We Love Others to Reveal Christ's Love, Not Our Ability to Love.

Col 3:11 Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all.

Anyone can accept Christ as their Savior, no exceptions to that at all. ANYONE, it doesn't matter whether or not a person appears a certain way. There is no single appearance that labels one a Christian.

Sometimes we see people and by their behaviors, their words and such we can't imagine them belong to Christ.

Even the worst of the worst can belong to Christ and their walk with Christ can be a work in progress that we are witnessing. The guidance through each fire a person faces to refine them isn't ours to question. We are to LOVE, this is our only action.

It isn't easy loving those who are outwardly the worst of the worst in humanity. Loving those who are hateful to us, those who abuse us, those who hurt those we love, who torture the innocent, this is OUR commandment.

We love others to reveal Christ's love, NOT our ability to love.

Our loving doesn't mean was condone what others do. Our loving doesn't mean we are encouraging the evil behaviors of anyone! Our loving doesn't mean we enjoy what pain is towards us or pain that is inflicted upon others.  Our loving with Christ's love is HIS loving, HIS forgiving, HIS dying to SAVE all who would be saved! 

Our Savior Overcame This World.

We are only complete in Christ.

Joh_16:33  These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

We already know that in this world we will have TRIBULATION. All the tragedies that exist for mankind that bring us heartache and pain, that make our lives full of one horror after another are a part of the tribulation of this world. We are NOT told we will have horror-free lives.  We are told we WILL have tribulation. Then we are told to BE of good CHEER.   So incredibly contradictory! You're going through life's most extreme anguish and you are told to be of good cheer. How? How is it possible to be of good cheer when you are in the midst of tribulations?  There is only ONE way.  The realization that our Savior OVERCAME this world.

Our Savior overcame.

We overcome through our SAVIOR.

If we try to do it without our Savior, we will fail.  There may be a false sense of self-sufficiency that many people will possess, but Satan excels at giving people that particular belief. All the self-confidence in the world means nothing without Christ-confidence.

We are only complete in Christ.

Col 2:10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power: 

Col 2:11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: 

Col 2:12 Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead. 

Col 2:13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; 

Col 2:14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; 

Col 2:15 And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it

More on this tomorrow by the grace and mercy of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

Falsely Wise.

Rom 1:21  Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 

Rom 1:22  Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools

Vain deceit causes us to believe in ourselves- not Christ. Vain deceit causes us to believe in others- not Christ.

Vain in our imaginings, foolish hearts darkened, falsely wise really are fools.

Too often we imagine we are Christians when really we play at being Christians. We put on our Christian guise and it fools even us because we don't want to follow the hard truths of Christ's. We smooth our Christian costume while doing what we tell ourselves is the work of our Lord, wrinkle free we are pleased. Being a Christian isn't about an easy life. Being a Christian isn't our happiness. Being a Christian isn't about us. Being a Christian is about Christ's salvation. Once we comprehend that our Savior died for us so we may have eternal life with Him, we then know that the life we are living now is going to be filled with pain of all varying sorts. We comprehend that we have entered a war, not a luxury life. We enter this war and we live our lives enlisting others to enter the very same war. 

We have NO wisdom of our own, none. This isn't about us! It's so incredibly easy for us to twist things so we are the center of it all, pushing Christ out of our lives rather than allowing Him in.

As long as we focus on ourselves we are not focused on Christ, it's true.

Ask yourself if you are thinking of yourself or Christ in any given moment and pay attention to your answer because that will tell you a lot. If you don't want to hear your own answer then you need to ask yourself why.

May God help us all and please, keep us from the evil of our vain deceit.

All through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, now and forever!

Vain Deceit.

Col 2:6  As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: 

Col 2:7  Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. 

Col 2:8  Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. 

The world will try to bend you to its design there is no other way around it really. Satan rules this world and he will do all he can to deceive us. I can't talk about this enough because deception is so insidious. The very nature of deceit is not knowing you are deceived until it's too late.  God's word give us all the truth we need so we are NOT deceived, only we have to heed His word. It does no good at all to have a book of instructions if you never read it, never study it, never learn from its contents. Like many people with instructions in general - they believe they can get on without them, knowing what's best. Others will read a few of the instructions and go on ahead with things believing they can figure out the rest. There are many different approaches to a book of instructions, some will read the book all the way through but not in a way of comprehending, but rather surface reading.  If we do not read God's word we will be deceived. If we do not study God's word we will be deceived. If we do not seek full comprehension, we will be deceived. 

We need to be Rooted and Built Up in Christ!

We need to be Stablished in the Faith!

We need to be Thankful!

We have to Beware of men who would Spoil us! And they will spoil us with Philosophy, with Vain Deceit, with Traditions of Men, with Rudiments of this World!

We must believe these truths, we must. If we ignore the truth we allow ourselves to be deceived, and it is a vain deceit isn't it?

Rom 1:21  Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 

Rom 1:22  Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools

Vain deceit causes us to believe in ourselves- not Christ. Vain deceit causes us to believe in others- not Christ.

More on this tomorrow by the grace of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ our Lord!

Tribulation

Do you have tribulation in your life?

Definition of 'tribulation'-

trib·u·la·tion-

a cause of great trouble or suffering.

synonyms:        suffering, distress, trouble, misery, wretchedness, unhappiness, sadness, heartache, woe, grief, sorrow, pain, anguish, agony;  difficulty, problem, worry, anxiety, burden, cross to bear, ordeal, trial, adversity, hardship, tragedy, trauma, affliction

Seriously, do you have tribulation in your life? Are you suffering, in distress, troubled, in misery, wretchedness, are you unhappy, sad, full of heartache, woe, grief, sorrow, pain…. Just read the list above. Are you experiencing any tribulation?

If you are- don't be surprised.

Joh 16:33  These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world. 

The world offers us tribulation. We are told in the world we SHALL HAVE tribulation.  End of story, we are going to have tribulation in our lives.  To believe that you don't deserve tribulation, that you should be exempt from tribulation is a deception Satan pushes at us. Satan wants us to believe that we aren't to have tribulation in our lives so that we consider our lives messed up and ourselves failures because our lives are so filled with tribulation.  Satan will do ANYTHING and EVERYTHING he can to deceive us and he's done a great job. A lot of people let the tribulation in their lives tear them away from Christ.

Christ told us that we'd have tribulation but He also told us that in HIM we'd have peace. NO WHERE ELSE can we find true peace, NO WHERE. Satan wants us looking all over the place, in fact anywhere but to Christ where peace is found.  Satan will throw in our faces that we don't have peace so we must not have Christ, is he right or wrong? What did our Savior do when He was buried in tribulation? He agonized with the Father in prayer. He wasn't laid back, matter of fact, everything is fine and dandy in that Garden of Gethsemane. 

Luk_22:44  And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

Jesus was in AGONY.  Did that mean He'd lost the peace of the Father? That He was no longer trusting God? No, it did not mean those things at all. We can feel the effects of tribulation and still retain the knowledge that there is peace in Jesus Christ our Lord. We can still cling to the promise of His salvation and the hope of life eternally without tribulation. Right now in this world we will have tribulation we can't allow ourselves to believe otherwise. 

Joh 14:27  Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. 

Our hearts, in the deepest part of us we must know that in Christ all our hope rests. In His peace - something the world CANNOT give us we can live. We may be troubled and afraid, but it doesn't have to be a HEART troubling, HEART fear that pushes out the hope of our Savior! We must keep the knowledge of Christ's peace in our hearts. All by His grace!

Do you have a THORN in your flesh?

2Co 12:7  And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. 

2Co 12:8  For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. 

2Co 12:9  And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 

2Co 12:10  Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

A thorn in the flesh.

Do you have a thorn in your flesh?

Do you have something in you- a messenger of Satan buffeting you?

1Co 5:5  To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. 

Job 2:7  So went Satan forth from the presence of the LORD, and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot unto his crown. 

Paul knew he had a thorn in his flesh, and he knew that thorn was placed there by Satan, and allowed to be there by God's plan. Did he like the thorn in his flesh? NO. He prayed for it to be taken away three times. Now this is a man of God, an Apostle who saw Jesus and whose life was changed by our Savior. This is a man who could pray for people and heal them. This is a man whose very touch of a garment sent to an ailing person could heal them.

Act 19:11  And God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul: 

Act 19:12  So that from his body were brought unto the sick handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out of them. 

This man could NOT pray away the thorn in the flesh. He stopped praying for it to be taken away after he did so three times. Why? Because He knew if God hadn't taken it away there was a reason for its existence in his life. Did that make it any less a messenger of Satan to torment Him? NO. What it did was give Paul knowledge that God has His reasons beyond our comprehension for the trials and tribulations, the chronic ailments in mind and body. We don't have to believe that we are lacking faith when our lives are not transformed- when thorns are not removed from our flesh. Satan would have us believe that we are to blame for these thorns and he wants the thorns we possess to damage us spiritually. Satan wants us to focus on our thorns and lament their existence in our lives. Satan would have the thorns we bear consume us, devouring every last hope we have of belonging wholly to Christ.

Paul would have been exalted above measure if he wasn't given the messenger of Satan in that thorn buried in his flesh, whatever that thorn may have been. Paul knew that God needed Him to be humbled by his imperfection, not crippled by unbelief that God was still in His life as he possessed this thorn of Satan. How many do you suppose may have uttered the words that he healed others but couldn't heal himself? How many focused on Paul's thorn to their detriment? How many allowed that thorn in his flesh to bring them closer to the Lord, realizing Paul, was indeed LIKE THEM and not some God to be worshiped?

Again I ask you, do you have a thorn in your flesh? Something you've prayed for God to remove only that prayer answered, wasn't the answer you desired. Will you endlessly ask God to remove that thorn from your flesh, never accepting that it may be His will for it to be left in your flesh to keep you on the path He has set before you, a path that would keep you His.

May God help us, bless us, keep us in HIM now and forever, all through Jesus Christ our LORD and our SAVIOR! 

Faith

Faith-   Please, Lord, increase my faith, make my faith true all through You and Your love.

Luk 17:5  And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith. 

Luk 17:6  And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you. 

Mar 9:24  And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief. 

2Co 12:8  For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. 

2Co 12:9  And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 

2Co 12:10  Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

Php 4:13  I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. 

2Th 1:3  We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is meet, because that your faith groweth exceedingly, and the charity of every one of you all toward each other aboundeth

Heb 12:2  Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. 

1Pe 1:22  Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently: 

1Pe 1:23  Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. 

The Will of Him That Sent Me.

Joh 5:30  I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me. 

Joh 6:38  For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. 

Luk 22:42  Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done. 

(Excerpt - The Spiritual Man -by Watchman Nee)

'We need to comprehend the true way by which God leads man, and the relationship between man’s will and the will of God.

The obedience of the Christian to God ought to be unconditional.

When his spiritual life reaches the summit his will shall be perfectly one with God’s. This does not imply, however, that he has no more volition of his own. It is still there; only the fleshly control of it is gone.

God always requires man’s volition to cooperate with Him in fulfilling His will.

By beholding the example of our Lord Jesus we can be assured that the volition of anyone fully united with God is still very much with him.

“I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me”; “not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me”; “nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done” (John 5.30, 6.38; Luke 22.42). Here do we see the Lord Jesus Who, though one with the Father, yet possesses His Own personal will apart from that of the Father. He has His Own will but neither seeks nor does that will. The implication is obvious that all who truly are united with God should place their will alongside His. They should not annihilate their organ of volition.'

If our Savior could say -

Joh 6:38  For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. 

• we have to realize that our Savior truly had a WILL of his own and blatantly said He came 'NOT' to do HIS OWN WILL.    We know that His will would never be contrary to His Father's, but He has a will all His own separate from the Father's that He chooses to give to the Father so He can fully do God's will and NOT His own.

Did allowing God's will to be done in Him lessen Jesus in any way? NO. When Jesus allowed God's will to be done in Him, He became fully, wholly all He ever wanted to be.  Satan has fooled us into believing that we of our own have something contrary to God's will and it's our right to be contrary to that will. Truthfully we DO have something contrary to God's will in us but it's only to our detriment not to our betterment.  We need God's will to be done in us as we realize God's will truly is our will, our desire, our hope.  We use our will to choose His will, freely.

Dead to Sin.

Being dead to sin is so important. Satan would have us deceive ourselves into believing it is impossible to be dead to sin. So why then would the word of God say this--

Rom 6:11  Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 

Satan is a great deceiver, the best deceiver in existence and if we don't believe this then we are deceiving ourselves.

Please Father God in heaven, please help us to not be deceived by the great deceiver that you've conquered. Satan still works his deception at every opportunity, please keep us from all his evil. Please. All through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior now and forever!

*******

The Spiritual Man- by Watchman Nee- (Excerpt)

'During the battle it is positively essential that the believer stand on Romans 6.11, acknowledging himself as one with the Lord: the Lord’s death is his death. Such faith releases him from the authority of the evil spirits since they can have no power over the dead.

This position must be firmly taken.

In conjunction with such a stand as this there must be the USE OF GOD'S WORD against all the lies of the enemy, because at this juncture the adversary will lie to the saint by suggesting that he has fallen beyond any hope of restoration. If he listens to this guile he will surely tumble into the greatest peril of all.

He should remind himself that Calvary has destroyed Satan and his evil hosts already (Heb. 2.14; Col. 2.14-15).

Heb 2:14  Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil

Col 2:14  Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; 

Col 2:15  And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it. 

The work of salvation is finished that all may experience deliverance out of the powers of darkness into the kingdom of the Son of God’s love (Col. 1.13).

Col 1:13  Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son

Suffering for the sake of recovering ground assures a person of that which the enemy is afraid of, and how urgent that the ground be recovered. Consequently, whenever the wicked powers inflict new and greater afflictions upon the believer, let him perceive that these are from the enemy and then let him refuse and disregard them, neither worrying nor talking about them.'

Fight!

You will have a fight on your hands, a fight that you can scarcely imagine as being real. In fact, you will be tempted to believe this fight doesn't exist.

Eph 6:12  For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 

You'll go about your daily lives and everything may appear to be fine, but that is only because we've been conditioned to believe that many things that are NOT fine, are good.

Isa_5:20  Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

Mal 2:17  Ye have wearied the LORD with your words. Yet ye say, Wherein have we wearied him? When ye say, Every one that doeth evil is good in the sight of the LORD, and he delighteth in them; or, Where is the God of judgment? 

Luk 11:35  Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not darkness. 

Today, right now, there exists so many evils that are called good that we can hardly live without them as a part of our lives. We CALL evil- good!  And we call good-evil! And this is part is why so many people can't possible realize they are in a spiritual war, a very active, very real spiritual war. They hold up a banner with Jesus' name on it and shout out that He is their Savior and then they set that banner aside and live in a world filled with false goodness. They feel protected by their banner waving believing that is all they need do to dispel the evil from their lives, even as evil inhabits so much of what they do and they don't even realize it because that evil is known as good. We live in a DECEIVED generation, an age of DECEPTION worse than any other time in all of history.  We don't believe we should stand up for God's truth because it has been labeled by mankind as lies and accepted as such by all but the very elect of God.

I don't know about you, but I LONG to be among God's elect! Am I? If I am, it is only by HIS grace, by HIS mercy, by HIS love! 

Read the following and then try to deny the truth-

Luk 13:24  Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able. 

1Co 9:25  And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. 

1Co 9:26  I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: 

1Co 9:27  But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway. 

Heb 12:4  Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin. 

Heb 10:32  But call to remembrance the former days, in which, after ye were illuminated, ye endured a great fight of afflictions; 

Heb 10:33  Partly, whilst ye were made a gazingstock both by reproaches and afflictions; and partly, whilst ye became companions of them that were so used. 

Heb 10:34  For ye had compassion of me in my bonds, and took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance. 

1Co 10:13  There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. 

2Ti 4:7  I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith

Tell me, are we in a VERY real spiritual battle?  If you are STRIVING AGAINST sin then you are in that battle, but only if you are truly striving against all sin, and not just striving against what has been labeled as sin by mankind. 

You think that banner you hold up proudly is enough, but it's not, the banner bearers are on the front lines of this battlefield and they will be cut down if they are not actively warring against sin daily!

(Excerpt)

'This element of free will should never be lost sight of. God has granted us an unhampered volition that we may be our own masters, but today the evil spirits have usurped our members and talents. They have become man’s master; he has lost his sovereign rights. To oppose this the believer enters the fray. He continually declares: I am not willing to let the evil spirits encroach on my sovereign rights; I will not allow them to invade my personality; I will not permit them to possess me; I will not follow them blindly; I will not consent to their manipulating me; I will not, I verily am unwilling; I intend to be my own master; I know what I do; I resolve to control myself; I prefer to have my entire being subject to myself; I resist all the works of the wicked ones as well as their right to work on me. In resolving, choosing and refusing with our will we arrest any further working of the enemy. Thereafter we must resist with our will.  The believer commences his life anew following the recovery of his ground. The past is over, and now marks a new beginning. What was offered to the evil spirits has all been reclaimed. The spirit, soul and body of the whole person are retrieved from the enemy’s hand and are rededicated to God. Every inch of the territory surrendered through ignorance has today, one upon another, been recovered. The sovereign power of man is once again returned to him. And how is this done? By rejecting what once was accepted; disbelieving what once was believed; withdrawing from what once he drew nigh to before; destroying what once was erected; canceling what once was

covenanted; retrieving what once was promised; dissolving what once was joined; resisting what once was obeyed; uttering what once went unspoken; opposing what once was cooperated with; and

denying what once was given. Every past consideration, counsel, and permission must be overthrown; even past prayers and answers must be denied.' The Spiritual Man- by Watchman Nee

Choose.

Fluttering eyelids resist the push to open. Consciousness, a soft whisper longed to be denied. Unable to conquer the demand of awareness, wakefulness takes the place of dark, unknowing sleep. Instant comprehension a new day's beginning with each and every choice as yet unmade. The world of existence harboring the seen and unseen, with faith's charge to believe. Forces surround, swarm, seeking adherence. Will - allowing denial, seeking that which offers without assaulting. Every breath spirit filled- holy versus evil, we choose.  Submit to One, resist the other, we choose. No longer cocooned in sleep's soothing embrace, we must choose or slip senselessly into the day's deception.

Jas_4:7  Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Eph 4:27  Neither give place to the devil. 

Eph 6:10  Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. 

Eph 6:11  Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 

Eph 6:12  For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 

Rev 12:9  And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. 

Rev 12:10  And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. 

Rev 12:11  And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death. 

2Co 2:10  To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgive also: for if I forgave any thing, to whom I forgave it, for your sakes forgave I it in the person of Christ; 

2Co 2:11  Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.

1Pe 5:8  Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: 

1Pe 5:9  Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.

' If lost ground is ever to be recovered it is mandatory that the volition be reactivated. The Christian “henceforth must learn (a) to obey God’s will, (b) to resist the devil’s will, and (c) to exercise his

own will in collaboration with the will of the other saints.' (Excerpt- The Spiritual Man- by Watchman Nee.)

Please, Lord, please Father in heaven, we would submit to You, we would resist the Devil.

All through Jesus Christ our Lord, our Savior, now and forever!!!!!!!

Make sure you are choosing Christ - daily!

Luk_9:23  And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.

1Co_15:31  I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.

DAILY we choose, daily our will to walk after Christ is put to the test. DAILY we give ourselves to the LORD and RESIST the devil!

Jas_4:7  Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

DAILY!

Truly we ONLY live in the present and nowhere else. Our pasts may shape up but we don't live in them it's impossible. Yes, people may talk about someone living in the past but they are really living in the present but obsessed with the past. Likewise, we can't live in the future. NO ONE is promised tomorrow, not a single person.  We live in the present and in the present we must choose Christ, we must use our will to choose Christ.  If we are NOT actively choosing Christ we are choosing Satan, he is the default choice that we make by not choosing Christ as our Savior, daily. 

Evil spirits will grab ahold of ALL- not some, not a few, not a lot, but ALL those who do not actively choose Christ- constantly.  If we stop actively choosing Christ, the evil spirits will take that as an invitation and do all they can to deceive us. Every evil spirit strives to deceive us into believing we are still Christ's while secretly owning us and our will.  NEVER forget that Christ will tell MANY people to get away from Him, that He never knew them and they in turn are going to cry out how they did so much in His name that surely He has to know them, but HE does not know them and will not claim them as His.

Please, Lord, we would ONLY EVER be YOURS- help us to this end to be found only in YOU, choosing you over all else! Please! All through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior now and forever!!!!!!!

'One common principle underlies the way all ground is relinquished to evil spirits: it is through passivity, the inactivity of the will.' Excerpt 'The Spiritual Man' by Watchman Nee

Our wills must NOT be inactive! We must actively use our will for CHRIST, submitting to HIM always!

May we live in truth.

Unclean spirits are real. Unclean spirits can leave a person they are inhabiting.  We truly do consent to evil spirits doing their work in us, only we don't realize it because we are happily deceived. I say happily deceive because that deception is a choice we make and we make it because we deem knowing and following the truth too hard on our choice to live for self.  That is truth.

May God help us to live in His truth, not blind, not deceived, free of evil spirits.

All through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, now and forever. Amen.



Mat 12:43  When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none.

Mar 1:23  And there was in their synagogue a man with an uncleanspirit; and he cried out,
Mar 1:24  Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God.
Mar 1:25  And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him.
Mar 1:26  And when the unclean spirit had torn him, and cried with a loud voice, he came out of him.

*******

'We may now infer that ground must have been furnished by the evil spirit. But what is the ground which a believer supplies? Before he considers what ground he has given, let him first review exactly what ground is.

The believer ought to realize that besides sin there are other elements which can afford ground to evil spirits: the acceptance of a counterfeit, passivity of will, and assent to the enemy’s flashing thought. For the present we focus our attention on passivity, that is, on allowing our mind or body to sink into a coma-like state, ceasing to exercise conscious control over the mind, and inactivating the proper functions of the will, conscience and memory. Passivity, though there are various gradations of it, forms the principal ground.

The scope of the enemy’s penetration is determined by the degree of passivity. As soon as the person becomes aware of an inert condition—whatever its degree—he must recover that ground at once. Firmly, intently and persistently he should oppose the enemy’s attempt to maintain any footing in him, especially in the areas where he has been deceived. It is indispensable that he know the ground and
recover it.

Upon realizing he has been deceived, the believer should next seek light concerning the ground he has lost and try to recover it. Since evil spirits maintain their position on the territory surrendered to them, they shall leave once that area is cleared away.

Because the Christian has fallen into passivity and deception by not using his will in self-control, he now must exercise his will actively to resist through the power of God the powers of darkness in every temptation and suffering and to cancel his earlier promises to them.

Since passivity came in gradually, it will be eliminated gradually. The measure of one’s detection of his inertia is the measure of that one’s emancipation.

If the duration of his inactivity has been long, the longer will it take to be delivered. To descend a mountain is always easier than to ascend it; in like manner, to become passive is easy but to regain freedom is painstaking.

It requires the cooperation of the total man to retake all forfeited ground. The child of God definitely should ask God to show him where he has been deceived. He must sincerely desire to have all the truth about himself revealed. Generally speaking, whatever the believer fears to hear will probably pertain to the ground given the enemy. What he is afraid to deal with is the very item he should dispense with, for nine out of ten times the enemy has established his footing right there. How necessary that the Christian beseech God to shed light on his symptoms and their causes so that he may recapture the lost territory. Enlightenment is a “must”; without it the believer tends to interpret the supernatural as being something natural, the spiritual (of the evil spirits) as being something physical. And so he provides ground for the enemy.' (Excerpt- The Spiritual Man- by Watchman Nee)

Choose Truth, Not Deception.

Knowledge.

Joh_8:32  And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

Knowing the truth- having knowledge of the truth is what frees us.

When we choose NOT to know the truth we are asking to be blind and in turn asking to be captive.

2Pe 1:8  For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

2Pe 1:9  But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. 

2Co 4:3  But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: 

2Co 4:4  In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. 

2Co 4:5  For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. 

WE can choose to be SPIRITUALLY blind, make no mistake.  Being spiritually blind isn't just for those who have never known the truth, or have no desire to know the truth, it is also for any Christ follower who chooses at any moment in their walk with Christ to deny truth that the Spirit is trying to impart to them.

Truth not deception, no matter what! This is what our desire should be. All by the grace and mercy of our Lord and Savior, Christ Jesus! Now and forever!

(Excerpt--)

'It is possible for a consecrated Christian to be deceived into passivity for some years without ever

awakening to his dangerous plight. The degree of inactivity will increase in scope until he suffers

unspeakable pain in mind, emotion, body and environment. To present the true meaning of consecration to these ones thus becomes vitally important. The knowledge of truth is absolutely necessary for deliverance from passivity, without which freedom is impossible. We know that a believer falls into passivity through deception but this latter in turn is caused by a lack of knowledge.

The Knowledge of Truth

The very first step to freedom is to know the truth of all things: truth concerning cooperation with God, the operation of evil spirits, consecration, and supernatural manifestations.

The child of God must know the truth as to the source and nature of the experiences he may have been having if he expects to be delivered. Since his descent was (1) deception, (2) passivity, (3) entrenchment, and (4) further deception and passivity, then the way to release will be initially the

uncovering of deception. Once the early deceit is dissolved, passivity, entrenchment and further deceit will disintegrate. Deception unlatches the gate for the evil spirits to rush in; passivity provides a place for them to stay; and the result of these two is entrenchment. To dispossess them requires an ending of passivity which in turn needs the exposure of deception, and this is brought about by nothing else save the knowledge of truth. Knowledge of truth is therefore the first stage towards freedom. Only the truth can set people free.

We have cautioned our readers repeatedly about the danger of supernatural experience. We are not suggesting that every such manifestation must be categorically resisted, forsaken and opposed:

this would be at variance with Biblical teaching since the Scriptures record numerous supernatural acts of God. Our purpose simply has been to remind Christians that there can be more than one source

behind supernatural phenomena; God can perform wonders, but so can evil spirits imitate! How crucial for us to distinguish what is of God from what is not of God. If one has not died to his emotional life

but earnestly seeks sensational events, he will be easily duped. We do not urge people to resist all supernatural manifestations, but we do exhort them to resist every supernatural occurrence which derives from Satan. So what we have tried to point out throughout this Part of the book has been the basic differences between the operation of the Holy Spirit and that of the evil spirit so as to help God’s children discern which is which.

It can be stated that present day Christians are particularly susceptible to trickery in supernatural matters. Our earnest hope is that in their contact with supernatural phenomena they shall first

undertake the task of discriminating lest they be beguiled. They must not overlook the fact that when the supernatural experience is authored by the Holy Spirit they are still able to engage their own mind; it is not required that they be totally or partially passive before they obtain such an experience. And afterwards too they are still able to exercise their conscience freely to distinguish good and evil

without the least inhibition. But should the experience be authored by the evil spirit, then the victims must settle into passivity, their mind be blank, and their every action be performed under outside

compulsion. Such is the essential difference.

The Apostle Paul mentions in 1 Corinthians 14 various spiritual gifts among which are revelation, prophecy, tongues and other supernatural manifestations. He acknowledges these gifts as flowing from the Holy Spirit, yet he defines the nature of these God-given gifts in these words: “the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets” (v.32). If what the prophets (believers) receive is from the Holy Spirit, then the spirits they receive will be subject to them. This means that the Holy Spirit Who bestows diverse supernatural experiences upon men will not infringe on their rights by manipulating any part of their bodies against their wills. They continue to retain the power of self-control. Only that spirit which is subject to the prophet or believer is from God; any spirit which demands the prophet to be subject to it is not from God. Although we should not oppose all supernatural elements, we nonetheless should judge whether these supernatural spirits require a man’s passive subjection or not. The workings of the Holy Spirit and those of the evil spirit are fundamentally opposite: the Former wishes men to be sovereignly free; the latter requires him to be altogether passive. The believer should judge his experience by this criterion. Learning whether he has been passive or not can be the solution to all his problems.

Should the child of God desire freedom his folly must be removed. In other words, he must know the truth. He needs to appreciate the real nature of affairs. Satanic lies bind, but God’s truth unshackles. Naturally the knowledge of truth is going to be costly, for it will shatter the vainglory one has assumed due to his past experiences. He looks upon himself as far more advanced than others, as being spiritual and infallible. How hard hit he will be if he confesses the possibility of his being invaded or if he is shown to have been so invaded! Unless God’s child sincerely adheres to all the truth of God, it becomes very rough for him to accept this kind of painful and humiliating truth. One encounters no difficulty in

accepting that truth which is agreeable; but it is not easy at all to take in a truth which blasts one’s ego. To acknowledge himself as liable to deception is relatively easy; whereas to confess that he is entrenched by the enemy already is most difficult. May God be gracious, for even after a person has known the truth he may yet resist it. The acceptance of truth is thus the first step to salvation. The

child of God must be willing to know all the truth concerning himself. This requires humility and sincerity. Therefore let him who vehemently opposes such truth beware lest unknowingly he actually

be enslaved.

The roads to truth are many and various. Some are awakened to their true state upon discovering that they have lost their liberty in all respects through their protracted and serious satanic bondage; others

whose experiences may be ninety per cent of God and only ten percent impurity come to know the truth when they begin to doubt their experience; still others are brought to a knowledge of their condition through the truth given them by other believers. In any event, the Christian should not refuse the first ray of light which shines upon him.'

Excerpt- The Spiritual Man - by Watchman Nee

Knowing the Truth-Using the Truth You know.

Excerpt-

'It is possible for a consecrated Christian to be deceived into passivity for some years without ever awakening to his dangerous plight. The degree of inactivity will increase in scope until he suffers unspeakable pain in mind, emotion, body and environment. To present the true meaning of consecration to these ones thus becomes vitally important. The knowledge of truth is absolutely necessary for deliverance from passivity, without which freedom is impossible. We know that a believer falls into passivity through deception but this latter in turn is caused by a lack of knowledge.

The Knowledge of Truth

The very first step to freedom is to know the truth of all things: truth concerning cooperation with God, the operation of evil spirits, consecration, and supernatural manifestations.

The child of God must know the truth as to the source and nature of the experiences he may have been having if he expects to be delivered. Since his descent was (1) deception, (2) passivity, (3) entrenchment, and (4) further deception and passivity, then the way to release will be initially the uncovering of deception. Once the early deceit is dissolved, passivity, entrenchment and further deceit will disintegrate. Deception unlatches the gate for the evil spirits to rush in; passivity provides a place for them to stay; and the result of these two is entrenchment. To dispossess them requires an ending of passivity which in turn needs the exposure of deception, and this is brought about by nothing else save the knowledge of truth. Knowledge of truth is therefore the first stage towards freedom. Only the truth can set people free.

We have cautioned our readers repeatedly about the danger of supernatural experience. We are not suggesting that every such manifestation must be categorically resisted, forsaken and opposed:this would be at variance with Biblical teaching since the Scriptures record numerous supernatural acts of God. Our purpose simply has been to remind Christians that there can be more than one source behind supernatural phenomena; God can perform wonders, but so can evil spirits imitate! How crucial for us to distinguish what is of God from what is not of God. If one has not died to his emotional life but earnestly seeks sensational events, he will be easily duped. We do not urge people to resist all supernatural manifestations, but we do exhort them to resist every supernatural occurrence which derives from Satan. So what we have tried to point out throughout this Part of the book has been the basic differences between the operation of the Holy Spirit and that of the evil spirit so as to help God’s children discern which is which.

It can be stated that present day Christians are particularly susceptible to trickery in supernatural matters. Our earnest hope is that in their contact with supernatural phenomena they shall first undertake the task of discriminating lest they be beguiled. They must not overlook the fact that when the supernatural experience is authored by the Holy Spirit they are still able to engage their own mind; it is not required that they be totally or partially passive before they obtain such an experience. And afterwards too they are still able to exercise their conscience freely to distinguish good and evil without the least inhibition. But should the experience be authored by the evil spirit, then the victims must settle into passivity, their mind be blank, and their every action be performed under outside
compulsion. Such is the essential difference.

The Apostle Paul mentions in 1 Corinthians 14 various spiritual gifts among which are revelation, prophecy, tongues and other supernatural manifestations. He acknowledges these gifts as flowing from the Holy Spirit, yet he defines the nature of these God-given gifts in these words: “the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets” (v.32). If what the prophets (believers) receive is from the Holy Spirit, then the spirits they receive will be subject to them. This means that the Holy Spirit Who bestows diverse supernatural experiences upon men will not infringe on their rights by manipulating any part of their bodies against their wills. They continue to retain the power of self-control. Only that spirit which is subject to the prophet or believer is from God; any spirit which demands the prophet to be subject to it is not from God. Although we should not oppose all supernatural elements, we nonetheless should judge whether these supernatural spirits require a man’s passive subjection or not. The workings of the Holy Spirit and those of the evil spirit are fundamentally opposite: the Former wishes men to be sovereignly free; the latter requires him to be altogether passive. The believer should judge his experience by this criterion. Learning whether he has been passive or not can be the solution to all his problems.

Should the child of God desire freedom his folly must be removed. In other words, he must know the truth. He needs to appreciate the real nature of affairs. Satanic lies bind, but God’s truth unshackles. Naturally the knowledge of truth is going to be costly, for it will shatter the vainglory one has assumed due to his past experiences. He looks upon himself as far more advanced than others, as being spiritual and infallible. How hard hit he will be if he confesses the possibility of his being invaded or if he is shown to have been so invaded! Unless God’s child sincerely adheres to all the truth of God, it becomes very rough for him to accept this kind of painful and humiliating truth. One encounters no difficulty in accepting that truth which is agreeable; but it is not easy at all to take in a truth which blasts one’s ego. To acknowledge himself as liable to deception is relatively easy; whereas to confess that he is entrenched by the enemy already is most difficult. May God be gracious, for even after a person has known the truth he may yet resist it. The acceptance of truth is thus the first step to salvation. The child of God must be willing to know all the truth concerning himself. This requires humility and sincerity. Therefore let him who vehemently opposes such truth beware lest unknowingly he actually be enslaved.

The roads to truth are many and various. Some are awakened to their true state upon discovering that they have lost their liberty in all respects through their protracted and serious satanic bondage; others whose experiences may be ninety per cent of God and only ten percent impurity come to know the truth when they begin to doubt their experience; still others are brought to a knowledge of their condition through the truth given them by other believers. In any event, the Christian should not refuse the first ray of light which shines upon him.'

Excerpt- The Spiritual Man - by Watchman Nee

How Easy It Is To Be Deceived.

Mat_24:24  For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

These false Christs, these false prophets do so much to deceive people that were it POSSIBLE, which it is not, they could deceive God's elect.

People ARE going to be deceived, people who are NOT prepared to acknowledge that they can be deceived about many things.

WE NEED to acknowledge how easy it is to be deceived by Satan!

We need to pray for comprehension, pray for spiritual sight, pray for the light in such a dark, dark world.

May our God help us! All through Jesus Christ our Lord, our Savior! Now and forever!

*******

'Sufferings and Weaknesses

Having fully surrendered to God the Christian naturally concedes that he should walk in the way of the cross and suffer for Christ’s sake. He additionally acknowledges the futility of his natural life and is willing to be weak in order that he may be strengthened by the power of God. These two attitudes are commendable but they can be utilized by the enemy if they are not rightly understood.

Having recognized that there is something of great profit in suffering, the Christian following consecration may submit passively to whatever comes to him without question. He simply believes he is suffering for the Lord and that therefore it is both profitable and rewarding. Little does he understand that, unless he intentionally exercises his will both to accept what God allots and to resist what the enemy dispenses, his passive acceptance of all suffering will surely afford an excellent opportunity to the evil spirit to torment him.

Suffering at the hand of the evil spirit while believing the satanic lie that his suffering emanates from God merely gives the  enemy the right to prolong the assault. The person is unaware that his suffering does not arise from God but arises out of his fulfilling the conditions for the working of evil spirits. He still pictures himself as suffering for the church that he may complete what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of His body. He conceives himself a martyr whereas in fact he is a victim. He glories in these sufferings, yet they constitute but symptoms of the adversary’s entrenchment.

We should notice that all these afflictions which flow from the work of the evil spirits are meaningless—positively fruitless and purposeless. Apart from the fact that one is suffering, there is no sense to it. The Holy Spirit does not bear witness in our intuition that this proceeds from God.

Should the believer investigate a little he may discover that he did not encounter such experiences before he offered himself to the Lord and chose to suffer. Having made the choice, he automatically

accepted all sufferings as from God, although most are triggered by the power of darkness. He has surrendered ground to the evil spirits; he has believed their lies; and his life is consequently marked by

unreasonable and ineffectual sufferings. Knowing the truth concerning the deep workings of the evil spirit helps the individual not only to overcome sins but to eliminate unnecessary afflictions as

well.

The child of God may hold this same erroneous concept concerning weakness. He thinks he should maintain a condition of weakness if he is ever to possess God’s strength. For has not the Apostle Paul asserted that “when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor. 12.10)? He accordingly wills to be weak that he too may be strong. He does not observe that the Apostle has not willed to be weak but that he is merely relating to us his experience of how the grace of God strengthens him in his frailty for the accomplishment of God’s purpose. Paul has not desired this infirmity; yet he is strengthened by God in that infirmity. Paul is not to be found persuading a strong believer to purposely choose weakness in order that God may strengthen him afterwards. He simply is showing the weak believer the way to strength!

Choosing weakness and choosing suffering both fulfill the requirements for the operation of evil spirits since by so doing man’s will is placed on the enemy’s side. This explains why countless children of God who enjoyed good health in the beginning find themselves weakened daily after they have chosen to be weak. The strength they expect does not emerge: they soon become a burden to others: they are useless in God’s work. Such a choice does not draw down God’s power; rather does it furnish the evil spirits ground for attack. Unless these saints persistently resist this debility they shall encounter prolonged weakness.'

Excerpt- The Spiritual Man- by Watchman Nee

Choosing to Resist the Devil.

We have a part to play in our Christian walk. What exactly does it mean when we are told the following--

Jas 4:7  Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 

Does submitting ourselves to God mean giving up our ability to reason? No.

When we submit to God we are then told to RESIST the devil so the devil will FLEE from us. This resisting is an ACTION, not a passive entreaty. So, how do we RESIST the devil?

This is how our Savior resisted the devil-

Mat 4:3  And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. 

Mat 4:4  But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. 

Mat 4:5  Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, 

Mat 4:6  And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. 

Mat 4:7  Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. 

Mat 4:8  Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; 

Mat 4:9  And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. 

Mat 4:10  Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. 

Mat 4:11  Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him. 

This is how WE resist the devil-

Eph 6:11  Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 

Eph 6:12  For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 

1Pe 5:8  Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: 

1Pe 5:9  Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world. 

Rev 12:9  And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. 

Rev 12:10  And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. 

Rev 12:11  And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death. 

*******

Satan IS attacking us as often as he can in ways we can't even imagine.

As we go through our lives in the GOOD situations and the BAD we need to ask ourselves if they are of God or of Satan.

Satan will counterfeit God's ways leaving in just enough of his deception to ruin what should be a good thing. Not all seemingly good things are of God. We truly need to submit to God in the good and the bad. We need to resist the devil in all things, not just the thing we perceive as being outright evil. Satan will sneak into places in our lives we thought were sacred and beyond his reach but truly very little is beyond the reach of Satan. The powers of Satan's will are so strong this following verse needs to be memorized--

Mat_24:24  For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

IF it were possible the very elect would be deceived!

And this verse--

Mat 7:13  Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: 

Mat 7:14  Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. 

FEW find that narrow gate.

And this next verse-

Luk 17:26  And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man. 

Luk 17:27  They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all. 

Luk 17:28  Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; 

Luk 17:29  But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. 

Luk 17:30  Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed. 

This next passage tells us how few were saved in the days of Noah-

1Pe 3:20  …when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water. 

*******

To believe that Satan isn't a real force to resist in a very real way is to be deceived. Don't put Satan on a back burner, something to think about another time. Don't put your resisting of the Devil on a shelf somewhere saving it for blatant attacks. We truly need to make it a daily practice to submit to God AND resist the Devil!  Our lives need examining, not ignoring.

2Co 13:5  Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves.

Php_2:12  Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.

Reread this excerpt I posted already a couple days ago- it's worth rereading!

May God bless us and keep us in HIM! All through Jesus Christ our LORD and SAVIOR now and FOREVER!

*******  Excerpt --

'God’s Ordering

We know that besides man’s will there are two other totally antagonistic wills in the world.

God calls us to obey Him and to resist Satan.

Twice in the Bible do we find these two sides mentioned together:

(1) “submit yourselves therefore to God,” exhorts James, and then he follows immediately with “resist the devil” (4.7);

(2) “humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God,” enjoins Peter, and continues by charging his readers to “resist (the devil), firm in your faith” (1 Peter 5.6,9).

This is the balance of truth. A believer certainly must learn to submit himself to God in all  matters, acknowledging that what He orders for him is the best.

Though he suffers, yet he heartily submits to the will of God. This, however, is just half the truth. The Apostles understood the danger of being lopsided; hence we find them right away warning the Christian to resist the devil once he submits to God. This is because there is another will besides His, that of Satan’s.

Frequently the devil counterfeits the will of God, especially in the things which happen to us. If we are unaware of the presence of a will other than God’s, we can easily mistake Satan’s to be God’s and so fall into the devil’s trap. For this reason God wants us to resist the devil when we submit

to Him.

Resistance is done by the will. Resistance means our volition opposes, disapproves, and withstands. God wishes us to exercise our volition, therefore He exhorts us to “resist the devil.” He will not

resist for us; we ourselves must do so.

We have a will; we should use it to take heed to God’s Word. So teaches the Bible. Thinking that

God’s will is revealed in His orderings, the Christian may accept anything which comes to him as His will. In that event he naturally will not employ his volition to choose, decide or resist. He just quietly accepts everything. This sounds good and appears right, but it contains a serious fallacy.

Now we do acknowledge the hand of God behind everything, and we do confess we must submit fully under His hand. But the point at issue here is more one of attitude than of conduct. If what happens to

us is the direct will of God, would we object to it? This is a matter of our heart intention. But after we are assured of our obedience to God we should inquire further: does this emanate from the evil spirit or is it but God’s permissive will? If it is His commanded will, we have no objection; if otherwise, we will resist it together with God.

Hence this never implies that we should submit to our environment without daily examination and testing. Our attitude remains the same at all times, but our practice comes only after we are sure of God’s will, for how could we submit to Satan’s will?

A Christian ought not act as one who is without a brain, passively driven by his environment. He actively and consciously should examine the source of every item, test its nature, understand its meaning, and decide the course to take. It is important to obey God, but not blindly. Such active investigation is not a sign of rebellion against God’s ordering, because our heart’s intent continues to be one of submission towards God. We only wish to be sure that in our submission we are verily obeying God.

A definite lack in an obedient attitude exists among believers today. Though they perceive God’s will, they nevertheless fail to yield. Contrariwise, those who have been broken by God run to the other extreme by unquestioningly accepting whatever occurs to them.

The truth lies in the center; obey in heart and accept after being assured of the source.

How sad, though, that many fully consecrated believers do not discern this difference. Such a Christian therefore passively submits to his environment, surmising that everything happens to him by the

order of God. He gives ground to the evil spirits to torment and hurt him. These spirits provide environment (their snares) by which to trap the saint into performing their will or raise up circumstances to trouble him.

Believers may misunderstand this to be what Matthew 5.39 enjoins when it says “do not resist one who is evil,” not recalling that God summons them to struggle against sin (Heb. 12.4). By overcoming environment they are overcoming the spirit of this world. The factors in such a misapprehension of God’s ordering are that (a) believers do not use their will to choose and decide; (b) God certainly does not oppress them with environment; and (c) the evil spirits utilize the environmental circumstances as a substitute for their passive will. Rather than obeying God these believers actually are obeying the evil spirits.'

Excerpt from 'The Spiritual Man' by Watchman Nee