In our last meditation we saw what our relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ should look like if we want to
overcome Satan’s assaults on Jesus’ life within us. Of course, Satan can never
destroy Jesus' life in us, but he can slow down or even obstruct the growth of
Christlike maturity in us. Why is this so?
It is clear that Satan’s
destructive campaign is first of all aimed at our ‘old’ sinful nature. He tries
to seduce us into yielding to our sinful desires and into disobeying God’s
Word. The apostle James puts that quite plainly when he writes: “When
tempted, no-one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be
tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his
own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has
conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth
to death. Don't be deceived, my dear brothers.” (James 1:13-16**)
Therefore, if we want to learn defying
Satan’s powerful attacks, we need to follow the apostle Paul’s instructions.
“Put on all of God's armor...”
( Ephesians 6:11*)
He starts his instruction by
spurring us to “put on all of God's armour”. The apostle uses here the
Greek word ‘panoplia’ which is a figure of speech derived from the Roman army
in Paul’s days. The ‘panoplia’ is literally the full preparation of a foot
soldier for offense and defence. If we want to protect Jesus’ life in us
against Satan’s attacks on our ‘old’ sinful nature, we need to clothe ourselves
with the full armour of God. That is a protective covering which solely God’s
Spirit can provide to overcome Satan’s assaults. Only by clothing ourselves
with this ‘armour of the Spirit’ we are able to protect Jesus’ life in us
against Satan’s abuses of our sinful nature!
Paul
urges the Christians in Rome to put on God’s full armour: “The night is
nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness
and put on the armour of light.” (Romans 13:12**) The modern New Living
Translation renders this originally Greek verse as: “The night is almost
gone; the day of salvation will soon be here. So don't live in darkness. Get
rid of your evil deeds. Shed them like dirty clothes. Clothe yourselves with
the armor of right living, as those who live in the light.” (Romans 13:12*)
Speaking
about the way he does his ministry work as an apostle of Christ, Paul testifies
to the Christians in Corinth (Greece): “The weapons we fight with are not
the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish
strongholds.” (2 Corinthians 10:4**)
“... so that you will be
able to stand firm against all strategies and tricks of the Devil.” ( Ephesians
6:11*)
Paul
shows that God’s full armour is imperative for being able to offer resistance
and hold our ground to Satan’s attacks. Besides, we are in need to keep
constantly alert against unexpected demonic assaults. The apostle warns the
Christians in Corinth: “Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of
courage; be strong.” (1 Corinthians 16:13**). To the followers of Christ in
Colosse (Turkey) he writes: “Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind
and a thankful heart.” (Colossians 4:2*).
Finally,
the apostle Peter cautions us against Satan’s likely assaults: “Be
self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring
lion looking for someone to devour.” (1 Peter 5:8**).
These
attacks of Satan are not only negative occurrences. They also aim at a positive
result! The apostle James encourages us: “Consider it pure joy, my brothers,
whenever you face trials, of many kinds, because you know that the testing of
your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you
may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” (James 1:2-4**). James
wants us to know that God habitually tests our obedience to Him. In doing so He
aims at teaching us how to grow in persistence which results in the development
of mature Christlikeness!.
The
idea that God wants to test our faith is not limited to James’ letter. Here are
some examples from elsewhere in God’s Word:
--
God says by mouth of His prophet Jeremiah (7th century BC): “I,
the LORD, search all hearts and examine secret motives. I give all people their
due rewards, according to what their actions deserve.” ( Jeremiah
17:10*)
In
the Book of Proverbs we read: “Fire tests the purity of silver and gold, but
the LORD tests the heart.” (Proverbs 17:3*)
--
King David even humbly asks God to check out his faith: “Put me on trial,
LORD, and cross-examine me. Test my motives and affections.” (Psalm 26:2*)
and again in Psalm 139:23-24*: “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me
and know my thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends You, and lead me
along the path of everlasting life.”
Before
we continue meditating on the importance of God’s full armour for us, we need
to look at Paul’s description of the manifold demonic forces he describes in
Ephesians 6:12. That’s what we will do next time.
Translations: * New Living Translation; ** New International
Version
About the question “Who
is Satan?” see Meditations 19-21.
About “How to overcome
the power of sin in my life and in my church?” see Meditations 101-121.
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