At our small group meeting last night we were watching a video from the "Fresh Encounters" study by Henry Blackaby. Now as many of you know Blackaby is one of my spiritual mentors so I listen to his preaching often. He isn't the easiest preacher to listen to by any means. Why do I say that? Because when he preaches he preaches with a SILENT intensity and an INTENSE humility that will smack you right in the face and step on your toes all at the same time. He preaches things that most pastors seem afraid to say these days and when you combine his obvious ability to hear God's message to give to His people and the correcting and convicting power of the Holy Spirit, you get an amazing preacher. He doesn't raise his voice and he doesn't jump up and down to keep us awake, he simply speaks the Word of God in a way that I can only visualize Jeremiah or Ezekiel must have delivered the Word!
Last night on this video he said something that has stuck with me..."Most people fear the Devil more than they fear God." That hit me hard and I had to really think about that for a second. If you think about it I think you will find that statement to be true. We always talk about spiritual warfare and the devil did this or that. How many people has the devil actually destroyed? Now think in the Bible to how many people God destroyed...sometimes even His own? When God's people would fall into worshipping idols and false gods of the land in which they were occupying, God would often bring a harsh correction. The point is that we should fear God more than we fear the enemy. Not that we should count God as an enemy because we should fear Him but because He is OUR LORD and our fear is a REVERENT FEAR! God extends us mercy through the cross and through this we should rejoice!
Yes, the enemy seeks to steal, kill, and destroy yes we know, but if our faith and trust is in the Lord FIRST then what shall we fear from the enemy? With the sacrifice of Christ on the cross, the devil was defeated. Yes he's still free to roam and create havoc and troubles if we let him, but all he can do now is lie. He has NO power over us and yet we give him soooo much credit. He's a liar and imitator. Jesus gave us the POWER to cast out demons, to heal, and to teach in HIS NAME and yet we so often let the false, perceived power of the enemy dictate what we think we can or can't do.
Blackaby said it was time that we stopped worrying about conferences on Spiritual Warfare and started having meetings on revival and seeking out forgiveness for our actions as individuals and as a nation. 2Ch 7:14 if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.
We are looking at our approach all wrong. We act like we are on the defense instead of the offense. God comes first...always but when we put Him second we see the disastrous results.
Well said Ron! Satan is the enemy and so many will blame the enemy for their poor choices. They fail to recognize that sometimes God will allow us to stuble and fall. Much like we try and teach our chidren that the pot is hot but they don't learn until they touch it. I think most people fear the consequences more than the dissapointment of God. If we view our relationship with God like a father to a child (as it should be, we are His children)(I know you know this)we as children, or adults, never want to hear from our fathers "Im dissapointed in you."
ReplyDeleteI'm not afraid cause i have God on my side! Even if i trip and i know i will over and over again. Our God is awesome and he'll keep picking me up and brushing me off and i will keep apologizing and asking for forgiveness for as long as it takes to learn all that i need to know! Thank you
Ron,
ReplyDeleteWhat a great way to look at how we should truly be focusing on the Lord! When we learn to fear God with the same reverence as our earthly fathers hand on our butt, we might then seek the forgiveness that we so desperately need.