Can we circle back and revisit that short passage I cited the other day, found in Matt. 12:43-45, where Jesus gives us a play-by-play as to what happens when an ‘unclean spirit goes out of a man’? There are several important points to consider here, especially if you are beginning to see the reality of what is being unleashed in increasing measure these days.

This is not a call for us to be overly preoccupied and obsessed with our ‘enemy’, rather a strong reminder to recognize who the ‘enemy’ really is and to ‘resist him’, given we are ‘not ignorant of his schemes and devices’ (1 Pet. 5:8-9; 2 Cor. 2:11; James 4:7; Eph. 6:11-12)

When we fail to do what the word commands us to do, like ‘resist the devil’, then we can end up suffering  from 'undesirable' consequences, just like our man did in this story above. And while church members sit around adamantly assure themselves that ‘Christians can’t have demons’, there is an enemy on the prowl just looking for opportunities to gain access and control back into our lives. That’s probably why Paul strongly warns us to ‘give no place/foothold to the devil’ (Eph. 4:27). And why did God say ‘His people...are destroyed’? (Hosea 4:6)

You’re probably familiar with that time when Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted/tested by the devil immediately after He was baptized (Luke 4:1-12); and He fared well on that test, proving that He loved the Father with all His heart, which is why the Father was able to anoint Him with ‘power’ to go and do the works of God (Luke 4:14; Acts 10:38). But if you are not careful, you’ll miss that little tidbit of info provided for us in vs. 13, that reads: “Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him... until an opportune time.” You can almost hear him mumbling as he saunters off, in his best ‘Arnold Schwarzenegger’ voice- ‘I’ll be back!’

And he did come back, as he always comes back our way, repeatedly... to lure and tempt us back on to ‘his turf’ where he then has ground to ‘steal, kill, and destroy’ (John 10:10), not to mention ‘devour’ (1 Pet. 5:8). Maybe that statement Jesus made in John 5:14 makes more sense now, where He warned that man whom He had healed to ‘go and sin no more or something worse will happen to you’. Yes, you really can go and ‘sin no more’, but don’t try to do that without making use of God’s abundant grace that empowers us to overcome ‘all the power of the enemy’ (Luke 10:19; Phil. 4:13).

This is where ‘abiding in Jesus’ comes in to play, which is another way of saying ‘we best stay right on His heels’, as we follow Him. I like to use the analogy of driving a car down a road and remaining focused so you can ‘stay in your/His lane’. We all know how easy it is to ‘drift’ in either direction, which leads to problems (Heb. 2:1). And the good thing about abiding in Jesus...is we no longer continue to sin (1 John 3:6), which is followed up with the promise that “we know whoever is born of God does not sin...and the wicked one does not touch him” (1 John 5:18); at least that’s what it says in my Bible.

Coming to Jesus does not mean your days of dealing with a spiritual enemy are over; it simply means you are in a much better place and position to deal with him, provided you continue to abide and do the things which Jesus asks you to do (John 2:5; Luke 6:46; Acts 3:22-23). I really don’t think we are aware, nor fully appreciate how serious all this adds up to.

One of the more blatant times that we see where the enemy did come back to confront Jesus is recorded for us in Matt. 16. Jesus had just finished telling those who were closest to Him that the time had come for Him to go to Jerusalem where He would ‘suffer many things ...and be killed’ (21). That’s when Peter popped off and actually ‘rebuked’ Jesus...saying: “far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!”...(on my watch).

Peter is flat out saying...’You don’t have to die, Jesus!’, (i.e.- 'You don't have to go to the cross!') which brings a stiff rebuke in return from Jesus. And look who He directs it at: “Get behind Me, Satan ...You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men!” (23).  Makes me wonder how many multitudes of people has the enemy convinced that they too...'need not go to the cross and die to self'.

Can I just tell you now...that it is much easier for us to get caught up in good causes and works...’in the name of the Lord’...than it is for us to go to ‘our own cross’...and die to self as we lay down our lives and put to death our pride and anger and greed and selfishness, etc.? (Matt. 7:21-23; 1 Cor. 13:1-3).

Sometimes, when the enemy comes returns to tempt us, it’s not always about going out to do some ‘bad or wicked’ action. He can easily ‘redirect’ our steps where we get caught up in doing and saying good things’...but the problem is...it’s not what God is wanting us to say and do. Does that make sense? We can easily adapt to having an ‘outward form of godliness...always learning but never coming to the knowledge of the truth’, as Paul warned in 2 Tim. 3:5-7.

I suspect that my messages from the past two days may have troubled some who read into them that we are just supposed to stand idly by and ‘do nothing’...when there is so much suffering and injustice taking place all around us. That’s usually the conclusion we reach if we only see the coin as being either ‘heads or tails’. I just know from experience, that we humans tend to instinctively want to rush in and attempt to ‘do good’, or what we think is ‘good’; but more often than naught...is just not what God is wanting us to do at that time. And it usually boils down to bad ‘timing’. Remember, it was Martha who wanted to ‘jump up and serve Jesus’...when she was admonished to be like Mary and to sit as His feet. (Luke 10:42). When Jesus led the three up to that ‘mountain top experience of transfiguration’ (Matt. 17), it was Peter who immediately wanted to get up and ‘build something’. And had it been up to the disciples when they received word that Lazarus had fallen ill, they would have taken Jesus there immediately to heal him, whereas Jesus stayed around two more days until Lazarus died (John 11).

I know this ‘being led by the Spirit’ thing can be challenging to ‘figure out’ when we first start to follow Jesus, but that is what true children of God learn to do (Rom. 8:14; John 10:27; 1:12). And we have the promise that ‘peace’ will be our guide (Luke 1:79; Phil.4:7; Isa. 55:12), so it’s good when we can learn to constantly live and walk in it, which is what ‘abiding in Him’ is all about.

To be continued....