It’s Just an Idea

“Can you truly understand the character of God personally, without knowing that there is an enemy?” I mean, it is possible for us to understand who God truly is if the “idea” of Satan’s existence is erased? So think about it, if someone comes into church with no knowledge of God or Satan and those in the church only educated them on God and who He is without telling them that there is an enemy, can they truly understand who God is?

I asked this question in a bible study group and the debate was on. A few stayed quiet as they meditated on the question. Others said, “Yes, of course we can know God without having to know about Satan; why should we have to know about Satan in order to know God?” It was a ludicrous question to them. Then I gave my answer, “Absolutely not. There is no way to truly understand God in your personal life without knowing about Satan.” Do you disagree with me as well; are you shocked by my answer? Well, let me explain.

There was a movie that came out in 1995 that was quite unusual. The film is about a group of men arrested for a crime. The crime was not witnessed by anyone except for one lone, frail, crippled, survivor who gives the detectives a very detailed account of the events that took place. Throughout the movie, this witness is naming the criminals and the parts they played in this very intricate crime.  When the frail man finishes his statement and gives the detectives everything they need to catch the criminals involved, he passively gets his things and limps out. As he is walking away from the precinct, his limp slowly turns into a firm stride and a smile appears on his face. We find that this “Apparently” helpless man was in fact the criminal master mind. As the viewer is watching the visual transformation, the unexpected thought comes over your mind, “It couldn’t have been this weak, frail, lame man could it?” It slowly becomes evident to the detectives and then to us the audience “HE DID IT!!” Then there is a narration given by the master mind who says something that we all need to realize.

“The greatest lie the Devil ever told, was convincing the world that he didn’t exist.”

Why in the world is convincing the world that he doesn’t exist, going to work in his favor? Let me tell you my story. I had been going to church since I was six years old; I gave my heart to God when I was eleven. In that time, I was given details about God, angels, Heaven and Hell, but I was not given as much detail about Satan. I was living with a father who was always teetering on his blind rage if he was not getting high or staggering from addiction to vodka. I had to walk on egg shells never knowing what would set him off. Add to that the fact that when I was five years old, my cousin treated me like a five-cent prostitute while my father slept in the next bed in the same room.

All God But No God

How does one resolve in their mind that a God who is all-knowing, all-present, all-powerful let this happen? How does one not question what the use is of serving an all-knowing God when he won’t stop painful events. What kind of God would be present at such detestable behaviors? What kind of God is so all-powerful that He can make the seas, mountains, and galaxies but can’t stop a 150 pound man from beating me to the point where I can’t control my bowels?  At the age of 7 years old, I was told that God was in control of everything that happened in this world. I was told that He was watching over me and that He could protect me. So if you tell only these facts to a little girl, or anyone in my situation, how could they really comfortably embrace God? How could anyone truly love a God who is all-powerful, but doesn’t stop the crimes being done? How does one think God is a “Good God” when all that is being presented is bad?

Don’t Be Fooled

Believe it or not, that’s exactly what Satan wants. If Satan erases his own existence from humanity and allows us to highlight the existence of God and even God’s true, genuine, pure character, then the balance is off. It leaves us questioning the events of our lives and the state of the world we live in. It causes us to question the true power of God, the true love of God, the true nature of the God we are being told to serve.

As the discussion went on in the bible study I told them that when we focus on only the attributes of God, we take away the believer’s power. Understand, this is not a question of the existence of God. That is, in fact, the problem if one is told only of this all powerful, all knowing, and in control of everything God. That alone can give Satan so much power because we can’t and won’t fight an enemy if we don’t know of his existence. He can attack, keep us bound, keep us delusional and there is nothing we will do about it.

At the age of thirteen my older brother—who was a born-again Christian—came to live with us after ten years of separation. The knowledge that my brother gave me would be like air to my lungs. One day he spent hours talking to me about the other side of this walk with God. He wasn’t glorifying Satan, but he was revealing his existence to me. He showed me scriptures backing up everything he was saying so that I was not just hearing about his experiences, but seeing it in the Word for myself. As he spoke, it was like scales falling off my eyes. Here is one of the verses I used last week.
“The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance [to the full, till it overflows]” -John 10:10 (AMP)

This was powerful to me. But what if the part about the thief was taken away? It would say,
“I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance [to the full, till it overflows].”

I would have questioned why I was not enjoying my life because I felt dead and lifeless. But when I looked at the text in its fullness, I saw that there is someone trying to steal from me, kill the life I am living and destroy me and anything I try to build and it’s not God.  He not only told me about the enemy, but my brother spent many days showing me where God’s fingerprints were left in my life. He brought to life the statement, “Knowledge is power.” My brother would show me how much of my father’s behavior was a pure attack from Satan. Not only did he show me how Satan works, but he showed me how I didn’t have to let him continue to victimize me without making him regret it. One of the verses my brother loved was,

Luke 10:19 “I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.”

WHAAATTT!! God has given me the authority and the ability to OVERCOME the power of the enemy?? Wait….and NOTHING will harm me?? I want that!

How Do I Overcome My Enemy?

The bible tells us of the many weapons to use to overcome the enemy.

Prayer- This weapon gives you a relationship with God who knows the tactics of the enemy.  He may not give you all the details of what is coming but in our times of prayer God will teach us how to fight up coming battles.

Our Faith- It is our faith that presses us through times of unanswered questions.  It is our faith that we hold on to when doubt and deception come knocking on the, it is our faith that gives us the strength to ignore their visit.

Perseverance- Is something we use to pick ourselves up when we fall down on the battlefield.  To think that we won’t fall down during these battles, is a deception we create on our own.  Perseverance is what a righteous man uses when he falls down 7 times, (proverbs 24:16) he can only fall that man times because he gets up.  This weapon makes us get up one more time an we fall.

The Word of God– is not just Basic Instruction before leaving earth.  There is nothing BASIC about these instructions.  If it is so basic we should be able to do it without any issues.
There is one more weapon that I believe Satan fears above all. It is a weapon, if used right that can defeat the hold that the enemy can have over us as individuals. It is OBEDIENCE”. In our spiritual lives, everything we pray for, have faith in, or read about will only be achieved through obedience. Think about it. When things seem so bad and you don’t have the strength to pray it is your “obedience” to do so that will give you your break through. When things look too impossible for you, “obedience” is required to press forward. It is “obedience” that pushes us to get in the Word when we don’t feel like reading and studying it. Simply put, our obedience in following Gods commands and ways mess up all that the enemy can throw at us. You can’t see God for who he, overcome your obstacles, and see your life change without following through with everything God tells you to do.

Weekly Challenge:

Do you feel like you are fighting something but you don’t know what it is? Do you feel like God is not being seen in your life? Is it possible that you aren’t seeing the enemy for who he really is? I believe that it’s time for us to make our fight count.  Take some time this week to see some areas you may allow the enemy to bring deception.

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