Post by tomdurst on Nov 19, 2014 12:43:11 GMT -5
HOW DO WE RESIST THE DEVIL?
James 4:7-8 Common English Bible (CEB)
7 Therefore, submit to God. Resist the devil, and he will run away from you. 8 Come near to God, and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners. Purify your hearts, you double-minded.
Many think that to “resist the devil” means to keep trying to resist him harder and harder through human will power and more good works. That approach leads to emptiness and defeat over a period of time. The keys to resisting the devil are provided in the text. They are “submit to God” and “come near to God.” To submit to God simply means to have the WILLINGNESS to surrender our all to Him and this involves a conscious decision on our part to turn away from our self-centeredness and choose instead the way of God. We may go to God with a simple prayer such as “Lord, I want your will for me and not just to follow my own way. I want to follow your will for my life.” If we are truly submitting to God then we must spend time communing with Him and hearing His voice. The other key is “come near to God.” We come near to people by spending time with them and sharing our life. We go places and do things together in order for the relationship to grow. So we come near to God by communing with Him in prayer and in His Word and living in service for Him as He guides us each day. THE besetting sin that began in the Garden of Eden and has continued ever since is living a life apart from God. That is the root of all human woes. When we truly submit to God and draw near to Him in daily communion and service we are indeed resisting the devil, purifying our hearts, and are no longer double-minded (half-hearted, lukewarm). God’s plan is for us to live in victory rather than being under continual defeat and guilt. In drawing ever nearer to our Savior we do indeed experience “joy unspeakable and full of glory” (1 Peter 1:8 KJV).
"Why should we live halfway up the hill and swathed in the mists, when we might have an unclouded sky and a radiant sun over our heads if we would climb higher and walk in the light of His face?"--Alexander MacLaren
(I am indebted to the late Pastor Morris Venden (1932-2013) for the main idea of what I’m sharing above. I started to be encouraged by his sermons in the 1960s. You will find a lot of his sermons on YouTube and they will bless you. Just type “Morris Venden Sermons” in the search box on YouTube. I still greatly appreciate his sermons which are centered around the theme of walking with Jesus. These sermons are LIFE TRANSFORMING. Listen and find out for yourself. TD)
I invite you to read CRUCIFIED WITH CHRIST which is on the link below:
CRUCIFIED WITH CHRIST