Mark Vestal Proud of nothing of myself. Freed by Christ who did it all!

I believe it is the sin nature of mankind that causes the trouble (Romans 5:12). But yes, Satan has been allowed control of this world for a very long time (Matt 4:8-9, John 14:30, 2 Cor 4:3-4). 

Satan's unrelenting attack on faith will continue until Jesus Christ returns to earth for Christ's millennial reign. Satan will then be bound for 1,000 years, but loosed afterwards for a brief period before his final attack, but ultimate defeat (Revelation chapter 20).

Man will continue to love and serve the carnal desires of this world which only bring pain and suffering to not only himself, but to others around him. It is when man comes to the realization that true love is from God's grace and found in the spiritual blessings gifted in heavenly places through faith in Jesus Christ and His shed blood on man's behalf that he will begin to desire serving God more than himself.

Ephesians 1:2-3
"Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:"

Note in Ephesians chapter 6 below that what Paul describes defending in the 'spiritual battle' is the gospel of peace, not a battle against sin. Satan, through his 'wiles', wants us to believe our sin will separate us from God. This is Satan's subtle attack on our faith in the shed blood of Jesus Christ, and no different than how he used this subtlety to also beguile Eve in the Garden (2 Cor 11:3).

Eph 6:10-19
"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
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.
13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
19 And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel,"

Verses 18 and 19 indicate that our job as ministers of reconciliation are to lift other believers up when their faith has been weakened, and make known to others the mystery of the gospel.

The gospel:

1 Cor 15:1-4
"Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;
2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:"

June 27 2023 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

Brother Paul Paul's message in Eph 2 was to believers:

I agree with what Mark has stated. We are told:

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith.
1 Peter 5:8-9a

Sober and vigilant are the key words here.

The Bible declares that the devil is the source of all TEMPTATION and is called the “tempter.” 

1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. 3 Now when THE TEMPTER came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”
Matthew 4:1-3

The devil only temps us! This is the reason we need Jesus Christ. 

Only Jesus can forgive us when we sin, and only Jesus can give us the strength, by the power of His Spirit, TO RESIST temptation. 

In Jesus' encounter with the devil at the beginning of His ministry, Jesus pointed the way to victory, using the truth of God’s Word to counteract Satan’s lies. Three times Satan attacked Him with almost overwhelming temptations. And three times Jesus replied with Scripture. This is why it is essential we stay in God’s Word daily and let the richness of His truth fill our hearts and minds.

The devil only temps us, but he is able to succeed because we let him, why do we fall into temptation? Because of our own weakness, our own sinfulness. 

We want what seems pleasurable without counting the cost.

- Sober and vigilant
- Resist the tempter
- Rebuke the devil with The Word
- Stay in The Word, without it you fight in the flesh
- The devil only tempts, it is us that chooses to SIN! Repeat.
- The devil only tempts, it is us that chooses to SIN!

Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. James 4:7-8

In His Love,

Brother Paul

June 30 2023 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

Leslie Coutinho

Matthew 22:11: And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment:

Servants of God today go out to a church and gather both bad and good people by sharing the Word of God bringing salvation to their lives. Being given a wedding garment after being baptized is a covering for our sins, from the Lord Jesus who shed His blood for our forgiveness. If one watches and keepeth, not his garment lest he walks naked, and they will see their shame, (Rev 16:15). That is how Satan takes control and brings trouble in one’s life. This teaching by the Word of God read in the bible is to be kept diligently, for Satan has attacked and is attacking the church from the beginning. 

The serpent today who crawls on his belly eats all the dust of the ground from where mankind was created from the earth, especially of those who fail to discern good and evil and have the worldly desires to eat the fruits of their own ways and be filled with their own devices. (Prov 1:31) The church today who are invited through the man of God who shares His Word, some have set up their idols in their heart and put the stumbling block of their iniquity before their face. (Eze 14:3) Being born again, Christians may tend to reason in their flesh and get deceived just as the choice that was given to mankind in the Garden of Eden. 

Hearkening to the Lord’s voice, we all have the same commission to carry out opening the eyes of the blind in spirit and truth and turning sinners from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, and not condemning one so that they may receive forgiveness of sins. Apostle Paul, who was converted on the road to Damascus, went through this attack and then the Lord spoke to him to be a witness to open the eyes and turn them from darkness to light and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins. (Acts 26:16-18)

Genesis 3:14: And the Lord God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shall thou go, and dust shall thou eat all the days of thy life.

June 30 2023 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

Rick Baugh Follower of Christ cleverly disguised as a software engineer

First off, God has promised that He will indeed deal with the devil. Revelation 20 describes two periods when the world will NOT have the devil around to cause trouble.

The first is described in Rev 20:1-6, where the devil will be tossed into "the abyss" for a thousand years during the millennial reign of Christ. This period is also alluded to in Hebrews 4, as the holy Sabbath day of God, or "day of rest", even though God had not yet revealed to the writer of Hebrews what John later saw and wrote in Revelation. This will be a blessed time when Satan will no longer influence men to the depths of depravity that we see today, and Christ Himself will rule from Jerusalem in righteousness over the whole world, with "a rod of iron" against all unrighteousness.

The second period of a world without the devil is described in Rev 20:7-10, when the devil will be tossed into the Lake of Fire, to be "tormented night and day forever". This speaks of the beginning of God's Eternal Kingdom here on Earth, when God will join the Heavens above with the Earth. Then God Himself will once again walk upon the Earth, where He will dry every tear, and there will be no more pain, no more death, no more suffering, for the old things will have passed away.

But what about NOW, you may ask? Why wait? It's very common for us to be impatient for God's promises. My best friend had prayed for my salvation for over 20 years before I finally came to Christ; a period over which we had long-since drifted apart. When I did finally believe and repent, reading Mat 5:23-24 lead me to research my old friend, find his mailing address, and write to both offer and ask forgiveness from him. Turned out that the day of my salvation just happened to be on his and his wife's 25th wedding anniversary. He took God's providence over this coincidence to be a sign from God that all their prayers from so long ago had not been forgotten, not by our God, but that here in God's timing was the sign of His answer. I marveled how everything, even my salvation, seemed to be under God's sovereign hand. 

If God had not cursed the world in Eden as to create death, pain, and yes, loose Satan to walk upon the Earth to cause trouble, it would not have been possible for Jesus to be betrayed, crucified, and killed upon the cross as to pay for all of our sins. We may not understand the full reasons behind God's timing of His plan of salvation, but scripture asks us to trust that He is working all things out for our good, for all those who love Him. Meanwhile, until we enter into God's rest, we should rejoice if God finds us worthy to temporarily partake in the suffering of Christ; for we know how this ends.

God has promised.

July 02 2023 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report