Knowing the tactics of the enemy of our soul (Satan) will allow us to refrain from taking any of it personally. What we do not take personally we do not react to, that's the rule.
Our response or reaction to the attacks of Satan says something about us. Either we have learned to remain trusting Christ or we are still living in our emotional space that trips us up.
We can ignore an insult, remove ourselves when we see a fight is brewing or we can respond to explain and defend which is only food for those who love to feel superior.
Proverbs 12:15-17 "…15 The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to counsel. 16 A fool’s anger is known at once, but a prudent man overlooks an insult. 17 He who speaks the truth declares what is right, but a false witness speaks deceit."
Tuesday, January 8, 2019
All Believers Should Use Scripture
This was given to all believers, men women and children. No special class of people will have more wisdom simply because of their class, age or gender!
Blind Obedience to Human Authority is Sin
When God said "obey the elders" in the church gathering he was not saying to obey all that they want. The original language conveys this truth:
"be persuaded by the truth they proclaim."
In the case of obedience to elders in the church and husbands at home, we are to listen to them, evaluate what is said. If what is said lines up with truth from God's Word then we are to obey the truth of God's Word.
Following elders or husbands blindly no matter what they tell us to do is not only not Biblical it is foolish.
If we love our elders and if we love our husbands we will support them when they obey God and decline to obey them when they do not obey God.
We are never to be more loyal to a man, no matter who that man is, than we are to Christ.
Blind loyalty to a man is Satan's tool to destroy the one who chooses not to think for themselves and with the mind of Christ. Those who are blindly loyal hardly ever evaluate anything. They remain comfortable with whatever keeps the false peace of compromise.
The command to think with the mind of Christ is not just for the men, it is for the women too, even the children who are born again.
I have known many women who disobey God to obey their husband's false gospel. When this happens the husband is the god of the woman's life, not the God of the Bible. Both are in jeopardy of God's discipline and even wrath.
I can never forget a man who counseled a new believer, a woman, that she should obey her husband who wanted her to look at hard porn in their home because he was the leader. This was Satanic and evil. The damage that porn does to the delicate conscience of a new believer will drive her further from her husband if she becomes strong in the Lord or it has the potential of causing that woman to fall into worse immorality. Not to mention her personal witness to her husband of her dedication to Christ.
A woman can win an unsaved husband through her submission to Christ.
My advice to that new believer would have been to respectfully decline and remove herself from the room. If the husband were a believer doing this then it is the believing wife's responsibility to declare that it not be done in their home. If the believing husband would not comply then more drastic measures must be take to smash all the videos and the television to prevent evil from coming into her home. She is the keeper of her home and must take a stand with a believing husband.
Its hard to believe but there are many "professing Christians" who are indulging in porn these days, even pastors. The wives of these men need to demand that it be removed and never brought back into their home.
Ungodly pretenders will use the "submission card" to intimidate women into doing evil. Ladies you must become strong in the Lord and protect your home.
Job 11:14 "If iniquity is in your hand, put it far away, And do not let wickedness dwell in your tents;"
"be persuaded by the truth they proclaim."
In the case of obedience to elders in the church and husbands at home, we are to listen to them, evaluate what is said. If what is said lines up with truth from God's Word then we are to obey the truth of God's Word.
Following elders or husbands blindly no matter what they tell us to do is not only not Biblical it is foolish.
If we love our elders and if we love our husbands we will support them when they obey God and decline to obey them when they do not obey God.
We are never to be more loyal to a man, no matter who that man is, than we are to Christ.
Blind loyalty to a man is Satan's tool to destroy the one who chooses not to think for themselves and with the mind of Christ. Those who are blindly loyal hardly ever evaluate anything. They remain comfortable with whatever keeps the false peace of compromise.
The command to think with the mind of Christ is not just for the men, it is for the women too, even the children who are born again.
I have known many women who disobey God to obey their husband's false gospel. When this happens the husband is the god of the woman's life, not the God of the Bible. Both are in jeopardy of God's discipline and even wrath.
I can never forget a man who counseled a new believer, a woman, that she should obey her husband who wanted her to look at hard porn in their home because he was the leader. This was Satanic and evil. The damage that porn does to the delicate conscience of a new believer will drive her further from her husband if she becomes strong in the Lord or it has the potential of causing that woman to fall into worse immorality. Not to mention her personal witness to her husband of her dedication to Christ.
A woman can win an unsaved husband through her submission to Christ.
My advice to that new believer would have been to respectfully decline and remove herself from the room. If the husband were a believer doing this then it is the believing wife's responsibility to declare that it not be done in their home. If the believing husband would not comply then more drastic measures must be take to smash all the videos and the television to prevent evil from coming into her home. She is the keeper of her home and must take a stand with a believing husband.
Its hard to believe but there are many "professing Christians" who are indulging in porn these days, even pastors. The wives of these men need to demand that it be removed and never brought back into their home.
Ungodly pretenders will use the "submission card" to intimidate women into doing evil. Ladies you must become strong in the Lord and protect your home.
Job 11:14 "If iniquity is in your hand, put it far away, And do not let wickedness dwell in your tents;"
Satan Loves to Devalue
Satan is an abuser he loves to devalue and destroy human beings. If he can keep those who love God in a state of frustration and fear he can reduce their effectiveness for Christ. This is why we must trust Christ, see His truth and move forward, giving the narcissist no foot hold in our lives by listening to them.
When we base our worth or effectiveness on what others might think of us we will not be able to carry out God's plan for us as His children.
The abuser only thinks they know you, they have an idea of us that is only a concoction in their own mind, its not you at all. They choose to believe what they want to believe about you, not what is real. This is Satan's ploy to keep God's children fearful of rejection.
Envious people are very unhappy people bent on destroying those whom they envy. Satan is an envious being, angry that he could not be like God and even attempting to overthrow God. This shows us just how foolish he was. He was with God and should have known better, that God was far more infinitely powerful than he is.
This is the case with narcissists too, they have such a high view of their own importance that they cannot see how beggarly they are in reality. They believe they are superior to others therefore excusing themselves for their rudeness toward their targets.
Satan believed he was superior to the God Who made him. He was so infected with jealousy that he indoctrinated himself by his own thoughts that he could achieve the highest power.
Satan goes to the throne of grace every day accusing the brethren.
Revelation 12:10 "10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying: “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of His Christ. For the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, he who accuses them day and night before our God. "
Competitiveness is a demonstration of a need to be superior to others. There is no problem for one compete with themselves to improve at something. The problem comes when we feel a need to defeat others to be superior to them.
I see this in athletes all the time, they have a need to be better, faster and bigger than those around them. When they use physical prowess as a means of evaluating themselves they are missing the more important aspect of our being and that is the spiritual.
There is an aspect of sports that promotes team cooperation, this is good, to see the team as the purpose for doing well. Being an asset to the group to accomplish the goal is "others" focused. When a team thinks in terms of supporting one another to accomplish a goal, then there is true sportsmanship. Yes, the goal is to win but winning should never demean or destroy others to meet that goal.
In family dynamics we will often see a spirit of competitiveness to be superior. When this happens we as believers must resist the temptation to play the game. We must remain true to God's principles no matter how anyone else is acting.
Proverbs 6:12-16
"A worthless person, a wicked man, goes about with crooked speech, winks with his eyes, signals with his feet, points with his finger, with perverted heart devises evil, continually sowing discord; therefore calamity will come upon him suddenly; in a moment he will be broken beyond healing. There are six things that the Lord hates, seven that are an abomination to him:"
We must train our minds to think like Christ while ignoring personal attacks, unless they are executed by believers who need a rebuke to get back to godliness.
Proverbs 28:1-28
"The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are bold as a lion. When a land transgresses, it has many rulers, but with a man of understanding and knowledge, its stability will long continue. A poor man who oppresses the poor is a beating rain that leaves no food. Those who forsake the law praise the wicked, but those who keep the law strive against them. Evil men do not understand justice, but those who seek the Lord understand it completely. ..."
Praise the Lord, we can live in this world without becoming like it.
Psalm 37:1
"Of David. Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers!"
Hebrews 13:6
"So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”
Hallelujah!!!!
When we base our worth or effectiveness on what others might think of us we will not be able to carry out God's plan for us as His children.
The abuser only thinks they know you, they have an idea of us that is only a concoction in their own mind, its not you at all. They choose to believe what they want to believe about you, not what is real. This is Satan's ploy to keep God's children fearful of rejection.
Envious people are very unhappy people bent on destroying those whom they envy. Satan is an envious being, angry that he could not be like God and even attempting to overthrow God. This shows us just how foolish he was. He was with God and should have known better, that God was far more infinitely powerful than he is.
This is the case with narcissists too, they have such a high view of their own importance that they cannot see how beggarly they are in reality. They believe they are superior to others therefore excusing themselves for their rudeness toward their targets.
Satan believed he was superior to the God Who made him. He was so infected with jealousy that he indoctrinated himself by his own thoughts that he could achieve the highest power.
Satan goes to the throne of grace every day accusing the brethren.
Revelation 12:10 "10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying: “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of His Christ. For the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, he who accuses them day and night before our God. "
Competitiveness is a demonstration of a need to be superior to others. There is no problem for one compete with themselves to improve at something. The problem comes when we feel a need to defeat others to be superior to them.
I see this in athletes all the time, they have a need to be better, faster and bigger than those around them. When they use physical prowess as a means of evaluating themselves they are missing the more important aspect of our being and that is the spiritual.
There is an aspect of sports that promotes team cooperation, this is good, to see the team as the purpose for doing well. Being an asset to the group to accomplish the goal is "others" focused. When a team thinks in terms of supporting one another to accomplish a goal, then there is true sportsmanship. Yes, the goal is to win but winning should never demean or destroy others to meet that goal.
In family dynamics we will often see a spirit of competitiveness to be superior. When this happens we as believers must resist the temptation to play the game. We must remain true to God's principles no matter how anyone else is acting.
Proverbs 6:12-16
"A worthless person, a wicked man, goes about with crooked speech, winks with his eyes, signals with his feet, points with his finger, with perverted heart devises evil, continually sowing discord; therefore calamity will come upon him suddenly; in a moment he will be broken beyond healing. There are six things that the Lord hates, seven that are an abomination to him:"
We must train our minds to think like Christ while ignoring personal attacks, unless they are executed by believers who need a rebuke to get back to godliness.
Proverbs 28:1-28
"The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are bold as a lion. When a land transgresses, it has many rulers, but with a man of understanding and knowledge, its stability will long continue. A poor man who oppresses the poor is a beating rain that leaves no food. Those who forsake the law praise the wicked, but those who keep the law strive against them. Evil men do not understand justice, but those who seek the Lord understand it completely. ..."
Praise the Lord, we can live in this world without becoming like it.
Psalm 37:1
"Of David. Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers!"
Hebrews 13:6
"So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”
Hallelujah!!!!
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