09/26/2022
Who are the various enemies that we face today? Is our enemy a person who threatens or taunts us, a situation in life that we are struggling to overcome, or perhaps a spiritual enemy, Satan, as he or one of his minions, tempts us, and that temptation begins to distract our attention away from God? Is one or more of these detractors our enemy today, and how strong are they actually? Are they able to overcome us without our first bowing down to the one power each of them attempts to wield against us… doubt? Do we allow their assaults to distract our attention from Jesus Christ, or turn us away from God our Father? Nothing else can destroy us; so if we use the threats of men to bring us closer to God, a dire circumstance in life to strengthen us in our prayer closets, or those things that tempt us as a means of reaffirming us in our faith, then what power do our enemies have, and aren’t we able to turn their hatred into our love for them in spite of their harmful intentions towards us?
““You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,”
Matthew 5:43-44 ESV
Our enemy hasn’t overcome us until he, by causing us to doubt our faith, has destroyed our ability to love him. As long as we can use his worst to strengthen the best in us, then we remain victorious over him. Our love, whether for God, our neighbors, or our enemies, is the one strength we have that has no equal.
“If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat, and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink, for you will heap burning coals on his head, and the Lord will reward you.”
Proverbs 25:21-22 ESV
As Christians we have common enemies, so I ask again… who in our lives do we consider our enemies to be, and can we love them even when they seek to harm us? Is the love within us strong enough to overcome their attempt to separate us from God? Do we see the intensity of their efforts, the rage in their eyes, and fear them, or do we find courage in our faith? Let’s encourage one another to take the rage of your enemy, and turn it into a greater faith. Let’s pray that the troubles in the world that seem insurmountable when they come upon us will be overcome by our belief in God and his promises. Let’s lift each other up before the throne of God, where it will be coupled with the intercession of Christ, and ask that our love will be strengthened, and made to overcome all that Satan can attack us with.
“Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.”
1 Peter 5:8-10 ESV
God works all things together for good, and He even uses the sin, evil, and deceitful efforts of our enemies for our betterment, and to increase us in faith, and love. An enemy thinks he is harming us, and is encouraged to redouble his efforts, but even as his rage increases God’s plan is furthered. God clouds the vision of those who come against us; He makes every effort our enemy puts forth to serve Him, and to strengthen our faith and belief in Him all the more… don’t be afraid, don’t be made to doubt, and learn to love your enemies all the more.
“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
Romans 8:28 ESV
Prayer:
Father, thank you for the rage with which our enemies come against us, because their efforts only serve to strengthen our belief, and further our faith. By loving greatly those who would harm us the most, we are reflecting the perfect image of Jesus, and glorifying you all the more. From our crosses atop Calvary we bleed love, pour out your living water for all who will come to know you, and forgive the worst of our enemies. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you our God who takes even the darkest sins, and deepest hatreds in the world, and works them for our good. Wash us in the blood of Jesus, cleanse us of all sin, transform us into His loving image, and let your grace recreate us day by day, as we love our enemies all the more, and pray that, like us, they will come to believe, and be made into Christ’s likeness. On the day of our judgement we pray that you will pronounce us worthy, and that we will see many of our past enemies who were transformed by our suffering at their hand, our having loved them in spite of themselves, and the sincere prayers we prayed for them that culminated in their coming to know Jesus.
“But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you, delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles—to whom I am sending you to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’”
Acts 26:16-18 ESV
Rich Forbes