern the will of God and to act and pray accordingly. We are called to live the gospel to the fullest of our ability and to ask for the aid of God to do exceedingly more than human nature alone can do. Fight the good fight of faith. Believe God and not the world. Stay the course. Not only must we be born again, we must be Spirit filled. Not only must we be Spirit filled, we must be free of sin. Not only must we be free of sin, we must know and live the gospel. Not only must we know and live the gospel, we must be obedient to God well beyond our human understanding. Only when we learn to obey the word and inner witness without doubt or hesitation are we in a place where God can use us for his glory and gives us the power to become sons of God. Christianity is not for the fearful and unbelieving. It is for those who have faith to walk by faith and not by sight. Be people of faith and be willing to go all the way. It is the only way to go. amen |