Web-based Resources for Spiritual Warfare

Tim Hilty

Ephesians 5:11, "Take no part in unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them."

      Introduction

                                                Who is Satan?

                                                Our Invisible Adversary, the Devil

                                                Satan: His Origin and Overt Tactics

                                                Survey of Bible Doctrine: Angels, Satan and Demons

                                                Spiritual Warfare: The Battle of Life

                                                A Spiritual Warfare Study

                                                Spiritual Warfare - Analysis

i.    Satan’s Strategy               HE ONLY SPEAKS TRUTH IN ORDER TO DECEIVE

                                   

His Purpose Exposed       Satan is called the "deceiver", basically meaning he co-mingles truth and error. God cannot use Satan’s ploy of telling half-truths because it is impossible for Him to lie. Whenever Satan mixed truth and error in the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve were deceived because the lie seemed somewhat true. We must understand that Satan uses the partial truth as bait in any temptation.  He is far too cunning to tempt us simply with outright lies.  His purpose is to cloud and confuse our thinking – so that we will choose wrongly. When Satan was tempting Jesus he bragged that the kingdoms of the world had been given to him. This, however, was only partially true. He is the “current owner” of the world, but the kingdoms were not freely been given to him. Although ultimately Satan is a liar and there is not truth in him, there is a sense in which he speaks partial half-truths.

“And the devil said to Him, “I will give You all this domain and its glory; for it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I want.”  (Luke 4:6 NASB)

“He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him.  Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”  (John 8:44 NASB)

 

      Truth Links                      False Views of God

                                                Satan's Greatest Lies

                                      Satan Deceives Many

                                                Exposing Satan's Lies

                                                Exposing Satan's Devices

                                                Knowing the Truth In An Age of Lies

                                                Fighter Verse '98 - Memorization

                                                Fighter Verse '99 - Memorization

                                                Fighter Verse '00 - Memorization

                                                Fighter Verse '01 - Memorization

                                                Trusting God on His Own Terms

ii.   Satan’s Strategy              HIS CHIEF ENEMY IS THE TRUTH – GOD’S WORD

His Purpose Exposed       When Satan encounters God’s Word he opposes it with all his might. He attacks it with false tongues and erring spirits and teachers. What he is unable to crush by force he seeks to suppress through his craftiness and lies. Satan is the father of lies and Jesus is the truth. Therefore, Satan opposes the Word – which became flesh – for he is the enemy of truth. If we let him, Satan will snatch the word of God from our hearts and will blind our minds to the light of the gospel. The fact that he appeals to our felt needs rather than meeting our real needs shows the extent to which Satan has influenced us against the truth.

“You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord?” (Acts 13:10 NIV)

“The woman said to the serpent, ‘From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will surely die.’ ’ The serpent said to the woman, ‘You surely will not die! For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” (Gen 3:2-5 NASB)

 

       Truth Links                     Another Gospel

                                                Scripture Twisting

                                                Avoiding Every Appearance of Evil

                                                Heresy and Apostasy

                                                Lordship Salvation

                                                Scripture Twisting Methods

                                                Perverting Scripture

                                                Spurious Gospel

                                                A Mark of False Teachers

                                                Believing in Christ Rather Than Religion

iii.  Satan’s Strategy              HE WISHES TO CAST DOUBT ON GOD’S GOODNESS

 

His Purpose Exposed      Satan uses evil and suffering to cast doubt on the goodness of God. The first temptation of Adam and Eve was to question whether God really had their best interests at heart in forbidding the fruit of the tree. Perhaps he was trying to keep something good from them? Perhaps he was not really as loving and caring as he had made out? When they fell to the temptation, all humanity inherited vulnerability to doubting the essential goodness of God. Satan continues to use the trials that come upon us because of our sin and the sin of this fallen creation to get us to doubt the goodness of God. He promotes the idea that God's commandments are harsh and that God is out to deprive us of pleasure.                      

                                   

“The woman said to the serpent, ‘From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will surely die.’ ’ The serpent said to the woman, ‘You surely will not die! For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” (Gen 3:2-5 NASB)

       Truth Links                     Christian Depression            

                                                God Utilizes the Enemy

                                                Doubting God

                                                Loving A God Who is All-Powerful and Good

                                    Turning Anxiety Into Trust

                                    When Hope is Lost in God

iv.   Satan’s Strategy              HE ATTEMPTS TO DISTORT ANY EFFORT TO PROCLAIM THE GOSPEL  

His Purpose Exposed      Satan blinds the minds of the unbelieving to keep the message of grace from them. The attack on the Gospel is not fundamentally a work of man, but a work of Satan – mankind’s adversary. For the purpose of destroying the Gospel, Satan employs his own agents and may even use well-intentioned, but misguided Christians. Connected with Satan’s desire to blind men to the message of the gospel are Satan’s agents or ministers, people who are generally counterfeits themselves and who seek to pass off a counterfeit message. 2 Corinthians 11:1-4, and 13-15 reveal that Satan has his own ministers who appear as harmless ministers of light, wolves in sheep’s clothing. They may be well meaning, sincere, and unaware of who they are serving, but being themselves deceived, they are nevertheless serving the purposes of the devil by distorting the gospel message in one form or another.

“When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path.” (Matt 13:19 NIV)

“For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds.”  (2 Cor 11:1-4 NASB)

Truth Links                     Overcoming Satan in Sharing the Gospel

                                         Satan Takes the Word Away

                                   

v.    Satan’s Strategy              HE REMOVES EXTERNAL TROUBLES SO THAT WE FAIL TO DEAL WITH

INNER NEEDS

His Purpose Exposed      The Bible clearly teaches that Satan leads us to do evil things because they appear to be so good. That is why it is called temptation. He never tempts us with things that seem ugly or undesirable, but rather with the good, pleasing and desirable. Sin appears to be attractive. These things are so attractive, beautiful, and desirable they can be used by Satan to disobey God. With Satan, the attractive appearance of sin covers up the ugliness of the death that it brings. Satan's plan is to arouse desire. Even legitimate desires become a problem when Satan tempts us to meet a legitimate desire in an illegitimate way. The process of temptation often means trying to get us to meet a good need in a bad way.  It is in this way that Satan can distort reality by candy coating our lives so that we fail to deal with the real problems. He tries to keep us from seeing things that we really need to see. He gives us a distorted picture of reality. By removing external discomfort, Satan hopes to makes us so comfortable that we forget our inner depravity and need.

“For this is the message which you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another; not as Cain, who was of the evil one and slew his brother.  And for what reason did he slay him? Because his deeds were evil, and his brother’s were righteous.” (I John 3:11-12 NASB)

       Truth Links                     When We Don't Measure Up To Other's Expectations

                                                What Jesus Says About the Perils of Money

                                    Spiritual Emptiness and Meaninglessness

                                    Christian Contentment

                                    Devotionals on Daily Contentment

                                    Materialism

                                    Sufficiency of God

                                    An Example of Discontentment

                                    Satisfying the Inner Man

vi.   Satan’s Strategy              HE USES THE FEAR OF DEATH TO HOLD PERSONS IN BONDAGE

                                   

His Purpose Exposed      When we think about it, the prospect of death hangs over us every minute of every day. Whatever we do, whatever we make of our lives must be seen in the light of the fact that we are dying. Some of us our dying faster than others, but the fear of death still remains to be the great fear that haunts all humanity. Death is a terrible tyranny for Satan himself was the author. It was Satan who drew, by his deception and temptation, Adam and Eve into sin. He introduced death and hardship. Instead of opening up a new and glorious destiny for them as he had promised, Satan abandoned them and they found themselves to be poor, sinful, dying creatures. Satan had persuaded them to choose death! Still he is persuading men and women to reject the ways of God. Still he is persuading humanity to hold fast to its sinful and deathly path. Everywhere, he is making sin attractive to us, even though we know God’s words, that the wages of sin is death. In a sense he still has the power of death.

“Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that its, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives.”  (Heb 2:14-15 NASB)

                                   

“For you [those in Christ] have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, ‘Abba! Father!’” Rom 8:15 NASB)

      Truth Links                      Freedom From Fear

                                                Victory Over Death

                                                Victory Over Death

                                                What Happens After Death?

                                                A Biblical Description of Heaven

                                                Evidence for the Christian Resurrection

                                   

vii.  Satan’s Strategy              HE BLINDS THE MIND OF THE UNBELIEVER

                                   

His Purpose Exposed      Satan’s strategy is to attack the word of God by denying its authority, sufficiency and message. Satan must keep unbelievers from gaining access to the Word of God because it is the “imperishable seed” that imparts spiritual life and converts. When sinners hear and believe the word of God they become children of God and are set free from the grasp of Satan. Isaiah wrote, "Without the word people cannot know the true God or discern truth from error for they are not a people of discernment. Therefore their Maker will not have compassion on them and their Creator will not be gracious to them". For this reason Satan blinds the minds of the unbelieving, that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ. On the occasions when an unbeliever is exposed to the word of God, but does not understand it, Satan can snatch it away before it takes root.

                                   

“The god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” 

(2 Cor 4:4 NASB)

     

“But their minds were hardened; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains unlifted, because it is removed in Christ.” 

(2 Cor 3:14 NASB)

       Truth Links                     Why Does it Makes Sense To Believe in Christ

                                                How Can I Understand the Bible?

                                                Can I Really Trust the Bible?

                                                Reasons to Believe in the Existence of God

                                                Reasons to Believe in the Bible

                                                Reasons to Believe Christ Rose from the Dead

viii. Satan’s Strategy             HE FREQUENTLY EMULATES RELIGIOUS ROLES

                                     

His Purpose Exposed      Satan cannot destroy the Christ of God. So he raises up false christs, antichrists. He cannot keep sinners from Christ by making them wicked. So, he has transformed himself into an angel of light and sends preachers from hell to teach sinners how to make themselves righteous (2 Cor. 11:13-15). He cannot destroy the church and kingdom of God, the bride of Christ's choice (made holy, unblameable, and unreproveable by his grace and righteousness). That is why the destroyer has, from the beginning, raised up and maintained a religion to rival the worship of God, seeking to destroy the church of God.

“No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.  Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds.” (2 Cor 11:14-15 NASB)

                                         “‘And he said to them, ‘An enemy has done this!’ The slaves said to him, ‘Do you want us, then, to go and gather them up? But he said, ‘No; for while you are gathering up the tares, you may uproot the wheat with them. Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up; but gather the wheat into my barn.”’” (Matt 13:28,30 NASB)

       Truth Links                     Spiritual Counterfeits Project

                                                Investigation and Analysis of Cults

                                                Counterfeit Chart - Counterfeit Workings of Satan

ix.   Satan’s Strategy              HE MISUSES SCRIPTURE                              

       His Purpose Exposed –   Satan often employs a mixture of good and evil to accomplish his ends. He doesn't even mind utilizing the Scriptures if it can serve to achieve an ultimate end. Satan has memorized every bit of Scripture. And he has often quoted texts, as he did to Jesus in the wilderness of temptation. In that instance he actually quoted the Psalmist correctly that angels would protect from even dashing a foot against a stone. But he misapplied the text by urging Jesus to presumptuously leap from the pinnacle and trust the angels to save Him. This is one of Satan’s clever ploys of distorting Scripture, which he uses to coerce Christians into disobeying God's law. The temptation of Jesus is not the only example of Satan’s scheming. Today, he twists text such as, "Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life," to get Christians to believe that the most important thing in order to be saved is to obey the law. (Revelation 22:14). Much of the Christian walk is spent trying to fight off our bondage to works and instead resting upon grace. And is there some truth in such an argument? Sure, it is very important to obey the commandments, but there also strong elements of error woven through that belief? The fact is that no one can make themselves good enough to deserve salvation.

“Then the devil took Him into the holy city and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, ‘If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written, ‘He will command His angels concerning You’; and ‘On their Hands they will bear you up, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’”  (Matt 4:5-6 NASB)

       Truth Links                     Satan's Misuse of Scripture During His Temptation of Jesus

                                                Christian Temptation and the Devil's Misuse of Scripture

x.    Satan’s Strategy              HE IMITATES SIGNS AND WONDERS IN ORDER THAT HE MIGHT

DECEIVE

                                     

His Purpose Exposed      People who constantly look for miracles or claim to perform miracles are probably in touch with a miracle worker who is often overlooked: Satan. He performs miracles all the time to satisfy physical desires and to deceive people into thinking that those miracles come from God. Satan's big lie is that God is not present unless miracles are continually being performed. Once people start looking for them, it is a simple task for Satan to perform minor miracles and captivate their minds, directing their focus away from the revelation of Scripture.           

                                         “…That is, the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders, and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved.”  (2Thess 2:9-10)

                                         “And then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the Christ; or, ‘Behold, He is there’; do not believe him; for false Christs and false prophets will arise, and will show signs and wonders, in order to lead astray, if possible, the elect.” 

(Mark 13:21-22)

       Truth Links                     Lying Signs and Wonders

                                                What Does the Bible Say About Lying Signs and Wonders?

                                                How To Discern Signs and Wonders

                                    Testing the Spirits

                                    Accepting or Rejecting Signs and Wonders

                                    Apparitions of the Virgin Mary

                                    Apparitions of Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary

                                    Apparitions, Locutions, and Miracles (RC)

                                    Simon's Perversion of Signs and Wonders

xi.   Satan’s Strategy              HE DESTROYS OBEDIENCE BY ATTACKING FAITH

                                     

His Purpose Exposed      Life is war because the maintenance of our faith and the laying hold on eternal life is a constant fight. Paul makes clear in 1 Thess 3:5 that Satan targets our faith for destruction. Satan's attack in Thessalonica was against the Christian's faith. His aim was to make Paul's work there "vain" empty, destroyed. Paul was apparently saying that we are being attacked and that we must fight the good fight of faith to lay hold on eternal life. Jesus said, "He who endures to the end will be saved" (Mark 13:13). And Satan is fighting always to bring us to ruin by destroying our faith.  With all eternity hanging in the balance, we fight the fight of faith. Our chief enemy is the Satan who says sin will make our future happier. Our chief weapon is the Truth that says God will make our future happier. And faith is the victory that overcomes the lie, because faith is satisfied with God.

“For this reason, when I could endure it no longer, I also sent to find out about your faith, for fear that the tempter might have tempted you, and our labor would be in vain.”  (I Thess 3:5 NASB)

       Truth Links                     How Luther handled the assaults of the devil

                                    Overcoming Satan's Attacks

                                    Satan and Standing Firm

                                    Standing Firm in Doctrine

                                    How do I fight Satan and Sin?

                                   

xii.  Satan’s Strategy             HE BRINGS PERSECUTION INTO THE LIFE OF A BELIEVER

                                   

His Purpose Exposed      We must be especially careful to guard ourselves from wrong thinking when we are going through difficult trials or times of persecution. Satan often comes along and sows doubts about God’s goodness such as: “If He were really good, He wouldn’t let this happen to you. It’s okay to be angry at God; He wasn’t faithful to you by letting this happen.” But it is in the context of trials that Peter tells us to humble ourselves under God’s mighty hand. He says, “Be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith” (1 Pet. 5:8-9).

                                         “I know your afflictions and your poverty – yet you are rich!  I know the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.”

(Rev 2:9 NIV)

                                         “Be of sober spirit, be on the alert.  Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” (I Pet 5:8 NASB)

                                               

         Truth Links                   Theology of Persecution

                                    Follow Me: Taking Up the Cross

                                                To the Church That Endures Persecution

                                                A Christian Defense of Religious Freedom

                                                The Cry for a Reason in Suffering

                                                Persecuted Church

                                                Voice of the Martyrs

                                                Christian Persecution - Human Rights

                                                Christian Persecution News

                                                International Justice Mission

                                                Open Doors International

                                                World Evangelical Fellowship Religious Liberty Commission

                                                Brother's Keeper

                                                Christian Freedom

                                                Why Would A Good God Allow Suffering?

                                               

xiii.  Satan’s Strategy            HE ENTICES WITH SEXUAL ALLUREMENTS

                                   

His Purpose Exposed     When we battle with sexual temptation, we battle against Satan. Not because he creates the desire, but because he so deceptively uses the desire. God in fact created sexual desire so it is not sinful or satanic to feel sexual desire. Satan cannot create sexual desire, he merely uses it – or more accurately, he abuses it. But we must not forget that, "The Son of God came into the world to destroy the works of the devil." The more strongly we feel sexual desire the more susceptible we are to being deceived that it is not wrong to satisfy it through sexual immorality. This same truth holds in all the areas of our lives: the stronger our desire for some satisfaction, the more vulnerable we are to being deceived about what is right and wrong in the way we try to satisfy that desire.

“Stop depriving one another, except by agreement for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer, and come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of you lack of self-control.”  (I Cor 7:5 NASB)

“So I counsel younger widows to marry, to have children, to manage their homes and to give the enemy no opportunity for slander.  Some have in fact already turned away to follow Satan.”  (I Tim 5:14-15 NIV)

     

       Truth Links                     Porn Addiction in the Ministry

                                                Porn Addiction as a Student

                                    Addressing Online Sexual Temptations

                                    Battle Plan Against Pornography

                                    Breaking Free From Sexual Sins and Porn           

                                                Is There Any Hope for Me?

                                                How Can I Resist The Lure of Sexual Sin?

                                                Freedom from Addiction

                                                Overcoming Moral Failure

                                                When Christians Sin

                                                God's Design For Sexuality

                                                Overcoming Addiction: When We Just Can't Stop

                                                Understanding Homosexuality

                                                Breaking the Power of Pornography

                                                The Anguish of Extramarital Affairs

                       

xiv. Satan’s Strategy              HE LAYS THE GROUNDWORD FOR A LIFE LIVED WITH UNRESOLVED

ANGER

                                     

His Purpose Exposed      Anger is a normal human emotion. It will occur in our lives, even as Christians. While it does not begin as sin, anger rapidly becomes sinful. We must be alert to the rise of anger within us. It should sound an alarm to our spiritual system. Anger must be resolved quickly or it will find a comfortable place within our hearts to hide and incubate. The result of this will be destructive actions and attitudes. Anger is easy to justify and rationalize. This is what makes it so easy to ignore. When anger lodges in the soul it provides an avenue through which the Satan invades our lives. We literally give ground to the adversary when we, consciously or unconsciously, hold on to our anger.

“For indeed, what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, I did it for your sakes in the presence of Christ, so that no advantage would be taken of us by Satan, for we are not ignorant of his schemes.” (2 Cor 2:10b-11 NASB)

     

“In your anger do not sin: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.”  (Eph 4:26-27 NIV)

      Truth Links                      When Anger Burns

                                                No Excuse for Anger

                                                God's Anger is Different Than Ours

                                                An Anger Checklist

                                                Overcoming Anger

                                                Unbiblical Response to Anger

                                                Do Not Sin With Your Anger

                                                Be Quick to Reconcile

                                                Practical Steps to Overcome Anger

                                                Being Sinfully Angry is a Choice

                                                Anger and Bitterness

                                                We Are Free in the Spirit From Sin  

xvi. Satan’s Strategy              HE APPLAUDS PRIDE AND DISPARAGES HUMILITY                                  

His Purpose Exposed             Pride makes its own agenda without any consideration of God and others. God will not allow pride and arrogance to rule. Pride is the root of all sin. It causes us to turn away from God instead of turning to Him. All disobedience has pride as its root. All rebellion has pride behind it. No sin is more offensive God than the sin of pride. Pride has been referred to as the “complete anti-God state of mind.” It militates against God’s authority, God’s law, and God’s rule. Pride assaults God’s throne and asserts its independence in an attempt to dislodge God as the Sovereign of the universe. Satan displaced God’s will for his will. It was pride that caused Lucifer’s fall and subsequent condemnation. The snare of pride is a deadly peril to which new converts should never be willfully subjected. Nothing does more to set a person out of the devil’s reach than humility.

“… And not a new convert, so that he will not become conceited and fall into the condemnation incurred by the devil.”  (I Tim 3:6 NASB)

                                        “Nor grumble, as some of them did, and were destroyed by the destroyer. Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall.” (I Cor 10:10-12 NASB)

                                        “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes are and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.” 

(I John 2:16 NASB)

        Truth Links                    Unmasking Hidden Pride

                                                Serving the Lord With Humility

                                                The End of Boasting

                                                Pride, Humility and God

                                                The Making of a Humble Man

                                                Humility or Pride?

                                                Saying of D.L. Moody on Pride and Counterfeit Humility

                                                Humility and Obedience are Counterfeit if...

                                                           

xvi.  Satan’s Strategy             HE BRINGS SICKNESS                             

His Purpose Exposed     Was it Satan who tormented Job? Yes, it was. But Satan has no power but what is allotted to him by God. He is an enemy on a chain. In fact for the writer of the book of Job it was not wrong to say that the sores afflicted by Satan were sent from God. For example, in Job 2:7 we read, "So Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord, and afflicted Job with loathsome sores from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head." Then after Job's wife urges him to curse God and die, Job says, "Shall we receive good at the hand of the Lord and not receive evil?" And before we think that Job erred in attributing to God his sores afflicted by Satan, the writer adds in verse 10, "In all this Job did not sin with his lips." In other words, it is no sin to recognize the sovereign hand of God even behind a disease of which Satan may be the more immediate cause. Satan may be sly but on some things he is stupid, because he fails to see that all his attempts to despoil the godly are simply turned by God's providence into occasions for the purifying and strengthening of faith. God's goal for His people in this age is not primarily to rid them of sickness and pain but to purge us of all the remnants of sin and cause us in our weakness to cleave to Him as our only hope.

“But stretch out your hand and strike his flesh and bones, and he will surely curse you to your face. The Lord said to Satan, ‘Very well, then, he is in your hands; but you must spare his life.’”  (Job 2:5-6 NIV)

“And this woman, a daughter of Abraham as she is, whom Satan has bound for eighteen long years, should she not have been released from this bond on the Sabbath day?” (Luke 13:16 NASB)

         Truth Links                   Where does sickness come from?

                                                Why Christians Suffer

                                                Christian Suffering

                                                Depression

                                                God's Promises to the Suffering

                                                Does God Care?

                                                What role does fear play in suffering?

                                                What helps when I or someone I know is suffering?

                                                Why is pain necessary?

                                                Is God trying to tell me something?

                                                Grace When It Hurts

                                                Good Grief

                                                Psalm 23: A Psalm That Calms the Soul

                                                The Suffering of the Righteous and the Success of Sinners

                                                Lessons for Those Who Suffer

                                                Finding Hope in Pain or Illness

                                               

xvii. Satan’s Strategy             HE INSTIGATES DIVISION OVER DOCTRINE                                   

His Purpose Exposed     I urge you to reaffirm your love for him [who has caused sorrow]…so that no advantage would be taken of us by Satan, for we are not ignorant of his schemes. What scheme is Paul referring to? Satan seizes every opportunity to split the church. He knows of no greater way to split the church than to have a situation where a spirit of love is absent. His scheme is division. There is bound to be disagreement on minor issues of theology, the subpoints, and the subissues in Christianity. It is also true that the more major a given point, the greater should be the degree of tenacity with which we insist upon it. But an overemphasis on doctrine to the exclusion of love can be deadly to the church. Satan knows the subtleties here, and he can cater even to a church, which is acting doctrinally correct. A fellowship of believers can be taking the proper action by “keeping an eye on those who cause dissension” yet still be playing into Satan’s strategy. We can keep “our eye on” them (either with those who disagree or those that are simply deceived) in such a very unloving way that we fall into one of Satan’s devices. The church is built on two things: love and sound doctrine. Too much sound doctrine, not enough love – division. Too much love, not enough sound doctrine – confusion.

“Now I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teaching which you learned, and turn away from them. For such men are slaves, not of our Lord Christ but of their own appetites; and by their smooth and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting. For the report of your obedience has reached to all; therefore I am rejoicing over you, but I want you to be wise in what is good and innocent in what is evil. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.” (Rom 16:17-20 NASB)

                                   

“But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons.” (I Tim 4:1 NASB)

        Truth Links                    Division in the Church

                                                Steps in Restoring Those in Error

                                                Compassion: The Way Back into Fellowship                     

                                    Surviving Church Conflict

Bibliography

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