Sunday, January 15, 2017

GET THEE BEHIND ME SATAN!

Matt. 16:23 – “But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men”.
                                                                                                                                                                   
 Get thee behind me, Satan” seems harsh and not a character for Jesus, especially when addressing Peter, one of His most devout disciples. This was Peter, who a few chapters earlier identified Jesus rightly as the Christ, the son of the living God. But Jesus had just revealed to His disciples for the first time the plan: He was to go to Jerusalem to suffer, die, and be raised to life (Matthew 16:21; Mark 8:31). Contrary to their expectations, Jesus explained that He had not come to establish an earthly kingdom at that time. The disciples were not prepared for this new revelation of the Messiah’s purpose. Though Peter understood His words, he simply could not reconcile his view of the conquering Messiah with the suffering and death Jesus spoke of. So Peter “began to rebuke Him” for having such a fatalistic mindset.

But without knowing it, Peter was innocently speaking for Satan. Peter was not setting his mind on  things of God—His ways, His plans, and His purposes (Colossians 3:2; Isaiah 55:8-9). Instead, his mind was set on the things of man, the world and its earthly values. Peter was inadvertently being used of Satan in thinking he was protecting Jesus. Satan did same to Jesus in the wilderness to divert Him from the cross, (Mark 1:12-13). Innocently, Peter was doing the same thing. He had not yet grasped Jesus’ true Messianic purpose.

The very thing Peter was trying to prevent was the very thing Jesus came to do – "to give his life as a ransom for many" and, through his atoning death, "to bring us to God." (Matthew 20:28; 1 Peter 3:18).

Note this!
Sometimes we need to rebuke the devil sharply when we sense him pestering us. Peter’s stead could be your brother, parents, friend or somebody close to you. Peter’s situation shows us how we can become an unwitting spokesperson for Satan. This is especially true when we lose sight of God’s plan for us. This comes about when our focus is on our careers, our possessions, our security, things of the world rather than upon sacrifice and service, and the proclaiming of God’s message. When Peter’s focus shifted to his own desires and plans, Jesus rebuked him in order to get him back on track.

The Christian warfare
The Christian will be in constant battle with the forces that militate against him throughout life on earth. Some Christians are ignorant of the existence and source of this battle because it sounds peaceful around (no persecution like formally) - 1Thess. 5:3. To live the just Christian life is a battle withour arch enemy, Satan and to walk in victory as Christians  means we have to know his schemes and how to deal with him..

How did the Christian warfare start?
The Christian warfare began when Satan fell to earth from heaven. He vowed to revenge on God’s children (believers or Christians). See Revelation 12:1-12 (note v.12).

Satan has been on the attack since he was cast down unto earth. He was there in the garden of Eden- to deceive Adam &Eve; He was there at Jesus’s birth through Herod- to kill baby Jesus; He was there after Jesus 40day fasting- to deceive Jesus; He worked through the Chief Priests & Scribes- to instigate Jesus death at Calvary and to barricade the tombin order to prevent the resurrection; Satan has been there to cause commotion and hindrance to the preaching of the word of God in the Apostles time through intimidation, killings, imprisonments and riots. He is still here today causing havoc and deceiving believers until Jesus Christ comes to chain him anytime soon.

Strategies of Satan- They are cunningly many
In the Christian warfare, Satan is our main enemy using various areas of attack on Christians. For example, he attacks through lusts, faith, diseases, loss of properties and various hindrances so that we won’t be able to do what God wants’ us to do.  He did it to Judas- through lust for money; Job- through loss of properties, death of children and wife’s advice to curse God; Paul- through trials and tribulations; David- through lust after somebody’s wife and murder; Solomon- through womanizing; lust for money, failures, drunkenness, family members, fornication, adultery, tolerance of sin, etc. In these last days, one of his greatest tools against Christians is deception, temptation and accusations.  He cunningly works through different mediums and persons to destroy us.

Remember, all he does is to steal, kill and destroy!

Our Christian strategy in warfare
How can we overcome Satan in this warfare? You have to be sure you are a Christian and filled with the Holy Spirit; Not just a church-goer. Know the strategy of our enemy (Satan) as mentioned above and be conscious of his presence in any situation of stealing, killing and destroying you in life.  Again, Know and use your Christian weapon (Ephesians 6:10-18), which is the perfect armour of God, not the imperfect of Goliath, which was easily penetrated by David’s stone or Saul’s armour, which did not fit David for battle with Goliath. The perfect armour of God fits everyone no matter your size or shape and it comprises the following:

a)     Belt of truth, holiness: Belt holds all garments together and prevents them from falling apart. Truthfulness makes you credible, worthy and can stand accusation as our Lord Jesus Christ did before Pilate.
b)     Breast plate of righteousness: It covers our hearts and not our backs. You shall stand firm in righteousness with a pure heart and to move confidently forward.
c)     Feet in gospel of peace: When the foot is grounded in battle, it prevents the soldier from falling. If you are grounded in the word of God, no deception can win you. Study and know the gospel, walk in it daily and spread it.
d)     Shield of faith: The shield is the first defense in attack and it is your faith in battle. If you hold on firmly to the faith in Jesus Christ, you will ward off the fiery darts of the devil.
e)     Helmet of salvation: the helmet prevents entry into our minds, things of this world. Confess Jesus always and let Him be your only hope.
f)      Sword of the Spirit: the sword is for attacking and cutting the enemy in battle. Our sword (word of God) is sharper than a double-edged sword; it is the same when turned both ways. Hold firmly onto the sword; know how to use it well in battle. Jesus, tempted by Satan, using a twisted word was defeated by Jesus skillfully used the word against Satan.
g)     Prayer: Beware of God’s presence. Call on Him at all times. When the going gets tough, talk (pray) to God about it. He is ready to hear and answer.

Assurance of victory
There is absolutely total victory for us as Christ did on Calvary, so far as we depend on Christ and the weapons. see 1John 4:4, 1 Corin. 10:13; 1 John 5:4

Finally
How should we live then? We must continually depend on Jesus Christ daily through bible study, prayer and fasting for consistent victory over Satan. The Christian should learn to resist and rebuke Satan, as Jesus did, when we sense him (satan) around us and he will flee.


May our focus always be on God and His plans, that we may never experience a similar rebuke as Peter but we will rather declare to Satan “Get thee behind me”!  Amen!

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