April 14, 2013

  • The following is obtained from the book

    Something More

    (In Search of a Deeper Faith)

    by Catherine Marshall

     

    For we are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood, but against persons without bodies—the evil rulers of the unseen world, those mighty satanic beings and great evil princes of darkness who rule this world; and against huge numbers of wicked spirits in the spirit world.

     

    So use every piece of God’s armor to resist the enemy whenever he attacks, and when it is all over, you will still be standing up. But to do this, you will need the strong belt of truth and the breastplate of God’s approval. Wear shoes that are able to speed you on as you preach the Good News of peace with God. In every battle you will need FAITH as your shield to stop the fiery arrows aimed at you by satan. And you will need the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit—which is the WORD OF GOD.

     

    Pray all the time. Ask God for anything in line with the Holy Spirit’s wishes. Plead with Him, reminding Him of your needs, and keep praying earnestly for all Christians everywhere.  Living Bible, Ephesians 6:10-18

     

    In the thick of battle a soldier needs to be able to identify the enemy. In the old days warriors were identified by their uniforms or by a standard held aloft. So how can we Christian soldiers learn to identify the enemy satan? From my study, I was able to draw the following antithetical lists to help us know what God wants for us against satan’s aims. Lining it up like this enables us to see it more readily.

     

    Satan – Seeks to do his will.

    Jesus – Always obeys the Father’s Will.

     

    Satan – Aims to bind and blind men.

    Jesus – Yearns to free men and open our eyes to see.

     

    Satan – Lies interminably.

    Jesus – Is the Truth.

     

    Satan – Takes himself very seriously - Cannot bear taunting or levity.

    Jesus – Often uses the light touch.

     

    Satan – Wants us to live in darkness and hide portions of our life from others.

    Jesus -  Wants us to live in the light.

     

    Satan -  Wants us to doubt and disbelieve God’s Word.

    Jesus -  Longs for us to have faith that He always keeps His Word.

     

    Satan -  Works to make us ignore, disbelieve or choose for ourselves what to believe in the Scripture.

    Jesus -  Steadily assures us that the Scripture is the Word of God.

     

    Satan -  Pushes us to disobey God.

    Jesus -  Says, “If you love Me, you will obey My Commandments.

     

    Satan -  Urges us to use God for selfish purposes - Tells us, “My body belongs to me.”

    Jesus -  Longs for us to be used by God to help others - Tells us, “The body is the temple of the Holy Spirit.”

     

    Satan -  Wants sickness and disease.

    Jesus -  Wants wholeness of body, mind and spirit.

     

    Satan -  Spares no effort to bring us sorrow and grief.

    Jesus -  Wants our joy.

     

    Satan -  Desires our death.

    Jesus -  Eagerly bestows life stretching on into eternity.

     

    Satan -  Condemns and accuses us.

    Jesus -  Assures us, “I came not to judge the world, but to save the world.”

     

    Satan -  Pushes us toward self-contempt.

    Jesus -  Assures us that each man is of infinite worth to Him.

     

    Satan -  Fosters discontent and grumbling.

    Jesus -  Urges contentment and praise in all situations.

     

    Satan -  Urges us to think that we can get virtue in one big slug for life.

    Jesus -  Desires that we depend on Him minute by minute for what we need and claim our ‘daily bread’.

     

    Satan -  Urges us to concentrate on the sins of others.

    Jesus -  Tells us to look at the beam in our own eye and remove that first.

     

    Satan -  Attempts to get us to hide our sins and make excuses for them, thus encouraging their festering within.

    Jesus -  Wishes us to run to Him, bring our sins into the light and have them forgiven, cleansed and forgotten.

     

    Satan -  Labors to have us believe that temptation is sin.

    Jesus -  Encourages us in failure to ask forgiveness, accept it, rise and go on.

     

    Satan -  Wants us, when we fail, to wallow in discouragement or despair.

    Jesus -  Encourages us in failure to ask forgiveness, accept it, rise and go on.

     

    Satan -  Aims for us always to wear a mask and act a part; be all things to all people.

    Jesus -  Plants in us the desire to be true to ourselves; to let others know where we stand.


    Satan -  Wants our faith always to be for the future.

    Jesus -  Wants us to cultivate a present moment faith.

     

    Satan -  Seeks steady procrastination.

    Jesus -  Teaches us that ‘Now is the moment of salvation.

     

    Satan -  Strives to have us preoccupied with ‘what ifs’ (what might happen); to be hagridden by the future.

    Jesus -  Is concerned with what we do in the present; wants us to offer up the present moment to God.

     

    Satan -  Urges us toward a false, lofty super-spirituality.

    Jesus -  Wants us to live out daily, “Without Me ye can do nothing.”

     

    Satan -  Delights in a “moderate” religion with no extremes.

    Jesus -  Wants the total man—“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with ALL thy heart and with ALL thy soul and with ALL thy mind.”

     

    Satan -  Works for churches to be divided into “clubs” or factions with ‘party spirit’,

    Jesus -  Leads us toward unity amid diversity of gifts of the Spirit amongst the people in the church.

     

    Satan -  Wants us to see all morality as relative, no final truth or falsehood.

    Jesus -  Insists that He is the Way, the Truth and the Life; God’s laws are absolute.

     

    Satan -  Labors to destroy all law, God’s and man’s.

    Jesus -  Fulfills the law and the prophets and adds righteousness to it.

     

    Satan -  Wants us to hang onto resentment and bitterness.

    Jesus -  Tells us to forgive others in the same way God forgives us.

     

    Satan -  Urges us to have our fun now; try to forget about paying for it.

    Jesus -  Influences us to pay now in time or effort; then fun later is assured.