spiritual battle, Keep From the Evil One (gospels)

Jesus was explaining to the disciples that He needed to leave them (not only because He was to be crucified and resurrected after three days, but Jesus was going to return to heaven soon after that), so He was also giving them comforting and encouraging words...

(John 14:12-15) “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father. 13 Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it. 15 If you love Me, you will keep My commandments."

Up until the Day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit would only rest on people or fill people temporarily...

(John 14:16-17) “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; 17 that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you."

Now, not only does the Holy Spirit indwell all believers (as soon as someone becomes a believer)...

(John 14:26-27) “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful."

Jesus mentions that Satan, the ruler of the world, has nothing in Him - meaning - Satan has no power over Jesus!  Jesus is holy (sinless)...

(John 14:28-31) “You heard that I said to you, ‘I go away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved Me, you would have rejoiced because I go to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. 29 Now I have told you before it happens, so that when it happens, you may believe. 30 I will not speak much more with you, for the ruler of the world is coming, and he has nothing in Me; 31 but so that the world may know that I love the Father, I do exactly as the Father commanded Me. Get up, let us go from here."

Jesus, being God, is holy and sinless, and therefore Satan has nothing "in" Him.  BUT when people are born into this sinful world, they are born with a sinful nature.  Therefore Satan would have something "in" everyone - UNTIL someone becomes a believer and the Holy Spirit enters their soul to seal them for all eternity.

As Christians, God considers us righteous.  And having God in us, we have authority over the demons.  Although we will still struggle against the demons and temptation.  So what exactly should we do?  I've seen Christians go out to "fight" evil spirits.  But here Jesus tells says, as He is praying for us (note verse 20 - even then, He was praying for all believers)...

(John 17:13-21)  “But now I come to You; and these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves. 14 I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 15 I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth. 18 As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. 19 For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth.

20 “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; 21 that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me."

Jesus not only prays for us, but He taught us how we should pray.  The Lord's prayer covers all the basic things that our prayers should include...

(Matthew 6:9-13)  “Pray, then, in this way:

‘Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.
10 ‘Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
11 ‘Give us this day our daily bread.
12 ‘And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 ‘And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’

Even though verse 24 below says we need to choose between God and "wealth", the promise of riches, or anything else that makes a person think they can be independent and self-sufficient - it is all of Satan...

(Matthew 6:22-24)  “The eye is the lamp of the body; so then if your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!

24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.

From this we see:
- Satan, the ruler of the world, has nothing in Jesus, and so Satan has no power over Jesus! (John 14:30)
- Jesus prays for us, that He will keep us from the evil one (John 17:15)
- we are to pray that God delivers us from evil and temptation (Matthew 6:13)
- we need to pick a side because we cannot love and serve two masters (Matthew 6:24)
- as believers, we should be in the world, but not of the world (John 17:14-18)
- the Holy Spirit indwells believers to help us (John 14:16-17, 26)
- the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth (John 14:17)

Personal experience:  we are in the world, but not of the world.  Anything of this world belongs to Satan.  This would include anything that takes our focus off of God (as our priority in life), causing us to rely on something or somebody else, or even causing us to rely on ourselves.

The pursuit of wealth is a tough one, because we have to earn a living to survive.  It's the same as trying to lose weight, because we still have to eat in order to survive.  So it comes down to our motives, our attitudes, and the amount of dedication towards these things.

Today's takeaway:  everyone has to choose who they are going to love and serve.  When we choose God's side, the indwelling Holy Spirit seals us for eternity.  For our daily walk, we need to keep choosing God's side.  To help with that, we need to be praying that He delivers us and keeps us from temptation and from evil.  At the same time, we are not to worry!

Basically - continuously - set our hearts and minds on seeking out God's will...

(Matthew 6:5-8)  “When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. 6 But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

7 “And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words. 8 So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.

(Matthew 6:19-21)  “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; 21 for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

(Matthew 6:31-34)  Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ 32 For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

34 “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

(1 John 2:15-17)  Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. 17 The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.

(Colossians 3:1-4)  Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. 3 For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.

spiritual battle, Believers Have Authority Over Demons (gospels)

Besides the twelve disciples, Jesus had also sent out 70 other followers.  And just like the twelve, they were told not to carry any money or extra clothing, since they were to rely fully on God...

(Luke 10:1-4)  Now after this the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them in pairs ahead of Him to every city and place where He Himself was going to come. 2 And He was saying to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest. 3 Go; behold, I send you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. 4 Carry no money belt, no bag, no shoes; and greet no one on the way..."

Jesus even told them what they should say, and their "peace" would actually guide them, which if it was not of the Holy Spirit, it certainly echoed the working and guidance of the Holy Spirit...

(Luke 10:5-12)  “Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this house.’ 6 If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you. 7 Stay in that house, eating and drinking what they give you; for the laborer is worthy of his wages. Do not keep moving from house to house. 8 Whatever city you enter and they receive you, eat what is set before you; 9 and heal those in it who are sick, and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ 10 But whatever city you enter and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say, 11 ‘Even the dust of your city which clings to our feet we wipe off in protest against you; yet be sure of this, that the kingdom of God has come near.’ 12 I say to you, it will be more tolerable in that day for Sodom than for that city..."

Jesus already knew that many towns and cities would reject Jesus and His followers, even though God was right there among them, giving them proof that if they would only "see" and accept Him - they would be living in a garden-of-Eden-like paradise...

(Luke 10:13-16)  “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles had been performed in Tyre and Sidon which occurred in you, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. 14 But it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the judgment than for you. 15 And you, Capernaum, will not be exalted to heaven, will you? You will be brought down to Hades!

16 “The one who listens to you listens to Me, and the one who rejects you rejects Me; and he who rejects Me rejects the One who sent Me.”

When the 70 returned, interestingly, the thing they were really exited about, is just a side-point...

(Luke 10:17)  The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.” 

When Satan (Lucifer) fell, the power of Satan was broken.  The fact that believers have authority over demons is proof of that.  But we have to understand a few things - we only have authority over demons - because of Jesus' power, and because Jesus has given us the authority!  It is all because of Jesus.

Most importantly, we should not get sidetracked over the fact that we have authority over the demons.  We need to be excited that - because of Jesus - we have been saved from our sins!!!...

(Luke 10:18-20)  And He said to them, “I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning. 19 Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you. 20 Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.”

From this we see:
- Jesus watched Satan's fall (Luke 10:18)
- Satan's fall from God's grace was immediate, like lightning (Luke 10:18)
- Jesus has given believers the authority over the power of the enemy (Luke 10:19)
- believers have authority over the demons in Jesus' name (Luke 10:17)
- spirits are subject to us, which is only a side benefit (Luke 10:20)

Personal experience:  it's interesting how people can get so caught up in the power of the supernatural, and then miss the point.  For believers, even while we have this "side-benefit", if we are not doing something weird, crazy and misdirected, like going out to slay demons, we often completely forget to use our "benefit".

I'll explain.  The other day, something was just off.  And I didn't recognize it.  I SHOULD HAVE BEEN praying immediately.  But I wasn't.  Instead, all day long, my husband and I just kept picking away at each other over every silly little thing.  Even while we were in different rooms, doing different tasks.  And the feelings of irritation just kept building.

When we both sat down for supper, we finally asked of each other, "Why are you so annoyed with me?!"  "No!  YOU are annoyed with me!"

It was then that I felt the "cloud" of oppression in the room.  It seemed "thicker" at that point.  Maybe because we were now in the same room.  Maybe we each had a demon following us around that day???  I'm only speculating.  But I motioned to the air, saying, "I feel a spirit of deception here!  We should just ignore it and stop buying into it."

My husband exclaimed again, "But, no, you are just really irritating me."  And I echoed that, "Exactly!  And you have been really irritating me!  It's a deception!  I mean, we both know we like each other."  lol.  Well, as soon as we had voiced all of this, even without praying, the "cloud" went away and the rest of the evening was peaceful and lovely.

Today's takeaway:  how quickly do we forget the power of prayer?  Is it because sometimes we like the competition within conflict?  And winning becomes our focus, in order to feed our fake feeling of self-empowerment?

God's peace should be the thing that wins every time.  When this happens, we all win!!!...

(Matthew 5:9)  Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

(Romans 15:13)  Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

(2 Thessalonians 3:16)  Now may the Lord of peace Himself continually grant you peace in every circumstance. The Lord be with you all!

(1 Peter 3:8-12)  To sum up, all of you be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit; 9 not returning evil for evil or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead; for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing. 10 For,

“The one who desires life, to love and see good days, Must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit.
11 “He must turn away from evil and do good; He must seek peace and pursue it.
12 “For the eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous, And His ears attend to their prayer, But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”

spiritual battle, Apostles Given Power Over Demons (gospels)

I'm finding this first bit of scripture very interesting for several reasons.  Mainly because Judas Iscariot was one of the twelve who was given the authority to cast out demons.  Not only was he not really a believer, but he would soon betray Jesus.  And even though Jesus knew all of this, He chose Judas anyway to be one of the twelve, and gave him (temporary) authority to cast out demons.

I think it helps me to look at this scenario with Judas Iscariot in the same way as the scenario with king Saul.  Even after he had become prideful and disobedient, the Holy Spirit did still (temporarily) rest on Saul on at least one occasion (like when he prophesied, in 1 Samuel 19:23-24).

Obviously - the Holy Spirit was still working in a slightly different way at this point in time, than He does today in the Church Age.  And with this line of thinking, I'm only assuming that these men were given the authority to cast out demons through the (temporary) power of the Holy Spirit...

(Mark 3:13-19)  And He went up on the mountain and summoned those whom He Himself wanted, and they came to Him. 14 And He appointed twelve, so that they would be with Him and that He could send them out to preach, 15 and to have authority to cast out the demons. 16 And He appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom He gave the name Peter), 17 and James, the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James (to them He gave the name Boanerges, which means, “Sons of Thunder”); 18 and Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot; 19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Him.

Here we see the disciples being sent out to preach, cast out demons, and to heal the sick...

(Mark 6:7-13)  And He summoned the twelve and began to send them out in pairs, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits; 8 and He instructed them that they should take nothing for their journey, except a mere staff—no bread, no bag, no money in their belt— 9 but to wear sandals; and He added, “Do not put on two tunics.” 10 And He said to them, “Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave town. 11 Any place that does not receive you or listen to you, as you go out from there, shake the dust off the soles of your feet for a testimony against them.” 12 They went out and preached that men should repent. 13 And they were casting out many demons and were anointing with oil many sick people and healing them.

No where in the Bible do we see Judas himself casting out a demon or performing any miracle.  Perhaps a good question would be:  Did Judas Iscariot just pretend to cast out demons?  Perhaps he just remained in the background pretending to support the ministry?

I believe the answer is here in Jesus' warning about false prophets...

(Matthew 7:15-23)  “Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. 16 You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? 17 So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 So then, you will know them by their fruits.

21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. 22 Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’"

On the other hand, the disciples came across other people who were casting out demons and had an issue with that.  But Jesus defended the other believers, and warned the disciples not to hinder them...

(Mark 9:38-41)  John said to Him, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and we tried to prevent him because he was not following us.” 39 But Jesus said, “Do not hinder him, for there is no one who will perform a miracle in My name, and be able soon afterward to speak evil of Me. 40 For he who is not against us is for us. 41 For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because of your name as followers of Christ, truly I say to you, he will not lose his reward..."

From this we see:
- the twelve disciples were given the (temporary) authority to cast out demons (Matthew 10:1,7-8, Mark 3:15, 6:7, Luke 9:1)
- the twelve disciples were casting out demons, although we never see Judas actually doing that (Mark 6:13)
- all (true) believers have the authority to cast out demons (Mark 9:38-40, Luke 9:49-50)
- people who are not against us are for us (Mark 9:40, Luke 9:50)
- beware of false prophets who are wolves in sheep's clothing (Matthew 7:15)
- there will be people who pretend to cast out demons (Matthew 7:22-23)

Personal experience:  we are to beware of the wolves in sheep's clothing, but I've seen "vigilance" get way out of hand.  (In a church, years ago...)  Elders were so intent on keeping out "evil" that they began to judge and attack any and all believers as soon as they made the smallest of mistakes.

None of us are perfect!  God knows this and THIS is why God offers us His grace!!!  So we too are to be graciously loving, forgiving, patient and encouraging!  So with lots of prayer, that church turned itself around and got back to practicing these things!

All true churches will at different times experience those ebbs and flows... those times of struggles... If they never did, that would be odd, and even suspicious.

Therefore, I find it very disheartening when Christians speak out negatively about any Bible-teaching church.  Especially over time, their gossip, even if it had been true at one point, could be very, very wrong as God sorts out issues within a particular believer or within a particular group of believers.

I've also heard Christians brag about their church being better than others.  Or worse - that their church is the only church in the area that teaches truth!  Now, it's great that someone loves their church.  By all means, tell people how awesome it is.  But it's not a competition.  Never judge or put down another Bible-teaching church.  It's not any better or worse - it's just different!

Today's takeaway:  if someone is not against us, then they are for us.

All Bible-teaching churches are on the same team.  We are all part of the same family!  We need to celebrate together over each other's successes!  We need to be praying for each other - that all churches continue growing and experiencing Jesus and striving for unity.

If we are doing or saying anything to tear down another believer, or our church, or any other church, then we are aligning ourselves with Satan...

(1 Thessalonians 5:4-11)  But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day would overtake you like a thief; 5 for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of night nor of darkness; 6 so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober. 7 For those who sleep do their sleeping at night, and those who get drunk get drunk at night. 8 But since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation. 9 For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep, we will live together with Him. 11 Therefore encourage one another and build up one another, just as you also are doing.