Doubts? Yes, But We Are On The Winning Side

We must leave Job and his suffering for a moment in order to consider some questions about Satan. He appears early in the book before God with the "sons of God" or the angels. This seems be a place because Satan answers God's question, "From where have you come?" He answers,  “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.” So the where is some place other than the earth. Let us call this where heaven for the moment and assume that it is a place to which spirit beings can come and go as they "present themselves before the LORD." This does not suggest that the LORD is confined to some single place, even though the "sons of God" (angels) and Satan are. They cannot occupy more than one place at a time. 

As we read it, Satan (the name means "opponent" or "adversary"), leaves the place called heaven to travel to the place called earth. I have discussed the concept of heaven  and parallel universes in several earlier blogs. Use the search tool to discover ten blogs relating to the word heaven. 

Samples:

 

Reclaiming Our Heritage: The Third Heaven: Dwelling Place Of God

Jul 28, 2015 ... We now follow John as he goes through a door standing open in heaven! But where is that? Surely it is out there, beyond the clouds and the ... - al-franzmeier.blogspot.com

 

Reclaiming Our Heritage: Near Death Experiences Of Heaven

Oct 28, 2015 ... Here are some of the stories these NDE (near-death experience) folks relate, taken from a 2015 book I've been reading (Imagine Heaven by ... - al-franzmeier.blogspot.com

Reclaiming Our Heritage: Heaven and Parallel Universes

Apr 12, 2010 ... As we Christians continue to celebrate the 40 days of Easter we rejoice in the hope we now have of heaven and the resurrection because of ... - al-franzmeier.blogspot.com

   

 Reclaiming Our Heritage: What and Where is Heaven?

Nov 10, 2009 ... In this passage about Christ our High Priest, we hear that he went not into the old temple in Jerusalem, but into heaven itself once and for all. - al-franzmeier.blogspot.com

 

Reclaiming Our Heritage: Some Heavenly Questions

Oct 19, 2015 ... what does John mean when he writes about heaven being opened or someone or something coming down from heaven? - al-franzmeier.blogspot.com

The point of the book of Job is that there is an unseen world from which Satan and the other angels confined to this earth wage a relentless war upon us humans. The Apostle Paul puts it this way: 

• For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. - Eph 6:12 ESV (See my blog about spiritual wrestling)

So where are these heavenly places occupied by the evil angels? At one point I opined that this is "the atmosphere" above the earth to which these angels are confined. Opinions about such questions are many. We must leave them open. Whatever you make of all this, as I wrote in a previous blog, we are assured by God's revealed Word that we have spiritual armies fighting at our side against the darkness, destruction and terror of these days in which we live. Based upon the Scriptures listed, that does not suggest that our faith in God's love and mercy will be untested. We will all face doubts, anxiety, confusion and terror. Those are the weapons of the powers of darkness. But we have many promises assuring us that both in this present time and at the end of this time Satan and his demons are and will be defeated.

How The Devil Does His Evil Work

As noted in my previous post, Jesus took Satan seriously and urged us to pray daily that we be delivered from his schemes. Two questions arise from such a prayer. What are the schemes of the devil? In other words, how does he and his minions go about their devious work? And the second question, how does the heavenly Father deliver us from the evil one? We focus upon the first today.

The best way to understand Satan is to examine the Biblical examples. The three temptations of Jesus in the wilderness serve as a summary. Note well that Jesus was led by the Spirit to be tempted by Satan.

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. ... And the tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread." - Mat 4:1 ESV

Jesus Tempted - by James Tissot (1836-1902)

Earlier I wrote about the word used for being led or brought into situations where we might be tempted:  Why Do We Pray, "Lead us Not Into Temptation." I urge you to review that blog. As I said there, "The Father does not take us out of the world, but rather permits us to be tempted in order that we may grow in faith and trust. He wants us to grow up in Christ. This is part of the discipling process, the training for life here and now AND for the life we will live in the age to come."

Satan's temptations can be divided into three major categories:

1. Lust: putting bodily appetites above all else: And the tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread." - Mat 4:3 ESV 

2. Impatience: trying to manipulate God: Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, "'He will command his angels concerning you,' and "'On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.'" - Mat 4:5-6 ESV

3. Idolatry: tempting us to worship other gods: Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to him, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me." - Mat 4:8-9 ESV

The biblical word for lust (epithymia) refers to any strong bodily appetite or desire, including hunger, thirst, hate, coveting, and sex. A second word, passion (pathēma), complements it. That word may even refer to the sufferings of Christ, as well as the suffering one who follows Christ may have to endure. But in its negative usage, it refers to the pain and anger that arise when you are frustrated and unable to satisfy any bodily desire or appetite. So Satan or the demons assigned to us urge us to do whatever it takes to satisfy our appetites. Give in to those urgings and you will be led to complain, mock, steal, commit adultery, find sex outside marriage, hurt others bodily and even murder. Follow that path and you will ultimately receive what you ask for. God gives you up to the lusts and passions of your sinful heart (Rom. 1:21-32).

The Biblical opposite of impatience is makrothymia, translated as patience or in the KJV as long-suffering. It is what the Children of Israel were unwilling to exercise when they complained about being thirsty and having no food in the wilderness. They did not trust that the LORD would care for their needs. Instead they grumbled and quarreled with Moses (Exodus 17:1-7). Other ways of putting God to the test include living recklessly or taking extreme risks in sports. Taking dangerous and extreme risks financially could also be included. 

The third major category of sin is idolatry. New idols constantly arise to promise anything and everything from fun and excitement to riches, power and glory. An idol is anything that takes our focus away from the LORD God who has revealed Himself to us in His Son Jesus. Many would make money or sex and pleasure their gods. Fame, power, glory and prestige are worshipped by many others.   Almost anything you can name has and can become a god. Jesus went so far as to point out that we are even in danger of making our families into idols or gods. 

"Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a person's enemies will be those of his own household. Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. - Mat 10:34-37 ESV

Satan's temptations are subtle, hidden and dark, but always present. This is why the Apostles remind us to "be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour." - 1Pe 5:8 ESV

In my next post we will consider how the LORD God delivers us from these temptations.

CIA—Christians in Action: Your Will Be Done

Just days after the horrific attacks of 9/11, a team of seven CIA agents snuck into northern Afghanistan and began to lay the groundwork for war. Dubbed operation "Jawbreaker," their goal was to take out al Qaeda, break the Taliban, find Osama bin Laden, and kill him. National Geographic Channel has a show about this, CIA Undercover. 

The program is both fascinating and frightening. And I certainly admire the courage and commitment of those in the CIA for the work that they have been doing. Actually I don't want to know what they are doing much of the time. Their work was part of what finally led to the killing of bin Laden as now documented in the 2012 movie, Zero Dark Thirty. 

All this reminds me that we Christians are also in the business of overthrowing an alien and unwanted government. The second petition of the LORD's prayer points to that as we pray, Your Kingdom come! And now in the third petition we repeat the prayer, committing ourselves to carrying out our King's complete overthrow of the god of this world (John 12:31; 16:7-11). "Your will be done!" we pray. 

The will of God is sharply set against the ruler of this world. War is on! And has been on since the Garden of Eden. But the true and rightful Ruler has come among us to make clear that His will was to pay the ransom that has set all of us free. So the Apostle urges his protege, the young pastor Timothy, 

First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time. - 1Ti 2:1-6 ESV

Keep in touch with headquarters. God will teach you what next to do on the road to a peaceful and quiet life for all mankind. But know also what we are up against. We're winning; that is certain. Satan has lost his power, but the war isn't over—yet. In his second letter Paul writes,

But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men corrupted in mind and disqualified regarding the faith. But they will not get very far, for their folly will be plain to all, as was that of those two men. - 2Ti 3:1-9 ESV

Pretty scary stuff indeed, but they will not get very far!

Hang in there. Keep in touch with headquarters each and every day. Do the work assigned to you as God's CIA—Christian in action. Total victory is just around the corner. Meekly and confidently put your trust in the LORD and together we shall inherit the land.

But the meek shall inherit the land and delight themselves in abundant peace. 

The wicked plots against the righteous and gnashes his teeth at him, but the Lord laughs at the wicked, for he sees that his day is coming. The wicked draw the sword and bend their bows to bring down the poor and needy, to slay those whose way is upright; their sword shall enter their own heart, and their bows shall be broken. - Psa 37:11-15 ESV 

Demonic Oppression

"I don't know what's gotten into her!" Ever hear that phrase? Its the complaint of a mom about her disobedient daughter. But the mom probably doesn't mean what another mom of long ago meant when she cried to Jesus, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon" (Matt. 15:22).

Oppressed by a demon? What does that mean? Is there actually such a thing as a demon? The original text actually reads like this: "my daughter is miserably demonized." In other words, we're dealing with a verb (daimonizomai), not a noun. Some being she called a daimon was doing bad things to her daughter. We can be fairly certain that she was not well informed by the Hebrew Scriptures, but rather had picked up ideas from the Greek culture that pervaded her country—and maybe some ideas from her Jewish neighbors. After all, she did know about Jesus. She called him Lord, Son of David.

At any rate according to Greek thinking there are a variety of beings between God and man called daimons. Supposedly some were capable of good and others of evil. They seem to be the same as the messengers (mal'akim) we read about in the Old Testament (angels in the Greek translation). For the moment I shall ignore the many passages that speak about the angel of the LORD, whom many interpreters, myself included, believe refers to the pre-incarnate Christ (1 Cor. 10:1-9; Exod. 3:2, 14:9, 20:16; Judg. 2:1-4, etc.) But other than the many angel of the LORD references we read of other angels.

• And he (Elijah) lay down and slept under a broom tree. And behold, an angel touched him and said to him, "Arise and eat." - 1Ki 19:5 ESV

• Nebuchadnezzar answered and said, "Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his angel and delivered his servants, who trusted in him, and set aside the king's command, and yielded up their bodies rather than serve and worship any god except their own God. - Dan 3:28 ESV

I will not offer here an entire teaching about angels and demons. Suffice it to say that some of the angelic beings have rebelled (Jude 6). They remain in darkness about the LORD's plans and ways. They are led by a chief variously known as Satan or Azazel, etc. It was this powerful being that tempted Jesus at the outset of his public ministry. My previous blogs referred to this three-fold temptation (Matt. 4:1-11). Besides being attacked indirectly by Satan all through his ministry, Jesus came across many others who are demonized, as was this woman's daughter. We're not told in any detail what this demon had done to her. We know from other accounts what demons did to others, e.g.

• And when he came to the other side, to the country of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men met him, coming out of the tombs, so fierce that no one could pass that way. - Mat 8:28 ESV
• As they were going away, behold, a demon-oppressed man who was mute was brought to him. - Mat 9:32 ESV
• Then a demon-oppressed man who was blind and mute was brought to him, and he healed him, so that the man spoke and saw. - Mat 12:22 ESV
• And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him, and the boy was healed instantly. - Mat 17:18 ESV

The goal of these evil forces is to bring suffering and pain and eternal bondage to evil. We saw how Satan worked to lead Jesus down this path. Based upon these passages we may expect demon oppression to come in the form of

• physical illness, such as blindness, self-mutilation, addictions and a variety of other illnesses. 

• spiritual rebellion, hatred and anger toward God, embracing false religions, the rejection of common morality, leading to such things as lying, cheating and murder. 

• emotional upheaval and confusion, such as outbursts of anger, depression and hopelessness.

Of course we must be very cautious about labeling every physical illness or emotional problem as demonic oppression. Jesus did not, nor should we. However, we must acknowledge the presence of these beings and be prepared to call upon our Lord in prayer to drive them out.

In my next post I will say more about the difference between demonic oppression and being actually possessed by a demon.

Are You Sick? Its Because You Don't Believe!

Today we pick up the question about whether all sickness comes from the devil and the conclusions drawn from that claim. Those who make this claim argue like this.

• If God is all-powerful and all-good, why is there suffering in the world?  Why especially do faithful Christian suffer? Their suffering demands an interpretation.
• Jesus is the Son of God who has revealed the will of His Father. He said, "I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me." - John 5:30 ESV
• Jesus never made anyone sick. By His words and actions He revealed that the will of God is to heal ONLY! 
• If you believe your sickness is God teaching you, correcting you or testing you; then you must conclude that it is something good based upon James 1:17: "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change."
• But is sickness ever good? Is wife beating ever good? Is child abuse ever good? If you think these are all good things then you are clearly confused and vastly deceived. I do not know of anything good about sickness. Sickness and disease is a thief and a robber of your well-being, strength, your life and substance.
• So where does sickness come from? God clearly calls sickness satanic oppression. Consider passages like this: John the Baptist proclaimed, "how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. - Act 10:38 ESV
• In the revelations of God in the New Covenant given to the church we hear that "Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree" (Gal. 3:13 - KJV). 
• The curses of the Old Covenant included all forms of disease and sickness (Deut. 28:61). If Jesus Christ came to redeem you from sickness and disease then there is NO WAY that God is sending you sickness or disease to kill you. These things come from the devil. 
• Christians who have a zeal for God, but no knowledge of God's complete will as revealed in Christ, suffer and are sick because they do not renounce Satan in the all-powerful name of Christ.  
• Those who trust in Jesus and God's Word will follow the example of Jesus who freed a woman "whom Satan bound for eighteen years" (Luke 13:16).  When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said to her, "Woman, you are freed from your disability." And he laid his hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and she glorified God. - Luk 13:12-13 ESV

____________________________________

Conclusion: If you, as a believer in Jesus, follow this rationale and are still sick, then it must be that you do not fully trust Him. You have not taken Him at His Word and renounced the devil. You have permitted Satan to have power over you. Its your problem, not Jesus'. He wants to heal you, but you won't let Him! 

_____________________________________

In a January, 2011 post I examined Jesus' healing of that woman bound by Satan as recorded in Luke 13. I urged confession of sins and the promise of forgiveness for the sake of Jesus. This is the true freedom from satanic slavery. In Christ the devil can no longer accuse us of sin. We are free indeed. And this freedom leads to wholeness. Quite often the mental or bodily sickness or dis-ease disappears. Body, heart, mind and soul become one under the blessing and power of forgiveness and the presence of the Holy Spirit. We are at peace or shalom in Christ, as Paul writes in his beautiful letter to the Philippians, 

Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon. Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. - Phl 4:4-7 NLT

 Yet there is so much more that needs to be said, for there are many among us, faithful believers in Jesus as Savior and Lord, who remain sick or disabled in mind, heart and/or body. Their struggle continues even as they believe in Jesus and God's forgiveness. I must speak to them lest they be overwhelmed by the terrifying burden suggested by those "you-don't-have-the-right-faith" teachers referred to above. More on that in my next post.