What Is The First Question Asked In The Bible?

1.         Reading your Bible daily?

By now, a number of you have been diligently following the 3 year Bible Reading Plan ( refer my blog dated 7 May 2010).  From my conversations with some of you, I can see that when we do this together, we spur each other.  For instance, one husband was telling me, “I’m on Genesis 27 already” and he was by then a week ahead of the Reading Plan.  His wife next to him chipped in confidently “I’m already on Genesis 37 as I like to finish the story that I am reading and stopping in one chapter leaves me dissatisfied”.  The husband quipped, “Now I must catch up!”  Such healthy banter is encouraging.  As we read the Bible together, we will find that the going gets easier.

2.         Don’t give up

For those of you who have not started or are behind schedule, don’t give up! Start now.  When I followed other Bible Reading Plans, I used to be as late as 3 months behind.  Then I decided to read just 2 portions a day instead of the regular one portion.  I soon found myself catching up and even surpassing what was on the schedule.  Don’t worry if you’re behind.  Just keep going.  It’s not a sin to be behind schedule.  I’m not putting you on a guilt trip.  But reading the Bible is good for you.

3.         Refresh your soul and spirit

God’s word is spirit and life (John 6:63).  It is vitamins for your soul and spirit.  Your daily intake of ideas, images and values from the world can harm your inner life.  Your self  induced stress weakens your mind.  Therefore, you need God’s word to wash away these pollutants of the mind and keep you refreshed in the Lord.  Through His Word, God will refresh the weary and satisfy the faint (Jeremiah 31:25).  Refresh your heart in Christ (Philemon 1:20).  Refresh your memory as you reflect on His words (2 Peter 1:13) and remember the wonderful things He has done for you (Psalm 111:2).

4.         Satan is deceitful

Let’s have some Bible trivia.  What is the first question asked in the Bible?  The answer…..it’s…..“Did God really say….?” (Genesis 3:1).  This question was asked by Satan in the Garden of Eden as he caused Adam and Eve to doubt the goodness of God.  The evil one continues today to make you doubt that God is good.  He makes you think that God is withholding His goodness from you and is giving it to others and not to you.  Don’t fall for Satan’s tricks.  He is a liar and very deceitful.

The first trace of Satan’s deceitfulness can be found in the book of  Genesis.  In Genesis 2:25, we read “the man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame”.  The Hebrew word “naked” used here is “arown”.  Then in Genesis 3:1, we read that the serpent was “crafty” and the Hebrew word for “crafty” is “aruwn”.  Can you see how similar the words “arown” and “aruwn” are?  Satan can disguise himself as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14), identify with your vulnerabilities (nakedness) to deceive you and make you doubt God.

In the Parable of the wheat and the weeds (Matthew 13:24-30; 36-43), you again see how he confuses believers and makes it difficult for them to differentiate facts from fiction.

5.         God’s word clarifies your thinking

When I was in Israel, I saw in the Valley of Elah (where David fought Goliath) wheat and weeds growing together in the field.  They look so similar, it was difficult to tell them apart.  Beware of the devil’s deception.  You need the Word of God to clarify your thinking and divide facts from fiction.  Hebrews 4:12, says that “the Word of God is living and active.  Sharper than any double edged sword.  It penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart”. 

Read God’s Word and it will help you to discern what you see, hear and think.  It will protect you from Satan’s first deceitful question-“Did God really say…..?”  It will keep you from sinning and even if you do sin, God’s Word will  remind you that Jesus defends you from Satan’s accusations (1 John 2:1) and you need not feel guilty.  Once you confess your sins, God forgives and gives you strength to start afresh.  Therefore my friends, read the Bible.

Spiritual Attacks ( B )

1. Satan attacks during ordinary activities.

I mentioned earlier that spiritual attacks should not be restricted to mean violent, forceful and aggressive manifestations of demonic spirits eg. demon possession of a person.  In fact, it is when a Christian’s guard is down and when Satan masquerades as an angel of light that he does most damage.  During such apparently ‘innocent’ times, a godly person can be spiritually attacked without his knowledge.

2. Example of Peter under attack.

In Matthew 16:13-20, Jesus asked His disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”  Simon Peter replied, “You are Christ, the Son of the living God.”  Jesus commended Peter, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.  And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it”.  After such a commendation, Peter must have felt extremely approved by both Jesus and his peers.  Before long, pride crept into Peter’s heart and he became self centered.

In the subsequent verses from Matthew 16:21-26, we see a Peter under spiritual attack.  After Jesus’ commendation of Peter, He began to explain to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that He must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.

Peter took Jesus aside and rebuked Him. He said, “Never Lord.  This shall never happen to you!”  Jesus turned to Peter “Get behind me Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of man.”  From a position of commendation, Peter had fallen into a position of rebuke by Jesus. 

Peter’s pride and thinking were not of God.  It was of Satanic origin.  Jesus recognised Peter’s heart had been influenced by Satan who masqueraded as an angel of light.  Satan was using Peter to cast doubts upon Jesus’ mission.  Satan was using Peter and Peter didn’t know he was being used.  Peter still looked like Peter.  He wasn’t demon possessed.  He didn’t exhibit weird behaviour like speaking with a strange voice.  Peter was just Peter.

3. We are attacked when we least expect it.

This story reminds us that we too can be like Peter and be subject to spiritual attacks when we least expect it.  It is because  the spiritual attack appears ordinary that it deceives us.  Satan manipulates our self centeredness and we are attacked without our knowledge. 

For instance, after hearing an inspiring sermon in church on Sunday, you proceed to your car and find that someone has parked his car indiscriminately such that you can’t exit.  You begin to feel anger at how inconsiderate the other driver can be.  You fester in your sense of personal injury and the encouraging thoughts from the inspiring sermon you heard earlier are replaced by angry thoughts.  You may not know it bit but you had just been attacked spiritually.

In another instance, you have just done your Quiet Time and felt so loved by God.  You thanked Him for caring for you and looking out for you.  You head for the bus stop to catch the bus to work.  You wait and wait.  The bus is late.  You become increasingly worried that you’ll be late for work and your boss won’t be happy.  More worrisome thoughts fill your mind even as the bus pulls up at your bus stop.The assuring thoughts gained during Quiet Time are displaced by worrisome thoughts

What happened here?  It’s another spiritual attack.  It’s an attack that confronts you in your harmless, day to day activities.  You didn’t expect Satan to attack this way.  You thought he only attacks when it is dark and violence or force is manifested.  Instead, Satan attacked by way of a late bus or a blocked car and not a demon possessed person.

4. Not frontal assaults

As the Bible reminds us, “Be self-controlled and alert.  Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8).  Be alert.  Spiritual attacks are not always frontal assaults.  Instead, spiritual attacks are deceptively simple and erode the peace which you have in Christ as you go along in your daily activities.

Spiritual Attacks (A)

1.         What is a spiritual attack?

I was asked a question, “Which area of your life are you vulnerable to spiritual attacks?  As I reflected on this, I asked myself, “What is a spiritual attack?  Immediately, my thoughts were drawn to the show “Exorcist”.  My immediate response to the term was that spiritual attacks involved the violent and obvious manifestation of demons.  These evil spirits take possession of someone and make them do what they would not normally do.  These demon possessed person sometimes speak in strange voices, display abnormal strength, are smelly and live in unclean places (Luke 8: 26-39).  But are spiritual attacks always associated with violent evil forces?

2.         Spiritual attacks need not be obvious

I don’t think that spiritual attacks need to be always dark, violent and oppressive. When the evil spirits reveal themselves in such a gross manner, Christians are put on guard.  Immediately, Christians are aware of the evil forces at work and would mobilise fellow believers to wage spiritual warfare against such distinct manifestations of evil.  Christians who are in the ‘deliverance ministry’ are mobilised. 

There are some churches where certain believers are given the responsibility of casting out demons in accordance with established exorcism practices.   Such mobilisation of ‘good’ forces against ‘evil’ forces make up what we often term ‘spiritual warfare’ as the forces of darkness have mounted an offensive and the forces of good must respond aggresively and defeat them.

3.         Satan masquerades as an angel of light

When Satan and his evil forces reveal their spiritual attacks in such an obvious manner, he will encounter an aggressive response from believers.  However, Satan is cunning and deceitful.  He will prefer to attack when a Christian’s guard is down. 

The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 11:13-15 that Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.  His servants masquerade as servants of righteousness.  They don’t appear as dark evil forces possessing a body.  Instead they appear as false apostles, deceitful workmen in the midst of the body of Christ.  Such undercover actions by Satan and his evil spirits are more damaging than the frontal assaults of demonic possession as they are not distinctive and blend into our everyday activities.

In my next blog, I will give an example of how a godly man was attacked spiritually without being seemingly possessed by Satan or his evil cohorts.

Are There Ghosts?

 

“Now they are dead and will not live again; their ghosts will not arise”

                                         (Isaiah 26:14 – Good News Bible).

1.         False beliefs

Many people grow up believing there are ghosts of the departed who continue to haunt them or occupy places in which violence had taken place.  Certain Chinese funeral rites include the belief that the spirit of the departed will return to the  dwelling of the deceased. 

In certain places where a violent murder had taken place, some believe that the place remains haunted by the spirit of the murdered victim.  Documentaries and movies reinforce such beliefs that there are spirits which continue to remain on earth after they died and they would continue to disturb the living.

In the seventh month of the lunar calendar, there is the festival of the hungry ghosts during which there is a belief that many of the spirits of the dead are let loose from hell and roam the earth.  Food had to be placed to placate them and certain rites had to be observed to deal with such hungry ghosts.  In the west, they have Halloween which also reinforces the belief that ghosts are still around.

2.         Two places

What do Christians believe?  Are there ghosts?  In Isaiah 26:14 quoted above, the Bible states clearly that the dead will not live again.  Their ghosts will not arise.  If such is the case, then where do all these ghosts come from?  Why do some people say they had encountered such  ghosts?

From the story of Lazarus and the rich man (Luke 16:19-31), it seems that when a person dies, the spirit leaves the body and goes to either of two places.  One place is to be at Abraham’s side which implies a resting place.  The other place is in hell where there is  torment.  The two places are separated by a great chasm such that people from either side cannot cross over to the other side.

3.         Satan deceives

If the spirits of the departed are not around on earth, who then are these ghosts?  I understand these ghosts to be the evil spirits of Satan sent to deceive the world.  They perpetuate false beliefs such that there are religious rituals in which people worship such spirits which will influence them away from God.

4.         Christians are protected

As Christians, we don’t believe there are ghosts.  Therefore, we need not fear them. If we ever encounter such ghosts, we verbally declare , ” In the name of Jesus my Saviour and Protector, be gone and don’t disturb me ! “  We claim that He who is in us is greater than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4).  The Holy Spirit in us will always protect us from the evil one and his evil spirits.

Beware of Satan’s Tactics (D)

 

I have been writing about spiritual warfare and have outlined the tactics used by Satan to hinder our walk with the Lord.  Such spiritual warfare is not clearly evident to us who live in a material world.  But as Christians we know that we do not wrestle with flesh and blood but with principalities and powers who operate in the spiritual realm (Ephesians 5:12).  We are warned to be careful of the devil’s schemes. 

 

(7)            Temptations

 

When the devil comes as “an angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:14), we can easily fall for it because we are unsuspecting.  The Bible describes such “angels of light” as people and not spirits.  These angels of light are people who appear to be Christians but actually do not think and act like a true believer.  By their worldly thinking, these angels of light tempt believers from truly following the Lord.  Because they think differently and operate within the Christian community, they can undermine faith and trust in the Lord. 

 

 

In Paul’s time and I believe even in our time, such worldly Christians would appear spiritual and teach believers that they need to work for their salvation to earn the love of God.  They undermine the belief that we are saved by the grace of God and the death of Jesus on the cross.  Instead, they tell unsuspecting believers that they have yet to achieve a deeper life with Christ.  They make the salvation of Jesus something we strive for rather than something we receive humbly. 

 

 

They erroneously call such efforts sanctification when what they amount to is nothing more than salvation by works.  It is no better than the legalistic Judaizers whom Paul had to denounce during his ministry of the gospel of grace.  This tactic of Satan to hinder believers in their walk with the Lord is tempting as it appeals to the believer’s pride that he can do something to merit the Lord’s favour.

 

(a)            Tempted To Strive By Own Efforts

 

For instance, a believer may think that “If I study my Bible everyday, attend church prayer meetings regularly, lead in church ministries, go on mission trips etc, God will be pleased with me.  Then, when I sin, I can come to God and He will forgive me.  After all, I have been faithful to Him by working hard for Him in the aforementioned activities.” 

 

 

Such thinking is erroneous.  It is no different from the Judaizers whom Paul denounced in the book of Galatians.  It is no different from the Judaizer’s thinking that it is not enough to be a believer of Christ.  You need to be circumcised and observe the rules and regulations of Judaism.

 

(b)      Don’t strive, only believe in Christ’s Finished   Work For You

 

It is exactly against such ‘salvation by works’ mentality which Paul denounced against.  As a believer, you need to know that Christ’s death on the cross is sufficient for you.  You have been forgiven by God because of Christ.  God is pleased with you not because of the Christian works you do but because of what Christ did for you on the cross. 

 

 

Nothing good you do for God will ever impress Him.  Nothing bad you do will ever shock God.  We are loved by God because He loves Jesus.  God looks at us through the person of Jesus.  It’s what Jesus did for you at the cross that impresses God.  He will forgive you for your sins because Jesus is at His right side pleading for you.

 

Satan is your adversary.  He is like a lawyer who accuses you of your sin before God (Zechariah 3:1).  But you also have another lawyer (Jesus) who sits at the right hand side of God defending you all the time (Hebrews 8:1). 

 

 

God listens to Jesus your advocate who defends you but rebukes Satan your adversary.  If you depend on your own efforts to live right before God, you will fail because your spirit is willing but your flesh is weak (Matthew 26:41).  However, if you believe in the finished work of Jesus on the cross and trust in His efforts, you will live right before God.  Ultimately, it’s not about what you do for God but what Christ did for you.

 

 

 

(C)       You Overcome Temptations By Believing In The Power Of Grace

 

Once you recognize that you are right with God due to grace; that you don’t deserve and cannot earn the salvation of God except through Jesus Christ, you can stop striving and start believing. 

 

 

Satan will always tempt you and work on your pride.  But Jesus reminds you to be humble and rely on the grace of God.  Without grace, it’s hard to live the Christian life.  However, once you believe that what Jesus did for you on the cross is sufficient to enable you to live the Christian life, then your efforts at studying the Bible, praying, outreach, church leadership etc are done in response to God’s grace in your life.  Your efforts don’t make you proud.  You are just grateful that God’s grace in your life gives you power to please Him (2 Corinthians 12:9).

 

You will discover that you overcome Satan’s temptations not by resisting temptations but by believing that God’s grace is sufficient for you in every testing ( 2 Corinthians 12:9 ). 

 

 

You overcome not by striving.  You overcome by believing in the grace of God which is the power you need to master life.  To truly master life, submit to the Master of Life, our Lord Jesus Christ whom the Bible describes as grace.  In the final analysis, grace is the person of Jesus (John 1:17).

Beware of Satan’s Tactics (C)

 

 

In my previous blogs, I said that we need to be aware of Satan’s tactics of using lies and accusations to hinder our walk with the Lord.  In this blog, I will describe a third tactic he uses to hinder us.-

 

6.         Steal  

 

While Satan has been known to lie and accuse, one of his major priority is to steal the Word of God from us.  In the parable of the sower, we read that “a farmer went out to sow his seed.  As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up.”  When the disciples asked Jesus what the parable meant, He told them that “the seed is the Word of God.  Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the Word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved.” (Luke 8:5, 12).

 

These verses clearly show that Satan’s aim is to steal God’s Word which has been planted in the hearer’s heart.  For example, a member of the congregation may fall asleep during the sermon.  Satan has stolen the Word from him.  Another member leaves the service, gets to his parked car only to find another car blocking his way.  His irritation mounts and the sermon message on love which he just heard is forgotten.  Satan steals the Word so that it has no chance to take route in our lives.

 

            (a)       God’s Word Has Power

 

Why does Satan want to steal God’s Word from us as soon as we hear it?  The Bible says in Mark 4:26-29 that God’s word has power.  He told another parable about a man who scattered seed on the ground.  Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how.  All by itself the soil produces grain – first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head.  As soon as the grass is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.”

 

Jesus said the Kingdom of God is like that growing seed.  The Word of God in a believer’s heart grows with a divine power of its own.  Satan knows that.  But the hearer of the Word may not know that.  Once you realise how special is God’s Word which you hear, you will guard it jealously.  You would want to read the Word, meditate on it so as to implant the seed deeper into your spirit.  You would want to hear cds, watch dvds and read books that centre their message on God and Jesus.  The more you read and hear, the more you will grow.

 

(b)       Tell It To The Lord

 

Satan doesn’t want you to grow and he will do his utmost to steal the Word of God from you.  Therefore be alert to this tactic of his.  When you sense at any moment that your attitudes, emotions and behaviour are not in line with the Biblical truths you know, pause and tell it to the Lord.  This act of talking to God and confessing your sin to Him  will make Satan flee because he cannot thrive in the presence of God.

 

 Confessing means agreeing with God that what you thought and did was wrong. Then believe that God has forgiven you. There is no need to plead for His forgiveness. God has already forgiven you because of Jesus’ death on the cross. You simply need to believe, Don’t need to plead. Don’t need to feel condemned.

 

When we acknowledge our weakness and humbly ask God to help us without feeling any condemnation before our loving Father, the devil can never get the better of us.  He can only triumph over us if we give him the power to accuse us when we condemn ourselves. 

Let God know your weakness and trust in His forgiveness of your sin.  God’s forgiveness of sin gives you strength to overcome your weakness and defeat Satan.  When you speak to God about your weakness and draw on His strength, you have overcome Satan by the testimony of your word (Revelation 12:11).  In your weakness, you have found strength in the Lord (2 Corinthians 12:10).  Satan cannot steal the Word from you when you are confessing and agreeing with God who lovingly strengthens you in your walk with Him.

 

In my concluding blog, I will talk about the last tactic used by Satan to hinder our walk with the Lord.

Beware of Satan’s Tactics (B)

 Hi Friends,

 

I am back from my holiday with my family. Just managed to clear my work and can now continue with my blog. Thank you for your patience. Here is the second instalment :-

 

I mentioned in my previous blog that Satan is a defeated foe who continues to plant in our minds lies which he wants us to believe.  To counter him, we replace his lies with God’s truths.  We speak to our inner self and let the light of God’s truths drive out the darkness of Satan’s lies.

 

4.            Accusations

 

The next tactic that Satan uses against us is accusations.  He will whisper into our mind, “You call yourself a Christian? Look at yourself. You can’t conquer your addiction  to cigarettes!”  Or he will whisper, “If you are a Christian, you will study your Bible,” or “You have not done enough as a parent. That is why your kid has gone astray” etc.   Satan’s constant accusations can wear down a believer who is sincere in his walk with the Lord but feels condemned that he may not have done enough to obey God.

 

All of us have shortcomings.  There are times when we feel we should have done more.  People’s expectations of us also add more pressure on us.  We feel we need to keep up an image.  If we don’t, we feel judged by people.

 

There is a story in Zechariah 3:1-5 that records Satan accusing a high priest called Joshua.  Satan was standing at Joshua’s right side to accuse him.  This was the picture in the spiritual realm.  In the earthly realm, this story had a parallel.  In Ezra 5:1-2, the building of the temple had ceased due to certain opposition.  Joshua the high priest must have felt discouraged.  He was supposed to be leading his people and yet there was no progress.  He might have self doubts that he had not done enough for God.  However, by God’s grace, the Lord sent a young prophet Zechariah to prophesy and help Joshua continue the temple building programme (Ezra 5:2).

 

In the spiritual realm we see that when Satan accuses Joshua, God defended him.  The Lord said to Satan, “The Lord rebukes you, Satan!  The Lord who had chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you!”  He told the angels who was standing there to take off Joshua’s filthy clothes and put rich garments on him.  This act symbolized that the Lord had taken away Joshua’s sin.  Then the Lord put a clean turban on Joshua’s head which is a picture of protecting his mind from further accusations from Satan (Zechariah 3:2-5).

 

5.         How to overcome Satan’s accusations

 

Whenever we feel sin consciousness,  it is likely to be due to the accusations of Satan.  Again, we don’t try to use our will power to resist the accusations in our minds.  Remember, what you focus on gets your attention.  The more you try to will away the accusation, the more its grip on you.  Instead, replace the accusation with the truth of  God’s Word.  Speak Romans 8:1 to yourself, “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of Life set me free.” 

 

Whenever you feel judged, criticized and condemned say to yourself “God is not surprised by my sin.  Nothing I do can ever shock Him.  Jesus took all my sins and nailed them to the cross.  He has forgiven me and will not remember my sins anymore (Hebrews 8:12). 

I will not give power to Satan’s accusations by condemning myself.  There is nothing Satan can accuse me of which God has not forgiven me because of Jesus.  As Satan accuses me, Jesus who sits at the right hand of God defends me (Hebrews 10:12).  He has cleansed me once for all and I don’t need to feel guilty of my sins.” 

When we speak such truths, we remove the power of Satan’s accusations and defeat his hold over our minds.  When we apply God’s truths, we believe that the blood of Christ has cleansed our conscience from sinful acts so that we may serve the living God! (Hebrews 9:14).

 

Don’t give power to Satan’s accusations by condemning yourself.  God’s grace has been given to you.  You never deserve His love but He still loves you.  You don’t deserve His forgiveness but He still forgave you.  You don’t have a cleansed conscience but He still gives it to you.  Focus on Jesus and what He did for you on the cross.  He has freed you from the accusations of Satan.

 

In my next blog, I will talk about the remaining tactics Satan use to disturb our walk with the Lord.

 

 

Beware of Satan’s Tactics (A)

 

 

We have been warned that Satan (which means adversary) prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8).  He is our adversary and he is determined to make us feel defeated as Christians.  The apostle Peter tells us to be self-controlled and alert.  To resist Satan by standing firm in the faith (1 Peter 5: 8-9).  Notice that we resist Satan not by challenging him directly.  What you focus on gets your attention and we don’t want to focus on Satan.  Instead, we resist him by standing firm in the faith. 

 

1.         Satan is a defeated foe

 

We focus on Jesus and His finished work on the cross.  We focus on our faith in Jesus who has defeated Satan, crushed his head (Genesis 3:15) and disarmed the demonic powers and authorities (Colossians 2:15).  If Satan and his demons are  defeated foes, why then do they still seem to get the better of us.

 

In this series of blogs, I will highlight four common tactics used by Satan and his demons to attack believers.  I will use the acrostic L.A.S.T. to describe the tactics Satan use against us.  L.A.S.T. stands for Lie, Accuse, Steal and Tempt.  Once you are aware of his tactics, you can then know how to resist your defeated foe.

 

2.         Lies

 

Jesus described this first tactic of Satan.  He called him the ‘father of lies.  There is no truth in him.  When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar from the beginning, not holding the truth (John 8:44).  Satan imitates your inner voice and tells you lies which, if you don’t detect them, will slowly become your belief system.  He whispers, “you need to pass this exam or else your future is ruined,” “you need to dress for success or you will never be taken seriously,” “when you have money, people will look up to you” etc.  These are the constant lies he whispers into your mind and the world system we live in reinforces these lies within us.  As prince of this world (John 14:30), he has built up an intricate system of false values that non believers have come to embrace.

 

Satan influences your mind by making his lies attractive because his worldly values are all around you.  In Matthew 16:21-23, we read the story of how Satan deceived Peter, a faithful disciple of Jesus.  When Jesus told His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, suffer many things, be killed and then rise on the third day, Peter took Him aside and rebuked Him saying, “Never Lord! This shall never happen to you!” 

 

These are words that Jesus recognized immediately as a lie of Satan.  Peter did not speak with a demonic voice.  In fact the Bible did not describe that he had a frightening face that might have shown that he was demon possessed.  Peter spoke normally.  Yet it was clearly evident that Satan was behind Peter’s thoughts and words.

 

In verse 23, Jesus said to Peter “Get behind me Satan!  You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God but the things of men.”  Jesus knew Peter believed Satan’s lies.  We too have to be careful.  When Satan comes in an evil and demonic manner, we are fully alert to his tricks.  But if Satan masquerades as an angel of light and his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness (2 Corinthians 11:14), you can be easily deceived.

 

3.         How to overcome his lies

 

To overcome lies, we need to hear and know the truths.  Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life.” (John 14:6).  With the Holy Spirit living in us (John 14:17) we can discern  when a lie is planted in our minds by Satan.  We don’t overcome Satan’s lies by denying them.  We overcome his lies by replacing them with the truths of Jesus. 

 

If his lie is “this exam determines your future,” you should replace the lie with “it is God who holds my future.”  Like the Psalmist, we need to speak to our inner self.  He said to himself “Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me?  Put your hope in God for I will yet praise Him, my Saviour and my God.” (Psalm 42:11).  He replaced Satan’s lies of depression with the truth of hope.  When there is darkness, drive it away by letting in the light of His word.

 

In my next blog, I will talk more about the other tactics used by Satan to disturb us.