The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil. (1 John 3:8 — New American Standard Bible)
In a nut shell, this was the mission of the Lord Jesus Christ when He came to earth. He came to pay the price for our sins so we could be forgiven, and to be an example of how to live for God, but for any of that to be done the work of the devil had to be destroyed… one version of the Bible translates is as “undo the work of the devil”. What Adam lost in the Garden — purity, obedience to God, friendship with Him — Jesus, the second Adam, restored to mankind.
The way the large majority of Christians live today you would think Jesus’ primary mission on earth was praise and worship, or being doctrinally correct, or fighting for civil rights, or to write super-popular but watered down books. So few Christians feel driven to confront the devil or to undo his work — neither in their lives nor in the many people around them. Many even blame their suffering and disappointments on God, as if there were no devil.
If this is why Jesus appeared, it should also be our mission in life. We should identify how the devil and his demons have been targeting us and our family and then set about undoing that work as quickly as we can. When you look at your purpose in life this way it becomes so simple. What has the devil been determined to do to me over the last 5 or 10 years? The opposite of that is God’s mission for me on earth. That is one of the truly great things we can do with our lives.
Jesus really did destroy the devil's work — but only for those who believe in and follow Him. The only power Satan has is the power we give him. He has no real legal authority or power — only what he can deceive people into giving him.
Deeply hurt, Hannah prayed to the Lord and wept with many tears. Making a vow, she pleaded, “Lord of Hosts, if You will take notice of Your servant’s affliction, remember and not forget me, and give Your servant a son, I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life……… After some time, Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, because she said, “I requested him from the Lord”……… When she had weaned him, she took him with her to Shiloh, as well as a three-year-old bull, half a bushel of flour, and a jar of wine. Though the boy was still young, she took him to the Lord’s house at Shiloh. Then they slaughtered the bull and brought the boy to Eli. “Please, my lord,” she said, “as sure as you live, my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the Lord. I prayed for this boy, and since the Lord gave me what I asked Him for, I now give the boy to the Lord. For as long as he lives, he is given to the Lord”……… The Lord paid attention to Hannah’s need, and she conceived and gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew up in the presence of the Lord. (1 Samuel 1:10,11,20-28; 2:21 — Holman Christian Standard Bible)
This is a beautiful story of a woman's faith — her great need and how God answered that need — and then of her sacrifice to God and how God blessed her even more. Hannah was childless in a society where that was considered a terrible curse. But in faith and desperation she cried out to God, asked for a son and promised to give that same son back to God for the rest of his life. God gave her a son, Samuel, who became a great prophet, a priest of God, and the leader of Israel. But when she gave this son — her treasure — to God, He rewarded her. She was given five more children in place of the child she gave to God.
If you ask: “Why don’t I receive more from God?" — this passage is my answer. Hannah’s story is the answer. God’s ready to do more, to help you, to open doors for you, and to use you… but are you ready to give Him your best? If He gives to you to the same degree that you give to Him, will you be happy? Will you be satisfied? Don’t expect to receive big things from God when you read His word only a little, pray sometimes, come to church when you feel like it, and obey Him some of the time. Hannah gave her best to God and she received God's best in return. You can never become poor by giving to God!
When I am afraid, I will put my trust in You. In God, whose word I praise, in God I have put my trust; I shall not be afraid. What can mere man do to me?... Then my enemies will turn back in the day when I call; this I know, that God is for me. In God, whose word I praise, in the Lord, whose word I praise, in God I have put my trust, I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me? (Psalm 56:3,4,9-11 — New American Standard Bible)
David would become the greatest and most successful king of Israel, but at the time he wrote this Psalm, king Saul — who God had rejected — was in the middle of a jealous rage and was trying to kill him. David had run to a city outside of Israel, had been captured by the Philistines, the main enemies of Israel, and survived by pretending to be insane. He was in a very dangerous situation. He was in the hands of his enemies and could easily have been killed. And so today’s passage reveals David’s thoughts at a time of danger and crisis.
Almost 400 times the Bible says, “Do not be afraid!" Though to some this may sound like an impossible task, God would never tell us to do something we could not do. There can be no faith when fear is present — or at least, when we do feel fear we have to immediately put our trust in God and drive it out. Fear communicates distrust in God and in His willingness to answer our prayers. Fear is our enemy.
What can man do to us?
Be serious! Be alert! Your adversary the Devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour. Resist him and be firm in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are being experienced by your fellow believers throughout the world. Now the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ Jesus, will personally restore, establish, strengthen, and support you after you have suffered a little. The dominion belongs to Him forever. Amen. (1 Peter 5:8-11 — Holman Christian Standard Bible)
God is calling us to take control, and stay in control, of our thoughts and behavior. The devil is compared to a roaring lion, prowling around, looking for someone to devour. When a lion prowls he doesn't do it openly; He carefully creeps through tall grass and bushes, staying hidden, until he is close to his prey, and then he pounces. Peter used this analogy because the devil does exactly the same thing; before we know it he is right by our side giving us deadly thoughts of doubt and fear. To resist him, we have to be alert, self-controlled, and spiritually strong.
We should all be aware of Satan’s favorite ways of attacking and tempting us. We all have areas of weakness and vulnerability, and it’s crucial that be aware of how and where the devil is going to try to destroy us. It may be a sin or weakness from our old lives before we knew God, or a person that the devil uses; it may be friends or habits, or may be linked to experiences of the past. If you know the weak areas of your life, come up with a way to build yourself up; turn the weak aspects of your life and character into strengths.
It’s a pain to live in this world and to be continually attacked by the devil and his demons — temptations, urges, fears, depression, sadness, anger, pride, greed, sexual immorality, addictions, worry, laziness, materialism… and so forth. Life on earth involves suffering. It involves living in a world that is dark and evil, and fighting to stay clean and unpolluted. The roars of the devil are meant to send shivers of fear to the very core of our beings, but that’s when faith has to switch on and remind us that the devil is a defeated being and our Lord is a victorious King. All dominion belongs to God no matter what things may look like at this very moment. If we continue to stand firm in our faith and vision for the future, we will overcome.
The devil is similar to a lion in his love of the dark. A lion is a good hunter in daylight, but no animal can match him in the dark. His night vision is eight times better than that of a human’s, and much better than most other animals. In the same way, Satan works in the dark — whether day or night. If we are to overcome him and destroy his work, we have to live in the light: faith, trust, obedience, God’s Word. When we are in the light, he will have trouble even approaching us.
But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does. (James 1:22-25 — New American Standard Bible)
This passage warns about self-deception. James (who most people think was the brother of Jesus and a leader of the Jerusalem church) explains that being a hearer only, and not a doer of the Word of God means that we are deceiving ourselves — and many people fit into this category these days… many. They may go to church often, be put in charge of an outreach or group in the church, give tithes and offerings, have knowledge of the Bible, collect books and tapes for various pastors, but still be deceived. They may have an appearance of spirituality and devotion, and still be far away from God.
Obedience to God, to Jesus, and to the Word of God is basic. If we are disobedient His word says we do not really believe, and we do not really love God or Jesus. Most people's “faith” doesn’t affect their lives very much at all. Liars, cheats, adulterers, murderers, thieves, drunks, gossips, and addicts all have their churches or beliefs, but unless we seek and obey the truth, our church attendance and beliefs are worthless. Jesus only saves those who choose to obey Him. He said, “Not everyone who says, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but he who does the will of my Father in heaven.”
The Bible promises all sorts of blessings for those who hear and obey. We may obey God in many ways, but the important thing is to obey Him whenever we are tempted to disobey. When God reveals any type of disobedience in our lives, freedom and blessings will come when we repent and obey God’s voice. Don't let Satan deceive you or rob the blessings and freedom of obedience to God.
Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry. I am speaking as to wise people. Judge for yourselves what I say. The cup of blessing that we give thanks for, is it not a sharing in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a sharing in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for all of us share that one bread. Look at the people of Israel. Do not those who eat the sacrifices participate in what is offered on the altar? What am I saying then? That food offered to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything? No, but I do say that what they sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and not to God. I do not want you to participate with demons! You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot share in the Lord’s table and the table of demons. (1 Corinthians 10:14-21 — Holman Christian Standard Bible)
“Flee from idolatry” is solid advice from the Holy Spirit. Though we don’t like the idea of running away from anything, fleeing from idolatry and sin is advice that God gives a number of times in His word. Flee in this context is not a sign of fear, but rather a sign that we’re determined to remove ourselves from any person or situation that is evil and filthy, and stay close to what is good and godly.
The city of Corinth at the time this passage was written was wealthy and prosperous and had a thriving culture of idol worship, in particular the temple of Aphrodite, the goddess of beauty, fertility, and sexual love — along with its many temple prostitutes. Because of this, most of the food in the marketplace had been offered to idols, and therefore Paul felt compelled to explain to Christians that they should not eat and drink the Lord’s Supper and at the same time eat meat that has been offered to demons — the real object behind idol worship. Idols and food offered to them are in themselves no threat to us or to God — they have no real power — the true danger is the objects of idol worship: demons. In no uncertain terms Paul reminds us that there are two choices in life: God and the devil, the Lord’s table and the table of demons. If we fail to take this advice seriously — and treat demons as a real, modern-day reality — we will find ourselves fighting a losing battle with invisible forces that are much stronger and more experienced than we are.
Isn’t it interesting how Paul uses the Lord’s Supper as an example in this passage? He contrasts the Supper and sacrifices made to idols. The sacrifices made to idols — though false — were seen by those people to be the highest form of worship to their gods, and Paul is teaching the same thing about the Lord’s Supper. It is a high form of worship to God. It celebrates the greatest, most complete, most powerful sacrifice of all time — it honors the Lord Jesus Christ — it encourages self-examination — it invites the Lord Jesus into our lives, and it commemorates the defeat of Satan and his demons.
Whenever the church is having the Lord’s Supper, do all you can to be there. It will please God, it will bring health to your soul, and it will enrage the devil.
So John summoned two of his disciples and sent them to the Lord, asking, “Are You the One who is to come, or should we look for someone else?” At that time Jesus healed many people of diseases, plagues, and evil spirits, and He granted sight to many blind people. He replied to them, “Go and report to John the things you have seen and heard: The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, those with skin diseases are healed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor are told the good news.” (Luke 7:18-22 — Holman Christian Standard Bible)
Jesus didn't try to convince John the Baptist that He was the Messiah with words. He demonstrated who He was by performing great acts of healing. His answer to John was simple — look at what I am doing if you have a question about me. Jesus was not just a great teacher; He was also a great miracle-worker. If you will look closely at the New Testament, you will see that He expected His disciples to do the same kinds of things. Christianity is fundamentally miraculous. When we try to have non-miraculous Christianity, it is weak and defenseless and ridiculous.
The church of today must demonstrate this same power. Jesus said that those who believed in Him would do the same works that He did. And there is only one commission that Jesus gave to us — preach the good news, heal the sick, and drive out demons. The problems that people have today are the same as when Jesus walked on earth — and the solution to those problems has to be the same also. The church of Jesus Christ began with great miracles — the resurrection of Jesus and the coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost; and it grew with a great out pouring of miracles. Our mission today is to help people who are beyond any human help. And that requires the power of the Living Jesus.
God does not do miracles in an environment of unbelief and skepticism. Nourish your faith, believe in a great God, read about miracles, think about miracles, and pray for miracles — they are the proof that Jesus is alive today!
