This evening I'm going to begin a series of posts on the truth. This weekend I will be beginning a series called "Truth" at church and I thought I'd share a few ideas here on the blog. This first weekend we will dive into the truth about temptation...
The truth is temptation is very real; we can pretend it doesn’t happen to us but that wouldn’t be true. We live in a spiritual battle and we need to wrap our mind around the fact that there is a very real enemy that has a plan and agenda for our lives and the enemy is a LIAR.
In John 8:44 Jesus defines who the devil is: “He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”
That’s who you and I are dealing with in this spiritual battle. Satan speaks liar language. He has no truth, hang around with him if you want, but know that it results in lies and death. He is out to destroy your faith, your future, and your family. Your enemy is all about deception and he wants nothing to do with the truth.
So if you are going resist your enemy it helps to know the TRUTH. Jesus said that God’s Word is truth; and“You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” Jesus also said, “Everyone on the side of truth listens to me” and again Jesus says, I am the truth.
Looking for some freedom from the Liar? Seek the Truth.
Speaking of truth, I just finished reading 1 John 4:11-21.
ReplyDelete"We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, 'I love God,' yet hates his brother, HE IS A LIAR."
-1 Jn 4:19-20 (emphas mine)
It's easy to love God because He's perfect. He IS love. He IS the truth. It's not so easy to love people. They're not perfect. They're not love. And they're not truth. But we're called to love one another, despite our imperfections and selfishness. And selfishness is at the root of Satan's temptation strategy. He wants to get us thinking about ourself rather than God and other people.