Renewing of the Mind:Part Two

Chapter Twenty-three: How we begin to renew our mind

There are many places in the Word that show how much the mind plays a part in our spiritual life.  Throughout Scripture we see such words as discern, think, understand, know, and remember. God doesn't expect us to be passive...in fact, God actually works through our minds.  John 8:32 is where Jesus tells us that we would know the truth and the truth would set us free.  In order to be freed from something, it means that we were enslaved to something to begin with.  We were enslaved to Satan by way of our spiritual blindness and the effects of living in sin.  God knew that the only way we would ever be free was for God to free our minds and open them to the truth. Renewing the mind brings about a spiritual transformation at a very deep level...we are being spiritually regenerated.  Without a sprit-controlled mind, it's very difficult to fight sinful, distracting and unwanted thoughts.  You may even feel like you're fighting with yourself at times!

 

What are those unwanted thoughts that cause you to fight with yourself?

 

Ephesians 4: 23 commands us to "be made new in the attitude of your minds." You may discover that no matter what you try, that your thought-life is still in the same old rut of sinful thinking. Because the mind is so important  in one's spiritual life, it is crucial that you learn what the Bible has to say about it.  You need to know and believe that the Holy Spirit can and wants to renew your mind on a daily basis.  Deeds and actions that are sinful usually begin as thoughts that are sinful.  Therefore, without our mind being controlled by the Spirit, it is impossible to withstand the craftiness of Satan and our flesh.

 

 Second Corinthians 10:5 tells us that we need to, "...demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ".  Remember, your old ways of thinking and looking at life have been in you for many years, so this will be a learning process and will take time for it to become new to you.  It's learning a new habit...a healthier habit.  Learning to control our thoughts leads to a more fruitful, peaceful life and also has the added benefit of not allowing the enemy any way in to disrupt our thought life. One of the challenges we will have is to be alert to destructive, unholy thoughts.  Ask the Holy Spirit to show you when a thought comes into your mind that is not pleasing to God.  Some people can simply put that thought out of their head and go on with their day.  However, most of us will need to go to God in prayer and ask for His help to stop our unwanted thoughts until we really get a handle on quickly identifying our negative thinking.  Ask the Holy Spirit to show you when these thoughts first begin in your mind.  This is very important so that they don't develop into something more difficult to deal with (i.e. problems with lust, self-condemnation, lying).  The goal is for you to be keenly aware of your thoughts, and after a while it will become second nature for you.

 If we could evaluate every thought that we have and discard those that do not measure up, only keeping those that are good for us, it would be easy to keep our minds free.  Do you know that God has given us the way to do this?  In Philippians 4:8 He tells us how..." Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable (of good repute)—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—let your mind dwell on these things."  Notice the word dwell.  This means to consider, ponder, reflect, and to think it over.  It means we focus our attention, allowing our minds to linger on it.  It means we are to keep on focusing our attention on those things, continuously.

 

Remember, you can't hide what you're thinking from God.  First Chronicle 28:9 says, "... for the Lord searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts."  Nothing is done in secret. Our actions are a byproduct of our thought life. We can see this in Matthew 5:27-28 which says, " You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery'. But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart."  This passage is not only pointing out that thinking lustfully after a woman is the same as committing adultery...it is also showing how letting one's mind go the wrong way can lead to your life going the wrong way. Ephesians 4:27 warns us not to give the enemy a place of operation in our lives.

When we do sin, we know that we can go to God for forgiveness.  According to Second Corinthians 4:16, " Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day."  We can be renewed in our inner man, day by day, and through God's forgiveness we can forget the things that are behind.  Philippians 3:13 reminds us that, " Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead...".  So, how do we discipline our minds and replace our unhealthy thoughts?

First, we need to be open and willing to accept guidance from the Holy Spirit.  I Peter 1:13 says," Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober...".  Second, as the Holy Spirit helps you to learn to become aware of where your thoughts are going and what you tend to focus on, take note of it so that when it happens again you can stop the thought as soon as it begins and before it progresses to the point that you cannot control it.  You'll probably start to notice that there's a pattern to the negative things you think about, so use this information as a place to start in renewing your mind.  Third, pray to the Holy Spirit to renew your mind so you can follow the Lord's will for your life.  Ask the Holy Spirit to show you what thoughts you should be dwelling on so that you can replace the unhealthy ones with healthy ones.   

For instance, if you find that you tend to be critical in your thoughts of others, pray for them instead and ask God to bless them.  If you have problems with lust, instead of allowing it to go on and become a serious problem, thank the Lord for the beauty of His creation and pray that the Lord would help you see the other person as a fellow brother/sister in Christ and pray for his/her needs.  If you notice you think negatively about life, ask the Holy Spirit to help you focus on the things you have to be thankful for, even if it's just one small thing.  If you worry about what's going to happen in your life and find yourself being an anxious person, meditate on Scriptures that reminds you that God has everything in control and that you can rest in Him.  If you feel overwhelmed in your thoughts, spend time with the Lord and ask Him for His sense of peace and calm.  Keep in mind that depending upon how strong a hold your thoughts have over you, the more often you will need to go to God for His help in putting them in their place and replacing them with better, healthier thoughts.  

Some of my past clients have told me that they found themselves actually having an argument with themselves within their minds as they fought to replace the old, sinful thoughts with the healthier thoughts they wanted to have.  It was the sinful, fleshly part of themselves fighting against the spiritual part of themselves.  It reminds me of the part of Second Corinthians 10:5 where it tells us that we need to "... take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ."  For me, this brings up the image of a wrestling match, where you have to purposely wrestle against that sinful thought and bring it into submission.  Only then can you replace it with what the Lord would have you focus on.  Even if you've never been a wrestler, I'm sure you get the idea.  You have to fight if you want to renew your mind because your old, sinful thoughts are not going to give up easily!

Renewing of the Mind: Part One

Chapter Twenty-two: Why we have  to renew our mind:

In the last teaching series on Spiritual Warfare we looked at how Satan attempts to distract you and get you off track in following God and doing His will.  We also looked at how Satan tries to entice us to give in to our carnal, fleshly nature in order to achieve his goals.  But he does this through various means.  It's not just our flesh that we must battle, it's also our thought life.  So, you may be asking, why is it  important that we pay attention to our thoughts?  After all, I'm right with God.  I've been redeemed and saved.  

The goal of this first teaching is to help you realize the seriousness of the need for you to renew your mind.  It's not just a suggestion in the Bible that sounds good.  It's crucial that the seriousness of this topic really sinks in, otherwise Satan will use you at his pleasure.  Therefore, my goal will be to make you aware of what can potentially happen if you do not take control of your thought life,  and learn how to discipline it.  After all, how much attention do you really pay to the thoughts that go through your mind on a daily basis?

 

When we think about the consequences of the fall of Adam and Eve and sin entering this world, we usually think about how it affected our physical bodies and that as a result we'll all die someday due to sin's toll.  But do you realize that sin entering the world  also affected our minds, our thoughts, and the way we think about things?  Ephesians 4: 17-18 tells us that, " So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts." 

 As a result, an unbeliever lives with his mind fixed on futile things, temporary things, things that have no lasting value.  Lacking spiritual discernment, he is in the dark about spiritual matters and cannot comprehend the things of God.  Scripture warns us in First Corinthians 1:18 that, "For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God."

The only one who is pleased about mankind's living in darkness of mind is Satan.  The Apostle Paul tells us in Second Corinthians 4:4 that, " The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God."  Satan is battling to maintain control of men's minds and he will stop at nothing to attain this goal.  His main objective is to keep man unaware of the truth of the Gospel by attempting to stop man from getting to know God.  Satan's goal is to keep mankind in spiritual darkness.

God, Himself, tells us in Titus 1: 15-16 that man's natural, carnal mind is defiled.  It says, "To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted.  They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good."  These are people who say they know God, but the way they are living shows otherwise.

In First Timothy 6:5, Paul gives us another example of how the carnal mind of man is depraved.  It reads, "... and constant friction between men of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain."  Depraved is another word for corrupted, ruined, destroyed or debased.  These men of Paul's time were teaching that the real purpose of religion was to raise one's social status.  They may  have done things that appeared good and helpful, but they were doing it for the wrong reasons.

In addition, Romans 8:6-7 tells us that, " The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so." We are being told that this mind that we were all born with, is spiritually dead, separated from God, and is focused on the things of our carnal, fleshly nature. 

A carnal mind is unable to know God or to have fellowship with Him, and thus cannot fulfill His purpose.  The unregenerate mind is actually an enemy to God and what He wants to accomplish.  It is, simply, spiritually dead.

Fortunately, God made a provision for us to get control over this carnal, unregenerate mind that attempts to control us.  This ungodly mind can spring up at any minute, surprising us with its thoughts, it's prejudices, it's maliciousness, it's impatience, it's jealousies and even envies. I realize most people don't pay much attention to what they think about or how their thoughts affect them. They just go along with whatever thought comes into their mind, not giving any consideration as to whether it's in their best interest to follow it through, or even whether it's pleasing to God to think upon it.  Do you ever really stop and wonder where your thoughts come from, or do you just go along with them, assuming that they are to be taken seriously and followed through?

Scripture tells us in Proverbs 23:7 that, "For as he thinks within himself, so he is...".  We can understand, then, why the mind would become an area that the enemy would want to influence.  In life, we see how simple things like advertisements try to manipulate us into thinking that we need a certain product and that it will change our life for the better.  It attempts to make us feel "how could I have lived this long without it?"  Advertising companies spend millions of dollars annually trying to come up with ways to catch our attention and get us to buy their products by trying to mold and shape our thinking. Imagine how much more Satan would love to be able to mold our thinking, get us focused on the wrong things, and even go so far as to use our thoughts to go against what God wants. Think about your thoughts.  They influence your mood, the way you feel at any particular moment, how you react to others and ultimately the choices you make in your daily life.

The area in which spiritual warfare takes place is in the mind of every believer. We struggle in our minds against many different areas: the world, our carnal, fleshly nature, and Satan. Our mind has a lot of influence over what decisions we make and the course of action we take. As Christians, we strive to live as God would have us live, but if we are ignorant of the struggle that goes on in our minds and do not make an effort to "take every thought captive", we will be tossed to and fro, quite like the man Scripture describes in the first Book of James...unstable in all we do, always questioning our decisions, wondering why we react the way we do and confused as to why we say the things we do.  Remember, Satan's goal is to weaken our faith and render us useless, and if he can't do it by causing us to question God and His goodness, he'll try to keep us feeling hopeless and frustrated by other means.  

In the next teaching, we will look at how we can begin to renew our minds.

Spiritual Warfare: Part Four

Chapter Twenty One:  How to stand against Satan's attacks

I hope that by now you realize that you are in the midst of a battle if you are a believer and follower of Christ.  It's your choice what part you play in it.  Understanding the battle and how one fights the enemy is vital for victory.  Through the Spirit of God, the Bible has unveiled this invisible world which surrounds us, and we see we have an enemy whose sole purpose is to stop the Kingdom of God from expanding and to destroy that which has already been built.  In order to do this, Satan and his fallen angels will attempt to make us as ineffective as possible in doing God's work and attempt to stop our growing in our relationship with Him.  We've looked at what tactics Satan uses, so now let's look at how you can not only stand against them but have victory over them.

Your number one way of defeating and standing against the attacks are being in prayer and walking close to God.  You'll remember that I earlier quoted I Peter 5: 8-9 which reads, “Be self-controlled and alert.  Your enemy the devils prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.  Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.”  What I want you to remember is that a lion’s roar is meant to paralyze its prey with fear, and Satan tries to use that same trick.  If a lion goes up against a small vulnerable antelope, the antelope falls prey to fear and is easily overtaken by the lion.  But if that lion tries to attack something much larger, something less vulnerable, less afraid, let's say an elephant, it knows that it's roar will have little effect and goes on to look for smaller, more vulnerable prey.  Satan works the same way.  He looks for vulnerable believers who succumb to fear easily, those who give in to temptation easily and rationalize it away, and other followers of Christ who are easy prey.  But a believer who is strong in the Word, who walks close with God, who does not give in to his flesh, is striving to walk holy before God, is quick to repent for sin, and knows deep in his heart he is a child of God is a much harder target for the enemy.  

How do we become a bold, fearless warrior for Christ?  Scripture tells us the answer in James  4:7, "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."  If you are truly submitted to God, desiring to walk holy before Him, and are strong in your walk with Him, Satan becomes like a toothless lion who can only roar and try to intimidate.  You will be able to resist the devil and all the ways he will try to attack you, and he will flee from you!  Satan knows that the worst believer to try to attack is one who is prayed up, in right standing before God, and is armed with the Word.   The question you must ask yourself is how submitted to God are you?  Are you 100% submitted or only playing around the edges, continuing to live life the way you want to?  Scripture makes it very clear that only those who are submitted to God will be able to resist the devil to the point that he will flee from you.  You're the only one who knows deep in your heart how serious you are in your walk with God.  

Scripture tells us how Satan tried to tempt Jesus several times when He was in the wilderness fasting and praying.  Satan tried to take advantage of Jesus' weakened physical condition.  Satan knew he could not conquer Jesus, so he had to resort to other deceptive means.  He went at it from the angle of tempting Jesus, knowing he was physically weak and offering Him things to get Him to give in (you can read about this in Matthew 4: 1-11).  Notice that every time Jesus' answer to Satan was quoting Scripture.  It was not yelling at Satan, or reminding him of who He was...He simply and plainly quoted Scripture.  This is why it is so important that you not only read Scripture but that you study it so that when the enemy attacks you the Holy Spirit will remind you what Scriptures you need to use against him.  

Even though memorizing Scripture is important (Psalm 119:11 says, "I have hidden your word in my heart so that I do not sin against you"), don't feel like you have to memorize the entire Bible in order to be prepared. Do not worry what to say for when the time comes the Holy Spirit will come upon you with power and tell you what to say. This way it is God operating through you against the enemy and not simply your own human understanding.   And don't feel you have to get all worked up and start yelling at Satan.  All you need to do is quietly and assertively use your authority as a child of God and speak Scripture at him as the Holy Spirit tells you.  Satan has no recourse against this weapon,  and will eventually give up and go looking for a more vulnerable believer that he can torment.  It may take a few times for him to realize that you're not going to easily give in, so be prepared.  Remember, he tempted Jesus several times before he finally gave up and left. 

Second Corinthians 10: 3-5 says, "For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ."  Because Christ is in us, and the Holy Spirit dwells in us, we can yield control of our "self" to God's spirit and resist Satan.  When we yield control to the Holy Spirit we will be filled with the Spirit, and the Lord will be able to transform us into the image of Christ.  The more we yield ourselves, the more like Christ we become.  This is why Romans 12: 1 refers to us being a "living sacrifice" which means that we need to be willing to give up our old ways and the things that we want.  Are you willing to give up all areas of your life, or do you want to hang on to some of them?  The ones you hang on to are the ones the enemy is going to use against you!  The more we surrender to Christ and become more like Him, the less the enemy can get to us.  Remember, James  4:7 is a warning to all believers... "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."

Matthew 26:41 tells us to, "Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”  As we will discuss in a future teaching, this is one of the areas that fasting really has a lot of power...because the flesh IS weak and we must discipline it to obey.  Our old nature, with its fallen ways of thinking are very susceptible to the deceptions of Satan.  We will give the enemy no inroads as long as we are walking right before God. 

There are seemingly innocent activities that one can be involved in.  Throughout the Bible, God warns us against being involved with anything of the occult, from  horoscopes to getting a psychic reading, on up to being involved in animal or human sacrifices (Deuteronomy 18:9-13, Leviticus 19:31, and  20:6,7).  God’s warnings are as real for us today as they were for those in ancient times.  God knows we can unknowingly open ourselves up to demonic forces when we meddle in occult practices, regardless of how strong we feel our walk with God is or how much we think they are only fun, trivial things to play with.  Second Corinthians 4:3,4 says, " And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing.  The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God."  Satan accomplishes his goals  by using trickery, lies and deception.  

If you have meddled in any of these areas, even just harmlessly playing around, you need to confess your sin and ask the Lord to break any hold that it may have over your life.  Also, pay attention to the music you listen to, and the movies or TV shows that you watch.  They can seem like harmless fun, but they can subtly draw you in and that will allow Satan to gain access into your life.  Guard yourselves from the world around you as he tries to use any means possible to get to you.

Satan is a liar.  Scripture tells us in John 8:44 that "...He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies."  He will try to convince you that you cannot stand up to him and that he is far stronger than you, that is why it is imperative that you know who you are as a child of God and that you have the authority as God's child to stand against and overcome Satan. Throughout the New Testament,  we are described by such phrases as “soldiers who have been enlisted” and “fighting the good fight”. Second Timothy 2:4 says, "No soldier on service entangles himself in the affairs of this life; that he may please him who enrolled him as a soldier." 

The first step in combating the enemy in your life is knowing the truth about Christ’s victory and Satan’s defeat. Colossians  2:15 reads, “And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.”  The second step is for you to take hold of the fact that as a believer you now have the authority and power to stand up to the enemy.

While Ephesians 6:12 explains to us that our battle is not against flesh and blood, Ephesians 6:13 goes on to tell us that we must “Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes (when pressure comes), you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand".  Ephesians 6: 10-16 says, "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power (the key here is to be strong in the Lord and in HIS mighty power).  Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.  Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,  and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.  Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people."

When I first became a believer and disciple of Christ, I was taught to put my armor on every morning just as I would clothe myself. This can be a beneficial exercise to go through when you are a young believer.  Doing this was a reminder to me that as my day started I needed to be aware that the enemy may try to hinder what God had for me that day.  But, as I matured in Christ, I began to realize that I was no longer figuratively taking off my armor at bedtime just to put it back on in the morning...what I  realized was that my armor had become a part of me and was constantly on,  so that I was continually ready.  When you grow in Christ, you will realize that this armor of God is not so much something you wear as it's something you have become; it's a mindset that develops within you as a result of having your spirit transformed by the Holy Spirit and you living in a perpetual state of closeness to God.

Remember, First John 4:4 says, "You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world."

If you do all you can and you discover that the enemy still harasses you, it’s quite possible that God’s allowing it in order to remove those things in you that stand in the way of your growing holier and closer to Him.  Satan's attacks will only affect you if God allows it.  God turns them from being used by the enemy to harm you to being something that He wants to use to refine you and purify you.    God will never allow Satan's attacks to go further than He intends.  James 1:2-4 says, "  Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds,  because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."  I Peter 1: 6-7 states, "In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.  These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire —may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed."   First Corinthians 10:13 assures us that, " No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted,  he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it."                   

God tests us to see what's in our heart.  He wants to see if he can use us and trust us.  He also wants us to see what's in our character.  He allows Satan to test us as He allowed Satan to test Job.  He allows it in order to develop our character, to cause us to draw closer and more dependent upon Him, and for us to recognize that we cannot do this alone.  He also wants us to learn to discern evil from good and to hate evil as much as He does.  He wants us to learn to use the Word against the enemy and to learn the authority that we have as believers and children of God.  If while going through this He shows you something that you've done that displeases Him, confess your sin, be repentant, deal with your sin as He shows it to you and then strive for a life of holiness.

Ephesians 6:11  tells us to  " Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. " The word wiles in this verse translates "ingenious trap or snare."  In order for a trap to work, the right bait is necessary...something inviting, tempting, alluring, desired.  Imagine how a hunter lays a snare to catch his prey.  He carefully lays it in place and covers it up so that it is camouflaged.  Then he places the bait to entice his prey.  Ask yourself for a minute, what bait has Satan used in your life?  Was he successful in trapping you?  These answers may be a good place to start in seeing where your vulnerabilities lay so that you can go to God and have Him help you get rid of them. 

Remember, we are spiritual beings inside this temporary physical body.  Therefore, the attacks of the enemy can also be directed towards the thoughts and beliefs that we hold in our mind.  This is another tactic that Satan uses to try to defeat us.   And, unfortunately, our own fleshly nature can also be at the root of our thought problems.  In the next series of teachings, we will look at how you can be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

Spiritual Warfare: Part Three

Chapter Twenty:  How Satan tries to attack followers of Christ:

John 10:10 tells us that Satan’s mission in this life is to steal, kill and destroy.  If he cannot accomplish this in a believer's life, he will try other tactics.  The enemy has several ways he tries to stop or interfere with your walk with God.   One way is that the enemy loves to ridicule and accuse us, and lure us away from following God.  The tricks are often subtle and seemingly innocent:  “You don’t have time to read your Bible today.”…"So what if you don’t pray regularly, it’s not going to hurt”..."Go ahead, indulge in that sin, no one will know and, after all, who's it really hurting?"..."What's wrong with adding in beliefs that don't line up with Scripture, after all they're harmless and look at how many other people are doing it".

At the root of it all is Satan's determination to get you to stray away from  your relationship with God.  And notice that I used the word "stray"...it's not a sudden walking away from God, but it's more of a drifting away.    Your walk with God becomes less important to you and before you know it, it has taken a backseat to other things going on in your life.  Satan knows that your strength lies in your walk with God and He’ll do whatever he can in order to interfere with your walk with God.  Giving into that temptation may not hurt anyone and may go unnoticed, but it will ultimately affect your walk with God because He knows... and unless you confess and repent of it, it will cause a barrier to come between you and God.  

Even though they may seem to be well meaning, Satan will try to get to you through other people, even other Christians.  They may say something or do something that they think is of their own doing, but it could very well be the enemy influencing them.  Even Peter, who was a very close disciple and friend to Jesus was used by Satan.  We see it in Matthew 16:23..." Jesus turned and said to Peter, 'Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.'”  And all Peter was doing was what he thought was right.  Prior to this exchange between Jesus and Peter, Jesus had been predicting his death to his disciples.  We read in Matthew 16: 21-22 " From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.  Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!”  When you first read Jesus' response to Peter it can seem a little harsh as Peter was simply protesting that he would not allow anything to happen to Jesus.  But Jesus knew, that for that moment,  Satan was using Peter to try to stop what Jesus had come to earth to do.  So, unless we're very careful and close to God in our walk, we, too can go from being doing God's will to all of sudden doing or saying things that are displeasing to God.

Whether another is a believer or not, it doesn't necessarily mean that what they are telling you is the truth, or that they're giving you good advice.  Your fellow Christians can be used by the enemy when they fail to stand against him in their own lives or when they, themselves, have drifted away.  This is one of the reasons I wrote an earlier teaching titled "Have you become deceived?", because unfortunately many believers have been led astray because of what other believers have taught them or encouraged them to do.  Again, another reason for you to stay strong with God and in your Scripture reading. Always, always balance what other believers tell you against the Scriptures and in prayer before God.  Just as Peter was, they can unknowingly be used to lead you astray.

Another way that Satan can try to thwart our walk with God is through our own carnal, fleshly nature.Satan is well aware of our fallen nature, our carnal flesh nature.  He will use it whenever and however he can to sideline us from doing God's work and growing in our relationship with God.  He may lure you with temptation or stir up your flesh by reminding you of an injustice that was done to you and get you to fixate on it.  He will appeal to the natural needs that God gave you (i.e., food, sex, rest) and distort them into such things as gluttony, lust and laziness.  Satan tries to distort our God-given desires so that we sin by fulfilling them in a way that is displeasing to God.  

Some  ways Satan will try to get to you through your flesh:

-pride in your life (arrogant pride or inferior pride)

- unbelief in your heart (Satan wants us to disbelieve God's word, His ability to do what He says He will and to doubt His love for us)

-fear in your heart (one of Satan's #1 tactics.  He wants us to be in constant fear and worry. Satan holds people in bondage by using fear in their lives.  He wants to get our focus off of trusting in God, especially when things don't look like they are going very well and we wonder what God is doing in our lives)

-discontentment with how your life is going (He wants you to be discontent in your situation and will try to get you to focus on finding contentment in the world instead.  This is another one of his lies as the only one that can give you continual contentment is God...only He can make you feel fulfilled inside, no matter what your circumstances.)

-discouragement (He'll try to get you to quit.  The way to overcome this is to praise God especially when you don't feel like it.  God wants you to learn to walk by faith and not by sight (your circumstances or what you think is going on).  Discouragement can lead to insecurity and you may end up giving up.  The ONLY time you should ever quit anything is if God tells you to!)

-condemnation (remember, God convicts us of our sin, but Satan condemns;  with God there is forgiveness of sin and reconciliation with Him, but Satan wants you to feel like you can never recover and you might as well give up.  When God convicts, it is as a result of a specific thing you have done and He makes you aware of it.  When Satan condemns, it's just an overall feeling that you've done something wrong but nothing can be pinpointed. Resist the enemy by praising the Lord, confessing any sin God has shown you and receive God's forgiveness.  Satan also attempts to stop us from feeling we have received God's forgiveness, but remember to walk by faith and not your feelings.)

-hindrances (Satan will try anything he can to get you off track.  He uses people, circumstances, struggles you're dealing with, temptations, or even try to bring up old sins you have repented of in order to block your usefulness for the Kingdom and to bring a halt to your walk with God.  He will use anything and anyone he can think of in order to make you ineffective.)

As you can see, Satan has many tricks and deceptions that he tries to use against believers.  You have to understand that he HATES believers, especially ones who are whole heartedly trying to grow in Christ and endeavoring to further the Gospel.  He will use every dirty trick he can think of.  As Scripture warns us in 1 Peter 5:8,9  "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walks about, seeking whom he may devour.  Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings."  But the good news is told to us in Colossians 1:13 which reminds us that, “For He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”

In Spiritual Warfare: Part Four,  we will look at how you can stand up to Satan's attacks and remain steadfast in your walk with God and in His will for your life.

Spiritual Warfare: Part Two

Chapter Nineteen: Your attitude towards Satan and spiritual warfare

C. S. Lewis wrote, "There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils.  One is to disbelieve in their existence.  The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them." 

What he is saying is to be balanced in how you approach spiritual warfare.  I believe God wants us to learn and be aware of what is going on in the spiritual realm and how it affects our lives and the world we live in, but He does not want us to become preoccupied with it or overly interested in it.   You simply need to learn about Satan and how he works just as any soldier studies their adversary... but do not get so caught up in it all that you lose sight of the fact that he is already a defeated foe.  Satan knows he has already lost, so all he can do is cause trouble and try to get people out of step in their walk with God.

When Jesus equipped His disciples for ministry He gave them power and authority.  Luke 9:1,2 says,  "When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases,  and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick."  Look at Jesus' answer to them in Luke 10:17-20 when they returned from doing what He had empowered them to do.  It reads "The seventy-two returned with joy and said, 'Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.'  He replied, 'I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.  I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.  However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.'” Jesus doesn’t want us focused on the enemy but focused on doing the Kingdom’s work.  

Satan would love to have you so focused on him that you waste valuable time that could be used growing in your relationship with God.  Don't get me wrong.  There will be times when you will need to fight him off, but if your focus is mainly on staying close to God, growing in your relationship with Him, and doing what He's asking you to do, the attacks from the enemy will simply be his way of trying to get you off course.  Keep your focus on God and on your walk with Him.

In Spiritual Warfare: Part Three,  we will look at how Satan tries to attack followers of Christ.

Spiritual Warfare: Part One

Chapter Eighteen:

According to the Scriptures, there exists an unseen spiritual dimension.  And this spiritual dimension is what is really behind the battle mankind faces .  However, it is not a battle against flesh and blood, but is against spiritual beings who hate man and his being created by God for His pleasure and in His image.

As a precursor to these teachings on spiritual warfare,  I purposely wrote the last two chapters, on being filled with the Holy Spirit, because it takes the power of God working in you, and with you, to fight against this unseen enemy.   While these next teachings are not meant to be an exhaustive study on the topic of Satan (also known as Lucifer, the devil) or spiritual warfare, it will provide the basics that a believer needs to know.  Once you have the basics, you can then go on and pray for the Lord to show you what you need to learn further, and how He wants to teach you. 

Did you know that this unseen world is actually just as real than the one we see with our eyes?  Scripture says in Ephesians 6:12, " For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."   Paul is saying that there are forces that are opposition to God and we cannot see them as they operate in another realm, a spiritual realm. 

When we were unbelievers, we were blinded to the things of God.  Second Corinthians 4:4 tells us, " The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God."   We were also unaware of how evil is real in the world and how the enemy influences things.  Once we join the family of God, we are awakened to spiritual things.  We realize that Satan is engaged in an all-out effort to destroy mankind, and in particular, believers.  Therefore, as believers and followers of Christ we pose a serious threat to him and what he wants to accomplish on this earth. 

The apostle Paul's many references to spiritual warfare throughout the New Testament indicate that he considered warring against the powers  of darkness to be a normal activity for Christians. Unfortunately many believers today do not think of Satan as a "being", but rather look at evil as just a bad influence in our world.  So,  who is this Satan, and where did he come from?

This war began a long time ago, before man was even on this planet.  God created many angels and one of them was named Lucifer. It is recorded in Scripture that Lucifer became discontent and out of pride decided that he wanted to elevate himself above God.  Isaiah 14: 12-15 tells of this event, "How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! You said in your heart, 'I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.' But you are brought down to the grave, to the depths of the pit."   

 Lucifer challenged God, and from that day forth the battle of good  against evil has dominated our world. Pride and rebellion led to Lucifer's fall (hereafter referred to as Satan),  and one third of the angels rebelled with him against God and as a result all were banished from Heaven.  The name Satan means "adversary, or one who opposes."

Then, God created the Garden of Eden and gave it to Adam and Eve to become its caretakers.  Satan, this fallen archangel, boiling over with anger toward God and His creatures, lurked about the Garden looking for an inroad where he could come between Adam and Eve and God.  Ultimately he persuaded Eve to believe his lies about God, and as a result, she ate of the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.  Then she had Adam eat from it.  At that point, their spiritual eyes were opened and they realized what they had done...they had doubted God which led to their disobeying God and, as a result, had allowed sin to enter into their hearts and into the world.  This one act of disobedience on the part of Adam and Eve had caused the eternal separation of man from God...Satan had achieved his purpose.

You can read the account of all of this in Genesis 2:15 - 3:24.

As mentioned earlier, Satan wasn’t alone in being banished from heaven.  Scripture says that one third of the angelic beings revolted with him, and are doing his bidding to this very day.  Satan is their leader, their commander, in this great war. Since Satan is a created being, he can’t be everywhere at once the way God can be, so he has to rely on  his demons.  Because he’s their commander, they follow his orders, going to and fro throughout the earth, doing his bidding. 

What many believers don't fully comprehend is that as a result of Adam and Eve doubting God and sinning, they gave over the rule of this earth to Satan. Jesus referred to Satan as being the ruler of this world in John 12:31 when He said, " Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out."  The book of Matthew also shows that Satan is the ruler of this earth.  Jesus had been sent into the desert, and after fasting for forty days and forty nights, Satan came to Him several times to tempt Him to give up.  One of the temptations he used to get Jesus to give in was recorded in Matthew 4: 8-9.  It says, " Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor.  'All this I will give you,' he said, 'if you will bow down and worship me.'"  

Obviously Satan could not give away something if he did not own it.  Jesus' reply was not to tell Satan he didn't own the earth, because He knew Satan had received dominion over it through Adam and Eve's disobedience to God and allowing sin to come into the world.  Jesus' only recourse was to quote Scripture and tell Satan to leave Him alone (Matthew 4:10).  It's hard to believe, but Satan is currently the ruler of this earth, and as a result he harasses mankind, especially followers of Christ.  In the next teaching we will look at what your attitude needs to be toward Satan and spiritual warfare.