Do not commit spiritual suicide.

Listen along here:  https://www.pastorwoman.net/podcast/episode/ca27aebb/do-not-commit-...

What things are most important to Jesus?

'Ever ask yourself that question?

We find out one of those things from Jesus' encounter with the devil in the Judean wilderness. Think about it, there were no eye witnesses to report Jesus' 40 days of fasting or the Devil's temptations, so for Luke to record such details, Jesus himself would have had to relay them. Why? Jesus wanted us to know the way Satan operates. Jesus would not have us be unaware, caught off guard or without defense.

But first . . . I have had the privilege of teaching the Bible for several decades now. Maybe the diciest topic about which I teach is on the person and ways of the evil one. Heck, I've had people get up and walk out, making a very loud statement that they simply did not want to hear that there. is. in. fact. a. devil. From a front row seat in the large Southern California chapel where I taught, one woman abruptly gathered her things into a pile, got up and walked out the doors, slamming them for emphasis.

Let me be perfectly clear: it is committing spiritual suicide to deny or ignore the devil.

One reason? Jesus had a lot to say about who he is and the things he does. With that in mind, let's again look at the last temptation Satan put to Jesus in the wilderness. Jesus was not the only one to quote scripture out there, Satan did as well. We learn something about him in the way he does it. We learn about one of the ways he twists things.

Looking again at Luke 4.9-13,

And he [the devil] took him [Jesus] to Jerusalem and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written,

“‘He will command his angels concerning you, to guard you,’ and “‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’”

And Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’” And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him until an opportune time.

As the devil tempted Jesus to show his power, he quoted David from Psalm 91.

This particularly rankles me because of the 150 psalms, this one is probably my favorite. Yes, I can picture David hiding from Saul in the caves at En Gedi, knowing that God miraculously protected him! I can picture the waterfalls, the brush . . . where he wrote.

Now take a look at just the two verses from Psalm 91.11-12: For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.

[But may I suggest you read all of Psalm 91? Grab a verse, write it out, memorize it.

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%2091&version...]

When Satan tempted Jesus to jump 400+ feet from the highest point of the Temple, telling him that the angels would catch him, he omitted an important phrase from the verses he quoted--perhaps because it speaks of the power of God. That phrase: to guard you in all your ways. Nothing you or I will face is outside of the scope of God's protection, love or grace... but the devil would have us think otherwise--that we are all alone. Friends, the devil is the master manipulator. As he omitted a phrase in the wilderness setting, he can twist other scriptural phrases in our minds. Think of it--that is just what he did from the start with Eve. 'Did God really say...?' He has a way of getting us to question what we know to be true.

The devil is a liar. Jesus told us, "there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies." 1

And then there is the compare/contrast of Jesus. Referring to the devil as a thief, Jesus said, 'The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep.'2

So Friend, what do you do with this information?

First, what Peter, who personally fell for the snare of the devil, said:

"Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour."3

How can you and I stand strong? Not surprisingly, it is Paul who is our teacher, telling us to 'Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power'!4 Ephesians 6.10, which means we are to strengthen ourselves in the Lord--through his Word, through prayer, through the community of believers with which we meet. ('meet?' Yes, meet. Do you have some Christian folks with whom you gather, pray, study God's Word? If you do not, you are weaker than you ought be. It is the reason that we are guided to 'not neglect meeting together, but instead encouraging one another...'5 Friends, this last phrase is key! The encouragement of our fellow Christians, fellow believers/followers of Jesus grows us, strengthens us and helps us stand against the ways the devil will attempt to lie to us, twist things in our minds, and steal from us.

Been watching some play-off Major League Baseball, so maybe that's why this euphemism comes to mind. Here is the payoff pitch: “Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”6 How? Avoid things that will drag you down spiritually. Come on . . . wake up! Be a little more astute in the things/the people who draw you to Jesus or away from Him. And. we. must. be. intentional. in. two. areas.

Starting each day with the Lord and His Word

Worshiping God on the Sabbath, being taught from His Word,

and gathering with the people of God.

Do not make the mistake of discounting the fact that there is a being working at cross purposes in your life . . . do not commit spiritual suicide. At the same time, do not over estimate his power either. You are a child of the most high God, the King of Kings. Now act like it. Walk in the power that is meant to be yours.

Oh man, this song: Let the people sing! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHWMAVuCzqo

All praise to God,

Christine

PastorWoman.net

1 - John 8.44

2 - John 10.10-11

3 - 1 Peter 5.8

4 - Ephesians 6.10

5 - Hebrews 10.25

6 - James 4:7

7 - 2 Corinthians 10.5