I'm a Christian, not a Satanist... but I think it's time we get to know Satan more. Why?
Usually at church we talk about God a lot but we hardly talk about the Devil. I was reading up more Bible verses that talk about Satan and it's actually pretty useful for our Christian lives... because instead of being depressed and falling into Satan's traps, we can recognize his schemes and combat them with the right mindset and tools.
We tend to forget that knowing our enemy is a great way to stay clear from damage, and a great way to combat him. So what does Satan like to do? (I can already see this being used in a future sermon, when I become a pastor)... Here are some verses that give insight...
1 Peter 5
8Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.
John 8:44b
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.
Ephesians 6:10-12
10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
Lately, I've been having some family problems and suicidal thoughts, and other problems too. We all have various problems, let's just admit it. Not just my family. But when we have those problems, we tend to focus on them and not look beyond to the greater picture. What is really behind the scenes when my family is arguing or my thoughts are telling me to jump in front of the subway train?
Our struggle is not against flesh and blood (people around us, e.g. family) or against our own minds. It is against the powers of this dark world. When a person becomes a Christian, and this person is devotedly following God, Satan's gonna get MAD!
My fellowship leader at ACI once told me that Satan's ultimate goal is to get us to commit suicide. He is a murderer after all. Because once a Christian commits suicide, there will be one less person to do God's work on earth and spread God's Kingdom. So we should be aware of that tactic.
Another thing is to calm down and realize that we should not argue so much over things that eventually will not matter. We need to save our time for the real battle. To equip ourselves with God's word, which eventually helps us to calm down and stop arguing anyway, and to love each other, spreading God's word to all people.
If you wanna know why I got so passionate and started sharing all these things, it's because this past Monday, I had a fundraising BBQ for my volunteer mission trip to Quebec in June, Steve's mission trip to Africa for 4 years, and International Justice Mission (to free young girls from prostitution).
The afternoon before the BBQ (Sun.) Steve said he got a fever and wasn't sure if he was gonna come. My friend and I prayed for his healing, because he was supposed to share about the mission trip the next day. My family and I also got into a problem in the middle of the night about a stupid phone call. And it just made me so depressed, and led to a deeper argument about my boyfriend. But in general, I now realize WHY this all happened the DAY BEFORE the fundraising BBQ. Because Satan is MAD!
It was not a coincidence. I mean, Steve doesn't get sick easily. And my family didn't argue for a LONG time. Thank God Steve got better the next day, and my family and I are good now, but the whole week, my boyfriend was depressed and had some other problems too that I will not mention. But you can see that Satan is working to destroy us because we are standing up more and more for God.
I feel stronger now because on Tuesday I visited Tyndale Bible Seminary, the school I'll be going to in September 2011 (God willing) and there was a class on Work and Ministry. Something the professor said hit me... HARD! He said, "In this world, goodness is usually rewarded. That's what perpetuates people to continue to be good. But Plato said that TRUE goodness only happens when a person is good and is PUNISHED, unjustly. If they continue to be good, that is true goodness."
That really encouraged me to continue being good. I still have problems with anger but hopefully by the end of this week I will calm down even more. Taking deep breaths might help. In any case, I know God has a plan for me... to equip God's people for His work in the world, as a pastor wherever I go.
To God be the thanks, praise, and glory.
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"Satan's ultimate goal is to get us to commit suicide. He is a murderer after all. Because once a Christian commits suicide, there will be one less person to do God's work on earth and spread God's Kingdom."
ReplyDeleteI really didn't know that if you kill yourself, there's one less person to do God's work. I thought you just die instantly and go to hell, because suicide is against God's will.
Also, I thought when you die and go to Heaven, you become God's minion and you're on God's side. Since God and Satan are always in conflict, does that not mean that eventually you will be in conflict again with Satan? or is that only for feeble humans that can be swayed with temptations and sins?
Hello Anonymous friend,
ReplyDeleteyou have very good questions there. The thing to consider is how the idea of suicide being the unforgiveable sin came about. When we read the Bible, Jesus mentions the "blasphemy of the Holy Spirit" as the only unforgiveable sin.
Now there are several hypotheses to what this "blasphemy of the Holy Spirit" is. The very traditional theory is that it is suicide, because our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit (as said in another part of the Bible), so killing yourself would be like mishandling of the Holy Spirit.
The 2nd very common thinking is that blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is refusing to believe in God. This would be quite straightforward, meaning, it is unforgiveable because that is the only lifeline God gives anyway, for us to believe in Him and be saved.
The 3rd theory is that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is talking about those who attribute God's miracles to Satan's work. This is in accordance to the Bible chapters where this whole question originated... Luke 11:14-12:12 ish... because the Pharisees were saying Jesus' miracles were from Beelzebub, aka the devil.
Now back to your original comment... that you didn't know that if you kill yourself, there's one less person to do God's work. I'm sure that probably God will continue to raise up leaders to do His work, but still, one worker lost is still one worker lost.
I strongly discourage suicide. It IS against God's will because he wants you to live life for the fullest. But I don't think that those who commit suicide will automatically go to hell even if they were a good Christian but just got depressed and couldn't control themselves.
Second question: After we go to heaven, will we still be at war with Satan. Technically yes, because Satan and us would be on different "teams" or whatever you call it. We would be against each other till satan gets locked into the lake of fire (see book of Revelation).
But in terms of temptations and sins, in heaven there is no more sin and no more pain. I don't know if there are still temptations but in any case, we will figure it out when we get there. :)
feel free to ask more questions or if you have something you don't understand, please tell me to clarify :D There's lots more to explore on your own too.
Ok, I few things.
ReplyDeleteI thought the holy spirit was a 3rd person. You know the holy trinity God, Jesus and Holy Ghost (or Spirit to those who follow the new views). So in terms of suicide, everyone on Earth is part of the Trinity? would it not be a Trinity or like... Infinite?
and you didn't answer my question on the terms of conflicts. So you say once you are in Heaven you no longer bear sins and pain. But what I was asking was would God make those who are by his side stay out of the fight or would you believe you would fight? Or would you be the angel that goes to people and whisper in their ears to fight against Satan and therefore having them commit murders in the name of the Lord. Would that not be a sin for the angel that influence this or would it be his sin?
Hi again, you are right in that the Trinity is three different persons, but they are also one. The Holy spirit's role is to be the guider and comforter of all Christians, and it says in the Bible... and about the issue of suicide one traditional view is that if you kill yourself, you will kill the temple of the Holy Spirit thus blaspheming against the holy spirit, which is the unforgiveable sin. (see 1 Corinthians 6:19-20)... that's what I was trying to get at. But I don't believe that view, like I said earlier.
ReplyDeleteIt's not that everyone on Earth is part of the Trinity. It's that all Christians have the Holy spirit dwelling in them. So Martine Lee is not God, but God makes His presence in me through the Holy Spirit. We can still say we are part of God's family but in Christianity we don't believe that everyone and every living thing has God and is God.
About your second question... I really don't know whether God would only send his angels to fight or make us angels. All I know is that in the book of Hebrews, it says that angels are different from humans and different from God. Honestly, I don't know much about angels... but if ever an angel said to me "fight against satan" I shouldn't be interpreting it as "kill people" because if you kill people, you just make them lose the chance of getting to know God while on earth.
That's why instead of fighting against countries like Iraq or Afghanistan and bringing down Western Christianity to them, a better way would be to live among them, serve them, let them serve us, and help them get to know God and Jesus in a way that fits their culture. Culture and Christianity should not be mixed... but I'm going on a tangent. Basically there is a lot about the afterlife that we dont know. But we can focus on the present and live every day for God in a way that is in accordance with Jesus' teachings :-)
See but you said you don't know but you only hope that you are right and trying to convince everyone else around you that you are right and should follow your belief that makes you the most correct person in the world.
ReplyDeleteWhat makes you truly believe that a man 1000 years ago said my 1st Dad is the almighty creator. Why don't we believe now that if someone comes out the door and says I'm the new coming of Jesus. What stopping you from having a bunch of people kill you so you can do bear the sins of the world? Maybe they should have the teachings of Martine Lee instead of Jesus Christ you all are cheering for the same guy anyways
Sorry, but I really don't understand where you are trying to go with this. I wonder if you really want to seek after evidence or you just want to ask questions for the sake of criticism.
ReplyDeleteIn any case, those who seek will find, and for those who knock, the door will be opened. If you ask me, you may not receive, but if you ask God, and ask with a sincere heart, He will reveal Himself to you in His own way, even if it's not in the way that you expect.
And I'm starting to get confused how many Anonymous's there are. There is one who is quite rude and one who is quite sincere. Maybe it's the same person but they going from sincere to angry? Anyway, I wish there was some way of distinguishing who is who.
ReplyDelete